For a Budget Hotel it is ok, but don't expect the staff to clean your bathroom whilst you are there; they never cleaned ours. It was however clean when we arrived, although the fittings are very old it is just functional.
The rooms were clean and had what was needed except it would have been nice to have at least one chair.
We stayed at a time when it was full of refugees from Libya trying to get back to the Philippines. They were very nice people but after they had been down to breakfast there was nothing left for us. The first two mornings we had to ask for things like tea cups, cereal, juice and butter, which were then brought but begrudgingly.
The second morning they brought cups that were dirty and cracked. When I asked one of the staff to change them he "tutted"; which shows there general attitude. The restaurant staff would much rather stand or sit chatting to each other than look after the needs of their guests.
A complaint to the manager soon rectified this; we could hear him shouting at this particular member of staff in the kitchen, after which his attitude did get better.
I would deduce from this that the hotel was not really to blame but it was the staff who were lazy.
The staff at reception in the daytime were very nice and helpful.
If you find yourself staying at this hotel I would most definitely recommend that you do not take the hotel up on their tours but go outside, turn left and visit the Rossetta Perfumes Palace, set back alittle from the footpath. There you will find Mohammed who is a lovely man and can help you with almost anything.
My friend and I went into the shop specifically to ask if Mohammed knew of a driver for our trips that we could trust and he indeed recommended the most trustworthy man, his brother Emad.
(Even though I have lived in Cairo before my friend and I still needed someone who would not charge too much and look after us).
Emad is a wonderful man; he took us wherever we needed to go, waited when necessary and all at an extremely reasonable price. Emad is delightfully honest, easy going, and a pleasure to be with. Both he and Mohammed speak excellent English and understand the needs of the tourist. Emad gave advise that was spot-on for each place we visited. He was always on time and open with suggestions that may be of interest to us. I really cannot stress enough what a sweety Emad really is. We started out with a good reliable driver and ended 4 days later with a friend for life. Thank you Emad and Mohammed we appreciate what you both did for us.
A note about Egypt since the revolution; Please don't be worried about travelling to Egypt or Cairo now. It is still a safe place to travel to and the people have always been the most friendly people in the world. Now they are even happier than they were before the revolution.
- Concorde Hotel Cairo
