Mayflower Hotel, Beirut

My wife and I are not the world's most experienced travellers but never the less found this hotel to be exactly right for our little adventure to the Lebanon. The room we got was clean (they all are I suspect) and had the most fabulous all-but-silent air conditioning unit I've ever come across - left it on when we went out one day to return to a fridge - which after walking around in the heat of Beirut was quite refreshing. The bathroom was spotless and resupplied with fresh towels and toiletries when cleaned everyday, the television had a bunch of English channels on it (movies and comedy stuff, not just CNN) and the beds were clean and comfortable with fresh sheets each and every time. Each room as a mini-safe in it - ours did - the lift works and the roof does indeed have a pool on it - albeit it a rather small one (don't expect to be swimming lengths, it's more a sit and drink sort of pool). The staff were uber-friendly and helpful (even at 4am in the morning) with everyone speaking marvellous English, their taxi drivers were especially cool (Cheers Hamzah!) willing to take you ANYWHERE in Lebanon at the drop of a hat (and for reasonable rates too) and if the hotel restaurant wasn't much cop it's probably because no one eats in Hotels in Beirut. There's no reason to. The location is pretty good if you're not after a sea view. (Check it out on Google Earth) Hamra is a hip district in a mostly Muslim part of town just around the corner from the American University and the corniche (seafront). The main shopping street, a block away, is filled with trendy clothes shops, there are restaurants galore nearby for your lunching and dining pleasure (pizza places, burger places, traditional places plus a starbucks for all you caffine freaks) and for that breakfast you'll be wanting there's a little place just down the street serving local-style take-away stuff my wife fell in love with (plus a handy coffee vendor in the doorway beside it). Within a block there's a supermarket for munchies, bottles of water and all those other essentials (at prices I couldn't quite get my head around so cheap were they) and if the call to prayer of a morning disturbs your sleep it's only because you don't have the double glazing to your balcony shut properly. So lets see. Decent English speaking staff, spotless rooms/bathrooms, multiple English tv channels, and enough nearby food outlets to override the dodgy hotel cuisine. We paid less than 100USD a night!! (possibly because we booked in advance) and at that price this sort of hotel just can't be faulted. Recommend it? I'd almost make it mandatory.