Must see hotels in Afghanistan

A joint Afghan-German guesthouse, this is deservedly popular with international workers. Rooms are tidy if sometimes small, and bathrooms are shared…

At the edge of Wazir Akbar Khan, and in the lee of Bibi Mahru Hill, the Heetal gets cleaner air than many places in the city. Perhaps that’s why it flags…

This venerable institution was Afghanistan’s first international luxury hotel. It’s a 20-minute drive from the centre of town if the traffic allows, but…

A perennially popular option with visiting media, the Gandamack Lodge is run by Peter Jouvenal, the acclaimed cameraman and Afghan expert. Now in larger…

Formerly the Kabul Hotel, the Serena is now owned by the Aga Khan and has undergone a massive renovation to transform it into Kabul’s swankiest hotel by…

This hotel was popular with backpackers until recently, when the police banned it from accepting foreign guests. We’ve listed it in the hope that improved…

This is Bamiyan’s oldest hotel and one of the few still run by the ATO. The luxury yurts the hotel boasted in the 1970s have been rebuilt, offering one of…

Truly a Kabul institution, the Mustafa was the main post-Taliban hang-out for journos, ‘security consultants’ and other would-be adventurers. If the high…

Maimana Municipal Hotel is a dusty 1930s edifice, with reasonable rooms filled with creaking furniture. The hotel is woefully low on bathrooms – just two…

If there’s a hotel with a better location in Afghanistan, we’d like to know about it. On a promontory surrounded on three sides by the rushing Kokcha…

This hotel was popular with backpackers until recently, when the police banned it from accepting foreign guests. We’ve listed it in the hope that improved…

Built in the 1930s, the Park is Herat’s oldest hotel – Robert Byron stayed here while writing The Road to Oxiana. It’s a cavernous, colonial-style place…

One of Kabul’s newest hotels, this literally towers above all others from its vantage point attached to the Kabul Business Centre. Rooms are exceedingly…

You can’t miss the Safi, part of the Kabul City Centre tower block in bright green glass. The lobby speaks of understated service and a glass elevator…

This hotel was popular with backpackers until recently, when the police banned it from accepting foreign guests. We’ve listed it in the hope that improved…

There is a small government-run guesthouse next to the Minaret of Jam. Rooms are simple, but the mattresses are comfortable and the shower is one of the…

The best budget option in Kandahar. It has a small restaurant for guests only, hot water most of the time and all the Bollywood you can watch on Indian…

Tucked away in the Old City, this is Herat’s best budget option. The rooms are basic, but have had a bit of a spruce-up since we last visited, making them…

A much more modern hotel, with carpeted rooms, squashy beds and decent furniture. Bathrooms are shared but are kept spotlessly clean and have lashings of…

Formerly called Ottawa Resorts, the motto here is ‘blending serenity and efficiency’. Management is certainly efficient, while rooms match the standard of…