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The Cairo Marriott
 The
guest Khedive Ismail most wished to dazzle during the celebrations
marking the inauguration of the Suez Canal was Empress Eugenie,
who, as a cousin of de Lesseps, had agreed to open the event. He
built a lavish palace for her, in which the decoration of her own
apartments at the Tuillerie Palace was duplicated, with an
influence of Islamic architecture in the use of marble and
mashrabiya work. In 1863, Ismail had engaged the services of
German architect Julius Franz (later Franz Bey) to design the
palace that was completed in 1868, with the help of Abdin Palace
designer De Curel Del Rosso. The interior of the palace was to
include the most luxurious fittings that could be imported from
Paris at the time. French landscape architect Barrillet Deschamps
was encouraged to transform the entire island into a formal park,
incorporating the existing palace and kiosk of Mohamed-Aly into
the gardens. The U-shaped salamlek combined baroque European style
with traditional Islamic decorative motifs and architectural
features, using "high rectangular windows and corniches of
the Renaissance period beside Islamic horseshoe arches. All of the
arches, of cast iron, were produced in Germany and assembled in
Cairo by German workers brought to Egypt expressly for that
purpose.
The German designer Carl Wilhelm von Diebitsch
decorated the building by prefabricating the furniture, draperies
and other internal fittings as well as the gilded stucco
decorations in his workshop in Berlin. Once finished, the items
were assembled and packed into containers which traveled from
Berlin to Trieste by train, then to Alexandria by boat and finally
to Cairo once again by train.
Many of von Diebitschl's decorative elements have
been preserved to this day and can be observed in several of the
Marriott's ballrooms.  According
to Aly Mubarak, minister of public works under Ismail, the palace
had cost more than three quarters of a million Egyptian pounds, a
considerable amount for the time. This amount excluded the
landscaping, in itself a colossal enterprise which entailed
reinforcing the banks of the river and protecting the large area
around the palace from floods. Only when this work had been
completed could Franz lay the foundations of the 147 meter-long
palace, which nestled in the middle of the gardens. Once the work
was finally concluded, Franz, whose forte does not seem to have
been modesty, decreed it "the most beautiful building of
modern Arabic style in its category".
In 1880 Ismail's creditors claimed his
possessions, and the palace was  sold
to a hotel chain. It became known as the Gezira Palace hotel,
which rivaled in luxury the famous Shepheard's and was for a while
under the same management.
Left: The Salon Royal Staircase
The gardens were divided between the
Khedival (later the Gezira) Sporting Club, encompassing the race
course and polo field which had previously surrounded the royal
residence, while to the west of the estate, Ismail's fish grotto
was converted into a garden featuring rare trees and an aquarium,
opened officially to the public in 1902.
The Aida Foyer
Around 1908, the hotel was sold to Prince Michel
Lutfallah, who transformed it into a private residence. However,
following the 1952  Revolution,
it was sequestrated and later in 1962, turned into the Omar
Khayyam hotel, which featured unsightly green and yellow makeshift
cabins all over the garden.
Right: A typical Bedouin setup
at the Aida Ballroom
In the '70s, the property was handed
over to the management of the Marriott hotels, who restored the
original palace with loving care, equipping it with all the
amenities befitting a five star hotel. In addition, they build to
flanking mammoth modern skyscrapers to provide room for the
numerous tourists who regularly seek accommodations in these
enchanting surroundings.
The Salon royal
Today, many tourism professionals consider the Marriott one of
the finest examples of western style hotels in Egypt. So many of
these show little in the way of Egyptian architecture, but the
Marriott stands out among chain hotels as a splendid example. It
makes one feel that they are indeed, in Egypt.
 This
is a wonderful facility located in a quite, garden district and
surrounded by upscale shopping, restaurants and art facilities.
Nearby are located many of the foreign embassies and consulates.
Left: the Saraya Cafe
The Cairo Marriott is a full service hotel and
really has all the amenities and facilities one expects in such a
resort. Perhaps even more. Beyond luxurious rooms, the hotel has
10 different restaurants, including an American style steakhouse (JW's
Steakhouse), the Fish Market, a cruising restaurant called the
Nile Maxim. There are also five bars, including Harry's Pub,
the Casino's Omar El Khayyam bar, and a Piano bar. There is a
complete health and fitness center with a whirlpool, sauna,
massage service as well as a universal gym. This enhances the
large outdoor pool and three floodlit tennis courts.
Right: Harry's Pub
The business
center includes Internet access, a secretarial service and all the
fax and photocopying facilities required, but the hotel also seems
well known as a place of business meetings, with great and varied
facilities from small, to banquet size rooms.
The Country Kitchen
 As
for rooms, there are non-smoking, as well as easy access rooms for
the handicapped. All rooms are air conditioned, have mini bars,
direct dial telephones with voice mail and data ports, hairdryers,
private balconies, TVs with satellite, irons and ironing boards,
safes, and fire detection.
The Cairo Marriott is truly one of Egypt's premier
hotels, well known for gracious hospitality in a location that is
hard to beat with facilities born of old money and cherished
memories.
Omar Khayyam Casino
Cairo Marriott
Saraya El Gezira St., Zamalek, Cairo Egypt
Phone: +20 2-340-8888
Fax: +20 2-340-667
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