average hotel, but value for money. location within the old city.homely atmosphere.

We were so excited to be in Jerusalem we probably could have slept on the street. This is not what we heard is a typical place for tours. Palestinians stay here, which we considered a good thing. Our room was basic but comfortable enough (after we got it changed from our first assignment right next to the kitchen). It is right on the market street through Old City, so it is fun to roll the suticase through the market upon arrival and fun to pop out for some exotic snack. Breakfast on the roof deck was pretty great -- nice food, nice views, nice hostess. We had Arabic-speaking people with us -- that's probably a big plus.

The location of the property was ideal - right in the center of the old city. The staff, unfortunately, were far from ideal. Upon check-in we are asked to pay for the lodging in advance. The room charge was EU140.00 and I handed the manager EU150.00. The manager told me he did not have change, but that I would receive my EU10.00 later in the night. The room we were assigned was adequate, but discovering that the bed sheets had not been replaced from the previous guests was disturbing. We were assigned another room, but no room key could be located. We settled on a third room and hoped for the best.
Later in the evening, when I inquired about the EU10.00 owed to me, the manager said that he would have the money for me in the morning. Morning came and went. I guessed that stealing from their guests was standard policy at HaShimi Hotel. By the time of our check-out, and knowing that I had repeatly asked for my change, the manager reluctantly gave me coins in Euros and local currency. I believe that management should set the standard for customer service. The managemnet at HaShimi truly set
a new low in customer satisfaction.

Not wanting to sound too much like a Westerner expecting Western standards anywhere in the world, I neverthless need to add a somewhat different view on this hotel. A group of us stayed at the Hashimi Hotel and Hostel at the start and the end of a trip to the Holy Land. Though none of us expected nor needed four star accomodation we felt that our stays were not the highlight of our journey. The plus points were the friendliness of the service staff (not so much the reception), the convenient and interesting location and the fabulous and informative views from the roof terrace and the adequate breakfast. Our major complaints were about the quality of the rooms the hotel's very odd pricing policy. On the return stop my room mate and I paid quite a bit more for an inferior room than on the first stay a week before. The reason given was that the hotel prices were based on the dollar/shekel exchange rate, which must make the Hashimi the only hotel with fluctuating prices for their rooms, irrespective of what's on offer. We felt ripped off. The more expensive room we had on the final night was minute, with three beds crammed into it and absolutely no storage space whatsoever apart from some plastic coat hangers dangling from the television bracket. The coup de grace was the toilet right inside the minute shower cubicle. There were still long hairs from previous occupants. The room temperature was freezing with absolutely no hot air coming from the airconditioning system, no matter how much we tried. The door was so badly fitted, with half an inch gaps all around that we had bright light shining on us all night. Which also meant we heard every single person returning to their rooms banging their doors till late. Expect hostel standards and fluctuating prices.