We stayed at the Nesima Hotel for the last 2 weeks of August 2012, specifically to do some diving and to allow our granddaughter the opportunity to learn to dive. We booked with Regal Dive who as always will bend over backwards to make sure all the preparations and you stay with all the diving is the very best possible.
Goods
• Great location right on the edge of the town with only a short walk to the shops and restaurants. (The best being The Blue House, The Kitchen and the Italian past the Lighthouse)
• We stayed in room 13 which is a family room next to the pool. Basic and small but without been cramped, It was cleaned every day with new towels, good air-conditioning. We were very happy even though I have read some moans about them.
• Pool, probably one of the very best I have been in, in Egypt, clean warn deep mmmmmmm, would like to be back in it now.
• Diving centre, it’s says 5 star on the wall and it means 5 star, they will do anything to ensure your diving and stay with them is just what you want, and anyone who can teach my 11 year old granddaughter to dive must be five star. Guides are brilliant and considerate, diving very relaxed and well organised.
• Trips, the dive centre organised a Bedouin supper and star gazing, really good.
Bads
• Wild dogs are a big problem in Dahab and we saw many big fights breaking out including in the hotel grounds.
• Pool loungers filthy from all the local dogs sleeping on them, encrusted in dirt with most having very evident large paw prints all over them and they stink something rotten.
• Pool towels not allowed outside the hotel, so divers bring your own.
• Camel ride, nagged the whole time by the guide trying to sell us anything that came into his head and after two hours I was ready to strangle him, rude, pig ignorant and annoying, don’t do it.
• Breakfast is a complete farce, dirty crockery, poor selection of warm melting food most of which has done the rounds of several days out and is beyond human consumption, air-conditioning going full blast but with all the doors and windows wide open it’s a pointless exercise.
• Sadly we saw a lot of closed hotels, very gloomy shop owners and loads of abandoned building sites, the press says business is back in Egypt what they mean is Sharm, Dahab is very quiet and I wonder how long they can keep it up for.
Over all great holiday, great hotel, fantastic diving centre and excellent travel agent, it wouldn’t take much effort to resolve the pool lounges and the breakfasts and given the current economic climate it’s a bit of a no-brainer. We will go back but I will negotiate a price without breakfast as that was shockingly poor.