The Cataract Hotel is a luxury resort hotel built on the banks of the Nile in Egypt near the town of Aswan (Assuan in Christie's spelling). The Cataract Hotel was built in 1899 by Thomas Cook to house its travellers to Aswan. Over the years the hotel has served many famous guests including Tsar Nicholas II, Winston Churchill, Howard Carter, Margaret Thatcher, Jimmy Carter, François Mitterrand, Princess Diana and Queen Noor. The hotel is also well known for its connection to Agatha Christie.
The a new tower wing was built in 1961 separate from the old building and this became known as the New Cataract Hote. The original Thomas Cook building was renamed the Old Cataract Hotel. In the 1990s the hotel came under the management of the French Accor group. From 2008 to 2011 the hotel was closed and underwent a complete restoration, reopening in October 2011 as the Sofitel Legend Old Cataract Aswan Hotel.
The Cataract Hotel and Agatha Christie[]
- In 1937, Agatha Christie checked into the hotel and stayed there for a year. During this time, she wrote Death on the Nile here (or at least a part of the novel), drawing inspiration from the hotel itself as well as the surroundings. The hotel still maintains an Agatha Christie suite which although renovated, retains the original look and feel of Christie's time. It may be visited on a guided tour provided by the hotel.[1] The Winter Palace Hotel at Luxor also claims that Agatha Christie wrote part of her novel while staying there. The 2004 David Suchet adaptation adaptation used the Old Winter Palace Hotel as one of its filming locations. That's because the cruise itinerary was different and went to sights near Luxor.
- In the novel Death on the Nile, the guests stay at the Cataract Hotel before boarding the Karnak for their cruise up the Nile.
- The hotel was used for filming some scenes for the 1978 Peter Ustinov adaptation of Death on the Nile.
- In the Kenneth Branagh 2022 adaptation of Death on the Nile, the Cataract Hotel was built as a set with CGI based on photographs of the actual hotel taken while on location.[2]
