Old Cataract Hotel
The Old Cataract Hotel in Aswan is a traditional luxury hotel in the orientalizing colonial style, which became known for its view of the former rapids of the Nile and its famous guests, including Agatha Christie , Winston Churchill , François Mitterrand .
history
The hotel on the eastern bank of the Nile, at the southern end of the Corniche el-Nil road, was opened before the turn of the century. The first advertisement appeared in The Egyptian Gazette on December 11, 1899, promoting the hotel's modern comforts, library and billiards room. Above all, the terrace with a view of the Elephantine Island became the meeting point for European luxury tourists. Agatha Christie's novel Death on the Nile (1937) is set in this milieu. It was filmed in the original locations by John Guillermin in 1978.
The hotel's original heyday lasted until the 1950s. Aga Khan III. and King Faruq of Egypt were guests here several times. Then began a slow decline that turned the house into a museum of itself. Experience reports from the late 20th century speak of a relic of a bygone era.
In recent years, the listed hotel , owned by the Egyptian state and managed for a long time by the French group Sofitel , has undergone a thorough renovation. The reopening after a three-year renovation phase took place in September 2011. The “1902” restaurant, a mosque-like dome and the famous terrace with a view of the Nile were largely preserved. To the west of the historic hotel, a cubic new building was built at a corresponding distance. As a result, the number of rooms economically necessary for a hotel of this category was achieved and, on the other hand, a wellness offer that is common in the 21st century was made possible.
Before the renovation, the Old Cataract was named the most beautiful hotel in the region by Condé Nast Traveler's Gold List in 2005.
Web links
- Hotel website
- History of the Old Cataract in cosmopolis.ch (English)
Coordinates: 24 ° 4 ′ 56.2 ″ N , 32 ° 53 ′ 16 ″ E