The historic former Nile Hilton will open this summer as the Nile Ritz-Carlton in Cairo.

The hotel’s location – with views of the Nile and neighbouring Tahrir Square, close to the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities, home to the King Tut exhibition – has proved problematic for the renovation, with work slowed by years of political demonstrations and uncertainty.

A complete restoration and renovation of the 50-year-old property started in late 2009 and the work was originally scheduled to take a minimum of three years. Ritz-Carlton was chosen to run the restored hotel in 2011.

As the Nile Hilton, the property played host to the world’s most powerful and famous, from statesmen through to Hollywood icons including Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra, as well as business giants such as Nelson Rockefeller.

Nile Ritz-Carlton Cairo

The hotel has undergone a complete renovation “whilst retaining many of the original features” according to Ritz-Carlton and will now have 331 rooms.

All rooms and public spaces have been designed by Frank Nicholson, with 50 suites including the elite Royal and Presidential suites having Nile views.

The hotel will have an Olympic-size pool with 17 private cabanas, a spa and sunset yoga sessions on the spa terrace overlooking the Nile.

The property’s meetings and conference facilities include the Alf Leila wa Leila Ballroom, another original feature of the hotel, and a new conference centre includes a 1,700m2 conference hall.

“By complementing the property’s natural strengths with our focus on bespoke service, diverse experiences and rich memories, we aim to reinstate the hotel as pride of national tourism in the country.” said Hervé Humler, president and chief operations officer of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company.

ritzcarlton.com