Cairo Marriott Hotel — Attraction in Geziret al Zamalik, Jazirat al Zamalik

Not deserving of a 5-star rating. We stayed at the hotel for 4 nights in Jan. 2023. The hotel's lounges and restaurants are nice and the decor beautiful, however the guest rooms are so old and outdated. It's been a long time since this hotel has been renovated and the hotel rooms desperately need one.

The Bad: *Outdoor dining restaurant staff (even though there were many working), would take over 10 minutes to just come by our table and give us a menu. Then another 10 min. to take the order. Whether that was because we were 2 females, I'm not sure. But the service was lousy. They would stand right next to you, and still ignore you. And this happened each time we ate there, over 3 times. This is not the service one would expect at a 5 star hotel. *The rooms were so old and felt more like a 3 star hotel, not 5 star. the carpet was old, the bathrooms are small. The bathrooms also had cracked paneling, chipped paint, and not up to 5 star standards. *Misr Travel - (BEWARE) a tour company inside the hotel, which the hotel staff recommended, set up a private Saqqara tour for us. It was around $120/each, which is pretty pricey for Egyptian standards. We did have a guide (Shereen) and driver, but they took us to a rug factory (rugs made by children no less), and we lost a lot of time there (we had no plans on buying anything), and when we got to Saqqara the guide only showed us the outside of the pyramid. She talked for about 30 minutes, and then we left, without seeing anything. We were greatly disappointed to find out that she didn't tell us about the museum or the tombs we could see. We basically paid $240 for nothing special. It was a complete ripoff. *Electronic store inside of hotel (BEWARE) - my mother needed a new iphone cord. I bought one from a store inside the hotel. I had to take it back 3 times because it was obviously a knock-off and the cords didn't work properly.

The Good: *The concierge and front desk staff are really great. They are helpful and attentive. They helped with airport transfers and with any questions that we had during our stay. *Housekeeping staff were very nice and did a good job *Room service was good, and so was the food. *The grounds are very nice and clean *Breakfast buffet was excellent . Staff not so much.

This hotel really needs to concentrate on updating their guest rooms and having reliable and honest companies that rent out their store fronts.

Save yourself some money and go to...

We stayed at this hotel a few years ago.  We had great memories of it, the food was delicious both the breakfast and the evening executive lounge. The room was not so outdated.   And the staff were amazing. It was under different management then.

New Management took over 4 years ago.  Boy oh boy,  what a DEGRADATION we have witnessed in the hotel. The room is a suite, its exactly the same outdated, floor to ceiling.The breakfast restaurant on the ground floor is in disarray.  The hygeine has declined, the food is not good, we feel cutting corners on quality.    The current GM formerly was a Sou Chef according to his CV.  We expect the food to be upgraded not downgraded.There is a lot of yogurt mixes, Chinese rice, noodles & stir fries.   The Egyptian food is placed outside; and more importantly the Falafel is served cold by the time you get it to your table.  The Foul is also outside, same thing with the temperature.    There is Belilah in a pot down in the counter, next to Oats, the sign are switched, so many people were taking oats presuming it was Belilah. Small mistakes like this from the staff. I asked a chef for bread, he was very rude, and said he was busy, just wait.  Where is the Egyptian hospitality I said to him.Apart from the GOOFING staff chatting and laughing without paying attention or servicing to guests.  There is no Hygiene whatsoever.   If they wipe the table from the last guest, its with a dry cloth. Not a damp cloth and no cleaner.  There is no cutlery on the tables until we ask for it and it is a challenge to receive a full set by the time you get food.     On the other hand, the executive lounge has been renovated, the food is not as nice as before.   The manager Abdel Mohisien is very rude, making sexual jokes, and when we asked for something, his face drops and he tells us to eat what is there.   He forgot that anyone at the executive lounge has already paid for the food and the services and/or is a high level Marriott client.   We do not feel he is qualified to be the manager of the executive lounge. The staff appear to be familiar with the mostly Arabian guests who reside in the hotel for very long periods.  There is a usual tipping service from them to get their food brought to the table from the buffet counter. We don't wish to return to this hotel.  The prices have increased and we found the service to...

TLDR: great complex, decent restaurants, and mediocre rooms.

BE AWARE: the cleaning crew/ hotel workers go through your rooms looking for money to steal. They have safes in the room, but… they control the safes, so be careful what you leave lying around. They did not mess with our electronics or documents. We know this because a member of our group caught a hotel worker going through his bags and caught it on video. Apparently the hotel worker was fired, but there was no verification of this.

Health and Sanitation: wouldn’t trust the tap water, but none of the food / restaurants / ice gave me any significant issues. If you’re from the West, your stomach is just having to get used to the new area, you will get some mild bubble guts. Take some antinal and you’ll be fine.

The rooms were pretty lame and gross feeling. The hotel somewhat reeks of cigarette smoke, but that’s many places in Egypt.

The gym was well stocked for a hotel gym, you have pretty much everything you need and it was never super busy.

The courtyard area is where this place shines. It’s a beautiful outdoor area with plenty of seating and where you can also order food / drinks. The service is slow, they are not very attentive, and you pretty much have to search for a waiter every time you want something. Nevertheless, it was a pleasant ambience, and we spent many of our evenings in this area.

The casino is okay- $10 minimum for all bets. You have some older slots, blackjack, ultimate Texas hold ‘em, roulette, and progressive Royale. Patrons are allowed to place their money on your seat, which may nerve-wrack some. I did not experience any issues with this and I always received my appropriate winnings.

The hotel restaurants all use the same drink menu for the most part. Wine and beer are very cheap, the mixed drinks are pretty expensive. None of the food blew me away but it was decent.

Another nice thing is that none of the workers ask for tips. You can enjoy this place without being harassed for...