Heliopolis Towers Hotel

From the outside, the Heliopolis Towers Hotel looks a bit dull, like a modern office building with reflective glass windows and a sand-hued facade, but inside things are a bit sleeker. The lobby in particular stands out with a multi-story floor-to-ceiling glass frontage that lets in lots of natural light and gives the space an outdoors-indoors atmosphere. This vibe is enhanced by towering palm trees and numerous planters throughout the marble-floored space. There's seating throughout, including more intimate areas with rainbow-hued wall-to-wall rug runners and plush low-slung off-white chairs, partially sectioned off by frosted-glass screens.The Heliopolis is, for all intents and purposes, a conference hotel. It's particularly popular with convention guests, business travelers who want to be near the airport, and transit passengers with late-night arrivals or early-morning departures. While the amenities are top-notch and the atmosphere is pleasant enough, its location away from the city center makes it less than ideal for those visiting Cairo for sightseeing. 

The Heliopolis's location a 10-minute drive from the Cairo International Airport makes it a potentially good choice for business conference planners or those with late flights into or early flights out of the city, but it's a good half-hour drive to the city center, making it less than ideal for tourists. It's about an hour's drive to the Pyramids in Giza, while the Hanging Church and other attractions in the old Coptic quarter take about half an hour to reach by car. The Egyptian Museum is a 25-minute drive from the hotel, while Ramses Railway Station is 40 minutes away by car.

The Heliopolis Towers offers a total of 247 rooms across five categories. Decor is consistent throughout, with light-wood floors, bed runners and rugs under the bed (usually brightly colored), and large headboards that stretch to the ceiling, some bright purple and some wood. The bright colors may look youthful and fun to some, a bit busy to others.Entry-level Deluxe Rooms measure 50 square meters (538 square feet) and come with a king-size bed or two doubles and floor-to-ceiling windows with garden or atrium views. The next level up, Signature Rooms, are the same size but come with a number of additional perks aimed at business travelers. These include express check-in and check-out, welcome drinks, round-the-clock butler service, and access to the hotel's Signature Lounge. Lounge facilities include free breakfast, refreshments throughout the day, and three-hour-long daily cocktail receptions with hors d'oeuvres and sushi. All rooms have air-conditioning, safes, minibars, coffee- and tea-making facilities, and -- unsurprisingly -- fine Egyptian cotton linens and towels. Cribs are available upon request and some rooms also have balconies. Bathrooms feature sea-foam-green frosted glass (and in many cases, tile), walk-in showers, separate soaking tubs, and luxury toiletries.Heliopolis Suites measure 95 square meters (1,023 square feet) and feature king-size beds in the bedrooms plus separate living rooms with plush chairs, sofas, coffee tables, and desks. Tower Suites are a tad larger at 100 square meters (1,076 square feet) and add half bathrooms plus whirlpool hot tubs in the main bathrooms. The most luxurious room of them all, the Presidential Suite, measures 176 square meters (1,894 square feet) and has all sorts of extra perks, including a dining room with seating for 12, a butler's kitchen, a separate living room area with an executive-style desk, and a large bathroom with a double vanity, a huge mirror, a walk-in shower with a ceiling-mounted rainfall shower head, and a separate whirlpool bathtub.

The Heliopolis offers a wide selection of amenities, including free airport transfers on a shuttle bus, free one-way shuttle service into town every morning, free twice-daily shuttle service to the nearby City Stars shopping mall, butler service, currency exchange, and laundry. Parking is available for a reasonable fee and both valet and self-park options are available, though in-and-out privileges are not. There's also a 24-hour casino -- King & Queens -- with slots, video poker, Blackjack, and Roulette, but due to local laws, it's only open for non-Egyptian travelers. Other features include a fitness center with cardio and weight-training equipment and four pools, including a kids' pool and a reasonably sized outdoor swimming pool flanked by shaded lounge chairs and tables. The hotel also offers three clay tennis courts, two squash courts, a volleyball court, and saunas. For a business hotel, the Heliopolis is surprisingly family-friendly, with facilities for kids including the above-mentioned kids' pool, an outdoor playground, round-the-clock babysitting, a kids' club for those aged 6 to 12, and a special Friday brunch for families with activities including face painting and arts and crafts.Meetings and events are a big part of the Heliopolis's business, and the property offers a total of around 6,400 square meters (69,000 square feet) of meeting space, including 12 meeting rooms plus a huge pre-function area. Wedding planning and catering services are also available. Other business amenities include hotel-wide Wi-Fi and a large 24-hour business center with computers, faxing facilities, printers, and photocopiers.

The Heliopolis offers some 15 bars and restaurants in total, serving cuisine from around the world. Al Dabke is open for lunch and dinner (although it's closed Mondays) and offers all sorts of Lebanese mezza items, plus at-table barbecue. Leonardo has similar hours but is closed on Sundays and offers Italian pizzas and pastas plus lots of imported wine. There's also a poolside Pizza Bar with poolside pizza and other light options, and shisha (hookahs) can be arranged. Raj serves heavy North Indian cuisine, including plenty of tandoor-roasted meat dishes, while Marilyn (named after Ms. Monroe herself), is the hotel's funky take on American fast food, with burgers and hotdogs plus a few typical Middle Eastern street food specialities. Le Marche offers French-style cakes and pastries throughout the day, and while it's a good choice for breakfast, those wanting something a bit more substantial may want to consider the breakfast buffet at the 24-hour My Kind of Place (which also has buffets at lunch and dinner). Lan Tania is the Heliopolis' Southeast Asian option, with lots of Thai curries and noodle dishes, while Noble House focuses on Cantonese cuisine, with a few Japanese teppanyaki grills thrown into the measure. Saki Sushi Lounge offers sushi and sashimi plus bento boxes, and there's an all-you-can-eat sushi night every Wednesday. Maria's is the hotel's take on Mexican cuisine (of the Tex Mex variety), and also serves margaritas, while Egyptian Night focuses on local cuisine, and has frequent belly dance performances. Aqua e Luce has all sorts of food, including European and North American favorites and is open from early until late. Bar options include Darts, themed after a traditional English pub, and Rainbow Bar, a bog-standard hotel bar with regular live performances by a string quartet and a "Franco-Arab" band.