Sharm El Seikh advice please

blueflyingtonight · 24 January 2009 at 7:10PM

I am looking for a family holiday on the Red Sea at Easter. We are 2 adults + 3 teenagers. Have spent ages on tripadvisor.com & other sites and have read lots of scary stories about rotten hotels, obnoxious Russians, dreadful food etc. We are looking for a good relaxing hotel with snorkelling from the beach - the snorkeling is the main reason for going so this is important. Not too bothered about vibrant nightlife just looking for a relaxing week in a nice hotel with all the usual facilities. Would prefer an all inclusive deal. Sharm is the strating point but would consider other resorts that match what we want. Any recommendations?

Thanks in advance.

Steve

Pyewacket338 · 24 January 2009 at 7:13PM

How about the Greek Islands, I've always found people there to be really friendly, Rhodes has lots of little coves for you to snorkel.

blueflyingtonight · 24 January 2009 at 8:08PM

The Red Sea is the closest destination with true coral reefs which are much more spectacular that what you will see in the Med.

horace_2 · 24 January 2009 at 8:43PM

>>> blueflyingtonight

We stayed at Kiroseiz Three Corners recently and we were generally impressed with this hotel. Having read some of the reports on this hotel we were slightly apprehensive but I have no hesitation in recommending it. We stayed all inclusive. They have 2 beaches one called `sandy` the other `coral` which I was told was excellent for snorkeling. There is an hourly free bus service to either beach.

I hope this helps.

h

kayla99 · 25 January 2009 at 12:22AM

Have you thought about Marsa Alam, we have friends who have stayed here, and loved it and return twice a year.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g311425-d611148-Reviews-Brayka_Bay_Reef_Resort-Marsa_Alam_Red_Sea_and_Sinai.html

We've booked to go, first week in April, cheapest prices were with Portland Holidays.

Turtle · 25 January 2009 at 12:32AM

Have stayed at the Hilton in Sharm - the sea was quite rough and often unsuitable for snorkelling. Hyatt Regency hotel is really nice and snorkelling is better here. Unfortunately it's true about the Russians - at least it is in our experience. Not at the Hyatt but that's quite a bit posher than the other hotels we've stayed at. They queue up outside the restaurant before it opens, take all the courses at once, have dirty manners and often leave half the food they've taken. Try and find a hotel that's not open to Russian travel companies if you can.

Have snorkelled / dived in several places round the world and I'd say don't bother with Greece for snorkelling (lovely as some of it undoubtable is) - the red sea is incomparable with the Greek islands.

Have been to Egypt a few times - Sharm is not what you'd call Egyptian, but if you take it at face value and don't let the hassling put you off you'll enjoy it.

malid · 25 January 2009 at 9:11AM

Hi blueflying tonight

I have been to Sharm twice and will be going back to the same hotel 20th April. It's the Golden Renaissance. My family and I, hubby and two teenaged boys, first went in 2005, we returned last year and my husband and I are going this year. OUr priority was sun and rlaxation. The boys enjoyed but your children would need to realise it's not a teenagers paradise as far as night life is concerned. We knew this in advanc so it wasn't an issue for us.

We have had fabulous food
Service in the hotel was first class
There have been lots of Russians but tihs has not been a problem Anyone can be obnoxious - even us Brits!

I did a review of my holiday 7th May 06; here is the link:

Sharm El-Sheikh: Renaissance Golden View Beach Resort Sharm El Sheikh: Fabulous hotel; wonderful holiday

Easter weeks are more pricey. We have opted to go just after this year as we are no longer committed to school hols. Portland Direct have always been the best as far as we can see. I would recommend Sharm.

MrsE_2 · 25 January 2009 at 9:36AM

I stayed at the Reef Oasis Blue Bay last year & it was fab, its a 5 star from the Thompson Premier range.

I was booked in the Louis Tiran Sharm (but it wasn't built in time).
Worth a look, looked like it was going to be amazing.

The Reef Oasis has a FAB coral reef & even a couple of tiny beach inlets too.
The coral reef in that part is so good, day tripers on boats come to that area.

DO take a day trip to Ras Mohammed, unmissable.

cazwasere · 25 January 2009 at 11:36AM

Recently booked to go to Sharm at Feb half term - great deal through lowcostholidays.com Has anyone used this website before? We have done all inclusive deals to cuba, dominican republic, antigua, turkey etc and to be honest if you read the reviews at the places we have stayed we would never have travelled anywhere. All the resorts and hotels have been fantastic. Yes you get the odd obnoxious guest, but the trick is to stay in a resort with choice of pools, bars and restaurants, then you can avoid anyone you don't want to see!!
If you are careful in your food choices, and avoid going over the top on things you dont normally eat much of at home you will be fine. we're hoping to snorkel in Sharm, or if the kids club is any good, also hoping to get in a couple of scuba dives. The kids are so excited, 3 weeks to go. Go for it!

littlemissx · 25 January 2009 at 12:13PM

I would be wary about going back to Sharm ever again! Went in September and was disappointed. We got the dreaded funny belly and it ruined our holiday completely! So for me and my boyfriend, it will be a place that we would keep our distance from. Although, that said, I know many people absolutely love it! Especially for the snorkelling (which we never got to do). That's one of the main reasons I think people go, as well as guaranteed nice weather. But apart from that, in my opinion it hasn't got much going for it and in future I will stick to Cyprus/Greek Islands/Croatia and other destinations in Europe! Hope this helps

Turtle · 25 January 2009 at 6:19PM

People usually (though not always admittedly) get a dodgy belly from not drinking enough water, not from the food. It's surprising how much you need, especially if you're out on the water.

Sharm El Seikh advice please

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