Kato Dool Wellness Resort

Pros The hotel facilities were absolutely beautiful with an amazing view. Traditional Nubian style house. Every corner makes you want to capture the space. We had a rocky start but the hotel staff tried to redeem themselves. We lost an apple watch which the hotel helped us get back ASAP before we reached Luxor. We are grateful for this. Cons Awful communication and hospitality. We were the only guests in the entire resort because of low season but still received shitty service. The hotel is in a secluded place making it difficult to reach.It’s on top of a mountain on a dusty rocky road. The hotel offers a tuktuk. We did our research prior and contacted the hotel to arrange getting to the hotel from the village and check in since we knew we’d land in the AMs. We were ignored. We arrived at the village meeting point at 1:45 but only ended up getting to our rooms around 3:50am because reaching the hotel via call and WhatsApp was so difficult. The staff had no sense of urgency. We were frustrated and anxious in this wellness resort. Our taxi driver refused to take us up the mountain and the tuktuk refused to take us because of our many bags (which is understandable). I’m very disappointed in the service and I know the staff has lots of potential to improve on their service delivery. The hotel needs to be more cognisant of their customer service and guests hospitality. Staying here was stressful. Recommended if you want aesthetic vibes,a beautiful picturesque hotel with good breakfast. Don’t recommend if you prioritise great guest services, comfortability and peace.

The Kato Dool Hotel is too beautiful for just one night but offers too little for a longer stay. This creates a contradiction, and there is still much work to be done. **Pros:** - The hotel features unique architecture with vibrant colors, staying true to the Nubian style. - The view is probably the best you can get in Aswan. - Every room includes a cozy balcony. - There is an outdoor terrace by the pool where you can enjoy food while overlooking the Nile. - The food they serve is good. **Cons:** - The food is very monotonous. 80% of the dishes are some variety of tagine. There are only a few vegetarian options, with most dishes featuring chicken, beef, or seafood. Seafood dishes must be ordered one day in advance. The waiting time for drinks and food is also very long—expect to wait 40-60 minutes after placing your order. - Many of the wooden furniture pieces need readjustment. Doors are difficult to open, windows don’t close properly, and closets won’t open. - There is only Wi-Fi in the reception area, with no coverage in the rooms. Management has been aware of this issue for over a year and promised to fix it, but nothing has changed (according to older reviews). - The rooms are very noisy. Whenever someone uses water on any floor, the boiler runs for several minutes, and you can hear every cough from neighboring rooms. - There are no blackout curtains, and the air conditioning is slow to cool the room. In the main area, there is also a loud beeping noise coming from the roof, which the staff hasn’t been able to stop. It is constant and extremely annoying when dining, relaxing, or sleeping. - The road leading to the hotel is unpaved, consisting of sand and rocks. - The hotel offers a tuk-tuk service between the village and the hotel, but there is little to do in the village. For trips to Aswan or other places, you need to book a private driver through reception. Each way will cost you about 800EGP every time - Although the hotel is branded as a 4-star wellness hotel, the only facility it offers is a pool—there are no other wellness services. - We paid around €400 for three nights, which isn’t a lot by European standards, but it is expensive for Egypt, and the quality of service did not meet expectations. The hotel is beautiful, but that’s about it. This was something we noticed throughout Aswan: prices are higher than in Luxor, but the level of service drops significantly. Even the bathrooms lack basic amenities, like toilet brushes. - There are many staff members, but their English is very limited, making communication difficult and leading to frequent misunderstandings. The only staff member who is easy to work with is Ahmed at the reception. He tries his best to make your stay more enjoyable. - A major downside is the lack of an alcohol license. While alcohol isn’t essential for a vacation, it adds a romantic element to the evenings with the stunning view. The hotel caters exclusively to foreign tourists,

My biggest regret of our Egypt trip is that we only stayed here for one night! Kato Dool is everything and more that you see in the photos. The hotel is absolutely stunning, the service is impeccable, the breakfast and other meals were all absolutely delicious, and I don’t know how they managed to keep the pool cool in heat of the summer, but they did, and it was so refreshing! The hotel is situated on the West Bank, the quieter side and away from the city. Do note that it is quite a ride to get there, up a dirt road/hill and you have to get there by tuk-tuk (provided by the hotel), but it is absolutely worth it and the desert views along the way are beautiful. Don’t hesitate for even a moment - you must stay here while in Aswan, and make sure you book yourself an extra night to have a day to just relax by the pool and enjoy the views over the Nile!