Hotels in Luxor - quality overview

The best

Reputedly the best hotel is the opulent Old Winter Palace. This is where film stars and presidents stay. It is good for a special night but not many tourists spend a whole holiday there because of the cost.

The next best

The Sonesta St George, Nile Palace and Maritim Jolie Ville (previously the Mövenpick) are usually reckoned to be the best of the rest. Visiting dignitaries who don't make the Old Winter Palace usually stay at the Sonesta. The Sonesta is a traditional modern hotel under one roof with all the usual facilities, chandeliers and plenty of shiny marble. The Nile Palace is bigger with more amenities, less glitzy but at least as smart. They are both on the main road, surrounded by restaurants and tourist shops, so there is a certain amount of bustle as soon as you step outside. The Jolie Ville is further out, much quieter, but made up from individual bungalows in extensive grounds - only the reception, bank, main restaurant and shopping are in a central building.

And also

In terms of quality, the Mercure Hotel, Lotus, New Winter Palace, Isis, Iberotel and Sheraton all have their fans and their detractors but it is hard objectively to rank them. They all have reasonably good restaurants, some shops and outside areas. They all have good and less favourable points which reviews on this site and others try to identify.

The Sofitel Karnak was once regarded as on a par with the Sonesta, but more recently it has slipped to be grouped with the bulk of 4 and 5 star hotels listed above. It is a relatively new hotel and we will have to see where its reputation settles.

Budget hotels

More basic hotels include the rather old but friendly St Joseph, the newer and cheaper New Pola, the Gaddis, Tutotel, Emilio and Phillipe. These hotels are typically a stack of rooms with a reception and restaurant underneath and a patio, usually with pool, on top. These hotels will suit those who don't want galleries, lounge areas, restaurant variety etc but just somewhere safe and inexpensive to stay.

Cheaper still

There are plenty of backpacker hotels and hostels, mostly around the railway station and in the built-up area of town. Here you can get a night's accommodation for a very few pounds.

Summary

If money is absolutely no object, you will be spoilt in the Old Winter Palace. If you get a good deal and want quality reasonably close to things, choose the Nile Palace or the Sonesta. For a quiet life with access to town, but where you can stay away from it as well: the Maritim Jolie Ville.

Your choice of the bulk of 4 and 5 star hotels will depend on whether you want to be in town or amongst the tourist restaurants and shops. On balance the New Winter Palace is probably the best bet in town, because of its central location and extensive grounds but it is a little tired and about to be demolished as part of the town centre improvements.

In the south we think the Lotus is better than the Isis. The Sheraton is the quietest of this group but some of the rooms are outside the main building, the food doesn't have the best reputation and the approach via bazaars at the end of a cul-de-sac is not very handsome.

From the economy group, St Joseph is usually favoured because of it's friendly management and excellent evening restaurant, but the New Pola is much more up-to-date, is usually cheaper and has the best views from the roof pool area. Unless you have children (see the review) the New Pola takes our vote as long as you don't want to eat in the hotel much - it is let down by its restaurant.