Stayed on 12/24/2007 - It is Egypt so I don't expect European or US standards - but just be forwarned - 5 stars here isn't 5 stars in US (go to Four Seasons in Alex for that).
It was a bunch of little things that made the visit disappointing- parking was a pain, they charge for EVERYTHING, had workman banging on pipes in hallway until 10:30pm (when I finally called, then went to the front desk to complain)
- got the cheaper 'city view' (at a $88 rate) b/c was told, and believe it is true, that is quieter than being on the Corniche with its all night traffic. (plus I was out walking and looking at ocean so didn't need a view. - and city view means view of apartment complex across street) But then was forced at check in to buy a $25 dinner b/c it was Christmas eve (and it was just the normal buffet -and was not good)
A small (what you would expect) workout area, a pool that overlooks the Med (and the busy street) but the sauna (steam and whirlpool) is only open to men from 3pm to 7am (and only to women the opposite)
So the food was bad, the hidden expenses, the noisy late night workers, oh, the water was brown in my first room, so they moved me. You can't enter from the Cornich were the sign is, you have to walk around the block.
Alex is a great place, but next visit I will try someplace else, or come with lower expectations. With the extra charges and forced dinner purchase my $88 room ended up being $140

Great hotel. We were greeted with a fruit basket and had a view of the beach. If you are lucky to have louge access, it has a good breakfast and snacks and you can take as many bottles of water for free. Rooms were quiet. Alexandria is a great place to be compared to the harassment you get from being a tourist in Cairo. Don't let the bell captain get you a taxi since they will charge you more. Walk outside in front of the hotel to hail a taxi. No place should cost you more than 20 Egyptian Pounds.

Our experience at this hotel was unique to say the least. The facilities seem quite nice at first glance- beach, pool, spa- but be warned within all of them there are hidden traps.
The beach front is in front of one of the busiest streets in Alexandria- so to get to it is like playing a fatal version of the video game frogger- or you can wait for the shuttle to get you there (at the least you'll have some impact cushioning). The beach itself is quite nice, but be prepared for arguments and screaming matches, as security tries to stop the locals from walking on the beach.
Soo, we moved to the pool- very nice- as was the spa- small problem though- the spa is only open for men, or for women at any one time. Thus whilst I was trying to enjoy the steam room- my wife ( she dressed in long shorts and baggy tshirt- as we did try to be culturally sensitive) had to wait in another area. This wouldn't have been a problem for us, if we weren't paying a 5 star type hotel bill for what we assumed would be 5 star facilities.
Back to our room- the toilet broke- sooo we phoned a happy chap named Shady "No problem sir"- after a 3 hour tour of the city, (and or toilet still in disrepair) we then went to the front desk, and talked to happy chap Shady again "Immediately sir". Sometime the next day they resolved it. The word uncomfortable comes to mind.
Expect a different type of service,while staying in an Egyptian owned and operated hotel- it's part of the travellers experience. But if, per chance you are looking for a 5 star indulgence, best to look elsewhere than at this hotel.

We arrived in Alexandria via Nouzha airport. It was a 20 minute ride in a taxi to the hotel at 2:00 a.m. Upon check-in, their credit card machine was not connecting and they implied that it was our fault. The printout from the machine did not say "declined," it said "connection error" but they still seemed to think it was our fault. Not a welcoming way to begin our stay.

We had reserved a room on the Club floor, but we were given a room on the floor below as "no Club floor rooms are available." No adjustment was made in our rate as we still had access to the Club lounge (which was a cafeteria style room with some sodas and juices, bags of chips and occasional deep-fried, luke warm offerings on a steam table). We had an extremely small room (there was not even enough space for the room service cart). The room itself was clean, but the bathtub had a serious mold problem. We had a balcony with a partial sea view. I felt like we had been "had" from the get-go.

The breakfast buffet was very average and the offerings the exact same each day. At least they were serving the buffet during Ramadan. I recommend trying the tasty Egyptian breakfast dish called "Foul" which are large beans doctored up with cumin, crushed red pepper, olive oil and lemon juice. We also ordered breakfast from room service one morning. We ordered fresh orange juice and received OJ from concentrate. I ordered salmon hash benedict with hollandaise and my companion ordered steak and eggs with hollandaise. I was really puzzled by the fact that his hollandaise was the real stuff, but I was given a side of what tasted like caesar salad dressing for mine. I called and asked for "real hollandaise" explaining the situation. About five minutes later I received what looked like hollandaise sauce, but was actually raw egg frothed up a bit. It was cold and runny and tasted nothing like hollandaise.

The Italian restaurant was quite good, and the risotto and seafood dishes outstanding. However, they were out of Italian wine so we had a beaujolais with our meal. The first order of risotto was supposed to have shrimp and scallops, but it arrived with shrimp and mussels. I am allergic to mussels, so we had to ask for that to be corrected. The calamari appetizer was served cold.

We hung out in the Library Lounge a couple of nights. It was cozy and comfortable, but don't expect anything fancy to come from behind the bar.

The beach was a bonus. A shuttle bus was readily available to take us across the busy six lane street to the beach. The water temperature was still very swimmable for mid-October and it was very clean. Security guards keep locals out of the private beach area, and it is always interesting to see Muslim women swimming fully clothed. It was a bit surreal to be floating in the waves next to six lanes of honking cars and listening to the call to prayer booming from several speakers around the city.

Alexandria is an extremely impoverished city. It is full of high rises, but they are very dilapidated. Traffic is nuts and the incessant honking can wear on one's nerves. At night, a 5 kilometer taxi ride down the corniche can take one hour. In an area near the hotel, I had an Egyptian teenager yell some extremely lewd and vulgar "invitation" to me even though I was modestly dressed. It was very uncomfortable. Generally the people are friendly and love Americans. If I went back, I would choose a different hotel.