The best luxury desert resort in the world in 2026 is Amangiri in Utah, with Al Maha in Dubai and Adrere Amellal in Egypt close behind. This list covers 10 desert resorts, from candle-lit Egyptian earth lodges to Arizona golf casitas and a Bahrain all-villa palace. We ranked them on our own judgment of how well each one uses the desert itself, then checked who owns and runs each property today, because several have changed brand or closed parts of their operation since the first version of this article.
Top 10 luxury desert resorts at a glance
| Rank | Resort | Where | What sets it apart |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amangiri | Utah, USA | 34 suites and a concrete-and-sandstone design |
| 2 | Al Maha | Dubai, UAE | Private villas inside a 225 km² conservation reserve |
| 3 | Adrere Amellal Desert Ecolodge | Siwa, Egypt | 40 earth rooms lit by candles, no electricity |
| 4 | Dar Ahlam | Skoura, Morocco | A kasbah in a palm grove with plunge-pool villas |
| 5 | Raffles Al Areen Palace Bahrain | Zallaq, Bahrain | 78 private-pool villas, reopened as Raffles in 2023 |
| 6 | Bab Al Shams | Dubai, UAE | A fort-style resort run by Jumeirah |
| 7 | The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain | Marana, Arizona | Casita village and a Nicklaus golf course |
| 8 | The Boulders Resort & Spa | Carefree, Arizona | Adobe-style casitas among ancient boulders |
| 9 | Barr Al Jissah | Muscat, Oman | Three hotels, now under Hilton |
| 10 | Meliá Desert Palm | Dubai, UAE | A polo-estate boutique resort, formerly Per Aquum |
1. Amangiri, Utah
Amangiri opened in 2009 in Canyon Point, near Glen Canyon, with 34 suites. The resort belongs to Aman Resorts and sits on a 600-acre parcel. The design, by Marwan Al-Sayed, Rick Joy and Wendell Burnett, uses large concrete slabs, and a sandstone escarpment pushes into the main pool.
In 2020 the resort added Camp Sarika, which has 10 free-standing tented pavilions for up to 30 guests. That makes it the newest entrant here and our pick for the most complete desert stay.
2. Al Maha, Dubai
Al Maha sits inside the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve, a 225-square-kilometre protected area that holds the largest free-roaming herd of Arabian oryx in the UAE. Listings describe 42 private villas, and the resort has been part of the Luxury Collection since 2010.
Rates are the highest on this list. One booking listing showed about $1,600 a night in January, though it did not state the year, so treat that as a rough guide only.
3. Adrere Amellal Desert Ecolodge, Siwa, Egypt
The lodge’s own site says it has 40 hand-built rooms in earth buildings at Gaafar Mountain in Siwa. There is no electricity: rooms are lit by a dozen beeswax candles and the night sky.
Excursions include the Temple of the Oracle, Cleopatra’s Water Spring, the old town of Shali and Fatnas Island. Third-party listings quote roughly $450 to $600 per room per night, often with meals, but the lodge does not publish rates, so confirm directly.
4. Dar Ahlam, Skoura, Morocco
Dar Ahlam is a converted kasbah in the Skoura palm grove near Ouarzazate. Sources disagree on the room count: some list eight or nine suites plus three villas, others 14 suites and villas in total. The villas have their own plunge pools.
There is a garden pool, a hammam and excursions by 4×4, horse or camel. One hotel directory lists rooms from £425 per night.
5. Raffles Al Areen Palace Bahrain
The resort formerly known as Al Areen Palace & Spa reopened in December 2023 under the Raffles brand as Bahrain’s first all-villa hotel. It has 78 private-pool villas of one to three bedrooms, each with a butler, on the west coast at Zallaq. The old article placed it at Sakhir, which is wrong for today’s resort.
The largest villa, the Royal Three-Bedroom, has close to 8,000 square feet of living space. The property is alcohol-free and has a Mediterranean restaurant called Palma.
6. Bab Al Shams, Dubai
Bab Al Shams is owned by Jumeirah and sits next to Endurance Village, less than an hour from Dubai. Listings give 113 to 115 rooms, most with a terrace or patio, plus twin infinity pools and the Satori Spa.
One travel site reported that three restaurants, Anwa, Al Hadheerah and Rait, were closed until the end of August 2026. Check which venues are open before you book dinner packages. A directory listing shows rates from AED 1,300 a night, undated.
7. The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain, Arizona
The resort opened on December 18, 2009 in the Dove Mountain community near Tucson, alongside a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course. The official room pages list rooms, suites and a casita village with private patios and canyon views.
A 2012 profile counted 209 guest rooms and 44 casita and suite units. That count is old, so use it only as a sense of scale.
8. The Boulders Resort & Spa, Carefree, Arizona
The old article called this a Waldorf Astoria resort. It now operates in Hilton’s Curio Collection, although a review noted that some Waldorf Astoria branding on towels and robes lingered after the change. The site is near Scottsdale, among granite boulders.
Room counts vary by source, with one recent listing giving 215 casitas and villas. Golf, a spa and hiking are the main draws.
9. Barr Al Jissah, Muscat, Oman
This resort opened in 2006 as Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah and ran for 20 years as three hotels: Al Waha, Al Bandar and Al Husn. Since January 1, 2026 it has been managed by Hilton. The setting is more coast and mountain than pure desert, which is why it ranks this low.
Al Waha is now a DoubleTree by Hilton with 302 rooms, Al Bandar is a Hilton with 198 rooms, and the 180-room Al Husn is due to become the Waldorf Astoria Muscat Al Husn in 2027 after renovations.
10. Meliá Desert Palm, Dubai
Desert Palm opened in 2008 as a Per Aquum boutique resort. A 2018 trade report said Meliá Hotels International would take over its management, and some listings now use the Meliá name.
Other listings still show the old brand, so we could not pin down the current operator with a single source. Confirm the name on your booking.
Dropped from the original list
One entry could not be confirmed.
- Hotel de Larache, Atacama, Chile: we found no source confirming that this hotel is operating under that name, so it has been replaced by Amangiri.
FAQ
What is the best luxury desert resort in the world?
On our ranking it is Amangiri in Utah, which opened in 2009 with 34 suites and added 10 tented pavilions in 2020. Al Maha in Dubai and Adrere Amellal in Egypt are the closest rivals.
Which desert resort has no electricity?
Adrere Amellal in Siwa, Egypt. Its 40 rooms are lit by beeswax candles and the lodge says it has no electricity.
Which desert resorts changed brand recently?
Barr Al Jissah in Oman moved from Shangri-La to Hilton on January 1, 2026. The Boulders in Arizona now sits in Hilton’s Curio Collection, and Al Areen Palace in Bahrain reopened as a Raffles hotel in December 2023.
How much does a luxury desert resort cost?
Rates swing widely. Third-party listings show roughly $450 to $600 a night at Adrere Amellal and about £425 at Dar Ahlam, while Al Maha listings run far higher. Always check the resort’s own booking page for your dates.
When is the best time to visit a desert resort?
Cooler months work best. Gulf resorts such as Al Maha and Bab Al Shams are hottest in summer, and the Arizona and Utah resorts are most comfortable in spring and autumn.
How we put this list together
We checked who owns and operates each resort, how many rooms it has and what changed since the original article, using the resorts’ own pages and public listings. The order is our judgment of how well each stay uses its desert setting, and rates are noted only where a dated or clearly described listing exists.
Last updated: October 2026.
