Wowzers! This was an exceptional stay(s).

Egypt was the destination - as mademoiselle wanted to see the Pyramids instead of visiting the grand parents for easter break (I taught her well :p )

I found a great J fare on Oman Air and we decided to stay 3 nights here, followed by 4 nights on a nile cruise, final night here and then off to Muscat for 3 nights. 

If anyone has the slightest doubt of traveling to Egypt, dismiss it. We had a great time, people were friendly and we didn't feel unsafe at any time. 

For our stay in Cairo we booked the Sofitel Cairo El Gezirah. There are some other AccorHotels options in Cairo, but this was according to TA a good property though I was a bit hesitant since it had not been renovated in awhile.

Check In

I reached out to the hotel GM several days prior to arrival as I had not heard from the hotel. He mentioned he would be away, but that the EAM, Sherif, would be there to receive us. And sure he was. Sherif alone makes the property. A teddy-bear like Egyptian, very charismatic and full of energy. He approached us once we wenty through the x-ray machine and welcomed us to the Hotel "Mr Gilbert, Welcome to the Sofitel El Gezirah, allow me to escort you to your room for an in-room check-in" SET!

Check-in formalities were done in room, welcome drink voucher, welcome letter etc was all prepared.

Room

I believe on our first stay we were on the 17th floor (second stay was on the 24th). We were shown to our room which was front and centre Nile facing. The hotel was busy, but not full (on our first stay). So not only were we upgraded to a Suite, but our daughter was given a interconnecting room just for herself.

Suite: The suite was a living room + ensuite and storage cupboards. Dining table and full sofa set and Flat Screen TV. Coffee machine was basic set up (not Nespresso), Balcony

Bedroom: Sofitel MyBed, Large Bathroom, plenty of cupboards, Flatscreen TV, Balcony.

Interconnecting Room: Twin Sofitel MyBeds, Bathroom, cupboards, Flatscreen TV, Balcony.

Balconies are locked and you need to call housekeeping to have them unlocked and sign a waiver form that you will not throw rubbish down.

We had a very pretty welcome amenity set-up and our daughter was given a full set of kids amenitied including kids slippers and bathrobe. PLUS welcome amenities as well!

Everything in room was functional. Aircon worked well, low noise. Even though furniture was slightly dated, nothing looked worn out. There was a fresh coat of paint on the walls and we could not fault anything.

Non of the bathroom amenities are from Hermes. This has to do with the import duties. Instead they use a brand also used at the Fairmont. (I'll need to check the brand again - can't recall).

Complimentary water was given and during daily turndown more water was bought in, together with earplugs (?) , some chocolates and tea.

Service

On TA, there are some reports of wait staff not smiling. I don't really get that. First of all, no matter where you are, these guys work hard and are on their feet for many hours a day. As long as they clear the tables quickly and bring me what I ask for, I don't need more. And they work their a** off here. 

Be it room service, housekeeping, staff in the restaurant, they are all hard working staff and they all seem to be happy working there. 

Wait staff introduce themselves by name, even during breakfast, and mention they will be sewrving you today. Outside by the river, the PIC is Mohamed. Always "running" all over the place, shooing away the birds, keeping guests happy and a great chap. We like Mohamed :)

Dining

We thought we would end up having dinner one day at this property. They have numerous venues to dine at. We didn't. Our days were so crammed full that we often got back exhausted and fell into bed. Plus the fact that we typically had heavy lunches...

We had room service on the day of our arrival - again nothing to fault. Food came warm, tasty, price was OK.

What of course is incredible here is having breakfast on the terrace next to the Nile. Very resort-like setting though you are in the middle of Cairo. The buffet spread is big and again food wasty and well stocked. They have miltiple types of fruit juices and serve a mix of local and western fare.

Now I need to also add that this property has a lounge. Apart from having coffee there once, when I met the GM, we didn't use it at all. It is small and not very functional IMO. But it serves its purpose and serves breakfast, afternoon tea and evening canapes.

Location

As mentioned above, you are on the oasis of El Gezirah island on the Nile River, in the middle of Cairo. The History Museum is a 15min walk away, and there are plenty of eateries around. On our second night our daughter had a craving for Sushi (in Cairo). It was announced that a dust storm would hit. We still went out - it wasn't far - but I can now say that I survived a dust storm. Even for Egyptians, that dust storm was impressive.

Overall

Bottom Line: Top Top Property. 

I met with the Hotel GM upon his return as well. Business is going quite well and they are often full (see my next post on my second stay). They should be going through the next renovation in the next year or two.

Again, for anyone considering heading to Egypt, but worried about security and safety... GO!

I recently completed a 3 night-stay at Sofitel Cairo Nile El Gezirah and I had a very enjoyable stay. Even if it’s not the newest Sofitel (some renovations will be needed sooner rather than later), room was still in acceptable conditions and the hotel has a lot of strong points and proposes a good offering. Staff was also great everywhere and I felt very welcome as a Diamond member. This hotel consists in a high tower (about 30 floors) on an island on Nile river downtown Cairo. There are more than 400 rooms in this hotel.

The main lobby :

Check In

I landed in CAI past midnight flying AF. Cairo never sleep but traffic was OK and the hotel was reached in 30 min. Hotel lobby was still busy at this late time and many French customers arrived just after me, obviously arrived on the same flight as me. The hotel was fully booked during my stay, so I was not super optimistic for upgrade, but I was wrong. I had booked a Premium room, king bed high floor, partial view on Nile river. I was upgraded to Luxury full Nile rive review. Drink voucher was given at check-in. I was explained the different facilities of the hotel, including the details for the Club Millésime.

Room

Room was not huge but of decent size. Sufficient room for storage. On the opposite, bathroom was on the small side as you can see on the pictures. There was an armchair, a desk, safety box, bathrobes and slippers. Apart the small bathroom, another criticism I would make is to have only a kettle and tea bags/instant coffee. In a Sofitel, I clearly expect an espresso machine. There was a small balcony but you need to ask housekeeping to unlock the door. No welcome letter, but a welcome amenity consisting on a fruit basket and some small cakes (good).

Very nice panoramic view on the Nile.

Dining

The hotel proposes several bars and restaurants :

• the main restaurant where you have breakfast buffet and there is also a buffet/à la carte for lunch/dinner. This is the restaurant with the highest capacity. There are a few tables along the river and I have to say that having breakfast along the Nile was really very pleasant. I went there only for breakfast (you can have breakfast at the lounge, but being outside on the board of the Nile was so much better than being in the lounge IMHO. The buffet proposed a very large choice of cold and hot items. 2 stations for eggs, crepes, waffles, etc made on order.

• A bar with indoor and outdoor seating. Very pleasant also. Serves snacks/sandwiches and a few other meal options all day

• Pool bar serving also snacks all day
• a Morrocan restaurant
• an Arabic/Egyptian restaurant where I had dinner once : very good meal

• Club Millésime : located on the 26th floor. It’s basically 2 rooms that have been joined. One side is smoking, the other side non-smoking. Very nice view from there but not too many windows. You have the classical offering : breakfast, soft drinks all day, happy hour cocktail time from 17:30 to 19:30. During the happy hour, there is a nice and very good selection of canapés and warm food (chicken, beef arabic style). Unfortunately, you can’t check-in/out from the lounge.

View from the lounge :

Pool

There is a nice swimming pool overlooking the Nile, as well as a Spa and a sauna. There is also a casino and a hairdresser in the hotel.

Overall

Service and staff were truly excellent everywhere. My flight back to CDG was at 2 am (horrible !). I requested of course a late check out and got it until 16:00. I was allowed to stay at the lounge and benefit from the happy hour time. I stayed at the lounge until its closing time : 10 pm.

The hotel was very busy all the time but I never had an impression of being in a factory.

In conclusion, great stay. Can’t wait to return