Your rating of this hotel:
8.0
from 10
Hotel ratings by criteria:
Rooms:
8.0
Service:
10.0
Cleanliness:
8.0
Food:
7.0
Amenities:
9.0
Hello, dear friends, like-minded people and travelers!
I want to share my impressions about our 15th vacation in Egypt, the 6th in Marsa Alam. For the first time in my life, my vacation was unplanned and completely unexpected. We were already fully preparing to celebrate the New Year at home, except that we didn’t have time to buy a Christmas tree, when suddenly an offer was received from the tour operator “Feeria Mandriv”: from 25.12. 2016 to 01.01. 2017, direct flight to Marsa Alam, convenient time of arrival and departure, but the most interesting thing is that our favorite hotel “Marina Lodge At Port Ghalib 4 *” gave a very good promotional price. We rested in this hotel last year, and realized that this hotel, in terms of spirit and style of relaxation, is exactly what my husband and I need (I left a review last year). We could not believe that this could be! 2 days before departure, we bought a ticket and began to pack on the road. We had never dreamed of celebrating the New Year in Egypt before, because the prices were simply unrealistic.
Transfer: Flight Kyiv - Marsa Alam 4 hours, for the first time we flew on an airplane of the MD-83 model, since we are fans of aviation, it was very interesting for us. The crew commander was very cheerful and positive, often entertaining passengers with stories about the flight, the crew was very pleasant and helpful. Marsa Alam Airport is compact, check-in took 10 minutes. Then we were put on the bus and after 5 minutes we were already at the hotel. How great to enjoy your vacation, and not suffer on the road 4-6 hours from Hurghada airport.
Check-in: At the reception we were immediately recognized, I don’t know why we were so remembered, and they offered to wait at the bar for 10 minutes until all the formalities were settled.
Number: the room was given on the 3rd floor with a wonderful view of Port Ghalib at no extra charge. The room is decorated in an oriental style, with a hanging chandelier, mosaics and stained glass windows. Dimensions and decoration correspond to 4 *. Everything is not new, but it worked properly.
The door to the toilet is more aesthetic than practical, it does not reach the floor and ceiling. The hood in the toilet is good, but there is no soundproofing, for romantic couples who have not lived together before, it can be a problem)))). Shampoos, shower gel and soap are replenished. There is a dressing room and a balcony with chairs and a table. In general, I would like to say the following about the room: everything is not very new, not very modern, but it is quite acceptable for relaxation. The cleaner cleaned very carefully.
The territory is small, but very green, the plants are well-groomed, the facades of the buildings are painted regularly. There are large and small pools overlooking the sea and yachts, there were enough sunbeds. The hotel is cozy.
I would call the views at the hotel the term “all inclusive”: flowers and greenery are everywhere, the azure sea is visible a few meters away, the beautiful architecture of Port Ghalib, in the port they are laid up or swim past yachts (some are simply gorgeous), catamarans and bathyscaphes, above the hotel planes fly regularly (5 km to Marsa Alam airport). Wherever you look, beauty is everywhere.
Sorry, I am quoting the description of the rooms and the territory verbatim from my previous review, because almost nothing has changed in a year.
Food: A year ago, food was not a strong point of the hotel, this year, too. Breakfast - fruits, milk porridge (bulgur), sausages, toast, beans, pastries. For lunch and dinner, 1 type of soup, vegetables, side dishes, salads, meat, liver, fish, chicken, pizza, pasta, steamed vegetables, raw vegetables and desserts. Fruits are for breakfast, lunch and dinner: always oranges, grapefruits, dates. For breakfast there is a coffee machine with several kinds of hardware coffee.
There were no health problems, but I can’t say that it was very tasty. Fine.
Bars: 1 near the lobby and 1 on the beach. The all inclusive system operates from 11 am to 11 pm. Large selection of local alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks: rum, vodka, tequila, wine, brandy, good bottled beer, powdered juices, fanta, sprite, cola.
Service: I was pleasantly surprised by how warmly we were greeted. The staff remembered us from last year and sincerely rejoiced at our return. We were also happy to see familiar faces, especially Ramadan, Hussein, Abdul El Rahman, Ibragim. Throughout our stay, the guys did everything to make the guests comfortable, we have not a single comment. We were welcomed like old friends and we are very grateful for that.
Animation Entertainment: the hotel has a team of local guys. Chef - animator Mimo is a great fellow. Entertainment is not intrusive, but not boring either.
I ask Mimo to pay attention to what exactly the animator Mina is talking about with the guests, let her think first before giving dubious “compliments” to the guests when no one asked her opinion.
Beach: located 400 meters, for a healthy active person, this is not a problem, however, there is a free shuttle bus on schedule. There is a bar, shower and toilet. The beach is clean. There are no wind barriers. The entrance to the sea is along the coral cover, it is best to go near the buoys behind a large stone.
Sea: The hotel is located right in Potu Ghalib, yachts and catamarans go in front of the beach. The port itself is a long bay with bridges. There is no storm at all in the bay, and this allows you to swim in any weather. It is along this bay that the reef of the hotel is located.
The sea met us with its gifts in the form of luxurious thickets of fan and colored corals and countless inhabitants: there were reef turtles, titanium triggerfish, rays, surgeons, rhinoceros, zebrosomes, groupers, chic large aluters, plataxes, flutes, arotrons, flocks of hunting mackerel and huge phlegmatic smiling hedgehog fish. There is nothing to say about small fish, such a concentration of all colors and species cannot be found in special aquariums. But this trip differed from last year's by the presence of large predators: more than once we saw huge flocks of trevally and very large tuna.
Many travelers are concerned about the question: is it comfortable to relax at sea in Egypt in December? My answer is yes, but some adjustments need to be made. We swam a little faster than in autumn, so that the body does not get cold. Wetsuits helped a lot, I can’t even imagine how we would swim without them.
After leaving the sea, you should quickly take a shower on the beach, dry yourself and put on dry clothes so as not to freeze and not get sick. For the evening you need to have warm clothes (sweaters, jackets, windbreakers). Choose hotels in the bays in winter, there is almost no storm there, and enjoy your vacation.
Leisure outside the hotel:
1. Walked to Marsa Mubarak bay (2.5 km to the south). Near the buoy there are 5 huge lionfish, an impressive octopus, flutes. The northern reef has colorful corals and lots of fish. We saw a big green turtle without a leg and a huge flock of tourists who were chasing it, but, unfortunately, we did not meet the dugong.
2. We went with a guide Olya to Sharm El Luli. I highly recommend! This is the most beautiful bay of Marsa Alam. The bay is also called "Caribbean Beach". In the ranking of the most beautiful beaches in the world, he is in 12th place! The views of the endless blue sea against the backdrop of the desert are amazing. A lot of people just come to enjoy the beach and do not swim. And we are swimming.
The bay has a northern reef in the form of a wall and a southern reef (bushes). Very colorful corals and fish, you can swim and admire the whole day. The sea is simply mesmerizing.
3. Shopping. At a distance of 2 km from the hotel there is a supermarket "Adam market". Went 2 times on foot through the desert. Prices in the supermarket are fixed. The difference between the prices in the hotel shops and in this supermarket can be dozens of times (for example, for soap, ointments, shampoos, toothpastes, hair masks, creams, sweets and other Egyptian-made things that are really worth bringing home). There are real Egyptian textiles there. You need to walk to the residential area (orange), where the locals live, and there you can ask. I think that those who wish can take a taxi, there is a water taxi from the hotel to Port Ghalib (1.5 euros), it runs every hour.
4. We went to the restaurant "Divino", which is located in Port Ghalib at the end of the embankment.
They took a huge plate of the freshest and most delicious seafood (lobster, shrimp, squid, mussels, fish) and a hookah. Paid less than $20. USA for two. Had a great time. Very romantic atmosphere. If we are in the area again, we will definitely visit this restaurant.
New Year's Eve celebration at the hotel. For the New Year's dinner there was a mandatory surcharge of 65 dollars. USA per person. Tables were set inside the restaurant and outside. There was a buffet. The dishes were cooked very tasty, the choice of food was huge: meat, various types, cooked in various ways, poultry, several types of fish (I especially liked tuna and lightly salted red fish), seafood, many side dishes, fruits, including exotic ones, huge selection of desserts. Thank you so much for the Christmas table! We sat outside near the stage. Animators on stage held a dance show. Then the artists performed with an Arabic show. It looked good.
By 11 pm the show ended, the tables were cleared, the guests went up to the bar where the disco was being held. Everything was great! Until 11 p. m. 31.12. 2016 ...After 11 pm, the guests were waiting for a "Surprise", very unpleasant: they stopped pouring drinks on the all-inclusive system, all drinks became paid. All guests were unpleasantly surprised. Celebrated the onset of the New Year with drinks already purchased at the hotel. You can say that the hotel operates on such a system from 11 am to 11 pm, but this is acceptable for any other day except for the New Year's holiday, on this night the hotel could make an exception for guests and not shock them. It would be possible to increase the cost of the supplement for dinner by 10 dollars. US per person and extend the all inclusive, rather than frustrating guests with inappropriate savings. This night only happens once a year. Or it was necessary to at least warn the guests that drinks on New Year's Eve would be paid.
I want to share my impressions about our 15th vacation in Egypt, the 6th in Marsa Alam. For the first time in my life, my vacation was unplanned and completely unexpected. We were already fully preparing to celebrate the New Year at home, except that we didn’t have time to buy a Christmas tree, when suddenly an offer was received from the tour operator “Feeria Mandriv”: from 25.12. 2016 to 01.01. 2017, direct flight to Marsa Alam, convenient time of arrival and departure, but the most interesting thing is that our favorite hotel “Marina Lodge At Port Ghalib 4 *” gave a very good promotional price. We rested in this hotel last year, and realized that this hotel, in terms of spirit and style of relaxation, is exactly what my husband and I need (I left a review last year). We could not believe that this could be! 2 days before departure, we bought a ticket and began to pack on the road. We had never dreamed of celebrating the New Year in Egypt before, because the prices were simply unrealistic.
Transfer: Flight Kyiv - Marsa Alam 4 hours, for the first time we flew on an airplane of the MD-83 model, since we are fans of aviation, it was very interesting for us. The crew commander was very cheerful and positive, often entertaining passengers with stories about the flight, the crew was very pleasant and helpful. Marsa Alam Airport is compact, check-in took 10 minutes. Then we were put on the bus and after 5 minutes we were already at the hotel. How great to enjoy your vacation, and not suffer on the road 4-6 hours from Hurghada airport.
Check-in: At the reception we were immediately recognized, I don’t know why we were so remembered, and they offered to wait at the bar for 10 minutes until all the formalities were settled.
Number: the room was given on the 3rd floor with a wonderful view of Port Ghalib at no extra charge. The room is decorated in an oriental style, with a hanging chandelier, mosaics and stained glass windows. Dimensions and decoration correspond to 4 *. Everything is not new, but it worked properly.
The door to the toilet is more aesthetic than practical, it does not reach the floor and ceiling. The hood in the toilet is good, but there is no soundproofing, for romantic couples who have not lived together before, it can be a problem)))). Shampoos, shower gel and soap are replenished. There is a dressing room and a balcony with chairs and a table. In general, I would like to say the following about the room: everything is not very new, not very modern, but it is quite acceptable for relaxation. The cleaner cleaned very carefully.
The territory is small, but very green, the plants are well-groomed, the facades of the buildings are painted regularly. There are large and small pools overlooking the sea and yachts, there were enough sunbeds. The hotel is cozy.
I would call the views at the hotel the term “all inclusive”: flowers and greenery are everywhere, the azure sea is visible a few meters away, the beautiful architecture of Port Ghalib, in the port they are laid up or swim past yachts (some are simply gorgeous), catamarans and bathyscaphes, above the hotel planes fly regularly (5 km to Marsa Alam airport). Wherever you look, beauty is everywhere.
Sorry, I am quoting the description of the rooms and the territory verbatim from my previous review, because almost nothing has changed in a year.
Food: A year ago, food was not a strong point of the hotel, this year, too. Breakfast - fruits, milk porridge (bulgur), sausages, toast, beans, pastries. For lunch and dinner, 1 type of soup, vegetables, side dishes, salads, meat, liver, fish, chicken, pizza, pasta, steamed vegetables, raw vegetables and desserts. Fruits are for breakfast, lunch and dinner: always oranges, grapefruits, dates. For breakfast there is a coffee machine with several kinds of hardware coffee.
There were no health problems, but I can’t say that it was very tasty. Fine.
Bars: 1 near the lobby and 1 on the beach. The all inclusive system operates from 11 am to 11 pm. Large selection of local alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks: rum, vodka, tequila, wine, brandy, good bottled beer, powdered juices, fanta, sprite, cola.
Service: I was pleasantly surprised by how warmly we were greeted. The staff remembered us from last year and sincerely rejoiced at our return. We were also happy to see familiar faces, especially Ramadan, Hussein, Abdul El Rahman, Ibragim. Throughout our stay, the guys did everything to make the guests comfortable, we have not a single comment. We were welcomed like old friends and we are very grateful for that.
Animation Entertainment: the hotel has a team of local guys. Chef - animator Mimo is a great fellow. Entertainment is not intrusive, but not boring either.
I ask Mimo to pay attention to what exactly the animator Mina is talking about with the guests, let her think first before giving dubious “compliments” to the guests when no one asked her opinion.
Beach: located 400 meters, for a healthy active person, this is not a problem, however, there is a free shuttle bus on schedule. There is a bar, shower and toilet. The beach is clean. There are no wind barriers. The entrance to the sea is along the coral cover, it is best to go near the buoys behind a large stone.
Sea: The hotel is located right in Potu Ghalib, yachts and catamarans go in front of the beach. The port itself is a long bay with bridges. There is no storm at all in the bay, and this allows you to swim in any weather. It is along this bay that the reef of the hotel is located.
The sea met us with its gifts in the form of luxurious thickets of fan and colored corals and countless inhabitants: there were reef turtles, titanium triggerfish, rays, surgeons, rhinoceros, zebrosomes, groupers, chic large aluters, plataxes, flutes, arotrons, flocks of hunting mackerel and huge phlegmatic smiling hedgehog fish. There is nothing to say about small fish, such a concentration of all colors and species cannot be found in special aquariums. But this trip differed from last year's by the presence of large predators: more than once we saw huge flocks of trevally and very large tuna.
Many travelers are concerned about the question: is it comfortable to relax at sea in Egypt in December? My answer is yes, but some adjustments need to be made. We swam a little faster than in autumn, so that the body does not get cold. Wetsuits helped a lot, I can’t even imagine how we would swim without them.
After leaving the sea, you should quickly take a shower on the beach, dry yourself and put on dry clothes so as not to freeze and not get sick. For the evening you need to have warm clothes (sweaters, jackets, windbreakers). Choose hotels in the bays in winter, there is almost no storm there, and enjoy your vacation.
Leisure outside the hotel:
1. Walked to Marsa Mubarak bay (2.5 km to the south). Near the buoy there are 5 huge lionfish, an impressive octopus, flutes. The northern reef has colorful corals and lots of fish. We saw a big green turtle without a leg and a huge flock of tourists who were chasing it, but, unfortunately, we did not meet the dugong.
2. We went with a guide Olya to Sharm El Luli. I highly recommend! This is the most beautiful bay of Marsa Alam. The bay is also called "Caribbean Beach". In the ranking of the most beautiful beaches in the world, he is in 12th place! The views of the endless blue sea against the backdrop of the desert are amazing. A lot of people just come to enjoy the beach and do not swim. And we are swimming.
The bay has a northern reef in the form of a wall and a southern reef (bushes). Very colorful corals and fish, you can swim and admire the whole day. The sea is simply mesmerizing.
3. Shopping. At a distance of 2 km from the hotel there is a supermarket "Adam market". Went 2 times on foot through the desert. Prices in the supermarket are fixed. The difference between the prices in the hotel shops and in this supermarket can be dozens of times (for example, for soap, ointments, shampoos, toothpastes, hair masks, creams, sweets and other Egyptian-made things that are really worth bringing home). There are real Egyptian textiles there. You need to walk to the residential area (orange), where the locals live, and there you can ask. I think that those who wish can take a taxi, there is a water taxi from the hotel to Port Ghalib (1.5 euros), it runs every hour.
4. We went to the restaurant "Divino", which is located in Port Ghalib at the end of the embankment.
They took a huge plate of the freshest and most delicious seafood (lobster, shrimp, squid, mussels, fish) and a hookah. Paid less than $20. USA for two. Had a great time. Very romantic atmosphere. If we are in the area again, we will definitely visit this restaurant.
New Year's Eve celebration at the hotel. For the New Year's dinner there was a mandatory surcharge of 65 dollars. USA per person. Tables were set inside the restaurant and outside. There was a buffet. The dishes were cooked very tasty, the choice of food was huge: meat, various types, cooked in various ways, poultry, several types of fish (I especially liked tuna and lightly salted red fish), seafood, many side dishes, fruits, including exotic ones, huge selection of desserts. Thank you so much for the Christmas table! We sat outside near the stage. Animators on stage held a dance show. Then the artists performed with an Arabic show. It looked good.
By 11 pm the show ended, the tables were cleared, the guests went up to the bar where the disco was being held. Everything was great! Until 11 p. m. 31.12. 2016 ...After 11 pm, the guests were waiting for a "Surprise", very unpleasant: they stopped pouring drinks on the all-inclusive system, all drinks became paid. All guests were unpleasantly surprised. Celebrated the onset of the New Year with drinks already purchased at the hotel. You can say that the hotel operates on such a system from 11 am to 11 pm, but this is acceptable for any other day except for the New Year's holiday, on this night the hotel could make an exception for guests and not shock them. It would be possible to increase the cost of the supplement for dinner by 10 dollars. US per person and extend the all inclusive, rather than frustrating guests with inappropriate savings. This night only happens once a year. Or it was necessary to at least warn the guests that drinks on New Year's Eve would be paid.
Translated automatically from Russian. View original
Comments (8)
leave a comment
Show other comments …
OTHER REVIEWS ABOUT THE HOTEL
- Recommended for diving!
- I did not like
- Near Marsa Mubarak
- Review of Marina Lodge At Port Ghalib
- Nice hotel, free Wi-Fi at the reception
SEE ALSO