Hotel Saint Georges Beirut

The Saint Georges Hotel, Yacht Club, Marina & The View Hotel has been part of Beirut since 1929, and its setting still does much of the talking: Saint Georges Bay, the Mediterranean immediately outside, and the city within reach. You get a proper urban base rather than a cut-off beach resort, with enough on site to keep the evening simple when your legs have had enough of Beirut or the sea.

The hotel suits you if you like your coastal stay with a city attached. There is a saltwater swimming pool, a beachfront restaurant, a bar by the Mediterranean, outdoor seating and free WiFi throughout the property. Private check-in and check-out, a 24-hour front desk and concierge service keep the practical side fairly painless, which is useful when your arrival time has more to do with flights than with hotel tradition.

Families are catered for too, with family rooms, a dedicated children's pool and baby swimming areas. For a quieter wind-down, soundproof rooms, air conditioning, bathrobes and slippers give you somewhere comfortable to retreat to once the day is done.

You are in Minet El Hosn, in Ain El Mreisseh, Beirut, directly on the coast of Saint Georges Bay. This is a seafront address rather than a hotel that asks you to cross town for a glimpse of the water. The property's direct beach access puts the Mediterranean at the centre of the stay, while the large Marina pool deck gives you another place to spend the afternoon when you would rather not deal with sand.

Beirut's landmarks are close enough for a change of scene. Place de l'Etoile and Nejmeh Square are about 1.3 miles away on foot, while Place des Martyrs is roughly 1.5 miles away on foot. The Nicolas Sursock Museum is around 1.4 miles away, and the Beirut National Museum is about 2.9 miles away on foot. You can also reach restaurants close to the hotel, including La Parilla Summer Edition, AlHindi and Mosaic Restaurant, all within roughly a tenth of a mile as the crow flies.

Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport is about 4.2 miles from the hotel, or around 5 miles by road. Ramlet Al Baida Beach is a separate beach option, about 1.7 miles away and roughly a five-minute drive.

The room choice is less about squeezing in another bed and more about deciding how much space and sea you want around you. The Deluxe Double Room with Side Sea View works for two and combines a king-size bed with a sofa bed, while the King Suite and Queen Suite both give you a full sea view and two bathrooms. If you are travelling as a couple and like having room to spread out after a day in the water, either suite is the more natural fit.

Sea views are available across the accommodation, though the deluxe option offers a side view rather than the full outlook of the suites. The larger suites also give you two bathrooms, a small but useful detail when two divers are trying to shower, change and leave the bathroom at roughly the same time. No heroic choreography required.

Air conditioning matters in Beirut, particularly when you return warm, salty and ready to stop moving. Rooms also include a minibar, tea and coffee-making facilities, an electric kettle, a dining table and a desk. A bath or shower, slippers, bathrobe, hairdryer and daily housekeeping cover the unglamorous but welcome business of getting clean and comfortable. Soundproof rooms help keep the night less dependent on what the rest of the building is doing.

Le Resto is the hotel's beachfront restaurant, set on what the property calls its signature culinary deck. It serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, so you can keep meals on site rather than turning every tired evening into a search for somewhere open. Mediterranean cuisine is offered with halal options, alongside brunch, high tea and cocktails.

Breakfast is continental, and breakfast in your room is available if you would rather eat without negotiating with the morning. There is also a snack bar for something less formal, a coffee house on site and a minibar in the room. Special diet menus can be arranged, while fruit and wine or champagne are available as additional food and drink choices.

Le Bar sits directly on the Mediterranean coast, giving you an obvious place to settle with a drink once dinner is out of the way. A pool bar adds another option around the water. There is one named restaurant and one named bar, with the coffee house and snack bar filling in the gaps between proper meals; useful when your appetite follows its own timetable after diving.

The water-based choice here is not limited to the sea. The property has five outdoor pools, including large family pools, a dedicated kids' pool, safe baby swimming areas and the Marina pool deck. Pool and beach towels are available, and sun umbrellas take some of the sting out of a long afternoon outside. The family arrangements are clear, but adults can still claim a lounger and let the younger members of the party occupy the designated water.

When your shoulders have had enough of carrying kit, massage treatments cover the full body as well as the back, neck, head, hands and feet. Beauty treatments include facials, body scrubs, manicures, pedicures, waxing and other beauty services. It is a practical post-dive menu rather than a list of heroic wellness promises: choose the part of you that is complaining loudest and start there.

For a day away from the hotel, the concierge and tour desk can help organise the city's sightseeing, while Beirut's museums, squares and parks are close enough to provide a change from the pool. The Nicolas Sursock Museum, Sursock Gardens and Beirut National Museum are all within the wider city area. If that sounds like too much culture in one go, the outdoor seating, sea, pool deck and a drink at Le Bar remain perfectly valid alternatives.

The hotel is about 4.2 miles from Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport. An airport shuttle service is available through the hotel, and car hire is also offered. Free private parking is available on site without a reservation, which is handy if your Beirut stay is part of a wider Lebanese road trip. A lift, wheelchair-accessible facilities and ground-floor units are available.

The front desk operates around the clock. Check-in runs from 02:00 to 00:00, while check-out is available 24 hours. Concierge service, luggage storage, currency exchange, an on-site ATM, a tour desk and wake-up service cover the small jobs that otherwise have a habit of eating into a travel day. Room service, laundry, ironing and dry cleaning are also available.

Children over two are welcome, and children aged 13 and above are treated as adults for occupancy purposes. Cots and extra beds are not available, so the existing sleeping arrangements matter when you book. Pets are welcome, and parties or events are not permitted. The hotel accepts guests without a minimum check-in age.