Сплошной позитив Solid positive

Well, here we are back from a wonderful holiday in all respects with a sea of ​ ​ positive emotions.
I chose the hotel for a long time and meticulously, so in many ways it immediately felt like home to me.
Arrival at the hotel
We flew on a small Boeing, it was not very convenient, but we were lucky that we were sitting in front of the emergency exit - we could stretch our legs. Anex was our tour operator. We arrived at 10.30, quickly paid 15 USD for visas without a queue (as you come in - immediately to the left a little behind, and not in front), although 2 long ones lined up for 17.
Our only small minibus was immediately the first in the parking lot. We were the last to drop off after jasmine, goldens, etc. But this did not upset us, because, firstly, we looked at other hotels, and secondly, we knew that we were going earlier than expected and we would still not be settled immediately.

We arrived with another couple of Muscovites who had already been at the hotel in May and with whom we became friends there.
Settlement
They gave us bracelets and offered to walk around the territory and have a bite to eat at the pool bar. Which is what we did. I left a chocolate bar for the receptionist. Our already familiar Muscovites offered us to change clothes and go swimming (our luggage was at the entrance to the Mercury, where there is security), but we refused, because. our bathing suits were in a suitcase under a film. They also changed in the toilet to the left of the guard, left their luggage there in the storage room and sailed away. Continuing to sit at the reception, we waited for people to start taking rooms (at 12 o'clock). At 12.10 I again approached the girl (Vivian Victoria, if I'm not mistaken) and again asked for a number. She smiled and stared at the monitor. Realizing that now she was deciding where to put us, she poked her husband in the side, he handed her $ 5 and asked for a good number. Didn't ask for a sea view. As a result, we were given the 14th lion's corps, and since I had a map of the buildings in advance, but at first I was even upset, thinking that we were settled to hell in the middle of nowhere with a view only of the buildings. To our joy, there was still a sea view, we got a room on the second floor with a small balcony. Plus, a pleasant surprise was the presence of snow-white slippers and bathrobes in the room, although I read that they are given only in ultra all inclusive. By the way, among all those with whom we had to communicate in the future, these accessories were only with us.
Sea

Without even unpacking properly, we hurried to the sea. After all, the days are very short there in winter! Own lagoon, clean beach, there are some corals, the entrance to the sea is good, corals are not needed. There were no problems with sunbeds, they were always available no matter what time we came to the beach. The only thing is that everyone on the first line is always busy. But we sunbathed near the boccia between two bars, it was more convenient for us there. We didn’t carry towels with us, but when we went for lunch we rented them out, and after dinner we took new ones. For several days the sea was warm, the rest needed getting used to to enter. The wind, of course, blew almost always, it's December! But still people swam and dived. There were many children, even in strollers.
Contingent
I would say 50 to 50. The first half are Slavs, the other half are Germans, etc. Personally, we talked with guys from Minsk, Chisinau, Kaunas, Kyiv, St. Petersburg, Moscow, Tambov. They played boccia with the Germans. I didn't notice any difference in service.
Nutrition
The main restaurant. Personally, we had enough of everything, we didn’t go hungry, moreover, we didn’t use the prescribed visit to the oriental restaurant, we didn’t see the need for it.
For breakfast for myself, I took porridge with nuts and raisins, scrambled eggs, fruits, tomatoes with mazzarella, cheese (there I found one variety similar to our Poshekhonsky, the rest not so much), pastries. Husband leaned on yogurt, pancakes and pastries. Sometimes a queue gathered near the omelet, about 5 people, I didn’t wait, but just came up later, when the queue dissipated. Three types of porridge, flakes, jams, honey, etc.
Lipton tea, so-so coffee. Fruits: melon, oranges, pomegranate, apples, bananas, lemon
Dinner and supper
Mashed potatoes, baked potatoes, stewed potatoes, french fries, two types of rice, pasta 3-4. Meat: leg of lamb, lamb, chicken in various variations, grilled fish, battered fish, something like chops. This, of course, is not all, but just remembered. Naturally, if it was an Italian dinner, then there were lasagna, carpaccio, pizza, etc.

Almost all of their dishes are not spicy, I would say they are focused more on Europeans. The meat is a bit dry, the fish is not peeled, but just baked like that. All this was accompanied by a bunch of sauces, gravy, pickles, marinades. To the right of the so-called distribution, there are coolers with 3 types of wine (white, red, rose), they poured themselves as much as they wanted, mostly white. If you need something stronger, then you can go to the Azur bar, take a certain amount of booze there (tequila, vodka, whiskey, brandy, cocktail) and bring it with you to the main restaurant. We almost always ate outside, even in the evening when it was cool. In the restaurant itself, there are a lot of corners, halls for a different number of seats. I don’t know who wrote in other reviews that I had to wait an hour for a place, I didn’t see this. Moreover, when one evening we could not find a place on the street (there are fewer of them), we just took our plates and went to the pool, where candles are lit in the evenings. Nobody said a word. There are a lot of sparrows on the terrace during the day, do not leave your plates unattended!
pool bar
In the afternoon they took beer, ice cream, pizza there. I saw that there are also french fries, hamburgers, some sausages. There you can also take local alcoholic drinks, drink some water (soda, hibiscus and something else) or order freshly squeezed juice for a fee.
Bar by the sea
There is only booze (the same as in Azura plus freshly squeezed juices). I left a dollar for the bartender, memorized our tastes and poured what we like on the way. By the way, my husband was quite satisfied with the local rum (not strong, the mood is excellent, the head does not hurt in the morning), sometimes brandy. In the afternoon, I took beer or cocktails (such as Sunrise Tequila) on the beach.
Bar Azur
The place where we came during the day, sorry to the toilet (there is none on the beach. There is also between the amphitheater and the disco) or in the evening to sit, drink, chat. There is coffee, spirits, juices, cocktails, incl. children's. I also met the bartender, left him a tip a couple of times and had problems with natural juices, large portions of alcohol, etc. did not have. Loved the tomato juice.
I can’t say anything about the fish and oriental restaurant, we didn’t go there
Animation
Above all praise! I thought that during the day I would relax with a book at sea, but that was not the case. A great animation team (big shout out to Paolo and Anita) will keep you dry. I went to water aerobics and belly dancing, jumped in the pool on a surfboard. We played boccia and tennis. Animation schedule will also be posted later.

Evening animation is different every day, thematic, conducted in several languages. Basically, everyone liked it. It is especially touching when they give out blankets at the entrance (the same as in the room) so that it is not cold to sit. A couple of times our acquaintances took the same blankets just to wrap up at dinner when they were sitting on the terrace. I especially want to highlight the local celebrity Paolo, the kid knows everything and is very charming. And not only him. Take at least the general manager of the hotel, who always comes up with a smile during the day, says hello, asks if everything is fine, and in the evening, with all the animators and tourists, he lights up two traditional dances that invariably end any show.
Disco
Almost immediately after the animation, you can stay at the disco. Once there was a disco in the 80s, the rest were ordinary, like ours, occasionally interspersed with Russian and slow songs. Alcoholic drinks are the same as in the bar. It is written that it is free until 24.00, but we took until one. If you want to be on the safe side, take five minutes to twelve in reserve.
Number
Were in it rarely, only slept and from 17 to 19.00. Cleaning is regular, swans were spun from a blanket, fresh flowers were put. I left a dollar a couple of times, once a chocolate bar. On the first day, their boss knocked and asked if we were satisfied with the cleaning. The bed is comfortable. There is a small safe, a refrigerator, 4 bottles of water were brought daily. In the shower: 2 irrigation options, clothesline, soap, shower cap, gel, shampoo, hair dryer, 6 towels plus one on the floor, lots of lights, TV volume control. There are 3 Russian channels on the TV, on the first one you can get acquainted with the work of the hotel. The rooms are located in such a way that on the first floor all the rooms go almost to a single corridor, and the rooms on the floors above are arranged in a checkerboard pattern. There was only one room on the same level with us, we never saw or heard neighbors. There were no mosquitoes and ants.
Excursion

Since there were many places before, we decided to go only to Luxor. Before that, at home, I indicated that I was going to this hotel and I began to receive letters with offers of excursions, coordinates and prices. I took them with me and already at the hotel I sent an SMS to a local number indicating the date, excursion, hotel and number of people. Immediately the answer came that at 5.20 we would be picked up from the reception, where we had to order dry rations in advance. The cost of the trip is 55 USD. At 5.40 we were almost the last to be picked up. The combined bus, where there were people from different tour operators and paid different money for the same excursion, was already full and had been running around the hotels for 1.5 hours. By the way, on the way back, we were dropped off first at 22.00. I liked the tour, very rich and dynamic. I will not talk about it, a lot has been written on the Internet. Dined on the other side of the Nile type in a restaurant. In the end, we were offered to visit a banana island with a walk along the Nile for $ 10. The island itself does not represent anything interesting, but I liked the boat trip along the Nile (we climbed onto the upper deck with the guide, or onto the roof, taking pillows below and sailing there all the time).
I would like to warn you: in Luxor there are a lot of pestering merchants and just beggars. Be attentive to your belongings, do not give your camera to anyone, do not take pictures of anyone without asking and you will be happy.
Souvenirs
Here I will list in detail so that you can have an idea of ​ ​ the prices in different places.
Luxor: 3 magnets for one dollar bargained with a street vendor, another three figurines the size of a palm for 3 USD.
Hurghada: a leather bag was bought in Pharaoh for 40 USD, a silver pendant 4 USD, a mug 3 USD and 3 magnets for 3 USD, in El Zahre (Oriental sweets shop) on Sheri Street they bought a bunch of everything for treats . In Senzamole (a shopping center on the southern outskirts of the city) they bought mango juice, exotic jams and halva.
Hurghada airport: we bought a chain for the pendant for $25.3 leather wallets for $10, two T-shirts of excellent quality for $7.10 magnets for $7
In general, compared to the previous visit to Hurghada, I now have more positive impressions: the sellers practically do not stick, they do not drag me to the shop, the prices are close to fixed. This does not apply to those who trade in small nooks or just on the street. In the hotel, by the way, the sellers also sit quietly and will come to you only when you call them.
Eviction

We checked out early in the morning, so we were not affected by the rules existing in the hotels. But two companies we know, leaving in the evening, acted as follows: one couple, when they brought the keys to the room at 12.00, cut off their bracelets in advance and told the reception that they had already thrown them away. Then the guys put them on again and continued to rest. In another company, one person handed over the bracelet and keys, saying that the rest had left to say goodbye to the sea. But even if our friends had their numbers cut off, we would not let them go to waste, we would bring everything they need. Because we had to stay in Moscow for almost half a day, and then the same amount of time to get home, we stocked up on groceries in advance at the hotel, no problems. Well, that's all! It seems that she didn’t forget anything, she described everything that would worry me before leaving. I wish you all a pleasant stay in this hotel and not only! Take a good mood with you, less things (again, not all dressed, shod) and hit the road!