Отдых на новодовогодних каникулах с детьми Holidays on New Year's holidays with children

We chose the hotel in order to relax with children in the winter New Year holidays. Thailand and the Caribbean are far and expensive. Maldives, Turkey and Israel are chilly. We chose Egypt, despite the fact that winds blow from December to February. The temperature was from 14 (at night) to 25 (by day). The sea is somewhere around 22-23. But you get out - it's cold in the wind. Although during the day (from 12 to 15) the sun is so hot that you can get burned. Therefore, we chose a hotel with a water park so that the children could have fun and swim somewhere.
The hotel has no major flaws. And small ones: these are rather nitpicks and tips for improvement.
Territory:

It immediately gives the impression that the houses are located in some tropical area. Just like in Thailand. Everywhere water. The number of pools is incalculable, each group of houses has them. You can walk around the islands connected by bridges. On the islands there are models of animals in reed beds. All rooms are in separate 1-2-storey stone huts (there is a refrigerator and air conditioning). The roofs of the houses are also decorated with thatch. Despite the fact that the planted palm trees are still young, everything is very green and well maintained.
It is very good that the hotel has all the pools in the water parks with heating. Also heated is one large swimming pool with islands in the center of the complex. Other pools - with cool water, for walruses.
There is an ATM at the entrance to the hotel.
There is a free bus to the sea. Formally, it runs every 30 minutes, but in fact - when it's full. Walk 1Km to the Dana Beach Hotel and another 500m through the hotel. Across the street from Dana Beach there is a mall for tourists Gavana Club. Also within walking distance (a kilometer from the entrance) there is a new Senzo-Mall with a supermarket and normal shops inside. Open until 2 am. There are several shops of a souvenir-beach direction with pistachio merchants on the territory of the hotel. And, importantly, there is a pharmacy.
Inside, the houses are almost everywhere equally clean and pleasant, but the houses are not evenly spaced.
Disadvantages: the houses have poor sound insulation from street noise and because of this it is not comfortable to live in the houses located at the far end of the hotel: there is a highway behind the fence (dust and noise) and the “thumping” of the disco strongly interferes with vacationers with children (from 21 to 23 ).
Ironically, we were settled next to a distant children's water park and the notorious disco. They said that the best (1n, 2n and even 3n) are already all taken.
For Russian violent tourists, 50 houses (5101-5151) were specially built recently at the farthest end of the park near the tennis court. Those who arrive drunk and clink bottles of alcohol from duty free are settled there. So they fight with noisy drunken companies so that the children do not interfere with their rest. Even putting money into a passport does not help. Were witnesses.
Another disadvantage of the season is mosquitoes in the evenings and at night. The abundance of water contributes to this. Take repellents with you.
Aquapark:

There are 3 water parks on the territory: one for adults and 2 for children. An adult and one children are located nearby, but they have different pools. The second children's water park is located at the back of the hotel.
The adult water park is equipped with rather steep slides for children. But for adults - a full range of thrills. I counted 24 adult slides (if you count a 4-track "family" slide as 4).
It is pleasant to ride in the water park only on tubing. On bedding, the speed is too high and the spray will block the eyes. And on the pope - it burns.
There were enough tubing for everyone. The problems were only with the lack of double tubing. But in the summer season, perhaps, ordinary ones will be missed. We also did not have to borrow sunbeds in advance. at any time of the day there were empty seats, even 4 were always found nearby. We didn't go to the sea. All water treatments were taken in the pool and water park. Another plus of the water park: there are no annoying "massage agents" like on the sea beach (they go, of course, but they are not imposed every minute).
A “rafting river” is laid around the water park, along which you can just swim (inflatable boats are not allowed there). The river is connected to all the pools of the water park. Sea waves were not seen in any pool, probably not in season.
A visit to this water park is even included in the list of Tez-tour excursions. If you go yourself, then an adult ticket at the entrance to the water park for a day (from 10 to 17) costs 45 USD (All-inclusive except for ice cream and alcohol) or 35 USD (one juice and one piece of pizza). Children's is 10USD cheaper.
Of the disadvantages of the water park:
1) there are no medium slides for skiing on the mats: either very low in the children's water park, or very steep "kamikaze" type from the 3rd and 4th floors. Even on the "family" four-track slide, I was really thrown up and hit hard at speed and had to close my eyes from the spray;
2) the slides are periodically turned off due to the need to rest the pumps, as explained by the employee; two slides did not work at all;
3) during the season there may be a shortage of tubing and queues for slides.
Nutrition:

5 restaurants with different cuisines allow you to combine menus in a variety of ways. Breakfast in one, lunch in the third, dinner in the fourth. Everywhere is delicious. Salad bar, side dishes and dessert are generally the same. But the main differences are in the main dishes. In general, I liked all the restaurants. Only in the fish "Viking" did not like the unpleasant smell.
Please note that swimming trunks are not allowed in restaurants for lunch, and shorts are not allowed for dinner.
In swimming trunks, you can go to one of the 10 bars. Rum, whiskey, wine and other drinks, juices and sodas have not yet died out. There are fast food snacks: pizza, french fries, etc.
Of the shortcomings:
1) lunch strictly until 14:30. Like a "late dinner" (until 24:00), a "late lunch" (until 16:00) could be organized. Otherwise, you have to be content with fast food in bars;
2) for early excursions they give out a modest lunch box. It is only enough for breakfast. If a late return is envisaged, they could give one more, for an afternoon snack; in the meantime, we recommend tourists to take from the restaurant in plastic boxes (they give out) fruits, sandwiches and other snacks for an afternoon snack;
3) ice cream in the water park only for children; but adults want it too.
Service:
Overall good, just cleaned the room at different times. Then at 10 in the morning the janitor came, and the next day - at 18. Probably a different shift. Because one day they removed the door from the open and let in mosquitoes, and the rest of the days there were no mosquitoes in the room. The baksheesh left at 5f did not affect this in any way. Mosquitoes appeared once when we first left. But they rejoiced at the swans twisted from towels.
Tours:
Excursions were bought from Tez-Tour representatives (Luxor, Cairo, Submarine and the 1001 Nights show). Prices are more expensive than on the street, for example near Dana Beach, but the service is very good. Departure without delay. Their buses, their sleepy and changing drivers. Russian speaking guides. And what is important: a minimum of time for the obligatory factory shops and lunch, and a maximum of time for the excursion program.

Minus: there are not enough sensible guides for everyone, and on the bus, historical material was given extremely sparingly and superficially. The guides on the bus talked about the customs in Egypt, just a little bit about the pharaohs, and rather commented on what they were passing. The bus could tell more about the history of Egypt. And the films should be thematic, at least a series about Asterix in Egypt, "The Mummy" and "Lara Croft", and not about bandits and the zone. After all, there are many children. But this is already a minus of the travel agency. The guide, it seems, got used to the fact that drunken Russian bulls and thieves with their families used to go on excursions mainly, and did not prepare properly.
The overall impression is positive: an excellent hotel for families with children, especially in winter, when the sea is not comfortable; long excursions in such weather do not bother at all; good work of the tour operator and the host.
Adviсe
To summarize:
- when registering at the reception, look at the hotel map - it’s easier to change the room than to demand relocation later (try to be sober and don’t shine bottles);
- take additional sandwiches and fruits on excursions;
- take more anti-mosquito repellents, a "spiral" will come in handy;
- for viewing in the sightseeing bus, take a couple of normal DVD-movies that would be interesting for both adults and children.