Gamaleya Boutique Hotel

The hotel is lovely, right in the heart of Old Cairo, and the staff were even better. They helped me choose a couple of rugs on the morning I checked out. Later, when I realized I’d left my glasses in the room, they worked out how to get them to me. After I arranged a courier, the staff kindly coordinated with both of us, and the glasses reached me in another city before my flight out of Egypt. I’m so grateful I stayed at Gamaleya for that night.

Breakfast and dinner are included, so this cute little hotel is really good value. It’s inside the city gate, where the roads are chaotic for cars, so cab pickup and drop-off are better outside. Be ready to carry your bags along the road for 5-7 minutes. The area seemed pretty safe, with police around, and the hotel staff were helpful about the car situation. Old historic Cairo is noisy and chaotic. Personally, next time I’d stay outside the area and just come in to visit, unless that’s the kind of atmosphere you want.

The staff are amazing and always greet you with a smile. The hotel is boutique-style, with a small family kitchen serving the breakfast and dinner that come with the room. It’s very close to the famous Almoez walking road, lined with little Egyptian shops. I booked the biggest room they had, but ended up in a small one with a sitting area shared with another small connected room. That was my only real negative.

The staff were wonderful, the hotel was clean, and the location felt perfect. We also got to see how beautiful original art pieces were made and buy some. Mariam was delightful, and breakfast was amazing. The area felt extremely safe. This was exactly the unique, beautiful hotel we wanted, and we’d stay here again.