What's the difference between Half Board (HB) and Half Board Plus (HB+) packages at UAE resort hotels?

The resort gets crowded on weekends: breakfast queues after 9am can run up to 5 minutes, and tables for 5+ guests can be tricky but staff sort it out quickly.

The Italian a la carte restaurant is open on select days; the pool bar operates but the beach bar is closed; the evening bar runs until midnight (2am on Saturdays).

Ice cream and fruit are served outdoors during the day: ice cream from 12pm-6pm (ice cream is not always in stock, though ice is), fruit from 12pm-5pm.

The reception has many Russian-speaking staff members, and staff overall are friendly and helpful.

Beach towels are available both at the beach and pool; at the beach you pick them up yourself in the morning.

With the HB+ package, alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks are unlimited during a 2-hour dinner window.

With the HB package, only water is included at dinner, but guests can visit restaurants at 2 neighboring hotels with a 150 AED deposit.

The price difference between HB and HB+ for a 12-day package rose from about 12,000 RUB for two people last year to about 50,000 RUB this year.