Jerusalem Panorama Hotel

Once this must have a.been a lovely hotel, but this place is just forlorn now. Here are the positives: it was warm, had good plumbing with a hot shower, and comfy beds. The breakfast was good. The wifi worked most of the time. The views were beautiful, especially in the breakfast room. It is near to Gethsemane and the Mount of Olives. Now the negatives: it was decidedly dingy and desperately in need of renovation, which made it feel grubby in the rroom. The cleaning staff did try, but they left a sheet off of my daughter's bed one night. They do start early, and ignore Do Not Disturb signs. . The front of house staff were apathetic, except for one guy whose friendliness was VERY marked towards my daughter. Its position is in East Jerusalem. When arriving from the airport, the Jewish shared taxi drivers will not go into the district. We arrived in the middle of the night and had to walk about 2 km to the hotel. It is situated up a very steep hill overlooking a vast ancient cemetery. ( stunning if you like cemeteries). If you want to get fit quick it is an ideal situation. There are food stores and a pharmacy very nearby. The local taxi company were very friendly and we used them to return to the airport. We used this place as it was cheaper than elsewhere, but you could certainly see why. If you are going have to use lots of taxis it is worth paying that much more for a decent hotel.

The Good... The owner of the Jerusalem Panorama Hotel, Monty, is a very nice thoughtful man, and an outstanding host, I liked him right away, his Father was a wonderful man as well. As I was leaving he [father] told me how nice it was having me in the hotel and gave me a big, genuinely loving, hug. The rest of the staff was very friendly too. Because these were such lovely people running the hotel, it pains me to leave a less than excellent review. But the hotel does deserve it's low rating. I have to say the bathroom was spotlessly clean with bright like new fixtures (except for the faucets). I stayed at the Panorama hotel for 5 nights. Location is exceptional except that there is a valley separating the hotel from the Old City of Jerusalem. It is a long arduous walk through the valley (hike way down to the valley floor then way-way up to the Dung Gate, or a long taxi/bus ride to the Damascus Gate). The Bad Part... The windows are filthy, so bad that it is hard to focus a camera through them. The hotel smells bad on all floors. The carpet in the room was so dirty that I was reluctant to put my bare feet on it. The hotel is in a very bad state of repair, the electrical plugs are scary! (See photos.) Also the faucets are in bad shape and in need of repair or replacement, serious problem getting hot water due to the faucet problem. Property could be brought up to par with some TLC.

BEWARE this hotel is in EAST Jerusalem but advertises as if they are in West Jerusalem. I had the misfortune of mistaking this hotel for the beautiful DAN Panorama Hotel located in WEST Jerusalem. Banking on the very similar name, this hotel advertises their distance to the Western Wall and ignored the fact that they are in a fairly dangerous Arab neighborhood. I booked the hotel three hours before my check in time through booking.com and when I arrived in Jerusalem, the cab driver, noticing I was Jewish, refused to bring me to this hotel for safety reasons. Instead the cab dropped me off at the Dan Panorama in West Jerusalem. The cabbie told me that I must have meant that hotel, since I would probably be killed walking around the other one. I cancelled the reservation through booking.com and got charged the entire booking fee. When I called booking.com and explained the situation, they said that the hotel processed the payment and they would call them. They called, the hotel said no refund. I then called the hotel and spoke to the owner who steadfastly refused the reimbursement because it is the month of December. He made it clear that any other month would be reimbursed, but because this is busy season, no reimbursement. So I had to pay for the full booking at a hotel that was life threatening for me to stay at AND I had to pay for a second hotel for my trip to Jerusalem... Awfully expensive deception.

Cons: “Parking”-(5 small spots on side of road that are already full). “Breakfast”- canned fruit and spam “Coffee Bar”-doesnt exist “Beauty salon”-doesnt exist Elevators-made weird and load noise as if they are about to break Wifi-sucks Reception- ok Neighborhood-sketchy, loud, packed, very dirty. A mile walk up and down big hills to get to the city/ any restaurants. Everything- is dirty and falling apart Blankets- are very uncomfortable Security-doesnt exist Electrical outlets are 250v Pros: Nice view

I stayed here 2 weeks on a group arrangement. Apparently many tours come through here because it is inexpensive. It has a spectacular view of the Temple and East Jerusalem, from the west side of the hotel. It is on the Arab side of Jerusalem, near Mount of Olives and not too far to walk to City of David or Lion's gate. However, it is about a block away from a mosque and every morning at 4 or 430 you get those weird (to most western ears) sounds of the call to prayer. Then... you're up! No view from the east side of the hotel; they say you can see Dead Sea from there but all you can see is rooftops, streets below, and trash bins. The staff is nice and they try to get you what you need. For the money, next time i am staying in a hostel..

Very good mainly for location and value. Amazing views. Mixed friendly Arab and Christian pilgrim clientele - I met two Islamic pilgrims who turned out to be Arsenal fans from London, good lads. Clean tidy rooms. Corridors slightly shabby but in keeping with a post-colonial feel. Helpful cleaning staff and reception. Reasonable "oriental" or Palestinian/Lebanese breakfast of boiled egg, tuna, houmous, bread etc. Buy a kebab from Ad Amud the butcher he opens about 6pm. Buy some local dates and cheese and pitta and have a meal in the balcony. If it suits you, you are very close to some awesome Christian heritage e.g. Gethsemane. Local shops don't sell beer. We get it from Mahane Jehuda market. Mount Zion is a brisk walk away. Lions gate is 0.5 miles away. Try the Armenian church on the Dolorosa past Lions Gate if you fancy a beer or snack. You can trust the taxi drivers from Panorama taxi. The neighbourhood seems to be a quite affluent one in Israeli Arab terms - I saw dentists etc. To my shame on first night I formed wrong impression due to full rubbish skips on street - but this was due to Eid. By end of week locals appreciated my beginner Arabic. No one stares at you. Friendly place. Jewish taxi drivers were not keen to drop off there at night - Ras al Amud seems to have "settlers" but I am staying out of that topic.

We were here for 3 nights. The rooms are quite large and clean. The view of the Old City is amazing. AC in the room, wifi (kinda slow and kept dropping) but it did its job. Breakfast was okay with plenty of things to choose from. The staff is really nice and friendly. If you plan to leave the hotel for a nigh walk keep in mind that the owner locks the hotel after 11 PM - so you better tell him you plan to take a night walk. The neighbourhood is ok-ish, you have a market near the hotel where you can buy water (I am not sure if the water from the hotel is drinkable).

When I first saw this hotel my first thoughts were, no doggone way! ...you have got to be kidding me! ...no way am I staying here for a week! ....I want to go home NOW!!! My western mindset was working me over. The neighborhood was crap. The hotel was crap. The room was crap. But when I realized where I really was my thinking instantly changed. I was at the epicenter of The Most High's land. Our group of 15 had everything we needed right there. There was a pharmacy next door, two small food stores, a fruit market, medical clinic, money exchange and a man making cold juice at the round-a-bout. So ,IF you are looking for a 5, 4, 3, or even a 2 star hotel keep it moving or stay at home. However, if you are looking for an awesome view of the Temple mount and a spectacular panoramic picturesque eye popping view of the old city that encapsulates history...this is the place to be. The staff was nice and helpful and we saved money.

My friend and I were attending a TBEX conference in a Jerusalem and were trying to keep to a budget. This hotel was far cheaper than all the other hotels in the centre. It was definitely value for money. We were upgraded to a huge three bed room with spectacular views of the old city walls and the Dome of the Rock from a bay window that practically covered one wall. The staff were extremely helpful and always had a smile for you. The breakfast was included which was a buffet of what a typical Israeli breakfast would be; tomatoes, cucumber, hummus, cream cheese, bread, olives, egg, tuna...it was simple yet delicious. I had no problem with the location as it was adjacent to the Mount of Olives and the local fruit sellers and shop owners were really friendly. I would recommend anyone on a budget to stay here.