GraemeC

Going to Egypt in mid-april. Would appreciate advce with regard to hotels in cairo in the downtown area, such as Hilton Nile, Conrad, Sheraton and then in the Giza area. We will be travelling through Cairo in the beginning was thinking of staying downtown and then on the way home staying at a Giza hotel (have booked at Meridien Pyramids for 1 night). Any thoughts as to this. Have three days in Luxor, at the Hilton. Then 6 days at Sharm, split between the Renaissance and Conrad. Any thoughts as to hotels. Also what is the best way to pick up a guide in cairo and luxor, can these be done easily at the airport/hotel, is this safe? (Did this in Cambodia). Thanks for your comments

Joelle

We picked our guides in Cairo and Luxor from the travel agencies based in our hotels and were quite pleased with them.

josemacall

I was in Egypt in Dec. 2002, visiting Cairo, Luxor, Assuan..., from Madrid.

My favorite hotel in Cairo was Mena House, with best views over the Pyramids you can find. In Luxor you can look for Winter Palace, where you will meet H. Poirot walking in .
Do not forget that Giza area is 16 Km from downtown, so you'll need cabs to get there (great hotels as Mensa House have there own taxis, wich are a little expensier but the difference is worth value).

Any way, all the luxury hotels are great, but as I was going to such a country, I prefered the old buildings from the colonial era.

Travelnick

I stayed at Royal Nile which last year became the Hyatt. I think the room quality is very good, restaurants are bit inconsistent. Health club and pool are very good. Definitely superior to Sheratons. Nile Hilton is a little dated but lots of businessmen still go there as food has best rep and service is good. Conrad is very new and had good location for best middle class shopping mall. I would stay downtown and make day trip to Giza as more to do at night.

Bchen

Just came back from 3 weeks in Egypt. I would NOT recommend Mena House at all (except Moghul Room was awesome Indian food). Stay at Nile Hilton but make reservations for dinner one night at Moghul Room (taxi is 15pounds to Mena House). Being out by the pyramids is over rated, very isolating.
Hyatt in Sharm was awesome in terms of facilties and service, but food sucked big time. Take the shuttles into town for a great array of restaurants.

le Meridien in Luxor was decent and I'd recommend it.

pgmargate

we stayed at the 4 seasons in cairo, it was very nice, try get nile view room if possible. in luxor stayed at old winter palace the old colonial side. the building has "charm" but it is pretty well run down, some people prefer the new wing.

NnN

I live in Egypt, and I would recommend the following:
1. Stay at the Cairo Sheraton Hotel, try to get a tower room, Nile View. The location is perfect, its rooms are really spacious and the service is awesome. They have a really good collection of restaurants too.
2. In Luxor, I stayed at the Windsor Palace, and it was just fitting to stay in a historical monument when your entire stay in Luxor is about history. Its not so luxurious, however, its in a great location.
3. In Sharm - I also recommend the Sheraton. Its one of the biggest hotels there, and has plenty of facilities, and the food is great. Its not so close to Naema bay (neither are many of the good hotels), but Naema is more fun at night anyway, so you can just take the hotel shuttle service at night.

Joelle

Message for Bchen:
Regarding Mena House, what did you dislike in this hotel?

Bchen

Hi joelle
I did not like Mena House for several reasons, most notably the rooms and location. Small, worn, and rundown rooms were what I'd expect of an old Holiday Inn, not a "4-5 star" hotel. The location was not great except for seeing the pyramids. we spent so much time in transit from our 'in city" activities and back to the hotel to freshen up before heading back into the city for an evening event (Nile Cruise Dinner, etc.) Traffic is unpredictable and we found it wuite heavy (and we live in Beijing with 20 million people!!!)

I felt over and over if we had been at Nile Hilton or someplace in Zamalek we would have had so much more time to do and see rather than shuttle.

I also found the staff not so great. We weren't on a tour group and we were treated like 2nd class citizens while they attended to tour group leaders. I specifically asked a guy at concierge what a taxi to Nile hilton would cost (I was meeting a friend) and he told me 35 pounds. Turns out it is a 12- 15 pound ride. (The concierge at the hilton told me that when I asked for my return!!!) The bank in the hotel wouldn't give me small denominations when I asked...and they are the bank!!!!

Breakfast buffet was less than average, but I guess I am spoiled by living in Asia, and the fresh fruit that is the best.

Anyway, we loved egypt, don't get me wrong, but to do it again, I'd NEVER stay at Mena House, but I would defintely go there for one meal at Moghul Room (make reservations).

Joelle

Many thanks for your answer.
My problem is that we'll be staying at the Nile Hilton upon arrival in Cairo, and my husband would like to spend the last days of our trip in Giza because he hopes this will be quieter.

The Mena House looked nice... and I'm currently trying to get a booking for a room in the Palace wing, not the regular wing, since I have read that rooms were not wonderful (i.e. torn out...). Of course, the charge for a palace room will be higher, but will it be worth it ???

gail

We stayed at Mena House 3 years ago - so am acknowledging that things may have changed. Rooms (we had 2) both had older wood paneling, one with a balcony overlooking pyramids. Grounds were nicely landscaped - very tranquil. After traveling for about 20 hours, our kids wanted a pizza (Please, no nasty comments - we ate regular food the rest of the trip) and they would not even let the Dominos guy deliver past the main gates (I find it distressing that there is a Dominos at the foot of the Sphinx).

Elevator was older as were heavy wood furnishings. Carpet a little worn. We ate 1 dinner and 2 breakfasts there and the food was good (not great). There is also a wood paneled bar that makes one feel like they are some exotic traveler. Unfamiliar big birds in trees, many employees around - none moving all that quickly. BUT - we found this perfect. Later in our Egypt stay we were at a glass, steel and concrete hotel (?Sheraton - on an island) that was nice - but it did not feel like Egypt.

Joelle

Great comments Gail !
I hope the kids enjoyed their pizzas!

I do agree with your last comment: it's nice to be in a place that has the feel of Egypt.