Egypt Guide
The Nile Valley
Accommodation
1 Anglo Sharia al-Mahatta 
095/238-1679 Being so close to the train station is a drawback, but the rooms are a/c and en suite (if a bit claustrophobic), and the hotel has an alcohol licence. Price: Under £E50
2 Atlas Off Sharia Ahmed Orabi 095/237-3514 About five minutes' walk from the station, this hotel has simple rooms with fan or a/c and private bath. Guests can use the washing machine for a fee. Breakfast not included. Price: Rooms £E25
3 
Fontana Sharia Radwan, off Television St 095/238-0663 A longtime backpackers' favourite: clean and well furnished, with a noticeboard, library and free washing machine; it's worth paying £E10 more for an a/c room with a bathroom. Prices for rooms and tours go up and down like a yo-yo, so compare notes with other guests before agreeing to anything. Sells ISIC cards. Price: Under £E50
4 Grand Off Sharia Mohammed Farid 095/238-2905 
grandhotelluxor@yahoo.com This quiet no-star run by schoolteacher Nobi has simple rooms with fans (£E20) or a/c (£E5 extra), decent bathrooms and a rooftop terrace. Hires bikes (£E10/day). Price: Under £E50
5 Happy Land Sharia el-Kamrr, off Sharia el-Madina el-Minarwa 095/237-1828 
www.luxorhappyland.com An established favourite, known for its cleanliness, honesty and fixed prices. All rooms with fans, some a/c and en suite, from £E20 per person; towels and mosquito-zappers provided. The stylish new rooftop restaurant will soon have a jacuzzi. Breakfast includes cornflakes and fruit. Internet access and bike rental available. They offer excursions to Dendara and Abydos, Edfu, Kom Ombo, Abu Simbel, and the west bank, plus balloon trips and Nile cruises at competitive prices. Price: Under £E50
6 Merryland Sharia Nefertiti, between Luxor Temple and the museum 095/238-1746 Clean and quiet, with a fine view of the Nile from its rooftop. Rooms are a/c and en suite but on the gloomy side – which could be a bonus in the summer. Price: £E50-100
7 Nefertiti Off Sharia el-Karnak 095/237-2386 www.nefertitihotel.com A small, friendly hotel in the heart of town, with a/c en-suite rooms, a rooftop overlooking Luxor Temple, a pool table, internet access and an above-average breakfast. There's also a sleek restaurant, Al-Sahaby Lane, serving traditional fare. Besides local trips, the management can organize safaris to the Western Desert oases and free transfers for guests with bookings. Price: £E50-100
8 Nubian Oasis Sharia Mohammed Farid 095/236-2671 Recently spruced up, with all rooms en suite, a free washing machine and kitchen and a generous breakfast, this is a good deal for £E10 per person (£E10–15 extra for a/c and satellite TV). Price: Under £E50
9 Oasis Sharia Mohammed Farid 010 380-5882 bob2@yahoo.com Spacious rooms with fans and shared facilities on two floors and a/c and private bathrooms on another. Excursions to the west bank and Valley temples, safaris to the oases or rides to Hurghada are available. Price: £E10 per person
10 Saint Mina Sharia Cleopatra 095/237-6568 minahotel@hotmail.com Friendly, clean, no-hustle hotel on a quiet backstreet in the Coptic quarter; its small, simple a/c rooms have bathrooms or share facilities with two other rooms. Price: Under £E50
11 Sherief Sharia Badr, off Television St 010 527-8297 sheriefhotel@hotmail.com A quiet, friendly backstreet hotel, with fans or a/c and shared or en-suite bathrooms (the latter £E10 extra). Chill out over a beer on their Bob Marley-themed rooftop, which has a view of the Nile. Bicycles and motorbikes for rent; competitively priced excursions. Price: under £E50
12 Venus Sharia Yussef Hassan 095/237-2625 venushotel@hotmail.com Just off the bazaar, quite noisy and funky, with a louche bar. Rooms are faded and mostly a/c, with showers and tiny balconies. They offer internet access, ISIC cards and donkey trips to the west bank (£E55). Price: Under £E50
13 Emilio Sharia Yussef Hassan 095/237-6666 www.emiliotravel.com Freshly refurbished, this highly central, Euro-tour-group oriented hotel has comfy a/c rooms with fridge and satellite TV; a rooftop pool, bar and disco, Sunday buffet and dance show. Reservations essential. Accepts major credit cards. Price: £E150-200
14 Little Garden Sharia Radwan 095/238-9038 www.littlegardenhotel.com A little gem: spacious and dazzlingly clean, with comfy a/c rooms (a private terrace costs €5 extra), a rooftop with sunbeds and showers, and a garden. Prebooked guests can take advantage of transfers from the airport or bus station (€8). Price: £E100-150
15 Golden Palace 600m down Television St 095/238-2974 Shabby if comfy rooms reached by a dodgy lift, plus a faux-Babylonian kidney-shaped pool, billiards and internet access. Price: £E100-150
16 Mercure Inn Sharia el-Karnak, near Luxor Temple 095/238-0721, 
237-0051, www.accor-hotels.com . Popular with tour operators, this faded 1970s three-star (locally known as the Egotel) has rooms with fridge and satellite TV in ample grounds with a largish pool. Breakfast included. Accepts Diners, MC and Visa cards. Price: ₤E200-300
17 New Pola Sharia Khalid Ibn Walid 095/236-5081 www.newpolahotel.com An excellent deal for the price, with spotless a/c rooms, a rooftop with a small pool and fabulous Nile views, and agreeably kitsch decor throughout. Ask for a room facing the river. Price: £E200-300
18 New Radwan Sharia Manshiya 095/238-5501 The a/c rooms are decent, but the pool is a bit murky, and the location noisy. Laundry service; sells beer. Price: £E100-150
19 Philippe Sharia Labaib Habachi, near the Corniche 095/237-2284 238-0050 Clean, carpeted rooms with fridges and a rooftop pool and sun terrace make this a favourite with adventure tour operators. Independent travellers may find the hotel rather impersonal. Price: £E150-200
20 Queens Valley Off Sharia Yussef Hassan 095/237-0085 www.queensvalley.net Directly behind the Emilio, this new hotel makes an acceptable fallback – rooms are spacious and a/c, the pool is a bit small but the views from the rooftop are great. Price: £E100-150
21 St Joseph Sharia Khalid Ibn Walid 095/238-1707 sihiev2002@hotmail.com A popular three-star with a rooftop pool and bar facing the Theban Hills. They hold Saturday night Saiyidi parties with snake-dancing and a buffet. Friendly staff, and an excellent buffet breakfast. Price: £E200-300
22 Shady Television St 095/238-1337 shady-hotel@hotmail.com This hotel (whose name is pronounced "Shar-dy") has small, dark a/c rooms, a pool out back, a big rooftop with sunloungers and a view of the Theban Hills, and internet access. Price: £E100-150
23 Windsor Sharia Nefertiti, near the Corniche 095/237-5547 Windsor@click.com.eg A step down from the Philippe, it has friendly staff but the rooms are dark and shabby, and the pool in the courtyard is tiny. Price: £E100-150
24 Iberotel Midan el-Mesaha, 1km south of Luxor Temple 095/238-0925 www.iberotel-eg.com This former Novotel (still widely known as that) has a large atrium, and a pool and terrace overlooking the Nile; a Nile-view room costs extra. Rooms are small and bland, but the location is excellent. Price: £E450-900
25 Luxor Sheraton Resort Sharia Khalid Ibn Walid, 4km south of Luxor Temple 095/237-4544 www.sheraton.com/luxor Tranquilly secluded at the end of Khalid Ibn Walid, not too far from restaurants and shops, the Sheraton has good facilities and service. Go for a room in the main building rather than a garden one; "Nile-view" rooms only live up to their billing on the upper floors. Access by free bus from the Luxor Museum seven times daily, taxi (£E10) or by minibus as far as Midan el-Salam. Price: £E450-900
26 Mercure Luxor Corniche el-Nil, between Luxor Temple and the museum 095/238-0944 www.accor-hotels.com Still known to locals as the Etap, this anodyne 1970s four-star is used by European tour operators, but anyone paying rack rates will get more for their money at the Pyramisa Isis or the Sheraton. Price: £E450-900
27 Mövenpick Jolie Ville Crocodile Island, 4km south of Luxor 095/237-4855 www.movenpick-luxor.com Ideal for families, with 320 bungalows in luxuriant grounds, tennis courts, a pool, playground and mini-zoo. There are hourly buses to the Winter Palace in town, and a motorboat three times daily. All major cards. Price: £E900-1500
28 Nile Palace Sharia Khalid Ibn Walid, 2km from Luxor Temple 095/236-6999 www.nilepalacehotel.com Awash with fake marble, this five-star behemoth overlooks a heated pool beside a Nile terrace, with disabled access throughout. Rooms facing the inner courtyard are noisy at night. All major cards. Price: £E450-900
29 Pyramisa Isis Sharia Khalid Ibn Walid 095/237-2750 www.pyramisaegypt.com Near the end of the avenue, backing onto lush grounds with superb views of the river, this five-star complex is owned by President Mubarak's son, Ala. It boasts Italian and Chinese restaurants, and a large pool. Visa cards only. Price: £E450-900
30 Sofitel Karnak Sharia el-Zinia Gebly, 5km north of Luxor, 3km from Karnak Temple 095/237-8025 www.sofitel.com Remote from town, amid palms and bougainvilleas, this stylish new hotel has bungalows, a big heated Nile-side pool, tennis, squash, a sauna and jacuzzi. Free shuttle bus or ferry to the Winter Palace in Luxor; £E15 by taxi. Takes Visa cards. Price: £E450-900
31 Sonesta St George Sharia Khalid Ibn Walid 095/238-2575 www.sonesta.com The fanciest five-star on the street, with oodles of marble, Japanese and Italian restaurants, a heated pool by the Nile, and great service. Amex, MC, Visa. Price: £E900-1500
32 Winter Palace On the Corniche, 100m from Luxor Temple 095/238-0422 www.accor-hotels.com The doyen of Luxor's hotels, founded in 1887, has played host to heads of state, Noël Coward and Agatha Christie (parts of Death on the Nile were written and filmed here). Now part of the Sofitel chain, it combines old-fashioned elegance with mediocre service. Rooms overlook the Nile or a vast garden with a pool (from $196 for a standard garden view up to $950 for the royal suite). The New and Pavilion wings are cheaper but lack character, and guests are no longer entitled to use the facilities at the Winter Palace. Buffet breakfast not included. Amex, MC and Visa.Price: £E450-900 for New and Pavilion Wings, otherwise £E900-1500