What a relief to step off the overnight train from Cairo (worth doing even if 5 hrs late) and be met by Mara and her driver. After traveling on our own for 2 weeks in Lebanon, Syria, and now Egypt, it was a delight to be welcomed to Mara House. It's a boutique hotel/B&B (breakfast is included) with "rooms" the... more

After initially only planning to stay 2 nights we ended up extending our stay at Mara' s to 5 nights and we were so glad we did. Mara's is the perfect base for comfortably exploring Luxor and it's surrounding attractions. Rooms are large, nicely decorated and very clean. Be sure to request one with a balcony and fridge as not... more

I was on a very short trip in Luxor, travelling by myself, and was looking for a place that would be very relaxing, cozy and safe. Mara's House was all of those and much more. She is an extremely sweet Irish person and makes sure all your needs are met. The room I had was huge; her beds were so... more

We stayed with Mara for 3 nights and were looked after very well by Mara, Stephen & Sarah. When we arrived we had our first beer in 4 days – due to Ramadan, so we had the best welcome. Our room was a 2 bedroom suite, very spacious and comfortable with a small balcony and the bathroom was also spacious.... more

We had the most lovely time staying with Mara. I cannot recommend our time staying with her highly enough. Friendly and hospitable, charming, interesting, full of useful tips and recommendations both to Luxor and to surrounding sites. It was just the right type of personal attention. She built the house herself and the attention to detail is remarkable, from the... more

My wife and I recently spent 10 days in Egypt, and the four days we spent at Mara House were easily the best part of our trip. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay there, and would recommend Mara House to anyone who is visiting Egypt to see the ancient culture. ADVANTAGES: Mara House is very quiet. Mara and her staff are... more

Very friendly, clean and fantastic food in the restaurant. Mara was in Ireland but her son Steve was incredibly helpful and organised everything for us including trips, guides, restaurant bookings and taxis. This is a fabulous place to stay to get a feeling of the real Egypt. more

Mara's house is clean, beautiful and my favorite place to stay in Egypt. I have stayed in 5 star hotels around the world and Mara's house is better than any Ritz (especially the one in Sharm). The tasting dinner was our best meal during our two week trip throughout Egypt. If you are looking for a taste of the real... more

A huge thanks to Mara, Stephen, Sarah and the team who put so much effort in to making your stay as enjoyable as possible. We arrived from Hurghada after a 7 hour bus trip and after a shaky start a quick phone call to Mara saw a taxi arrive to pick us up from the train station to take us... more