Shepheard Hotel's history goes back to more than 150 years , known at that time as British Hotel. It is regarded as one of the oldest and classical hotels of Cairo. Mr. Samuel Shepheard of Preston Capes, started managing the hotel since 1841 and 4 years later it was renamed after him as known today.

During this time, the development of commerce brought many travelers from Europe to this part of the world. The meeting place was the terrace of Shepheard's which represented an oasis in a still urban Cairo. It became the playground of international aristocracy and every person of social standing made it a must to have tea at Shepheard's, to see and be seen. The hotel was first built on historical ground in a district known as Ezbekia , a park land with tropical greenery and rare trees , that was once occupied by the army of Napoleon and used as a headquarter during his invasion of Egypt in the 18th century. Furthermore, these grounds have witnessed the assassination of the French General Kleber, the commander of the French army in Egypt, after Napoleon had left for France. The tree where the murder took place became later known as Kleber's Tree.

The Shepheard Hotel continued to be the center of many events that took place in that century, being selected to be the headquarter of many armies during the Crimean war, the Indian Mutiny, the Boer War and the great two World Wars. One of the less hostile but great event that was celebrated at Shepheard's was the Grand Opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, where the hotel hosted numerous international celebrates that were invited to attend the ceremony. One of the highlight of this was a banquet given an honour of the French Empress Eugénie.

Among many distinguished visitors comprising film stars and millionaires, you also could see Ex-King Fouad, Theodore Roosevelt, Nahas Pasha, Saad Zaghloul and the celebrated explorer Henry Morton Stanley. Over the years, the Golden Book of the hotel listed names of guests like the prince of Wales, King Faisal of Iraq, the Aga Khan, King Ferdinand of Bulgaria, Prince Erik of Denmark, King and Queen of Italy, the Maharaja of Jodphur and The British Prime Minister Sir Wiston Churchill.

Throughout its 158 years history, the hotel has always remained a mixture between exotic luxury and very special hospitality. In other words, it became an institution. Over the years its site has been changed three times, it has been rebuilt four times. After it was totally destroyed by fire, in 1952, it was re-erected by the Egyptian Hotels LTD at its Cairo-Downtown Garden City location. Now the hotel is owned and manged by : The Egyptian General Company for Tourism and Hotels (E.G.O.T.H.)