Al Maha Desert Resort and Spa in Dubai has joined Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide as the latest addition to its Luxury Collection brand.

The hotel will be renamed Al Maha, a Luxury Collection Desert Resort and Spa, Dubai, with Emirates retaining ownership of the resort and Starwood overseeing its management. Designed and built to be environmentally friendly, the resort - which recreates a Bedouin encampment - features 42 suites with tented roofs, floor-to-ceiling windows, marbled bathrooms, private deck and pool.

Al Maha sits within the 225sq km Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve, one of the largest formally protected conservation reserves in the Gulf, and provides indigenous experiences such as sunset camel rides, desert safaris, wildlife drives, horse-riding and falconry. The hotel's Timeless Spa offers a range of unique treatments and an infinity pool, while a suite of meeting rooms is also available.

The Al Maha Desert Resort and Spa is Starwood's second Luxury Collection hotel in the UAE - joining the Grosvenor House Dubai - and its third in the Middle East. Across eight of its nine brands, the company operates more than 50 hotels in the area.