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Why We Won't Be Staying at the Hilton Fayrouz in Sharm El Sheikh
Let us preface this post by saying that we are not hotel snobs. We can take just as much pleasure in spending the night in a bamboo shack on the beach (more of that tomorrow) as we do checking out the latest fancypants hotel (although we’ll make sure we’re wearing full-cover, Damian Barr-style PJs in the shack – just to make sure of those sheets).
However, if a hotel is trading under a brand like, oh, say, Hilton, we do expect it to be a certain standard. And that standard is a little higher than a lobby that makes us want to run straight back to the airport:
Tags: Hotel Video Tours / Four Seasons Hotels / Sharm El Sheikh Hotels / Egypt Hotels / → All Tags
When 67 Steps Are 67 Too Many: The Funicular at Four Seasons Sharm El Sheikh
Note: This video is about two minutes and 20 seconds long, which is how long the funicular ride is. Enjoy!
You know the drill: you’re on holiday, you’re feeling kinda lazy, lying by the pool is great but hauling your bod back to your room is a trial.
Luckily, the folk at the Four Seasons in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, feel your pain, as we found out when we stayed there last week*. The resort is built over five levels running down the cliffside to the Red Sea below. Which is ace, because it gives buckets of space for the 200+ rooms (they’re self-enclosed little cottages), meaning that the resort feels half-empty even when it’s at full capacity as it was while we were there.
The downside, of course, is that with the pool and beach at the bottom of the resort, the reception and restaurants at the top and the rooms in between, your day could involve a lot of walking, which would hardly be conducive to a holiday state of mind.
There are 67 steps between the pool and the lobby – a lot for holiday feet. So to avoid over-stretching your calves (it’s hot, after all), they’ve had a funicular railway shipped over from Sweden to lug your sunburnt bones back to your room. It goes up and down all day, the journey takes just over two minutes and, as you can see from the video, gives you some pretty nice views of the resort.
Tags: Deal or No Deal / Hotel Deals / Egypt Hotels / → All Tags
Two Weeks In Egypt At Two Hotels For $2,000
BudgetTravel just posted a special all-inclusive, 13-night package to Egypt - $1,999 per person - courtesy of Foreign Independent Tours. The price buys you airfare out of New York, local flights to your various destinations in Egypt, a four-night cruise, and a bunch of other perks. They're covering most meals, taking you on a bunch of tours that hit a bunch of highlights, and even hooking you up with an English speaking tour guide.
There are hotel stays on each side of the cruise, first at the Oasis Hotel in Cairo and then at the Al Nabila Grand Bay in Hurghada. Both are super-swank establishments and are quite suitable for a trip revolving around pre-planned daily excursions and nighttime spa pampering. The Oasis Hotel, just a few miles from the Pyramids of Giza, is a functional full-scale nine-acre resort in the middle of the desert. However, TripAdvisor reviews warn against staying in a room closer to the hotel's disco. Also, we're not crazy about that room decor (above.)
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Explore Egypt With The Fairmont and a Bonafide Presidential Guide
When is a tour more than just a simple follow-the-guide and snap-photos-when-you're-told kind of expedition? Well for one, when the tour includes an expert who's good enough to accompany President Obama. The Fairmont Hotel Global Explorer Series has got one event left this year and it's obviously of a Presidential caliber—but without the high-flying price.
The tour of Egypt runs November 27-30 and is a package including one night at the Fairmont Towers Heliopolis and two nights at the Fairmont Nile City. Included are tours of the pyramids, the Cairo Museum, a felucca trip on the Nile and a dinner lecture from Dr. Zahi Hawass, the Egyptologist deemed expert enough to accompany Obama to the pyramids earlier this year.
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It's Always Sunny at Fairmont Towers Heliopolis
Near Cairo, the Fairmont Towers Heliopolis has just had a major addition. Working around the original hotel while it was still operating, some magic builders have now created a fancy new conference center and 247 new hotel rooms right next door, and judging by this pic it is something special.
The architect got into the idea of the hotel being in Heliopolis, which means "city of the sun", by incorporating lines like sunrays into the design and even including sun motifs throughout. The new restaurant and café are impressive too: there's an artificial river running through the Aqua e Luce restaurant and Café Heliopolis is right in the center of the atrium entrance. Oh, and it even serves camel milk ice cream.
Advance purchase internet rates start at $136 a night, and they also have a few packages going: we like the bed and breakfast package (starting at $200 a night for a double) because it literally includes a full breakfast in bed, and the romance deal (with wine and cheese and a lovely late 4pm checkout) starts from $210 a night.
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Cairo Loses a Hilton, Gains a Ritz-Carlton
We're looking forward to the new year; January 1st is traditionally a day for renewed hope and fresh beginnings, and no one is taking more advantage of this than Cairo's Nile Hilton. When the clock strikes midnight (Egypt time, of course), the 431-room historic hotel on the shores of the epic River Nile will become the Ritz-Carlton Nile Hotel.
As the first Ritz-Carlton in Egypt's capital city, The Nile Hotel will have to dust off its top hat and tails to remain a leader in Cairo and keep pace with the 5-star standard of Ritz-Carlton. What does this mean, exactly? It means sweet, sweet renovation of course. Beginning in mid-2009, the hotel will begin an ambitious 2-year revamp, while continuing to host guests. Although there will no doubt be angry TripAdvisor reviews about the construction, you just can't flip a Hilton into a Ritz without a little elbow grease (and a lot of brocade).
In case you're wondering why Ritz-Carlton picked this old Hilton as their new property, we refer you to its breathtaking view of the Nile and the abundance of hookahs they keep poolside. Too bad they didn't add belly dancers to the room service menu; then they probably would have gotten five-star status without the help of Ritz-Carlton.
[Photo: Etihad Holidays]
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Nikki Beach Hotels To Open Resort in Egypt's Hacienda Bay in 2012
Sure you've heard of Nikki Beach Hotels, a self-styled funky line of resorts in all those cool places like Panama,Turks & Caicos, and Honduras, that pride themselves on hip style, music, and film tie-ins.
Nikki recently announced they're opening up a beach resort in Egypt's Hacienda Bay, which sits on the Mediterranean Coast, about 60 miles west of Alexandria (between Cairo and Sharm el Sheik).
Tags: VIP Hotel Reviewer Series / Chris Clarke / Sonesta Resorts / Egypt Hotels / Beach Resorts / → All Tags
Sonesta Beach Resort Serves up Smiles and Skin in Sharm El Sheikh
We now present you with our VIP Hotel Reviewer Series in which we hand-pick experts in the travel and media worlds and beyond to tell us what are their favorite hotels and why. Once a week, we'll feature a hotel review from said VIPs about their favorite leisure or business hotels. Pay attention: These VIPs are experts at what they do and they don't mess around when it comes to their hotels.
Our next VIP reviewer is Chris Clarke, the blogger behind the hotel industry site Vacant Ready He's traded living in Vancouver for Egypt for a little while and of course is checking out the hotel scene over there. Here's his story on a little holiday he took.
I'm currently based in Cairo, and like most of my colleagues here I look forward to getting out of town for a little R&R. Last weekend I checked into the all-inclusive Sonesta Beach Resort for five days of amazing Red Sea snorkeling. This was not my first time visiting Sharm, but it was my first visit to the Sonesta Resort.
The expansive resort grounds are very well maintained, and offer just about any activity imaginable. Guestrooms are huge, though fairly sparse in amenities. Food and beverage offerings were surprisingly good for an Egyptian all-inclusive -- right up until I got sick the last night after dinner.
This surprised me since my system is accustomed to all kinds of abuse from Cairo's culinary scene.
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The Grand Hyatt Cairo Enters Rehab...The Lindsay Lohan Kind
Alcohol may be on the brink of extinction at Egyptian hotels, if the worst fears of tourism officials there come true: After the Saudi owner of the Grand Hyatt Cairo banned the sale of alcohol at the hotel, destroying millions of dollars of the stuff in the process, officials now worry that other properties may soon follow, the BBC reports.
It's unknown why the owner had staff pour bottle upon bottle of wine and liquor down drains, though some suspect it may have something to do with Egypt's enormous Muslim population, which is barred from consuming alcohol, even in cooking, according to the Koran. Supporters say foreign visitors "should respect the local custom," while critics argue that "just as Muslims expect to be served Halal food on international flights, they should be prepared to respect the desires of their Western guests," the BBC writes.
Hyatt has, of course, asked for the decision to be overturned, fearing that Western tourists won't stay at the property and that it may lose its five-star rating, the BBC says.
If the ban does catch on, we expect staying at a hotel in Egypt will be like an overnight at any Disney property--and they're certainly not hurting for business. Plus, guest reviews of the hotel are nothing but raves. Though we do worry: first alcohol; what's next--porn?
[Photo: Chrispitality]
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