Felt like a celebrity renting out the whole property as the resort is so large and spread out. Saw a few people only although on the reservation list at the front desk it stated that there were 17 people booked in for the night.

Very easy to access the hotel by the Egyptair shuttle bus that heads to the temples from the airport. Upon arrival just walkout out the main door of the airport and across the courtyard to the white and orange buses and they will drop u off at the hotel on the way to the temples. Tres simple and on arrival this is the convenient thing to do! Definately check in and get settled at the hotel before making the 10 minut walk to the temples as the crowds from the plane will be checking out the site enmass! If you wait two hours then you can explore the site virtually deserted as the others will be heading back toward the airplane. On our return to the hotel we arranged a taxi for 40ep as we wanted to check our luggage and get our tickets before all the crowds returned at the same time!

As per the hotel, check in was efficient even if it wasn't very friendly. Literally the hotel was a ghost town and I felt the staff have just forgotten some friendly manners. That being said the job was done in minutes and we were off to our room with the obligatory bellman carrying our bags.

The view of the resort on our way to our room reminded me very much of the older and shabby hotels of Varadero Cuba. Built to be grand but over time has lost its luster ie- crocodile fountain that is dry and crumbling! Can see if this place had higher occupancy that more maintenance of the public areas would be done.

The room was just fine and the beds were comfortable although the linen very cheap. The room had a bar fridge which was convenient and when in need of something all we had to do was call the kitchen and they would bring out more refreshments.

The rooms looked clean although the floors felt like they needed a good swiffer. That being said we are in the desert so it was acceptable. The room had a large terrace overlooking a bay of Lake Nassar with palm trees and bougainvillias and shrubbery in the forefront and expanses of rock and desert in the background. The view was simply stunning and the sunset one to be remembered. The terrace had a huge dollop of bird poo on it but if you focused on that then you would have wasted the reason why you came to that part of Egypt.

The bathroom was utilitarian with nice towels. Good door lock, lighting, windows and a tv with mediocre reception although just had it on to see the activities in Tahrir Square later in the day anyway.

We ate two meals at the hotel. The first in the pool area and the waiter was a riot and made us feel welcome. Food was fine although the
Shwarma was just grilled chicken in submarine bun. Very tasty though. Our second meal was in the formal dining room and it was ok although it is a set menu and they just bring out the mezze, soup, choice of entree and dessert without having you even look at a menu. Next time would have just ate at the pool restaurant if it were open.

Speaking of the pool it was amazing. Multilevel infinity pool with ample seating. The wood and wicker lounge chairs were very comfortable and even more so when the attendant brought out the blue foam covers and towels. Not heated but still swimable. Really enjoyed lounging in the sun after seeing the sights of Abu Simbel!

We also went to the sound and light show. Just ok! If u miss it I wouldn't worry too much. Definately take an inexpensive taxi to and from the light show as we were advised.

We are in our 60s and retired. When we travel we enjoy comfort and upscale hotels. This hotel did not disappoint us. We stay here for 1 night on May 23, 2011. A short flight from Aswan-about 30 minutes-and we're here. As we get ready to land the plane flies over the Sun Temple of Ramses II and we get our first glimpse of this magnificent site we have come to see. We have opted to stay overnight so as not to feel rushed in seeing the reason for this stay-the Sun Temple complex. This hotel was recommended by our agency, Freelancers. There are only 6 of us in the entire hotel and we are the only 6 tourists in the entire town staying overnight! It is around 11:00 am as we arrive at the Seti. As we drive over to the reception building we have noticed what appears to be some construction just past the front entrance to the right. My husband says it looks like the hotel is expanding?? We're warmly greeted, given info as to meal times/amenities of the property, and directions and key to our room, #408. I realize that I have left my camera on the plane. No trouble as the reception guy calls the airport to relay this info. I go back to the airport, retrieve my camera, and come back to the Seti to go to our room and settle in before our 4:30 pm pick up by our guide to visit the site of Ramses II. Our room is right near the pools-there are 2 of them. The room is very large with a great balcony that looks directly to Lake Nasser. We spy 2 full size beds, a bathroom with bathtub. The room is spotless and nicely furnished. Well above our expectations. We head to the pool area. We decide to spend our time in the upper pool which is the largest. The pool is very clean and the water temp is just right to cool off in the heat of southern Egypt. The other 4 guests-2 couples from New Zealand-join us in relaxing by the pool. I take a short break and walk the path behind the rooms. I see so much of Lake Nasser. It's so peaceful. We meet up again the the restaurant area at 8:00 pm for dinner. The staff is very attentive-2 for the 6 of us! Drink orders taken and we're told the choices for our main entree-grilled Lake Nasser fish, beef slices in gravy, or chicken. We also have a yummy rice/broth soup, salad of cold beets and chopped tomatoes, rolls, a huge bowl of pasta with sauce and cheese. Richard says his fish is great but my beef is tough which is the only let down I will have. We also are served rice and a veg. of peas & carrots. Desserts were a platter of cakes, baklava. Despite my not being able to eat all my beef there was enough food that I am very satisfied. We enjoy a short-30 minute-night swim in the pool before calling it a night. We sleep well-beds very comfy. Breakfast is served around 8:00 am. It consists of yogurt, plain egg omelet, mini pastries, and a selection of sliced meats/cheeses/olives/cucumbers. We decide on tea rather than coffee as we have a long journey by road convoy back to Aswan today. We say our goodbyes to the other 4 guests-they are flying back later today. We actually will run into them again at the site of the Luxor Temple. Check out is accomplished smoothly and we're off by 9:30 am. I loved the serenity of this property, the welcoming/friendly staff, the amazing views of Lake Nasser. I would definitely stay here again and highly recommend this property if an overnight stay is being considered for Abu Simbel. This property is a few minutes walk away from the town itself and not that far from the Sun Temple complex.

We booked our stay through Orbitz (via the TA site) and pre-paid our one nite stay for $246. A few days before arriving I received my reminder confirmation e-mail from Orbitz, which I printed out. When we arrived my wife waited in the taxi with our luggage while I went into register. It turned out we were the only guests at the hotel other than a single bus load of tourists on a package tour. I gave the manager my surname (but did not hand him the Orbitz reservation) and he recognized it and addressed me by first name. So, he was clearly familiar with my reservation.

Then he said that I had canceled my reservation. I told him that I had not canceled and that I had pre-paid. He said he had no record of that. I gave him the Orbitz confirmation e-mail. He looked at and handed it back and said, no, I had canceled.

Then he said something in Arabic to the bellman who headed out to the taxi. I asked where he was going and the manager said “To get your bags”. So, it was pretty clear that he was not going to honor my pre-paid reservation but that he expected us to stay anyway, which means we would have to pay here and sort it out with Orbitz later. I called out to the bellman in Arabic to wait a minute. It clearly startled both of them that I spoke Arabic. I told the manager if that if he was not willing to honor my pre-paid reservation that I would not stay but would instead go to a different hotel. He sighed and made a dramatic show of looking at something on his computer screen for 10 seconds and then announced “Yes, I found it, here is your payment” and grudgingly gave me a room key. Obviously this put a bad taste in my mouth and I was suspicious of what else might happen during our stay. I will be following up with Orbitz to discuss the dubious handling of my check-in.

Then we got to our room. And it was pretty bad. Loose electrical outlets, stains on the walls and ceiling, incredibly bad workmanship on the fixtures, the table top on the night stand was not secured so that when you moved the lamp, it almost slid off onto the floor! Someone had stuffed a dirty paper towel between the top of the headboard and the wall to keep it from hitting and it looked very nasty. In the bathroom there was mystery mold growing on the ceiling over the sink and the shower / tub leaked. I don’t mean it leaked because the curtain did not fit around the basin, it leaked from underneath the tub where it was supposed to be sealed to the floor, meaning the drain pipe underneath the tub was leaking. It was dirty and disgusting. My wife and I agreed it was worse than some $30 a night back packer places we have stayed at in Southeast Asia and South America. It was not a double as requested but two single beds we had to push together. And as for any of the amenities you would expect from a place that calls itself f resort and charges $250 a night, like internet, tea service, a robe? None of it. In fact there was not even any soap or shampoo in the bathroom! No alarm clock, etc.

That night we had dinner at the Eskaleh Eco Lodge and the food was quite good. We asked to see their rooms. They were smartly decorated, the workmanship looked good, they had all the amenities (including AC) and the price was less than half what we paid at Seti Abu Simbel. I felt totally defeated. In our three weeks on the road (Syria, Egypt and Turkey) this was the low point of our trip.

Its one selling point is that its the closest hotel to the temple of Abu Simbel. And it is. But you would still need a taxi to get there and to that end you could just as easily get a taxi from any other place in town.

Our one night at this hotel turned out to be the high point of an 8-day trip through Egypt. The hotel has gorgeous grounds, a nice pool, and is situated on Lake Nasser. You really feel that you are in Africa. Our room was clean and the beds were very comfortable. We had a very relaxed afternoon and evening hanging around the pool - good Turkish coffee - and watching the sunset over the lake. Breakfast buffet was huge, but dinner only so-so.