I stayed at the world’s first urban fitness resort (and ate too much)

By Jenny Hewett

April 21, 2025 — 5.00am

My emotional support therapist grins on the opposite side of the glass. Wearing black gloves, socks, slippers and a face mask, I stand before her inside the chamber like a Mattel doll in a box: Frozen Barbie. White smoke begins to coil around my bare limbs as she motions for me to mimic her moves.

First we squat, then we pump our arms; now we shake. Three minutes we spend in this strange, synchronised waltz as the temperature drops to -85 degrees. I’m dancing in the cryotherapy chamber in the Recovery Lab at Dubai’s new SIRO One Za’abeel, the world’s first urban fitness resort. And this is just one of many ways to test your limits (and temptations) at this fitness-crazed hotel.

Poolside bliss … Tapasake, the UAE’s longest suspended infinity pool.

A “world-first” from Kerzner Group, which owns the luxurious One&Only brand as well as Atlantis, SIRO One Za’abeel is geared towards (but not exclusive to) business travellers, and its entry into the market has come at an optimum but not unexpected time. Health is wealth. It’s also big business.

According to the Global Wellness Institute, the wellness market reached $US6.3 trillion ($10.1 trillion) in 2023 and is predicted to hit a whopping $US9 trillion in 2028. Wellness retreats have long been synonymous with Bali and Thailand, but SIRO’s accessible, unstructured approach is in tune with its city setting.

City skyline views from the Premium King room.

Occupying one side of the now iconic H-shaped skyscraper it shares with super-luxury sister resort One&Only Zaa’beel, the 132-room stay in Downtown Dubai is aimed at a younger demographic. Reception has a casual, buzzy feel, with staff dressed in athleisure and a muted yet energetic palette of blush with faint metallics and forest green accents. The 885-square-metre Fitness Lab features astonishing views of the Burj Khalifa, and is manned by Master Trainers, who require more certification than standard personal trainers.

Reformer machines at the Pilates studio.

Fitness classes in the Experience Box are free to hotel guests, while residents can pay. The warm, chatty vibe here is a real highlight, and emblematic of Dubai’s unique multicultural makeup.

Ever heard of an MLX i3Dome? Me neither. NASA uses the hot coffin-esque green infrared detoxifying treatment to train its astronauts for space. SIRO has many contraptions I’ve never heard of, probably because my own “peak performance” is best reached on the sofa on a Sunday, but I do like to keep fit. That can be a balancing act at this hotel, which shares real estate with The Link; a cantilevered dining destination that’s home to new restaurants from a roll-call of awarded chefs, including Tetsuya Wakuda and France’s Anne-Sophie Pic.

Fitness awaits in these purpose-built health suites.Credit:

By day, I grind in the gym, and by night, I dine on the finest 10-course degustation menus with paired wines.

This rhythm plays out over three nights while staying in a Recovery Suite, which was designed by AC Milan’s sleep specialist Anna West. It’s a calming space with a large walk-in wardrobe (three pieces of laundry a day are included), massage room and a thermo-regulating mattress. I’m told there’s an app to optimise my stay in the suite, but no one explains how to set it up.

While here, I’m on a pretty tight fitness and pampering schedule: a consult with the nutritionist; personal training with Kenzo from Egypt; boxing classes; an incredible modular massage and skin work-out facial, and not nearly enough time in the Recovery Lab’s sauna, steam, cold plunge and chill-out spaces. But I still find an hour to unwind at the pool. Guests at SIRO have access to a Bali-style oasis, but if you want to bask in the world’s longest infinity pool on level 10, you can do so only between 6am and 10am, or book a stay at the sister property.

The hotel is based around five “bio-hacking pillars” of fitness, nutrition, sleep, recovery and mindfulness, but the nutrition aspect is still a work in progress. Plans are apparently under way to open a cafe; for now, there’s a vending machine dispensing fresh, calorie-conscious meals but no tailored options, unless you pre-plan.

Immerse yourself … the hotel pool.Credit:

Tapasake offers excellent light Japanese bites, while the egg-white shakshuka at breakfast restaurant Arrazuna is one of the best things I’ve eaten this year. My goal is to drop a few kilos before heading onto Europe, but instead, I eat and drink wine like there’s no tomorrow. I don’t gain weight, I don’t lose any either. Instead, I leave with what I really needed: a stronger, more radiant self.