It was our first time in Egypt and we wasn't really sure what to expect. Well what a fantastic holiday it was, the hotel was superb and I really have no complaints.
The food was good and most importantly varied every night with different themes. I loved the way they barbecued the meat/fish outside. All the food was outside on a night which was fine. Not to many flies/insects around the hotel, I noticed they had fly catching devices on the trees around the hotel and it obviously made a difference. I've been told Egypt has a problem with flies, not here though.
The staff were so friendly and nearly all of them spoke fluent English and they really made the holiday. One of our waiter's Ahmed the Assistant Captain was exceptional, he had a table waiting for us and our drinks ready almost every night and was always smiling even though he and all of them worked really hard.
The hotel room was spacious and comfortable. The room was cleaned everyday. The shower had to be run to get hot water at certain times a day which wasn't to much of a problem just a bit of a waste of water. The television wasn't very good sometimes reception wise but who goes on holiday to watch tv anyway. Our room had a fantastic dome ceiling, we was in room 2201 ground floor, loved it as it was close to the pools and the restaurant/bar.
There were about seven pools in total and a wave pool which opened on the second week. They heated the pool in the first week, which I thought was great however the second week was the start of there summer so they turned the heat off. The pools were large and clean.
When we first arrived the music was played until 0000 hours which I thought was great as it's outside and right by the bar however people had complained about the music and the next week it was turned of at 1100 hours. You could go to the disco, again outside further away from the rooms however this bar wasn't all inclusive. I would like to highlight the fact that not everything was all inclusive in the hotel this was a little disappointing - fresh orange juice in the morning 1euro each, some entertainment 8 euro each and the drinks weren't all inclusive in the entertainment tent either, cocktails were 4euros each.
It was cool on the arms on a night in the first week however the second week it was fine to wear sleeveless dresses/t-shirts.
We rang reception, just as we were about to go out, as I thought it would take all day to resolve a problem with our air conditioning which didn't feel very cold, however within 2 minutes they were knocking on the door and they fixed it immediately. Really impressed.
We took mainly English Pounds to change in the hotel, they changed it but didn't seem used to this procedure and it always seem to cause some confusion.
The weather was excellent not a cloud in the sky, be careful in the sea I had a few jelly fish sting me and they're not pleasant, the staff have vinegar at hand to take the sting away. The hotel has two jetty's which run either side of a coral reef which was fantastic for snorkelling. The amount of different types of fish was incredible.
The hotel guests were mainly from France, Germany and Italy, there were a few English and only a few Russians.
We went on the trips Cairo, Luxor and snorkelling booked through our tour rep, what I will say is, the time they say it will take add on another couple of hours, however the trips were fantastic very educational especially Luxor.
In total, it was a relaxing holiday, beautiful weather, clean surroundings and friendly staff. Highly recommended.
