There are 92 rooms including 6 suites
The Winter Palace in Luxor, operated by Sofitel, is not nearly as famous as its sister hotel, the Old Cataract Hotel in Aswan. Sofitel Winter Palace Luxor a 5-star luxury hotel built in 1886 by British explorers perched on the Nile River amid luxuriant tropical gardens and ancient temples.This opulent Luxor hotel blends rich colonial design with the glory of Pharaonic times. In this 19th-century palace once a winter retreat for the Egyptian royal family Agatha Christie wrote her famed 1937 novel Death on the Nile.Illustrious dignitaries - from presidents and politicians to artists and celebrities - have stayed in this Luxor hotels sumptuous suites overlooking the Valley of the Kings.Archaeologist Howard Carter, discoverer of Tutankhamen's tomb, wandered the gardens of this sumptuous hotel in Luxor almost a century ago. Yet it were the guests of this hotel, from a posting on their bulletin board, who were first informed of Howard Carter's great discovery of Tut's treasures. The great Egyptologists was staying at the hotel upon his world awakening discovery, and even though he had a residence built on the West Bank, he continued frequenting the hotel up almost until his death. He was often seen sitting in self imposed isolation in the hotel's gardens. Built in 1886 to attract the nobility of Europe, the Winter Palace is more continental English in atmosphere than the Old Cataract in Aswan. One does not get the feeling of Egypt so much as of an oasis of European flavor and Victorian charm. In fact, the ultimate privilege is said to have had one's own yacht moored along the quayside, opposite the Winter Palace. Such notables as King Farouk stayed here and even had his own apartment. French President George Clemenceau, as well as many crown prices and princesses from European and Oriental Royal families made it their preferred place of residence, as have such celebrates as Jane Fonda. It is said that the Winter Palace had once been somewhat run down, but none of that is visible today, or even easy to believe. All is in perfect order, with modern fixtures necessary for comfort coexisting alongside antiques, fine wood and sand cast glass.