Grand Aton Hotel — Minya EGYPT

With no satisfaction, we present our worst hotel in Egypt — The Grand Aton in Minya, Middle Egypt. The images below do not convey how truly bad it was. So bad, we added it to our Worse Worldwide, only our fifth such distinction in as many years of our constant traveling.

The property was under renovation. (Not always a complete joy killer for us in the past.) It definitely is on the road less traveled with only 1 in 100 organized tour groups cycling through this Middle Egypt stretch choosing inside to fly Cairo to Luxor or Aswan to continue their journeys. Our traveling group of 35 folks only fit in certain sized facilities and the Grand Aton was happy to set aside their wrecking ball and sledge hammers and lead us through the rubble to our rooms. It’s on the Nile river but there was really no charm about it. At least mow the lawn. And return Rich’s favorite shorts that disappeared into housekeeping purgatory!

Ultimately, it was all about seeing the astounding ruins that were once the splendor of Medium, Pyramid of Amenemhat III at Hawara near Faiyum (where Rich had a strange physical reaction including visions), the Tombs of Beni Hasan near Abu Qirqas and Tuna-el-Gebel near Mallawi and Tell el-Amarna. See some of those highlights below the hotel pics.

Modi Hotel — Kalka, Haryana INDIA

On the night of Diwali, festival of lights, in 2017 we stayed one night in a hotel near the terminus of the small-gauge train that takes tourists up the mountain to Shimla, a popular Indian hill station resort area in the state of Himachal Pradesh. During our six months traveling in India this celebration was by far the biggest event with virtually everyone scurrying home. Bus stations and roads were mobbed. Our Modi Hotel visit was an overnight pit stop to catch the train the following morning. The hotel of about 150 rooms was deserted that night. We were the only guests. Our room was up a couple dusty stairways and down a rather dusty hallway to presumably a quieter area away from the street noise and dirt.

The pictures below say it all. A new AC unit worked great except it blew directly on the bed. So we rigged (see 2nd pic) a diversion of the airflow using room furniture, our luggage and anything else handy.

The flip side of the “worst hotel” experience was the dining room in the hotel was fabulous and the food was fabulous — something we got used to in the most unlikely places in India. It’s part of the allure and charm of this incredible country.

Also, the manager and staff in the hotel was so, so kind and helpful to us. He arranged to have someone bring us some medicine for a bad cold Paul was battling. And then, when Paul was too sick to take the five hour train ride, arranged for a car and driver to take us up the mountain to our stunning five star hotel in Kufri (Royal Tulip Hotel). Even “worst of…” experiences can have a silver lining.

Laxmi Palace — Rishikesh, Uttarakhand INDIA

Before we left for India, a friend told us, ‘when you get weary, just check yourself in to any hotel with the word ‘Palace’ in it.’ The idea being we would be magically renewed. Uhm. That was not, in our experience, factually accurate.

Our one-night stay at the Laxmi Palace in Rishikesh was complicated by the fact the area, a spiritual mecca, is dry (no alcohol available). So bring your own bevvie and check out — cash only! — ASAP. Oh, and bring your own towel (see video clip below).

Citrus Chambers — Mahabaleshwar, Maharashtra INDIA

A friend in Udaipur recommended Mahabaleshwar, a hill station popular with urban dwellers in nearby Pune and Mumbai. We were coming from nearby (fabulous!) Aurangabad. We seemed to be the only foreigners in town. It’s a very charming, provincial strawberry growing region. But charming is not a word we use to describe our hotel. While a large room and conveniently located walking distance to downtown walking streets, the entire property needed a makeover. The dilapidated pool pic at the top of the page is from this property. Need we say more?! Oh, and they spray DDT openly to control the tiniest of bugs! Absolute paradise…

Hotel Aeropuerto — San Jose, Costa Rica

Oh, just trust us. Stay at the nearby (fabulous) Studio Hotel (our video review) for about the same price of US$100 per night. The hardworking folks in the restaurant here are excellent, though!