Convenient Location, Comfortable Stay with a Few Lighting Quirks
I stayed at EWAA Express Khurais in Riyadh and overall had a pleasant experience. The location is convenient—about a 15-minute walk to a shopping area with plenty of food options like Starbucks, KFC, Wendy’s, Al Baik, and a Panda hypermarket.
The hotel is simple but functional. Rooms are clean and spacious, with a large, comfortable bed. Initially, I was assigned a room on the 4th floor, which felt quite dark due to having no outside view. The staff were kind enough to switch me to a room on the 2nd floor, which had a full-height window facing the highway. The difference: the 4th floor room was quieter but darker, while the 2nd floor room was brighter with a view, though some traffic noise was noticeable. I chose the 2nd floor in the end as I prefer natural light.
One unique point is the corridor lighting. The hotel doesn’t use ceiling lights in the hallways, relying instead on small wall-mounted lights. This makes the corridors feel quite dim. It seems to be a design choice across the EWAA hotel group, not just this location. If you're sensitive to low lighting or feel uneasy in darker spaces, this might be something to consider.
Breakfast was decent—not a feast, but enough to fill up. No egg station, but the basics are covered. Also worth noting: the hotel offers bicycles for guests to borrow, which is a nice touch, although I didn’t try it myself.
Overall, a good value stay if you’re looking for a clean, well-located hotel with friendly staff and don’t mind a few quirks in lighting and noise.
