Cairo: Fontana Hotel (Hotel)

Address: Seif ad-din al-mahrany, Midan ramses , Cairo , Egypt
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Lonely Planet Review

High above the traffic and fumes of the Midan, the Fontana has clean rooms, kitsch decor and a pleasant rooftop cafe/bar and pool. The views are fascinating and while some might view the location's only advantage as being access to the train station, it's an interesting 'real' Cairo neighbourhood.

The interior of this hotel comes as somewhat of a shock. With lavender and pink walls and wonderfully gaudy Egyptian murals and paintings on the walls, it appears to have been designed by an Egyptian grandmother without her glasses on. This is not your average 'by the train station' three-star. The rooms are an anticlimax after the lobby (they're hardly kitsch enough except for the odd Lolita-esque painting), but they are very clean and well maintained. The family rooms are like suites, some with five beds. There's a pool on the rooftop as well as a terrace that makes a great place for a beer after a hot day trekking about town, and it has interesting views of Midan Ramses and surrounds.