• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Egypt Travel Blog

  • Cities & Regions
    • Cairo
    • Giza
    • Luxor
    • Aswan
    • Abu Simbel
    • Alexandria
    • The Red Sea
    • Siwa
  • The Sites
    • The Pyramids & Sphinx
    • Downtown Cairo Sites
    • Luxor Sites
    • Aswan Sites
    • Abu Simbel
    • Alexandria Sites
    • Edfu
    • Kom Ombo
    • Abydos
    • Dendera
    • Siwa
  • Museums
    • All Cairo Area Museums
    • Old Egyptian Museum
    • Grand Egyptian Museum
    • National Museum of Egyptian Civilization
    • Abdeen Palace Museum
    • Royal Carriages Museum
    • Manial Palace Museum
    • Nubian Museum
    • Sharm el-Sheikh Museum 
  • Food & Dining
  • Hotel Reviews
    • Greater Cairo Hotels
    • Luxor Hotels
    • Red Sea Hotels
    • Alexandria Hotels
  • Travel Advice
  • Trips
  • News
  • The Podcast

The Nile Kempinski in Cairo

November 7, 2012 by Egypt Travel Blog

NOTE: The hotel scene in Egypt can change drastically within a few years as some hotels improve, others decline, and some close unexpectedly for renovations. The Egypt Travel Blog has an updated and more current review of this property in our Best Hotels of Egypt for 2019 feature, which can be found here. 

The Kempinski is one of the newest hotel properties in Cairo. Although the chain – which is unfamiliar to many Americans but widely known for its sophisticated style and elegant opulence throughout Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and increasingly Africa – normally operates larger capacity properties, Cairo’s Kempinski borders on boutique. It’s main competitor is the new Four Seasons, just a block away at Nile Plaza, if that tells you anything about the league in which it comfortably rests. Because of its central location overlooking the Nile and within walking distance of Tahrir Square, and because of its boutique character crossed with typical posh Kempinski style, the Nile Kempinski is by far my favorite hotel property in Cairo.

Once you walk in the door, you know you’re in a true 5-star hotel – and I would even argue for 6 stars here. Every member of the staff from the doorman to the receptionists to the butlers (yes, butlers) to the restaurant servers are either well trained or naturally gifted at first-class hospitality. The lobby is small compared to many other hotels in its class in Cairo, but then again the whole hotel is compact but comfortable.

The first time I ever checked into this hotel, I was a bit early and the receptionist won my heart instantly with a sentence I’ll never forget: “Would you care to relax for a few moments in the Chocolate Lounge while we finish preparing your room for you, sir?” Why yes I would indeed! The Chocolate Lounge is a fabulous desert café located just off the lobby, and it definitely lives up to the culinary opulence that its name implies.

The hotel’s two main restaurants, Blue and Osmanly, are located on the second floor. Expect to be pleased with the subdued elegance of both. The service is terrific and the food is even better. The third floor gives access to an outdoor patio/courtyard that plays host to a shisha café, which often screens movies at night that are projected onto a large side wall. There’s also an amazing bar/lounge on the 10th floor, and the hotel’s pool, spa, and fitness center are located on the top (11th) floor.

The spa is a decent size, with all of the normal offerings and treatments you would expect to find available at an upscale Western establishment. The fitness room is pretty basic, but all of the equipment is new and it affords cardio-goers a nice view of the Nile while working it out. However, for a really great workout in a larger Western-style gym, do hit up the Nile Gold’s Gym just across the river. For one of the best swims in Cairo, however, you can stay right where you are. The Kempinski’s modern rooftop pool is striking not only for its elegance but also for its view. You have to check it out at night, even if you aren’t planning to take a dip.

The guest rooms in the Kempinski definitely do not disappoint. Although the standard rooms are a bit small, they’re decadently apportioned with beautiful décor, plush beds, nice bathrooms, free and fast wi-fi, free in-room movies, free soft drinks from the mini-bar, complimentary tea and coffee service, 24-hour butler service, and much more. The suites are quite a bit larger and even nicer, and all of the rooms are extremely affordable, especially when compared to other hotels around Cairo that are much less posh charge the same for their rooms.

You’ll really be comfortable and spoiled staying at the Nile Kempinski in Cairo, and unlike its only rival in quality down the road, the Four Seasons, a stay here won’t break the bank. What this boutique hotel lacks in terms of in-house shopping and dining options can easily be had just a block or two away at the Four Seasons or the InterContinental. But the Kempinski more than makes up for any alleged defects with its newness, it’s niceness, and its overall awesomeness.

Filed Under: Cairo, Egypt Hotel Reviews, Greater Cairo Hotels

Other Neat Stuff

The Mystery of King Tut’s “Other Worldly” Burial Dagger Finally Solved

Although the entire field of Egyptology is only about 200 years old, dating back to the deciphering of the Rosetta Stone and the unlocking of the ancient hieroglyphic script in which the civilization’s history was recorded, the study of ancient Egyptian history and artifacts is still accelerating at an astonishing pace. With the application of […]

New archaeological finds in Egypt continue to astonish

Important discoveries out of Egypt have again been flooding the global news as archaeologists continue to explore beneath the sands of the Saqqara necropolis near Cairo, which is home to temples, burial grounds, and pyramids of the once-mighty ancient empire. Over the last year, researchers have unearthed at least 210 sarcophagi not touched since their burial two millennia ago, including the coffin of Queen Neit, […]

More Unsealed Mummies Discovered at Saqqara

If you’ve ever wandered around the rocky grounds of the Saqqara royal necropolis, the site of the Pharaoh Djoser’s famous Step Pyramid just south of the most famous pyramids at Giza, you’ve likely walked above hundreds of undiscovered treasures, mummies, and noble tombs still hidden in the ground beneath your feet. Frequent readers of the […]

Step Pyramid Interior Reopens to the Public

The Step Pyramid of Djoser at Sakkara is one of the most unique pyramids in Egypt and the oldest pyramid still standing anywhere in the world. While most of the other famous pyramids nearby at Giza and Dashur have been generally open for the public to go inside of them to explore the narrow passageways […]

Mummies on the Move

There have been quite a few recent developments about mummies in Egypt lately, including the largest discovery of mummies in over a century near Luxor, which was followed by the eruption of a minor a controversy over where those mummies will now be housed (national officials prefer the new Grand Egyptian Museum while local Luxor […]

Pet Mummies

We all know that the ancient Egyptians mummified the dead bodies of their loved ones with elaborate rituals and scientific rigor, whether they were a revered pharaoh or, if non-royal Egyptians could afford it, a beloved family member. But even in modern times, we can understand that human love and affection extend beyond just our […]

New Major Mummy Discovery Unveiled in Luxor

The largest new discovery of ancient Egyptian mummies in over a century has been revealed to the public by Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities at a ceremony in the southern city of Luxor, resting place to hundreds of ancient pharaohs, other royalty, high court officials, and evidently more middle class folks as well. The discovery, which […]

New Discovery Makes Pharaohs Look Modern, Sort Of

A team of archaeologists work in northern Egypt have discovered the site of an ancient settlement that makes even the Pharaohs and the Pyramids look young, relatively speaking. The discovery was made in the town of Tel el-Samara, which is located north of Cairo in the fertile Nile Delta region. Egypt’s most famous pyramids at […]

Tracing the Physical Legacy of Cleopatra

On this year’s International Women’s Day today, Egypt Travel Blog would like to pay homage to one of ancient Egypt’s most famous figures and a woman whose life and legacy are worthy of remembrance. Cleopatra is one of the most famous women in all of human history. She was a beloved queen of an ancient […]

New Discoveries

One of the amazing things about Egypt is that the entire country is still an active archaeological site. With over five thousand years of history under its sands, the slice that we know about and have uncovered so far is by no means all there is to be discovered. When you visit the Pyramids couples, […]

Ancient Knowledge and Modern Remembrance

It’s National Library Week in the United States, so it’s as good of a time as any to talk about one of the world’s most famous libraries – the ancient Library of Alexandria. After the death of Alexander the Great and the founding of the Ptolemaic Dynasty in Egypt, the Library of Alexandria was created […]

Visiting the Pyramids of Giza

Egypt’s most popular historical site, and one of the most well known the world over, is of course the Pyramids, the most famous of which are located just outside of Cairo. The greater Cairo area is a sprawling metropolis of nearly 20 million people spread out over dozens of suburbs on both sides of the […]

Luxor Temple

Despite its prominent name, Luxor Temple is actually the second most famous temple in Luxor behind the much larger and greater Temple of Karnak just down the road. However, Luxor Temple has several unique features of its own that merit a visit and some independent attention. The first and most obvious aspect of Luxor Temple […]

The Valley of the Queens

The Valley of the Queens in the area of Luxor is a lesser visited royal necropolis in which various family members of several dynasties of pharaohs were laid to rest. As the name suggests, many queens were buried here in elaborate tombs befitting their status and wealth, but many princesses and even princes had dedicated […]

World’s Oldest Haute Couture

Anyone a fan of vintage fashion? How about 5000 year old couture? One of the neat things about Egypt is that its advanced civilization was good at both recording and preserving its own history. Unlike most other of the world’s great ancient civilizations whose moist climates caused the disintegration of its remnants thousands of years […]

Primary Sidebar

Check out our hit podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!

Join our “Egypt Insider” email list!

Loading

Beware – Scams, Taboos, Faux Pas, & Other Crazy Stuff

“Dr.” Sherif and the Great Papyrus “Institute” Scam

All About Camels… and the Pyramids Camel Scam

What NOT to Wear in Egypt

Cairo’s Chaotic Traffic

Taking the Right Type of Taxi in Cairo & Giza

The Super Aggressive “Taxi Jumpers” at the Giza Pyramids

Discoveries, Artifacts, and Unique Takes on Egyptian History

The Mystery of King Tut’s “Other Worldly” Burial Dagger Finally Solved

New archaeological finds in Egypt continue to astonish

More Unsealed Mummies Discovered at Saqqara

Step Pyramid Interior Reopens to the Public

Mummies on the Move

Pet Mummies

New Major Mummy Discovery Unveiled in Luxor

New Discovery Makes Pharaohs Look Modern, Sort Of

Egypt Travel Blog and the Egypt Travel Blog Podcast are produced in partnership with Jetset.Ninja and Egypt Elite.
. .