We've just returned from 2 weeks at this hotel and I have to say that it wasnt as bad as I was expecting it to be, after reading the reviews on here before we went. However, there are definite improvements needed.
First off, I'd like to thank Michael Aziz at the hotel for sorting out an upgrade for us. I emailed the hotel before we left and requested an upgrade to a family room overlooking the pool. Michael advised that this would be at a charge of £68 GBP. I agreed to this (Thomson wanted to charge £1200!!!) and, true to his word, we received a large family room with patio leading to the pool. Thank you Michael!
We arrived at the hotel about 9.30pm and were shown to our room. The restaurant was closed but reception advised us that it would be reopened at 10pm for us. There wasnt much choice when it did open but that was to be expected, and what was served, was nice.
The room was very large with a king size bed, a double bed and a sofa bed. The bathroom was in need of some repair - towel ring hanging off the wall and handle in the shower was loose and kept falling off! The sink was blocked too but we managed to live with these things.
We spent the first few days around the activity pool. We were hassled by numerous people trying to sell us things. The massage guy who feels your hand and tells you that you have a bad back etc (he tells everybody the same thing!), a guy who does tattoos in the hotel, somebody from the A La Carte restaurant who wanted us to book (this restaurant is not all inclusive), a beautician who will thread one of your eyebrows and then leave the other one so that you will hopefully pay him to do the other (!), a hairdresser, a guy who wanted us to go on a diving trip etc. Every day we told them we werent interested but they still came back for more.
We therefore decided to try the quiet pool, this was much better. No loud music or pool games, and not as much hassle as the other pool. However, one of the pool guys took 'quiet' to a whole new level! Anybody who raised their voice even a little bit was told 'ssshhh', children were told off for playing harmlessly with a ball in the pool etc. It was lovely though if you wanted to lie and read your book in peace without the screaming, splashing and music of the other pool.
The pool bars serve drinks out of plastic cups, which is understandable. However, the plastic cups seemed to get smaller as the 2 weeks went on. We ended up drinking 'shots' of beer! They will serve you 2 or 3 at the same time though, and if you take a large cup or plastic glass, they will fill this up for you no problem.
The lobby bar also sometimes served drinks in plastic glasses at night. I didn't like this at all, if you are sitting inside the bar, why the need for plastic? Occassionally we did get glass but most of the time it was plastic.
We took the bus to the beach one day and it was fine. you have to book it in the morning with the concierge and the free shuttle bus runs every half an hour until lunchtime. The beach is shail and is quite sharp on your feet, so take some beach shoes. The bus coming back is not bookable and again is every half an hour but from 3pm. We went for the 3pm bus but it was full so we ended up hanging around for half an hour for the next one (which also filled up as soon as it arrived so some people had to wait even longer).
The hotel has a big problem with flies and also mosquitos. We used mosquito spray, Jungle formula, took B1 tablets and also had plug in's in the room and still got bitten. Some people were literally covered in bites. 1 poor lady was bitten so bad on her feet and ankles that she ended up on crutches and had to go home early. We have been to Egypt a few times and never had a problem with mozzies like we had at this hotel. They do have a smoke machine to kill them off but we only saw this used 3 times in 2 weeks. The hotel shop do sell 'Off' spray and also Raid room spray but they kept selling out as so many people were buying it. We literally used 1 can of spray a night between the 3 of us.
A couple of mornings we also woke up to cockroaches in our room. Only 1 or 2 but again, I have never come across this problem in other hotels in Sharm. Food and takeaway boxes are left in the corridors for days, which obviously attracts insects. The hotel need to look at these problems.
The food was ok. It wasnt wonderful but it wasnt terrible either. It was all well cooked and none of us were ill at all during our stay. We didnt hear of anybody else being ill either. Lots of people were ordering takeaway, and we also ate out a few times whilst we were there.
We met some lovely people whilst we were there, and had such a good laugh by the pool and on a night in the lobby bar. Without them, I have to say that I would have been pining for home after the first few nights! They introduced us to their good friend 'Rose' and many a hangover was had from that point onward ;-)
Most of the staff here are lovely and work really hard and really long hours. The hotel is in desperate need of a lick of paint (especially around the pool areas), and a general refurbishment. The management also need to look at the problems with insects.
All in all, this wasnt the best hotel I've stayed in, but it wasnt the worst either. A holiday is what you make of it. The rooms are clean, the pools are clean, the food is ok and the weather is beautiful. The biggest issue for me was the mosquitos.
I'm happy to answer any questions or give more info if anybody wants it.
