Great place to stay in Luxor (Jolie Ville Luxor Resort)

Member Name: robvr6

Product:	Jolie Ville Luxor Resort
Date:	09/07/09 (16 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fantastic location, incredible pool, friendly staff

Disadvantages: price of water in hotel

My girlfriend and i stayed here from 30th July to 13th August this 2008, and absoloutely loved it. Although the rooms and bathrooms may need updating, but to be fair they are perfectly usable and kept very clean.

when we arrived we took a taxi from the airport, for those of you who have never been to luxor before this can be a bit confusing, you will get your visa etc, and then head out of the front doors towards where everyone is getting a coach from, head past the coaches and keep going until you pass what looks like a covered hardstanding, and just after that is the actual taxi rank. the taxis in luxor are almost as ancient as the attractions, and the drivers will try and tell you that it is best to pay in GBP and that it is £10 or more... it should be no more than around 50-60LE to jolie ville, and they will say things like "that is the old price" to get you to pay more. dont get me wrong, they are only trying to make some money and the difference to us may not be a lot but to them it is. just tell them you know the price because you come to luxor every year.

anyway... the hotel. set on its own island, it is the perfect haven from the hustle of the town and is only a 25LE taxi away from it all, or if you prefer, the courtesy bus is really handy, as well as air conditioned and clean and comfortable. there is also a free boat service into town operated by the hotel, and again this is lovely and a nice relaxing trip on the nile. the grounds are immaculate and there will always be people around cleaning or preening the many flora and forna. it is extremely safe and pleasant on the island, and you can take it in doing a bird watching trip, or a camel ride on Cleo.

The pool areas are incredible, the 'infinity pool' is massive and great fun, with its jacuzzi are in the middle, a waterfall, and of course the infinity edge to the nile. there are plenty of sun loungers and staff to take your orders for food and drink whilst at the poolside. and it does get a bit busy with all the sun worshipers during the middle of the day, however it was never really a problem finding a lounger, the towl/pool attendant will help you find one as well! to be honest the pictures just dont do it justice... there is a childs area with slides and water jets that looked like a lot of fun right next to it as well.
they have an adults only pool which we never actually used, but was always a nice and peacefull retreat and again has plenty of loungers available.

the restaurants on site are good. we had breakfast every day and it is great, a wide variety of cold and hot foods, although being a muslim country dont expect bacon or pork sausages (the beef sausages are good though!), as well as cereals, 5 fruit juices, a medley of breads, with jams, nutella etc, and a selection of fruit and cold cut meats and cheeses.

Eating in at night is fine, the food at the barbeque is a little samey after a few visits, but is very nice. we didnt eat at la fleur, but heard very good things. the terrace restaurant by the pool is nice but the bugs did get a bit much at night (but then it is right on the nile...) the only reccomendation i could make about this is that they could put a large fan at each corner of the seating area to cool the patrons, and keep the little bugs away. the buffet restaurant again is good and has a different theme every night, and costs around 170LE per head, plus drinks. You can also eat in the bar and the menu is the same as the poolside terrace. drinks at the hotel are more expensive than in town but again that is to be expected. Local Stella beer is 28LE per bottle (500ml) wine is 50LE per glass, as are the cocktails (which if you ask will be made stronger... much stronger!!) Room service is fast and a good standard.

The staff throughout our stay were really really really attentive and very friendly. they all speak good english, and are just soo friendly.
one other place to eat is the small marquee area near the suites, you will need to book at reception for this though and it is ideal for a romantic evening meal for just the two of you.... (as there is just one table set for two)

the sunsets from the sunset terrace are breathtaking and shouldnt be missed, as well as the shisha island which is a very relaxing place to have a couple of drinks and a smoke on the pipe later into the evening.

tours and attractions should be booked in town as they are a lot cheaper than the tour operators at the welcome meeting, jolleys is right next to the old winter palace and is where we booked. (the second stop on the complimentary bus)

on site facilities are numerous, and include massage, hairdressers, manicurists, make up specialists, and a zoo to name but a few.

we saw several other hotels in town and to be honest would have been absolutely gutted if we had stayed at them, as the jolie ville is just soo nice to get back to at the end of the day. the air con in the rooms is also very good, and believe me when the temperature reaches 120oF during the day it is a welcome relief.

anyways, i go on for too long...if you want any info, drop me a message and ill gladly help if i can.

Summary: when the rooms have been updated, this will be the best place to stay by a country mile