Pharoahs Hotel is a budget hotel close to the old village of El Gourna. It sits just between the last of the green fields of the Nile Valley and the dry, dusty Egyptian desert. My wife and 4 teenage daughters stayed there in Feb 2005 and had a wonderful time.

The hotel has a patio area with a bar and comfortable chairs shaded by palm trees. The strategically placed pool table provided hours of entertainment!

The hotel itself has a cool lobby and restaurant, and three floors of accomodation. The rooms were simple/basic but clean, with en-suite and had working air-con (necessary with a heat wave producing 37C day temperatures and some hot nights). The toilets and showers were OK/adequate.

Food in the hotel was plain, tasty and plentiful (felafel, humous, flat breads, chicken etc)

The siting of the hotel allowed us to walk to Medinet Habu (600 yards), Deir el-Medina (800 yards) and up to the mountain above the Valley of the Kings (1 mile plus a climb) for a stunning view over the Valley of the Kings . Deir El Bahri was very close as well.The actual West Bank at Luxor, a mile away, had a internet cafe (importantly for the teenagers!). Getting to Luxor was a 30 min trip in a taxi (a bridge has to be crossed) for a very small fee or a trip over the Nile for an even smaller cost!

These things in themselves would have been enough to make our stay hugely enjoyable.

However the warmth and welcome given by the owner, Refat Hassan, were extraordinary and transformed our stay into a wonderful experience. One of our teenagers had a birthday and Refat not only produced a cake, he produced a party, complete with a band of local musicians and dancing, all with Refat's compliments. Hospitality takes on a new meaning under these circumstances!

So for those who want a budget hotel and perhaps some exposure to the genuineness and warmth of the Egyptian people this is a very good place to start.

We found the hotel via the web-site below:

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