Mara House Luxor — Hotel in Luxor City

We had a very mixed experience at Mara House and ultimately would not recommend it to other travelers. On the one hand, the staff were incredibly helpful whenever we asked for something. Some of our family were sick with the Egyptian stomach bacteria and unable to eat anything but bland food. When we brought them eggs to boil and watermelon to cut up, they obliged us happily. They even made us a special tea. And when Mara learned that we were ill, she told us about the bacteria and made sure we had the medicine we needed to get well. The dining room is very elegant and the room was spacious, with neat old furniture.||All that said, the hotel was run-down. The bathroom was functional but oddly set up, with the toilet and shower in the same space. And there was no hot water and often the water tap in the shower didn't work. At one point, we went to shower and realized there was no water at all. So we had to walk down several flights of stairs to have them turn it on. We were never provided with a way to reach any staff for help. So we always ran up and down the stairs when we needed them--as did they. Also, there was a giant kitchen, which excited us until we realized that it had no plates, mugs, or utensils--just a few wine glasses. ||Also they didn't provide the basic things one would expect. E.g., there was no shampoo (we had to ask for it, and a staff member kindly ran to the store at 10 PM at night to get us shampoo, which was too late for us to use that night). They didn't provide even a couple of free bottles of water as every hotel in Egypt does, no matter the price of the hotel. We each got one tiny, thin towel, and there wasn't even a box of tissues anywhere. These are small things, but they make a guest feel welcome and cared for. ||To us, all of this was reflective of the various ways Mara is cutting corners to cut costs. For instance, when we came into our room (and this was true of the breakfast room, too), the air conditioner had not been started in advance--Luxor is incredibly hot this time of year (like 108 F), and so we were drenched in sweat by the time we settled our bags down or ate our breakfast. When we would leave for a few hours, someone would come in and turn off the A/C if we left it on. We got used to calling in advance to ask them to start it up for us. These cost-cutting measures were in evidence during the booking process, too. We booked on a third party booking website and paid our deposit via Paypal, as she asked, but she wanted the rest of the bill paid in cash when we arrived. We have never been asked to do this during our travels, in and beyond Egypt; we don't like traveling with a lot of cash on us. ||In sum: the staff was wonderful but the experience was not one we...

I’ve wanted to visit Egypt since before I can remember, but everyone I’ve known who’s been there has told me that due to the hassle from the touts and the difficulties of getting around Cairo and the country, you really need to take a guided tour. I’ve always traveled on my own, and I’d never been part of a tour group for longer than a day trip, so I was a little worried about that. But last year I got serious about going, and while researching, stumbled across Mara House, which turned out to have the best itinerary of any tour I’d found. And after contacting Mara, I was amazed to find out it also had the best price, and her blog had answers to every question I had about traveling in Egypt, and many I didn’t know I had. So this month I took the 9-night Egypt tour package, and also did the optional tours of Coptic Cairo, the day trip to Alexandria, and Abu Simbel. And the whole experience was even better than I’d dreamed, seeing everything I ever wanted to see with guides whose stories and explanations made everything more memorable. My thanks to Ayman who smoothed my arrival in Cairo; Suzy who took us to Coptic Cairo, Giza, and the Egyptian Museum; Mohammed who took us to Alexandria; and Mohammed who guided us around Luxor, on the cruise, and to Abu Simbel. Mara House in Luxor is beautiful—I especially enjoyed the rooftop terrace--and Amr was not only an excellent host who answered every request but was also responsible for the incredible meals. Special thanks to Ahmed, who not only guided the Medieval Cairo tour, but checked in with us every day in Cairo by phone or in person to make sure everything was going well. Then on my final day, I got to be a test subject as Ahmed did a trial run of the new Royal Cairo tour, which I can heartily recommend. We began at Manial Palace on the island of Roda for a history of the Egyptian royal family. Next we went to the City of the Dead to see two astonishing tombs; one neglected, full of graves, and haunting; the other still beautifully maintained thanks to continual upkeep paid for by a royal abroad who intends to be buried there. We ended up with more royal tombs in the mosques of Sultan Hassan and al-Rifai, which are worth seeing on their own, and since they’re right across from Saladin’s Citadel, Ahmed offered to take me there as well, where I got a last view over Cairo to the pyramids. I also want to mention the wonderful staff and service at the Steinberger El Tahrir, and aboard the MS Concerto, as well as the friendly drivers. I can’t thank Mara and her colleagues enough, and will be recommending Mara House tours to everyone who wants to...

Being a solo traveler to a country such as Egypt can be a little daunting. Thankfully I found Mara House early in the planning stages of my trip. I found Mara's blog posts invaluable - I read them all, some of them several times! I ended up booking the 9 night Egypt tour with an extra night in Cairo so I could add on a day trip to Alexandria.

I didn't actually have much communication with Mara herself - in fact I only got my actual itinerary when I emailed Mara the day before I left on my trip to ask for it, and she wasn't in Luxor when I arrived. However all her guides were fabulous! Ahmed was in constant contact making sure my trip was running smoothly. Nothing was too much trouble for him. A BIG thanks to Ahmed for letting me borrow his USB charger for my phone while I was in Cairo!!

Suzie and our driver in Cairo were both incredible. Thank you for taking us to eat at local places, I enjoyed the koshari immensely :) Driving around Garbage city was a fun experience for me!

Mohamed took us to Alexandria for the day and was a terrific guide. So full of knowledge and very easy to get along with.

Once arriving at Mara House in Luxor, Amr took great care of us and fed us until I was fit to burst! The food was sensational - I only wish I could've eaten more. Mara House itself is just like staying in someones home. The suite I had was massive, with my own balcony, sitting room and extra large bedroom. I appreciated the suburban location so I could get a real feel for the way regular Egyptians live, however I did miss being able to easily take a stroll along the Nile - it's a good 20-30 minute walk to the river so wasn't very convenient to take an evening wander. I also missed small things such as having instant hot water and amenities such as shampoo etc available in the room.

Mohamed was our guide for our entire time in Luxor and on the cruise. You couldn't ask for a better person to accompany you on the tour. Full of interesting facts and stories. I don't think there was one question I had that he didn't know the answer for. I felt very lucky to have him during my time there!

I had such an amazing time in Egypt I'm already planning my return, this time bringing a bunch of my family members with me! I will definitely be booking with Mara House again! Thank you for making my trip to...