Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Hello Tassie Tiger,

I havent ever used the Indiana or the Santana Hotels. I have spent quite a few weeks at the Salma Hotel, during my trvales in Egypt. In fact I spent approx 3 weeks there in March this year.

The Salma is classed as a 3 star Hotel. It is a clean, basic Hotel, with clean rooms & showers/toilets that work. It is not a flash upmarket Hotel, but you're not paying for one either!! The rooms I have stayed in have always been clean, with cleaners attending everyday....fresh linen & towels everyday!

Plenty of hot water, doors locked fine & my room had its own little safe...so plenty of security there!!

I had no problems with the staff either, in fact have to say most are very helpful & friendly at all times. Went out of their way to solve a couple of problems for me!!

Hope this helps.........Debbie

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Hi Tassie Tiger,

I have stayed at the Indianna Hotel and it was all right. Like Debbie says, they are not flash hotels but they are clean and comfortable.

The Indianna has a pool which was nice. The air conditioning worked, the plumbing worked, the rooms were clean and the food at the hotel was OK. The staff were very friendly and helpful.

Hope this helps.

Joanne

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Where did you get the hotel lists?

I'm on Jewels of Egypt, 10/28/07 and would like to know ours.

Thanks.

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

[url=http://www.imaginative-traveller.com/tours/itineraries/downloads.php?code=ETJW]http://www.imaginative-traveller.com/tours/itineraries/downloads.php?code=ETJW[/url]

Hope this helps,

(I'm not going anywhere near Egypt, but this is how I found the details for my trip .... Cheers)

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

I was thinking she had found a hotel list for the entire trip. That is what I would like to have. That is what my wife will be expecting before we leave, no matter what I tell her about IT's resistance to giving out such information.

But the Salma Hotel seems pretty neat on TripAdvisor to me. Only 1 in 4 really did not like it. A couple of small complaints from the others, who basically did like it. I'll hope for at least one clear day, where we can see those pyramids!

Reviews in Travel Library and Yahoo are not bad either. Generally high marks on location, cleanliness, and friendliness of staff.

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

I also found a review of it on Virtual Tourist which says it it close to a minaret and recommends earplugs.

We stayed in the Grand Derya in Dogubeyazit, Turkey, last year, with the minaret right outside our window. We needed no alarm to awaken us to the sight of sunrise over Mt. Ararat!

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

as debbie said, the salma is classed as a 3-star but is more likely a 2-star in western standards. the rooms are clean and basic. the staff are friendly and will go out of their way to help.

it is definitely down the road from a mosque...so for the first couple of mornings there, you may be woken up early by the call to morning prayer. however, you get used to it and tune it out

the street it is on comes off a major busy road, with heaps of banks and food places.

there is a little mini mart a few doors down where you can buy bottled water and snacks.

there is also a pharmacy and an internet cafe nearby.

i hope you guys have heaps of fun in egypt!

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Hello Warren,

I have taken a number of pics of the Pyramids from the top of the Salma Hotel!

Yes, ensure you take your earplugs......you're gonna need them!!

As Gezbelle said, there's a little mini mart down the road which is well stocked....& I felt quite cheap!!

Hope you have a wonderful time..........Debbie

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

It continues to sound good to me.

Different things bother different people more/less. My wife can't sleep in Iceland in the summer, and she is a light sleeper. The reason the minaret in Dogubeyazit woke me up is that it was literally right outside our window. But the first couple of nights, we'll be taking ambiens anyway. That's the only way I've been able to cope with jet lag in my "old age."

Have any of y'all who are previous IT travellers ever been able to get hotel lists for the whole tour? I like to be able to check things out, the way we're sharing info about this one hotel in Cairo, even though I know the list is subject to change. And then there's the desire to let our family know how to contact us in case of emergency.

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

I stayed at the Santana last May. It's a budget hotel but it was fine, clean and everything worked.

Not sure where Salma is, but Santana and Indiana are just a block or two from each other.

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Hello Warren,

I did the Jewels of Egypt tour back in Dec'03.

From memory the Hotels uesd at that time were as follows:-

In Cairo- the Salma
Alexandria- The Regency (beautiful)
Aswan- on board Melodie (beautiful)
Luxor- The Philippe
Hurghada- The Three Corners (an amazing complex)
St Katherine- Morganland

then back to Cairo.

Please remember that this is totally from memory & that these Hotels may no longer be the ones that Im Trav use!!

Hope this helps in some way. Hope you have a wonderful holiday. All the best.........Debbie

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Seems like a pretty good memory.

I plan to ask for a hotel list from Imaginative Traveller, but I thought maybe I would do best to wait until closer to departure time.

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

i know some tour companies don't like to give out a list of all the hotels they will be using on tours, because like you said warren, they are subject to change.

if you don't get a list from im-trav, to let relatives know where you will be staying, you may like send them an sms when you reach each hotel...just a suggestion.

oh, also remember, fridays are special days, so the call to prayers may last a little longer than the other days

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Sounds like a great trip - I did almost exactly the same as you, but without the Turkey bit.
Re hotels:
I LOVED the Indiana. Super close to the metro which is an awesome way to get around - no traffic, no taxi haggling, no pollution and very easy to use.
I was disappointed with the Salma - so much so I requested to be changed back to the Indiana - which Im Trav did for me for my last 4 nights in Cairo. I know others have had good experiences there, but the two times I stayed there (at the start and at the end of the tour) were not so hot. Bed quality and lack of drainage in the bathrooms were my main problem.
The hotel in Mersa Matrouh (sp) is awesome - one block from the Sea and awesome icecream just across the road, and the Regent in Alex is fantastic - great views, service, beds etc.
Word of warning regarding the hotel in Siwa - it is pretty bad, but it IS clean - just make sure that your insect repellent can be put on your face and your eyelids and don't expect much water.
All but one hotel in Syria was great - the one in Aleppo was a bit rough - but again it was clean and the family that runs it will offer you the most amazing service and nothing is too much trouble. The hotel in Palmyra was fantastic and the one in Homs was the best hotel in Syria - huge rooms - unlimited hot water - EXCELLENT toilets - clean - good breakfast - lovely staff etc.
Have a brilliant time and if I can be of assistance do not hestitate to ask.
T

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Only stayed at indiana and santana. both are perfectly Ok for a couple of nights. santana is supposedly better but I found the staff to be indifferent and of course, it's dry. The Indiana was much cheerier and the staff more obliging. we got our cabs from the indiana. The Indiana also has a roof deck and bar with some OK views of the Cairo skyline

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

I don't understand the mentality of refusing to give out hotel lists, since all companies issue disclaimers saying they are subject to change. I've never dealt with a tour company that wouldn't disclose such information.

Last year, for one week of a 4 week trip in Turkey, we drove around on our own with no pre-planned stops, and then I did find an internet cafe and let people know where we were.

Four years ago, we were in Dali, China, when my sister was nearly killed in an automobile accident. My daughter was able to reach us at the hotel we were staying at, even though hardly any of the staff there spoke English, and we got the message to head home. It would have taken at least an extra day had they not been given a hotel list. At such times, time does make a difference. Surely tour companies should appreciate that.

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Hello Warren

Thank you for your posts, I'd just like to post a reply regarding hotel lists on tours and why they aren't available in advance.

As you know, one of the reasons is that they are subject to change, and that sometimes changes to hotels booked can lead to disappointment and confusion. The hotel bookings for this tour are all handled locally by our office in Cairo, and as such here in the UK we don't keep this information on file as it would quickly become out of date.

Another reason is that sometimes travellers want to leave a list at home with friends or family in case of emergency. In our experience, if a family member from home tries to call a hotel included on a tour they may well end up speaking to someone working at the hotel who will not know where the group are (we don't spend much time at the hotels) and may not speak brilliant English. This can actually cause more anxiety and uncertainty, and if anyone from home needs to contact you on a tour in case of emergency we would recommend using the emergency contact details at the end of our Country Dossier (http://www.imaginative-traveller.com/downloads/).

The emergency contact number on the dossier is a 24 hour mobile number and we can (and have in the past) pass messages through extremely fast.

Once you are on the tour, you can ask the tour leader for details of all the hotels to be used and they will be able to pass them to you.

Many thanks,

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Uncle! (At least until we get to Cairo)

For this particular trip, there aren't that many hotels involved, because of the river cruise.

My wife won't be happy, but it won't be any different than our fourth week in Turkey last year, when we were on the road. The ironic thing will be that this year, the independent part of our travel will be the part where I can provide a hotel list to folks back home; the part where I can't will be that arranged by a tour operator.

Anyway, thanks for your clarifications.

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Dear Kelly:

This is a belated response in our "Cairo hotel" exchange. As a refresher, my wife and I are on the 10/28 departure of Jewels of Egypt.

Will we be staying in the same hotel in Cairo at the end of the tour in which we are staying at the beginning?

I'm asking because the hotel we are going to stay at in Nuweiba offers private transport which, while definitely more expensive than the public bus, is not outrageously so. While I am not sure whether we will be leaving on Nov. 11 or staying an extra night and departing on Nov. 12, I would like to let them know everything (which date and which hotel) no later than while we are in Cairo at the beginning of the tour.

Thanks.

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

This is just a note to say that anyone on the ImTrav staff can answer my last question.

I addressed it to Kelly because I thought I was sending her a private message and then stupidly posted it to the forum. Good thing I didn't get really personal!

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Hi Warren - usually it says on the trip dosier the starting and ending hotel - and in and out of the same city they have always been the same for me.
Good luck
T

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Hello Warren

Thanks for your posts, no problem to address your post to me but apologies for the belated reply.

Your start and end point hotel is the same place, the Salma Hotel.

Not long to go til your tour now, so if we don't speak again before I hope you have a great time!

Regards,

Re: Q about IMTrav Cairo Hotel Quality

Hi Tassie,

My hubby and I just returned from the Nile Safari and we stayed at the Santana. The staff is fairly standoffish and unhelpful, but the ImgTrav tour leaders were there to help us with any problems, so it all worked out. They are renovating the rooms, so the newer rooms are quite nice. The older rooms are much more basic. But to be perfectly honest, the only time we spent in the hotel was sleeping, so it really didn't matter!

My best advice for Santana is don't expect luxury - if you only expect a clean bed and a shower, you'll not be disappointed.