Wheel of Fortune or the story of 3 migrations
Wheel of Fortune or the story of 3 migrations
Hello, dear friends, like-minded people and travelers! Very many of us, both beginners and “experienced”, sooner or later are interested in the question: “What is Fortune and is it worth the risk? ”.
So what is "Fortune" in theory? Everything is simple here. You choose only the resort, departure date, number of days, hotel category and food system. Nothing else depends on you. You arrive on the appointed date at the appointed place, and then the host decides which hotel to accommodate you, but the host must also take into account the hotel criteria you paid for. Those. if you have paid for "Fortuna 5 *" all-inclusive meals, then you should be accommodated in any 5 * hotel of the tour operator's choice with this food system. As a rule, the tour operator settles "fortunists" in the cheapest and unclaimed hotels. The advantage is the price, often the "Fortuna" package is much cheaper than the ticket to the cheapest hotel of the selected category. This action is for people who are economical, unpretentious and with a very developed craving for adventure and risk.
What is "Fortuna" in practice? This question began to torment me too. April 2017 family circumstances developed in such a way that my husband and I urgently needed a rest, both mental and physical. Nowhere does our soul rest like on the Red Sea, and finances often set the tone for relaxation. I wanted peace and at the same time emotional shock and risk. Free Finance decided that they were exactly enough for the cheapest ticket for the Fortuna 4 * system to Marsa Alam from the operator Fairy Mandriv: from 04/09/2016 to 04/16/2017. So the stars aligned. Booking, waiting for the rest. A message appears on the Feeriya website that for everyone flying on these dates the tour operator gives a free concert by Viktor Pavlik in the desert. We honestly weren't fans, but that's a nice bonus.
To prepare myself for the worst possible 4* hotel in Marsa Alam, I skim through the reviews. I really don’t want to be put in a hotel with a poor reef, but in addition to all other surprises such as modest food, old renovation, etc. I try to mentally prepare and mentally reconcile.
Flight direct to Marsa Alam airport, which is great. Viktor Pavlik was on the plane with us. Taras Topolya from the Antibody group flew the same way with his wife and little son.
A guide named Nadir meets us and sends the “fortunists” to the bus to the hotels north of the airport. And here it is the moment of truth, with bated breath, I ask what hotel we got.
Hotel #1.
The answer was dumbfounded, upset and nailed on the spot (but it was expressed in other words): we have a free improvement (“upgrade”, as the guide put it), according to the “Fortuna 4 *” system, we are accommodated in the “Coral Hills Resort Marsa Alam” 5*". By the way, “5 * fortune-tellers” are also accommodated in this hotel, although the difference in the cost of vouchers is about 100 dollars. USA. We have not been to this hotel before, but I know that the reviews for it are rather sad. Also, I watched videos from the reef. And, judging by the video, my husband and I have nothing to do there. For us, a holiday on the Red Sea without a reef is not a holiday. In the concept of “without a reef”, I put not the complete absence of coral and living creatures, but the scarcity of the underwater world, especially for those who have seen some of the best corals in the Red Sea. Sadness….
We declare to the guide about our categorical unwillingness to settle in this hotel, the guide promises to resolve the issue on the spot, already at the hotel. In Coral Hills Resort Marsa Alam 5 * we were fed with lunch, but our mood did not improve, after dinner the desire to move became stronger. The guide offered to replace this wonderful "five" with the "four" Magic Tulip Beach Hotel without additional payment. I remember the reviews, they seem to be not bad, the pontoon is very long, it is not clear from the coral. We agree without looking. They put us in a small bus, and several more of the same “migrants” get on the same bus. Both "freeloaders 4*" and "freeloaders 5*" were relocated to Magic Tulip Beach Hotel 4*.
Hotel №2.
In general, I really liked the Magic Tulip Beach Hotel 4 * (I wrote a review), but we arrived at it in the afternoon, and it was too late to swim. The next morning we eagerly went snorkeling. The pontoon is really long, but the food in the hotel is powerful, you need to burn extra calories. So the length of the pontoon is just for those who are afraid that by the end of the rest the face will not fit into the photo. What's in the sea? And here is a slight disappointment - we are used to a richer underwater world. There is a reef and it's not bad, it's just that we are already very spoiled reef gourmets. Vse-taki 16th rest in Egypt. We saw that divers were unloading to the right of the pontoon. Let's go there. The entrance on the coral cover is terribly inconvenient and dangerous. But coral is more interesting.
At dinner, after drinking "daring" drinks, the idea of moving to another hotel, or rather to another coral, comes to mind. I timidly share my thoughts with the other half. But the other half has also had time to taste the spirit of adventurism and a little "all inclusive" for dinner, and supports my idea with both hands.
Let's call the reception to our long-suffering guide Nadir. When asked about the reason for the resettlement, we tell the truth: "We want another reef. " Nadir turned out to be a smart guy and the question about the place of resettlement was: “Which reef do you want? ”. The first thing that came to mind is our beloved Port Ghalib, they don’t look for good from good. Nadir asks him to call back in 5 minutes.
At the reception, the workers understood the most important part of the conversation for them, namely, that we want to move to another hotel. The guys were upset and asked to explain how they offended us. We apologized and honestly explained that the problem was not in the hotel and not in the service. I hope they don't get offended.
Calling the guide back. Result: transfer 25 dollars. USA, 2 hotels to choose from or our favorite Marina Lodge At Port Ghalib 4 * with an additional charge of 5 USD. US per day per person, or Marina View Port Ghalib Hotel 3* no extra charge. The spirit of adventurism is in full play, we want Marina View Port Ghalib Hotel 3*. For the first time in our lives we will rest in Egypt in the “troika”, we wanted exotic, those more recent reviews of the hotel are very positive and strange. But more on that later….
Hotel №3.
Nadir arrived in the morning, and we were taken to the 3rd hotel for the holiday. I must say right away that the hotel Marina View Port Ghalib Hotel 3* turned out to be the most interesting and not banal (not confuse with the best) hotel of all the hotels in Egypt, where we rested. I left a review on the hotel, I will share my impressions. The hotel turned out to be with its unforgettable character in the interior, service and cuisine. They absolutely did not regret their decision to move to the "troika". In general, I liked almost everything. We have never had such an individual service: in a restaurant it's just us and the waiter, in the bar it's just us and the bartender)))). When we went on an excursion or to a concert, the workers, apparently having heard a lot about our adventures, were anxiously interested in whether we would return)))).
It's a very interesting and, in my opinion, useful idea to hire a guide to sail the reef. Thanks to Mustafa, people who are not confident swimmers can still enjoy the richness of the underwater world of the bay. In addition, Mustafa entertained us as an interlocutor, went with us to the supermarket, to Marsa Mubarak Bay. For the first time in our entire stay, we caught rain in the desert. It was a new experience for us.
Walking to Port Ghalib
We devoted one evening to a walk around Port Ghalib. Marina View Port Ghalib Hotel 3* is a five-minute walk away. This is not the first time we are resting in Port Ghalib, this time we just had fun walking and chatting with sellers. Why did you have fun? Because for these prices you can only have fun with communication. Having previously made a shopping raid on Adam Market (prices for locals), we went to find out how much our purchases for tourists, having agreed with my husband about the legend: we are in Egypt for the second time, we know nothing and believe everything. Giving faces an admiringly stupid expression, we go into a shop with papyri. I remind you that this is our 16th trip to Egypt. From the words of the seller directly enter into a stupor. It turns out that light papyri are new, and dark papyri (we have 7 of them at home) are ancient. The temple complex of Abu Simbel is the temple of Hatshepsut and is located in Aswan. We listen carefully, nod our heads, try our best not to laugh)))). I find in a pile an “ancient” papyrus depicting Tutankhamen and Nifertiti against the backdrop of the Cheops pyramid, I ask the seller to explain what this image means. In response, I hear a stunning explanation that this papyrus brings love, since the depicted Tutankhamen and Nifertiti loved each other in the pyramid of Cheops. We no longer had the strength to hold back laughter, we quickly say goodbye and leave the shop to discuss how tourists are sold the story that the son-in-law and mother-in-law loved each other in the tomb of the deceased pharaoh))))))). Do you think that only we are told such a story and only in this corner of Egypt? ))))) The evening has ceased to be languid, we go to the store with cosmetics. Facial expression appropriate. I quickly find a few pieces of handmade Egyptian natural soap (an annual supply of the same one was bought the other day at Adam Market) and with bated breath I ask the question: how much does it cost? The answer exceeded all my expectations: 11 euros per piece, but if I take at least 5 pieces, then they will give me as much as 5 euros for the whole batch!!! ! (in the market for local 0.5 euros). I try to contain my laughter. We return to the hotel in high spirits, we have time before the bar closes, we discuss our raid over a gin and tonic. Why am I describing this? Just the same things happen to our tourists in any other corner of Egypt every day. We must understand that those who allow themselves to be deceived are being deceived. Their task is to earn the maximum, our task is to allow or not to allow it.
Concert in the desert.
We were looking forward to the concert of Viktor Pavlik. Not fans, but this is the first time in all trips to Egypt included a concert by a famous artist. The concert is really free, but you need to pay $5 each. US per person for a drink during the concert (we took a bottle of beer at the bar at the concert and a flask of cognac with us for free). We collected 2 large buses of tourists and took them behind the hotels of the Braika complex directly to the desert. I liked the organization: the place for concerts is specially equipped, there is a stage, a small area for dancing under the stage, sofas, armchairs and tables in oriental style. You can buy hookah drinks. Above your head is the incomparable Egyptian night starry sky, but this is no longer the merit of the organizers)))). The atmosphere is great. The concert started almost on time. For the first time we listened to Viktor Pavlik live and got great pleasure from his voice, songs and ability to ignite the audience. They went out to dance. Unexpectedly Viktor Pavlik gained two new admirers in our face. Now, when I hear this singer, the starry sky over the desert is before my eyes.
We sat at a table with our long-suffering guide Nadir. Once again, they apologized for the trouble brought to him and the hotels from our craving for resettlement. He absolutely sincerely answered that it was nothing to worry about, and he was absolutely not offended, and we did the right thing, since the sea is a priority for us.
Back at the hotel, we stood in front of the entrance for a long time and shared our emotions. Marina View Port Ghalib Hotel 3* workers came out to make sure we were back and not run away to another hotel))))
Conclusions.
I really enjoyed my vacation, got a lot of positive emotions and saved a lot of money. But there is one BUT: I don’t know if we would have succeeded in such an adventure if we had run into another guide.
Here I briefly described everything to you. And whether it is worth taking a risk and spinning the wheel of Fortune, decide for yourself.
Have a good rest, there will be questions, write, I will answer!
