Hotel
Marriott Mena House
A historic five-star hotel at the foot of the Giza pyramids, built around a 19th-century khedivial hunting lodge and set in large gardens.
A large five-star hotel in Zamalek built around a 19th-century khedivial palace, with gardens, a pool, a spa with hammams and many restaurants.
Good to know
The Cairo Marriott is built around the Gezira Palace, constructed for Khedive Ismail in 1869 to host European royalty at the celebrations for the opening of the Suez Canal. The palace's grand reception rooms now form the heart of the hotel, with two modern towers rising on either side, and the lobby and salons still evoke the opulence of that era. It is one of the largest hotels in Cairo and a landmark of Zamalek.
The hotel offers a wide choice of rooms in its towers, many with views over the Nile and the city, and a long list of facilities. There is an outdoor pool with a whirlpool, the Saray Spa with 14 treatment rooms including Moroccan and Turkish hammams, a fitness centre with sauna and steam, a Kids Club and an M Club lounge on the 18th floor of the Gezira Tower. With around 15 restaurants and bars, including a large garden terrace that is popular with Cairenes in the evenings, you rarely need to leave the grounds to eat.
The Marriott suits families, groups and travellers who want plenty of facilities at a lower price than the top Nile-side luxury hotels. It is also a good choice for anyone who wants to stay in Zamalek, the island neighbourhood of tree-lined streets, galleries, cafés and bars that many visitors find the most pleasant part of central Cairo to walk around. The hotel is smoke-free and pets are not allowed.
Check-in is from 15:00 and check-out by 12:00, and the minimum check-in age is 21. Parking and valet parking are available, and Wi-Fi is complimentary for Marriott Bonvoy members. Rooms in the towers vary in outlook, so ask for a Nile view if it matters. The hotel also includes the Omar Khayyam Casino, open to foreign passport holders.
The hotel is on Saray El Gezira Street on the eastern side of Zamalek, looking across the Nile towards Bulaq and Downtown. Pier 88 Nile River is a short walk along the same street, and the cafés of 26th of July Street, Simonds and Zooba are within walking distance. Downtown is a short taxi ride across the 26th of July Bridge. The gardens are a pleasant place for an evening drink even if you are not staying.
It is built around the Gezira Palace, constructed for Khedive Ismail in 1869 for the Suez Canal celebrations.
It is a five-star hotel.
An outdoor pool, a spa with hammams, a fitness centre, a Kids Club and many restaurants.
Check-in from 15:00, check-out by 12:00. The minimum check-in age is 21.
Yes, with a pool, a Kids Club and plenty of dining choices.
Yes, including complimentary valet parking.
Pier 88, the cafés of 26th of July Street and the rest of Zamalek.
Tour operator
A Cairo food tour company founded in 2016 by two Egyptian women, leading small-group walking tours through Downtown's street food and local eateries.
Bar
Cairo's best-known live music club, open since 2001 in Agouza, with local bands and DJs on stage, cocktails and a food menu most nights.
Café
The celebrated coffeehouse of Khan el-Khalili, serving mint tea, Turkish coffee and shisha in a mirrored alley since the late 18th century.
Thing to do
Cairo's great historic bazaar, a maze of lanes selling lanterns, spices, brass and jewellery around a khan founded in the 1380s.