City Hostel in Cairo

We arrived in the evening for one night. The next day to the airport. For one or two nights it's ok. No more. Doubts about the cleanliness of the bed linen. It seemed that they don't change it after each guest. But I'm not sure. We took this hostel only because of the location. The staff is friendly.

I stayed in a single room (smoking) for 5 nights.
The room looked larger than it looked in the photos, and it was comfortable with a sink and ceiling fan.
It was quiet even though it was located in Attaba. However, sometimes the room would vibrate mysteriously.
The location was excellent and you could walk to the city center.
Breakfast was also provided, so I was overall satisfied.

The hostel locates in a very convenient location that we can walk and uber to places easily. The man who works at the front desk (about 60-70yrs old), he is a super kind and lovely man. For his help, we can take uber at 2am without cash require from uber driver. On the day we stay, unfortunately, the bathroom didn't work properly. We didn't have hot water, and the toilet was hard to flush.

When I came to the center of Cairo, I saw a lot of dilapidated buildings. This is the Egyptian style. You can't expect too much. Hotels in the old city are all like this. The manager is not bad, polite, and can speak English. There are two cleaners who do a good job of sanitation, but the facilities are too old. Hotels in Egypt generally cannot change bed sheets for each guest, but they don't look obviously dirty. Egypt is a Muslim country. During the few days I stayed there, an old Christian man came to the hotel to chat with the manager every day. People of these two religious beliefs can live in peace, which shows that Egypt, a tourist country, is still very tolerant. The people are generally enthusiastic and outgoing. Walking on the street, people often take the initiative to smile and say hello to you. But there are exceptions. Some bad vendors charge you a lot more money. Some Egyptian boys, especially those teenage junior high school students, chase you for money. If they don't get it, they will curse in Arabic. Although I don't understand, I can be sure that they are furious and full of malice. They only dare to do this to Chinese people, and don't dare to ask Europeans and Americans for money. In their eyes, Chinese people are walking ATMs.

There is a food street near the hotel, which is only a 5-minute walk away. There are many small shops. This kind of small stalls is very common in Cairo. They only sell juice, drinks, cigarettes, potato chips, instant noodles, and even ham. There are about a dozen kinds of goods. Some small shops also sell some daily necessities such as toilet paper, shampoo, toothpaste, soap, etc. There are many bags and suitcases in front of this hotel. Going east is a street for wholesale shoes, clothes, cosmetics and jewelry. When I walked there, I felt like I was in a large-scale comprehensive wholesale market in China.

It is difficult to buy a few things in Cairo. I looked for a lot of places for oblique nail clippers and found one by accident. Shoe brushes are also difficult to buy. Metal or plastic ear picks are not available at all. Egyptians only use cotton swabs to pick their ears. The toothpaste and shampoo here are not easy to use, and facial cleansers are not available. The convenience of life is incomparable to that in China. It is very inconvenient to buy things. Try to bring things from China.

Nice and cost-effective

In general, it is not bad for me to stay in a single room with a common bathroom for 10 nights.
Above all, I would like to express my gratitude to the staff's efforts to manage the City Hostel clean which is too old and out fashioned building.

* Location & Transportation
Without noise, it is the best location to stay. It is located at 2 2-minute walk distance from Attaba subway station that connects to the Ramsis Railway Station and the Egypt Museum, only 1~3 stops away, charging 6 EGP per way. Of course, you can go to both by walk in 20 minutes. It means you can also enjoy the Nile riverside which is close to the museum.
And it is a 2-minute walk distance from the Attaba market which is the biggest public market in Cairo and so many locals visit to buy their livelihoods stuff at a cheap price.
In addition, you can also walk to the Al Azhar Mosque and Khan El-Khalili traditional market in 30 minutes, and St. Marc Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in AL Azbakeya in 10 minutes
Two problems I experienced are firstly the noi⁹sy from 8 am to 3 am outside the building due to market area and cars' horns. It took 3 days for me to adapt it. Any room in the hostel cannot escape it without changing the windows to soundproof ones. If you are sensitive to sound, it is better to find other lodges in a residential area or modernized ones.
Secondly, its location on the Uber taxi map and other maps is not accurate, so drivers have some problems in finding the city hostel. I have to meet them in front of the KFC next to the Attaba subway station. The signboard of the hotel is too small to recognize it.

* Building and room conditions
Like many other buildings in Cairo, the hostel building is old and shabby. The interior design and facilities are also outdated. However, the staff manages it so clean, particularly a common toilet and shower room.
It is quite convenient a washstand in each room.
However, it is bad there is no electronic kettle to boil water in a room or a common space. I could not enjoy my tea or coffee time at any time. I have to ask for hot drink water every morning when receiving breakfast, and store it in my tumbler.
It will be better to provide a tea or coffee service area in the hostel.

* Cleanness & Safety
Cleanness and safety are very good. I have no issue with this.

* Services
There is no basic service that most guesthouses provide in general: toilet paper and drink water.
Wifi is too weak to use the internet.
Other services like laundry are satisfied.

* Others
During my stay, I couldn't enjoy having an exchange time with other travelers. I think it is because there is no reason to stay in a common space where only sofas and a table are. Largely guesthouse provides a commonplace where guests enjoy better the internet or drinks including tea or coffee and foods, which makes guests meet each other naturally and structurally.

In conclusion, if the hostel provides basic services like toilet paper and commonplace with drink water and electronic kettles, it will be much better.
And it is necessary to change its signboard so that is more recognizable.

Except issues I mentioned above, it is a very good budget lodge.

In general, it is not bad for me to stay in a single room with a common bathroom for 10 nights.
Above all, I would like to express my gratitude to the staff's efforts to manage the City Hostel clean which is too old and out fashioned building.

* Location & Transportation
Without noise, it is the best location to stay. It is located at 2 2-minute walk distance from Attaba subway station that connects to the Ramsis Railway Station and the Egypt Museum, only 1~3 stops away, charging 6 EGP per way. Of course, you can go to both by walk in 20 minutes. It means you can also enjoy the Nile riverside which is close to the museum.
And it is a 2-minute walk distance from the Attaba market which is the biggest public market in Cairo and so many locals visit to buy their livelihoods stuff at a cheap price.
In addition, you can also walk to the Al Azhar Mosque and Khan El-Khalili traditional market in 30 minutes, and St. Marc Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in AL Azbakeya in 10 minutes
Two problems I experienced are firstly the noi⁹sy from 8 am to 3 am outside the building due to market area and cars' horns. It took 3 days for me to adapt it. Any room in the hostel cannot escape it without changing the windows to soundproof ones. If you are sensitive to sound, it is better to find other lodges in a residential area or modernized ones.
Secondly, its location on the Uber taxi map and other maps is not accurate, so drivers have some problems in finding the city hostel. I have to meet them in front of the KFC next to the Attaba subway station. The signboard of the hotel is too small to recognize it.

* Building and room conditions
Like many other buildings in Cairo, the hostel building is old and shabby. The interior design and facilities are also outdated. However, the staff manages it so clean, particularly a common toilet and shower room.
It is quite convenient a washstand in each room.
However, it is bad there is no electronic kettle to boil water in a room or a common space. I could not enjoy my tea or coffee time at any time. I have to ask for hot drink water every morning when receiving breakfast, and store it in my tumbler.
It will be better to provide a tea or coffee service area in the hostel.

* Cleanness & Safety
Cleanness and safety are very good. I have no issue with this.

* Services
There is no basic service that most guesthouses provide in general: toilet paper and drink water.
Wifi is too weak to use the internet.
Other services like laundry are satisfied.

* Others
During my stay, I couldn't enjoy having an exchange time with other travelers. I think it is because there is no reason to stay in a common space where only sofas and a table are. Largely guesthouse provides a commonplace where guests enjoy better the internet or drinks including tea or coffee and foods, which makes guests meet each other naturally and structurally.

In conclusion, if the hostel provides basic services like toilet paper and commonplace with drink water and electronic kettles, it will be much better.
And it is necessary to change its signboard so that is more recognizable.

Except issues I mentioned above, it is a very good budget lodge.