Furnished apartments in Emaar Beachfront, Dubai Harbour

The community has a few cafés and a supermarket. That covers the everyday: coffee, milk, something for dinner. It does not try to be a nightlife district, and it is noticeably quieter than the Marina across the water. For a lot of our tenants, that quiet is the point.

Most of your downtime happens within the towers themselves. Depending on the building, you get an infinity pool, a gym, a spa with sauna and steam rooms, children's pools and play areas, landscaped gardens, jogging trails and barbecue areas. Security runs around the clock, and several towers have a concierge. Grand Bleu has interiors designed by Elie Saab, if that sort of thing matters to you.

This is car territory. Cars and taxis are how residents get about, and your week here will run on them too. Dubai Marina is a short drive away. It sits right across the water; if you hope to walk there, check the route from your tower before you count on it. Palm Jumeirah is the other neighbour.

Parking is allocated, underground or covered depending on the tower, and some buildings offer valet. A yacht club comes up in the descriptions of one or two buildings, so if being able to walk to it matters to you, ask us how close it is to the specific apartment you are considering.

Most of what we have here are one-bedroom apartments. That suits the typical Emaar Beachfront tenant well: a consultant on a project, a couple relocating, or someone whose long-term lease starts in a few months. A separate bedroom matters more than people expect on a long stay, especially if you work from the flat some days.

Views vary by tower and floor. Partial sea or Marina views are more common than full ones, so ask what a specific apartment actually looks out on. Two-bedrooms turn up less often. Families should tell us early. Studios are not really part of our mix here, so if that is what you want, another district will serve you better.

If you want restaurants and bars at your front door, the Marina is the better base. The island has its own cafés and some dining, but a wider choice of evenings out means a car journey every time.

Without a car, you will be taking taxis daily, and that wears thin for some people. There is a supermarket and some retail on the island, but check whether it covers your weekly shop before assuming you will never need to leave. And if you like a neighbourhood where things happen on the street, a gated island of towers may feel too still. For others, those same points are exactly why they choose it.