For the first time ever, my husband and I decided to spend Christmas away from home and chose Jordan as offering a completely different experience. We found the Movenpick, Aqaba to be extremely welcoming, efficient and friendly and an ideal place to combine relaxation by the sea with visits to Petra. Our room was bright, clean, comfortable and well equiped. A problem with our phone was sorted promptly. Staff later checked again to see if all was well.

Staff went to great trouble to find a local source in Aqaba for a particularly beautiful Christmas ornament we admired. The landscaping around the grounds and pools are delightful and the clever use of the space available makes the whole outside area seem much bigger, with pool leading to pool and then on to the beach. The beachside restaurant terrace was an excellent place to relax and enjoy a drink, snack lunch and of course the Movenpick ice cream treats.

The main dining / breakfast room is rather dark but the excellent buffet food was more than adequate compensation. Chefs very willing to discuss the dishes and explain ingredients. Breakfast taken outside on the sunny terrace was a real pleasure.

If you want a Christmas without any indication of the festive season, this is not the hotel for you as it was adorned with trees and decorations. In our opinion these were subtle and tasteful, but we do agree with another reviewer, that we could do without the constant rewind of Christmas songs.

We would certainly return to this hotel and recommend it.

Spent 4 nights in the hotel,26-29 Jan., as part of a package to the Red Sea. The overall look is glitzy, rather old-fashioned, 1990s. Was concerned when I was taken to my room as I had a "lovely" view of the carpark just below and a street beyond, was worried about noise etc, so asked to be moved. I was told that the hotel was full, as it was Jordanian school hols, that my tour company had paid for a standard room, but that it would be possible to change next day as many would be leaving as Friday night is the second day of their
"weekend". In fact the noise was not from the street or carpark - external insulation was very good - but from the uncarpeted
corridors clacked along all night by noisy late-returning teenagers who generally let their doors bang closed. Was busy all next day and the hotel seemed much quieter so inertia took over and I didn't change my room. Big mistake - the same problem. The next day I went to Petra and on my return asked for a quiet room, regardless of view -I wanted a few hours of unbroken sleep. Was promised one at the end of the corridor, much better room etc, in an hour's time, but when I called the desk after 2 hours the guy had gone home without leaving any instructions. I was furious at his discourtesy - was promised a move within 10 minutes. Which I got, to the top floor, better view etc. But the same problem - 3 times between midnight and 4 am I had to poke my head out the door and ask groups of young people to stop their full voice conversations. Next morning spoke to Front Office manager Mr Alayan who promised me a quiet room I'd like, on my return from the afternoon's trip to Wadi Rum. And he kept his word - a splendid suite on the main terrace, noise from the corridor insulated by a spectacular huge bathroom.
So all's well that ends well - though a pity they didn't move me there the night before and accept the fact that they need either to carpet the corridors and try to insulate the rooms internally or have security people by the elevators to control late night revels. This was not 5 star hotel standards. Tourists going on often early-start tours need quiet nights and if they are going to let rooms to groups of unsupervised young people they should make sure each group is on a separate floor!!!

We (two adults and two children 9 and 10) have just returned from Aqaba after staying in the Movenpick Resort for 15 days during Christmas and the New Year.

The Movenpick Resort is a great place to be, no complaints whatsoever. On the contrary, specially the staff, either the housekeeping or the people at the bars and restaurants and reception were all very friendly and tried their utmost to make our stay an unfortgettable one.

The weather during the time we were there was good, however we had a few days which were cloudy, which makes temperatures drop to a level where you need a coat to be comfortable outside. In the evenings temperatures drop as well, even during sunny days. On the sunny days, the beach is a great place to be, good temperatures to sunbathe but not too hot. The sun goes down at about 16.30, after that it is too cold to be outside at least in bathing suits. We were told that this was the coldest winter in Aqaba in 20 years, which might mean that the number of cloudy days we had was an exception.

Aqaba itself is small and so far untouched by mass tourism, which we liked, but I can imagine that for people who want to party all night, this is not the place to go to. As they are in the process of building a great number of new tourist facilities, including a new man made lagoon just opposite the Movenpick and some extensive new development is in process on the South Beach, the number of 5 star hotels will go up to about 10 (from two currently) in the next 5 years. This will probably mean that the charm of the place will go down, but obviously this is matter of personal taste more than anything else.

During our stay there were a number of tour groups from the US, Spain, Hungary and Russia, mainly 30 years old and up, some couples with small children, and some `independents` like us. It´s a quiet place, which we liked.

The prices for food and drinks in the hotel are very reasonable for a 5 star resort, restaurants in Aqaba itself even cheaper and great food, if you like Middle Eastern cuisine. Some restaurants in Aqaba serve alcohol, others do not.

There is some building going on around the hotel, however as we had a sea view room, it did not bother us at all. I can imagine however that people with a city view room will have had more noise problems.

The good thing about the Movenpick in comparison with the Intercontental next door is that the pools at the Movenpick are sheltered from the wind, which can be important during the winter months. We went and checked out the Intercontinental and asked to see a room. Obviously the Intercontental is newer and it shows, however it has less charm than the Movenpick, it has no heated pool which is again important in the winter season, the unheated pools were too cold to swim in. In spring, summer or autumn, both resorts would be great to stay in.

All in all, what mainly made us have a great time were the people, both in the hotel as well as in the town itself. Very very friendly, not `polluted` by mass tourism, safe, very friendly to children. If you get bored with the beach, Wadi Rum and Petra are a `must see`.

On our way back we took the JETT bus service (next to the Movenpick, make a reservation a few days before), which was cheap and very comfortable, takes 4 hours to the center of Amman.

For those who found the Movenpick `tired`, the new Swiss GM has started major room renovation works and the new competition will surely force them to keep their standards up. The place is 7 years old and that shows here and there, it did not bother us at all. Service was great, people were great, a vacation to remember.

For location, service, and accomodations, the Movenpick Aqaba can not be beat! I stayed there on 4 consecutive visits and each times was greeted with a warm smile and excellent service. Their private beach is worth the cost of the room alone, and their facilities are world class. If you want a nice relaxing visit to Aqaba, then the Movenpick is exactly where you want to be.