Shepheard's Hotel

Shepheard Hotel is a hotel in Cairo, which has existed since the 19th century.

History

The hotel was taken over in 1841 by Samuel Shepheard, a Briton and soon named after this, but the hotel building itself were even older: Here already Napoleon had had his private quarters when his troops marched into Egypt. Under Shepheards line, the hotel quickly became known and popular. It enjoyed the reputation of being the best hotel in Egypt, but what Mark Twain did not shrink from the judgment that it was the second worst in the world.

1891, the hotel was destroyed by fire, but rebuilt. Hotel Compagnie From 1897 to 1905 belonged Internationale des Grands Hotels, a subsidiary of CIWL. The hotel had a garden and at times also a private zoo. It was frequented by members of the British army. 1952 many British institutions were destroyed in Cairo in agonistic conflicts, as well as the old hotel building.

Shepheard Hotel was rebuilt elsewhere, directly on the Nile in 1957. The house is owned by the EGOTH ( Egyptian General Company for Tourism and Hotels ) and is managed by the Rocco Forte Collection in November 2009. A basic refurbishment of the hotel reopened in 2013 is planned.

Literary mentions

Stefan Zweig moved an episode in the life of the Supreme Balinkay to from his novel Beware of Pity at Shepheard Hotel. He describes the hotel as a luxury quarters. Also scenes from the novel The English Patient play at Shepheard Hotel; the corresponding parts of the film were the same but rotated at the Hotel des Bains in Venice since the construction was not suited to the 1950s as a backdrop.

Back in 1873, Amelia Edwards described the hotel as a meeting place for illustrious persons, while Blanche McManus particularly praised the view from the terrace on the goings outside the hotel.