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| | Holiday Village Red Sea
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Sharm El Sheik |
| Egypt |
| Star Rating: 5 |
| Telephone: |
| Number Of Rooms: 354 |
| Number Of Floors: 3 |
| Number Of Lifts: 0 |
| Holiday-Truth Readers Reports |
Ame from Bristol travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 1 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness |  | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food |  | |
| Entertainment |  |
| said: We arrived late in the evening but found check in very quick and painless. We went straight to our room and within half an hour our cases arrived to the room.
Breakfast was a great hit with my 2 kids (12 & 14)but was always the same but that didnt bother my daughter as she loves pancakes.
We all agreed that the food was great & well cooked but I noticed that on the first week there was no cool air canopys covering the cakes and salad bar and there were flys around. The second week the canopys were put over the food and the fly problem disapeared.
One other thing to be careful of is the floor area around the 2 bars this gets wet with children spilling their drinks and no one will come and mop it up so you have to be careful walking as you will end up slipping.
Sadly we couldnt use the A la Carte as we didnt pack any long trousers for my son, we noticed little children could get in wearing shorts but at 14 not my son so we missed out on that one.
The hotel is only about 10 mins from the airport and right on the beach. We spent time on the beach which wasnt used that much, the swinging beds were brilliant my 2 drove me mad at times making it swing back and forth so made them get on the sun beds.
Do not miss the tropical fish, we found that the fish by our hotel were the best as friends further up the beach never got to see any. You must take some shoes to walk out into the sea with as you will not know what you are walking on and there is coral to walk over. Big thing to watch is the steps down into the sea these are very very slippy and we watched many people slipping down them and hurting their backs, one little girl even cut her foot open in several places, so go down them slowly one at a time and hold the hand rails.
The fish will eat bread from your hands so dont forget to take some rolls at breakfast.
The hotel staff are brilliant nothing is to much bother, I have to say we spent most of our time around the quiet pool and never went down to put our towels on the beds before 9am and there was always loads to choose from, also we never got back to the beds until 10.00 or 10.30 and our towels were still were we left them. The man who kept our room very clean, was brilliant, very polite and helpful.
My son was poorly while we were out there and we had to have the doctor to him. He speaks brilliant English but the male nurse who works with him has very limited english. The doctor kept phoning me every few hours to make sure my son was ok, something you dont get here. My son did feel much better after 24 hrs and after 48hrs was back to normal but he was on 2 lots of tablets for 5 days.
Hotel entertainment at night was great for little children say from 3 - 9 but mine were to old for this so there was nothing for them and they got bored. Again there was nothing really for them to do during the day because they werent part of the kids clubs.
Would I visit this hotel again, yes but I would make sure my 2 had a friend each with them to keep themselves entertained rather then me doing that, and I could spend more time on the sunbeds with my books.
When paying the bill they did try and charge me for a mobile call so say rung from our room, but as I had only rang the first choice reps in their office(which was free)no one else used the phone. They also tried to charge me for a bottle of beer that fell out of the fridge and smashed on the floor, make sure you report anything to the main reception and signed a form to say what has happend and then waited for house keeping to come and clean up and take away, beacause of this signed form I wasnt charged.
Click here for more information on this hotel, resort and region
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Jo from Carlisle travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Had a lovely time at the holiday village. Quick check in - welcome drinks provided. They confirmed that they had emptied the mini bar as I had previously requested, and that the cake I had ordered for my partners birthday would be delivered shortly. We found our room which was in block 13, overlooking the quiet pool, and about 10 minutes later the cases were brought to our door. The rooms are very large - the double bed is enormous and there was a sofa bed and a large camp bed for our girls. There is a large walk in wardrobe, a balcony with table and chairs, and a big bathroom. The hairdryer is in the bathroom so we were glad we'd taken our own as you couldnt get in the bathroom to use it whil someone was in the shower. there was a washing line in the shower area which was very handy - things dried really fast due to the heat.
The birthday cake arrived all wrapped in cellophane and ribbons and was very nice - they even though to send a knife to cut it and plates for us to use.
The air conditioning was very good - you really need it at nights. The fridge didnt keep things very cold but it was better than nothing.
There are plenty of sockets in the room, including one english style one which was handy.
We ate at all of the restaurants apart from the seafood. We didnt care for the Mediterranean, the Sari (Indian) was nice, and the Bamboo (Chinese) was by far our favourite. The main restaurant is very good. The food did get a bit repetative but there is lots of choice, and everything we had was hot and properly cooked. In the morning the egg station was popular, there was also a choice of cereals, pancakes, pastries and bread, chicken and beef sausages, beef bacon, fresh fruit etc. We only ate lunch a couple of times, but there was a full selection on offer similar to the evening meal. We used the pizza bar down by the main pool for lunch, and they open the Med restaurant and serve chips and bread and a couple of meal choices like chicken, or burgers. The evening meals were nice, they try really hard to do english choices, the sunday lunch was quite good, there was also stew and lasagna etc. The barbeque nights were a nice change. There is a pizza station where they make individual pizzas with your choice of topping, a pasta station where you could have bolognaise, or just pasta with tomato sauce or add mushrooms, peppers, onions etc. There is loads of choice of breads, cakes, pastries, deserts and fruit.
We mainly used the quiet pool. I did get up early to get a sunbed but only because it seemed suce a shame to stay in bed when the sun was shining. The pool guys are great, they bring the towels to your lounger or will try and find you one if its busy. There were still beds available at 8.30ish around the quiet pool. The beach was beautiful and very under used. There are loads of empty beds. There is a towel station down there too so you dont have to carry towels down & a bar for drinks etc. The sea is shallow for ages and so warm. The snorkelling is not to be missed. You will need shoes to walk in the sea.
We went to the Sports Bar several times, its nice and cool but a bit dull. The Ampitheatre is so hot, and quite busy, the reps do a good job but it is a bit samey. I tried all the wine - not too bad, partner not impressed with the lager - mainly because it is bottled and they pour a glass and then the next person gets the second half of the bottle - its Ok if they open a fresh one for you but if you get the second half its flat. The soft drinks are all bottled too with the same problem. There are some nice little shops in the Hotel,they are always giving free sweets etc. Outside of the hotel you have to haggle.
We used the hotel taxi service to go to Naama bay and the Cleo Water Park. They were very reliable. The water park was good - the rides are not too extreme!
Had very slight stomach upsets, partner was the worst, but it didnt spoil our holiday. The swim up rooms looked great - we tried to upgrade but they were all full.
All in all a lovely holiday.
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Louise Smith from Coppull travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
Firstchoice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 3 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff |  | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: We all had a fab time at this hotel, we had no reason to worry about it at all.
The check in procedure was very painless which was great when you arrive late, our bags were taken to our room while we enjoyed a drink on arrival and the buffet restaurant was kept open late with a small selection of food available for us.
Although we loved the food at the main buffet restaurant, the indian and the mediteranean, I feel I had to give a 4 for the score just down to the bad service and awful food we received at bamboo the chinese restaurant.
The hotel was constantly kept very clean and the gardens were constantly being maintained, again I gave a 4 just down to what I felt was very rude, our maid coming into our room at 8.30am in the morning to strip the net curtains which were apparently dirty to be cleaned in time for the new guests. I felt quite insulted by this 2 days before we were due to leave.
The location was fine for us as we dont really go off site apart from my husband diving.
Hotel staff I gave a 3 sadly due to the few occasions I felt were out of order, I have explained above re the net curtains, we also had bad service at the chinese where we had an argument over the food not being what we ordered and them saying it was, how do you prove it?? The last thing that spoilt the staff score was on the last day when we had booked a late check out and they wanted our bags by 3pm, I'm sorry but I was intending still enjoying my hol around the pool at this time and had no intention of having my bags packed by 3pm, we eventually agreed on 4.30pm but felt we were treated quite poorly baring in mind our cases would just sit outside the hotel till we left at 7.30pm. Also watch out in all 3 of the a la carte restaurants they will try and clear your table before you have finished eating, you have to be firm and tell them to come back later. The rest of the staff we came across were brill especially the waitors in the bars and the buffet restaurant.
Sun loungers and Parasols - we got up at 6am to reserve beds purely down to being woried of not getting a parasol, which we couldnt be without in the heat in August with children.
The rules are strictly imposed by the 'Towel Police' as we called them if you are not on your beds between 10am and 10.30am your towels will be taken off and your beds given to someone else so be mindful of this if you are in the pool or having a walk on the beach, make sure someone is on one of the beds, even if your handbag suncream all your personal effects are there, if your not, it will all be scooped up and taken away. We left the welcome meeting before 10am so this wouldnt happen to us.
The entertainment I gave a 4 the reps work very hard all day and night no complaints whatsoever I felt I couldnt give a 5 due to the evening entertainment being outside and also on too late especially when you've got young ones who are zapped after a hard day playing in the heat. My kids loved the adrenalin challenge and the water walking.
I would probably not visit again due to us usually going somewhere different every time we go away and wanting to explore other parts of the red sea riviera but I never say never.
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Louise Lathwell from North Devon travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Transfer/Arrival:
As we arrived, the airport was very busy, people queueing everywhere. This was due to alot of flights coming in at the same time. The journey to the hotel was very pleasant, about 12 minutes. No need to worry once you get to the hotel as the bellboys deliver your suitcases to your room, so you can go and get a bite to eat from the buffet restaurant which stays open til 00:30am for the new arrivals.
Room ( Kids Den):
The room was very big with a separate little room as a kids den. The main bedroom bed was MASSIVE! We could fit all four of us in it. The kids den was nice with a television in with more than enough english channels and films. The only problem was, no plug for ps2 in the Den!
Swimming pool:
The main swimming pool was massive plenty of room for everyone, with a few other smaller pools around the hotel aswell. My Husband and I got up at around 6am to get a sunbed, plenty spare at that time. We think that people may of tip the pool boys to get them a bed...But really no need. There is a bucket pool and slides around the main pool for the children, which they enjoyed. There is one slight problem, which we did not know when we arrived is that if you are not around your sunbed for and hour or two, your towels will be whipped away from your beds by the pool boys as people asked them for a sunbed. ( Thats what we discovered when we came back from the welcome meeting!) The water in the pool was clean.
Food:
The food in the main buffet was good. The food did get a bit repetitive ( pasta, chips, rice etc), at lunch and at night, but the meats were changed every time. The food was cooked fresh, and if it wasn't cooked then they wouldn't serve it to you. The breakfast in the morning was nice. Pancakes, scrambled eggs, fresh fruit, yoghurt. etc
There were 4 a la carte restaraunts all though we didn't visit the Indian or the seafood ( you have to pay for your catch). But the Chinese and the mediterranean were very nice. You had to pre-book for these restaurants, make sure that you do this early on in your holiday else you will struggle to get a place. The waiters in both of the a la carte restaurants were very pleasant and did all they could for you. There is also a bbq on the beach for 5 GBP every wednesday.
Beaches:
We knew the snorkelling was going to be amazing before we left The uk, but never thought it was going to be as good as it was!! If you don't go snorkelling you will be missing out on a lifetime experience!! Even though to get to all the great reefs you have to go out for half a mile , The sea is waist height so it doesn't put you off. We never sat on the beach as it was too hot. But there is a bar on the beach which you can get drinks from if you can stay down there that long !
Entertainment:
We found the entertainment average as it did start half an hour late most nights, and mostly it is the entertainers from the hotel doing the shows. There were only two nights in the 14 which were done by people from outside the hotel. The entertainers tried very hard, and we thought the shows were good that we did stay and see. The one Thing that put us off the most is the time that the shows eventually started as we have a younger child.
The grounds at the hotel are remarkable, gardeners do a fantastic job of keeping it all together.
we would definitely go back.
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Denise Stokes from Hastings travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: After reading some of the previous reviews we were a little apprehensive but we need not have been. The hotel and pool areas were spotless and there was always someone collecting glasses and rubbish.
The food does get a little repetitive but there was always plenty to choose from and chefs cooking fresh dishes in front of you. The cakes and doughnuts at breakfast and the pizzas were a particular hit.
The hotel is opposite a few shops but we did not venture out of the complex only to go to the Waterpark.
The Egyptian hotel staff were very friendly and could not do enough to help.
Yes we did get upset stomachs but will put this down to the heat 45 degrees and the change in diet nothing that was the fault of the hotel itself.
The E3 evening entertainment team were fantastic and did well to cater for all age groups.There were also plenty of daytime activities should you wish to participate.
The main gripe we had was the sunbed situation having to get up at 6.30am to ensure a parasol.
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linda from dublin travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
first choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 3 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: We have just returned having spent 2 weeks at the holiday village
We had a fantastic holiday in this lovely hotel
The food was good with plenty of variety.
The staff were fantastic
There was always something happening for the kids
The kids clubs were top class
The only downsides were
1 The size of the resort
We were in block 14 and it must have been close to a mile to get to the beach which is no fun with 3 small kids in 40 degrees
Secondly the jetty to get to the coral only brings you half way and it is a long wade out after that to the coral Again this was a very long treck for the kids
We enjoyed the holiday but felt the resort was too big for our liking
We will not go back for this reason
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Brian Davidson from Altrincham travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: I travelled to the Holiday Villlage on 04 August for 2 weeks with my wife and 15 year old son. My 18 and 20 year old son's followed a week later, to join us for the second week.
The Hotel
This is a very large complex and proves that men do wear the trousers, as the majority of staff are all males. The staff work very hard often performing more than one job.The complex is kept very clean. All the staff are friendly and will do anything for you. If you tip the staff they will look after you, as i found out at the beach bar one day, when i had to eventually tell the barman to stop bringing drinks over to us even though we had not asked for them. I could easily have got drunk.
We were in block 14 which is in a quiet area of the complex at the rear. We had a standard room on the ground floor. The bed was enormous and my 15 year old son who is 6ft 2" tall had a very comfy fold up bed, which he slept on easily. The air - con is an added bonus and is needed and the digital safe is free to use. The mini bar is not cheap as you have to pay for any drinks you have. We emptied ours and used to store bottles of water or juice in the fridge instead.
The room was cleaned daily. The final decor is a bit tacky and you can spot where mistakes have been made, but i don't understand why people complain when the room is clean and comfortable.
The food
There is plenty of choice and the food is ok. I have had worse at other hotels. The main restaurant was very busy. At breakfast everyone stocks up on the bottled water as if there is going to be a drought.
There are 3 a-la-carte restaurants, a mediterranean a chinese and an indian, all of wich you have to pre book for. When you first arrive you are given meal vouchers to use at these restaurants, however you still need to attend at the restaurants to book yourselves in, they are situated by the main pool. When we went to book we were told all 3 were fully booked during our first week. We managed to book all three during our second week and were surprised that in the indian and chinese, we were almost the only people dining there when we went. I would recomend the mediterranean, but thats my choice. All 3 sell bottles of wine which are very expensive compared to the supermarkets outside the hotel. We were offered a bottle of red merlot in the Chinese for £30 English, which was probably only a few pounds in tesco. Needless to say we stayed on the gin and tonic.
The Location
The hotel is only a short drive from the airport, which is convenient after the flight. The location is still being developed, but i would prefer to stay in this resort than stay at Naama Bay. Outside the hotel there are various shops and Hard Rock Cafe is due to be built. There are supermarkets either side of the hotel along with chemists. Across the road is a Macdonalds, which is cheaper than back in the U.K. and the food appears to be cooked fresh and even though i am not a lover of fast food it was a nice change to enjoy the food here.
On our last night we went past Macdonalds and found a fantastic restaurant, called "Onfish." All 5 of us ate in here, the food was cooked fresh and the bill was only £30 English. The menu is big and cateres for all tastes as well as sea food.
The Entertainment
The hotel is ideal for families with young children, and everything is geared up for the younger child, there is not a great deal for teenagers. Imagine Butlins in the sun, and thats what you have here.
The entertainment staff work hard and in the evening there is always something on at the amphi-theatre, which if you sit inside is very hot, even though it is in the open air.
The Swimming pools
There are 2 swimming pools for the guests. If you have a swim up room, you obviously have your own bit of water to play in.
With the 2 pools the idea is you collect your towels from a member of staff beside the pool and hand over your tickets in exchange, which you take back when you return the towels. There are signs in English which stipulate that if any sunbeds are not in use after 1015 hours and they have towels etc on them, the towels will be removed and the beds re issued to another guest.
The reality is this. We never went to the main pool as i could not be bothered to stay awake all night to reserve my sun beds by dawn. This pool is extremely busy in the height of summer, a lady told me she had to queue for over an hour to get a towel and then all the beds had gone. Another chap used to reserve his beds at 0400 Hours and then fall to sleep on one of the beds by the pool. How sad, is this what you go away for?
We only went to the quiet pool, which is a strange name for it. I would say that for the first 10 days of our holiday i could walk to this pool on the way to breakfast at 0945 hours and comfotably get 3 beds. However during the final days people were abusing the system and even i got out of bed on the the last 2 days at 0800 hours to reserve the beds, now how sad am i. During our last few days at the quiet pool the 1015 rule was enforced and at this time the pool attendant did his rounds and removed towels from unoccupied beds, and re issued the beds to other guests. This then provided excellent entertainment when people returned and demanded to know why their towels had been removed, if only they could read English. The poor old pool attendant was only doing his job due to pressure from his manager. I can not say if this 1015 rule was enforced at the main pool.
The Beach
If all else fails and you do not get a bed by the pools, try the beach. It is actually ok and quite deserted. There are plenty of beds to choose from with shade from the sun as well, and you can ride the camel if you want to. Plenty of fish etc to view in the sea, which was warm. Buy protective shoes from the supermarkets outside the hotel as you do not want to stand on a sea urchin as it hurts.
Upset Stomach's
I personally believe the main cause of this is the heat, eating different food's and not drinking enough water in the day time. Alcohol will have an effect but i met plenty of people who are tea total and still suffered. Take a good first aid kit with you including things for upset stomach's etc as it will be cheaper than the local chemist's.
I hope this helps anyone going to the Holiday Village, we would return again to this resort, how ever i would like to try self catering as it is really cheap to eat out. Don't be put off, by any bad reports about this place, you will enjoy it here.
Finally, there are no lifts, so if you are not to clever on your feet, you could struggle getting around the complex.
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Debbie from Preston travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Hi everyone, just returned this morning from a 2 week stay at The holiday Village.
We had a very efficient check in, quick, easily sorted out with your keys and an envelope containing towel cards , a map and hotel bus times and prices.
We went down to the restaurant which they had kindly kept open as we were delayed half an hour coming out.
The staff are quick to please , very smiley and talkative.
We were allocated a room in block 14 but the following day asked to be moved as it was a long trek to get anywhere in the baking heat, this was done quickly and we had moved only 2 blocks up as the village was pretty much full, it was still a trek though and for me this was the only downside.
We asked for the mini bar to be emptied and this was done in an instant.We then put in our own bottles of water and coke etc.
The room was to a high standard and you could eat from the floor, it was absolutely spotless. My cleaner was so thorough he even took the time to line all the lotions and potions in the bathroom from large to small . The whole village is constantly being cleaned,swept and windows washed etc these people just dont stop, they work extremely hard.
I cant say i saw much of the evening entertainment as my little one was whacked out by about 9.30pm but what i saw was quite entertaining. The one thing i will say is that i dont like the arrangement of the ampitheatre seating. If i had put on a new dress, i wouldnt like to sit on mats and loungers that people had been lying on all day with suncream etc, i think they desparately need some tables and chairs and quite a lot of them, just so you could sit down with friends and have a drink if you were'nt watching the entertainment.
location is a short bus ride to Naama Bay, or there are local shops just outside, please note that the 24/7 to the left of the hotel is great, prices are really reasonable and things were quite a bit cheaper than in the village shop, it only takes a few minutes to walk there and you'll save yourself some money.
I only took pounds sterling and had no problem anywhere paying in english, you often get change in egyptian or english and egyptian.
Also if you walk a few minutes longer after the 24/7 you will find an english owned and run cafe called Churchills, where you can buy a full english breakfast with real bacon, eggs, sausage, bubble and squeak tomatoes, heinz beans, and real tomato ketchup and brown sauce. unfortunately for us, we only found this the day before leaving and had already eaten...... we so could have eaten a full english breakfast some days.
Onto food, its plentiful and they are always checking the temps of things, beautifully layed out, there are some things that you may not recognise or like the look of but you will not starve, there are many things on offer to pick from. there are BBQ , international, oriental, you'll find marinated lamb on a couple of evenings, and the roast beef is lovely. They are trying really hard with a lot of the english food, its not quite like home, but you are in the middle of Egypt here. Be adventurous and dive right in, taste a few things, you may be quite surprised.
The Weather was glorious, reaching 54 one day.
I had a great 2 week stay and was brought down with a bump when i landed in Manchester this morning, no more blue skies for me and it rained this morning!!! Arghh......
Would i stay in the village again, yes i would if i secured a room closer to everything, i just found the room too far away and when i had taken my little one back, it was too far of a trek to go and get a drink so ended up buying bottles of coke to put in my fridge.
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ajm from lincolnshire travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
first choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 08 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: We have just returned from the holiday village having stayed from the 31/07/08 until the 14/08/08.
The hotel is good overall but large and this i think detracts from the quality.
The staff are always friendly and helpful they do not appear to expect a tip at any time. The only people that seem to do this are the bus drivers that take you to and from the airport and on any excursions. I understand that they have already been paid and we have never tipped them but they can be persistant.
The holiday village is spotless in every aspect from the grounds to the rooms. as has been said previously some of the finishing particularly the bathroom is poor but so what, this doesn't spoil the holiday.
Bedrooms are massive and easily accomodated to adults a fourteen and an eight year old. Campbeds fot the children which they had no complaints about. very efficient air conditioning.
my gripes would be that this is a massive site and as such the dining room at the times when most normal people like to eat is like a school canteen. Queues for most things, shortage of plates and very young children everywhere struggling to manage to get their own food. The queues would be much more manageable if some of the very young were helped by parents! The staff do though work very hard to keep up with the demand. Food was OK
As with a lot of these big hotels there is a lack of evening seating that is not bar orientated. A quiet place to have a coffee and not be assaulted by cigarette smoke would be nice.
The poolsides again i felt where cramped and very busy but this is peak season the beach is much more pleasant but unfortunately there is nowhere at the beach to eat at lunchtime.
We had no illness with our family but again heard complaints from poeple who had been poorly. Although one person who complained bitterly came in from a long hot excusion and immediatly ordered alcohol from the bar.
We would not visit again because of its size and as we have been to the Coral Sea Resort twice previously this hotel feels much better for us as a family and we would go there instead.
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John Taylor from Wigan travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a singles holiday.
There were 4 adults and 4 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 07 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: We were a party of 4 adults and 4 children (1 x 4 year old & 3 x 8 year olds) staying at the Holiday Village from 17th July for 2 weeks. This was our second visit to Sharm El Sheikh following a brilliant holiday last year!
We picked the Holiday Village mainly because of the facilities available for the children, but the hotel was excellent on all levels!
The hotel is kept absolutely spotless. The rooms are huge and cleaned to an unbelievable standard each day, just watch out for the slippery floor in the walk in shower room!
The catering staff are very aware of hygiene requirements with the front of house chefs wearing gloves when handling food. The chefs would refuse to serve food that was undercooked, even if this was requested by guests (eggs etc).
There were some people complaining of sickness / diarhea when we were there, but we were eating and drinking at the same places and we were fine! This could be (as we witnessed) British guests visiting the toilets at the side of the restaurant, not bothering to wash their hands, then rummeging in the bread rolls spreading god knows what around (no fault of the catering staff!!!)
The food was hot, plentifull and varied. There were always brilliant omellette stations for breakfast,with great pasta and pizza stations at lunch and dinner, as well as an aray of different foods each day. They do try to cater for the English tastes with liver & onions, Beef / Turkey roast dinners / Curry etc on offer.
The only downside of the buffet restaurant was that at peak times it is too busy and you do need to queue for the cooking stations. To get around this we visited all of the a la carte restaurants (all very good), the seafood beach restaurant (excellent!), and attented the Egyptian Beduine night (Sunday), on the beach,(You need to pay for this £10 adult / £3 children), this was a brilliant night, all food cooked on the barbecue (Lobster / Shrimps / Steak / Kofta / Lamb / Sea Bass), with all your drink included. We also visited an excellent Chinese restaurant across the road to the right of the hotel (twice), and visited Naama Bay twice (Hare Rock Cafe & TGI's). There is also a McDonalds opposite the hotel gates, and if you turn left out of the hotel and walk 200yards you will come to Churchills cafe, where you can get a full English breakfast (including 'proper' bacon & sausage) for around £5.
The pools and grounds of the hotel are excellent, with two good slides and a 'bucket' pool for the children.
Between the pool and the beach is a walkway that stretches around the coast, here you can hire electric bikes,(£7 for 30minutes), which allow you to have a look beyond the grounds of the hotel. There is a pier that stretches out for around 300yrds to sea, but this does not reach the reef to allow you to snorkel. My advice is to abandon any hope of using your flippers. Instead wear the rubber type 'water shoes', this will allow you to wade out over the shallow water / rocks etc the remaining 500yds to the reef were the variety of fish (some 5ft in size)/ snakes (harmless!) / coral etc that you will see is beyond belief! (Take some bread with you!)
The staff at the hotel are always cheerfull and very hard working, they cannot be faulted!
The entertainment for the kids was very good with daytime activities morning and afternoon (raft building / gladiator games / life guard courses / water polo / archery etc). The kids just picked and choosed what they wanted to do or not to do!
Evening entertainment provided by the First Choice team is geared around the kids with, gameshow like Blankety Blank / Bingo / Secret Envelope and various themed shows, which whilst they will never win Britains Got Talent are enjoyable, once you've had a few red wines!
If you can leave your children for an hour (kids club) you can visit the adults only View Bar on the roof of the hotel, where you can chill out and relax!
All in all we had a brilliant time at this hotel, but a lot of Brits were moaning and groaning about petty things (why is there no bacon? / its too hot (daytime) / the ampithetres too hot (night time) / It's not like this in England (various things!).
I would recommend this hotel for anyone with children (under the age of 14), but I think it isn't really suitable for honeymooners / couples / older teenagers etc. as it is totally geared around the children!
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MartynP from Northampton travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 07 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Just returned from Holiday village and it’s obvious from the mixed reviews that people have had different experiences. Here’s our thoughts after 2 great weeks:
Hotel:
Rating states 4 star, yes the finishing touches could be better but I’ve stayed in 4 & 5 star hotels in the UK that have been significantly worse that this. If you’re going on holiday to check out the grouting in the shower, then there’s something seriously wrong. We had a standard room, block 13 overlooking the quiet pool, room was huge, he bed the biggest I’ve ever slept in, slightly hard mattress but did our back the world of good and one camp bed for our 10 year old. Air conditioning was fantastic and bought so much relief from the heat of the day and the evenings, couldn’t have slept without it on!
Staff:
Couldn’t do enough for you, extremely hard workers and very good with the children. Please make sure you tip those who deserve it, they earn next to nothing and it’s their culture and way of life, can’t believe how many people don’t bother.
Special mention to Ramy Moris who dealt with our queries and concerns by email before we travelled and who we met whilst there.
Food:
We were amazed at the choice of food, after reading earlier reviews, we thought we must have been at a different hotel. Always something that pleased us all, as my wife is a fussy eating, she was a good gauge for me, as I’m happy to try pretty much anything once. Try the omelettes at breakfast, they’re great!
The Chinese, Indian and Mediterranean were also great, we used them all twice, just make sure you book early as they do fill up. All these restaurants we air conditioned, which makes it very pleasant for eating. We didn’t try the Fish restaurant, so cannot comment on that one.
Yes, they do only give water bottles out in the morning, but you’re not restricted on how many you can take. We emptied our mini bar out and used to put a couple each day in there to keep them cool for the evening, so absolutely no issues there for us.
Facilities:
All the pools were great, we spent a lot of time at the main pool, so that our daughter was close by in the Kids Club, which she enjoyed very much.
Yes, towels and beds at all the pools can be a bit of an issue but you soon settle into the routine of having to get some towels down to guarantee some shade. If you don’t then there’s always the beach, which we used on 3 or 4 occasions, great for the kids, as the sea is very shallow and you get to see so many different fish, as well as benefit from the great sea breeze!
The is also a SPA, which has additional services, some at extra cost (but very worthwhile), between us all we tried the massage (can be done by male or female, for those concerned), jacuzzi pool, steam room, sauna, pedicure and hair braiding. Staff here were also fantastic and very friendly, couldn’t fault them or the facilities.
Entertainment at night was good, however we didn't go every night, as it was too hot for us. The standard of performances put in by the First Choice team was exceptional, we never expected them to be as good as they were, well done to all of them and to perform in that heat was quite a feat
Illness:
My wife got an upset stomach for a couple of days, however some ‘quite expensive’ tablets from the pharmacy soon sorted it out, and it certainly didn’t stop here enjoying the holiday. My daughter and I were fine and we all ate the same foods, drank the same drinks, so no ideas what caused it. We’ve been to many countries over the years and one of us has always ended up with an upset stomach somewhere along the line, so I don’t know what people really expect when they change their eating habits, go from 20 degrees to 45 degrees, lay in the sun all day and drink more than they do at home, something has got to give!
Other points:
Try the hotel run Bedouin night (Wednesdays) down by the beach, £10 per adult and a few quid for children, great food and fantastic entertainment. Would recommend this one over the First Choice run version in the mountains, at three times the cost.
Cappuccinos in the upstairs bar are great (and free), numerous cocktails using local spirits are available (menus on the bar and tables, also free).
We all took Acidophilus Plus for two weeks before travelling and pretty much every day whilst there (apart from my wife who forgot for a number of days and then got an upset stomach, maybe coincidence but you never know!)
Daily newspapers are on sale for those who want to stay in touch with the doom and gloom of the UK but be warned they cost £4 each!
Shuttle bus to Naama bay is well worth while, can be booked at reception and cost £1 per person each way. Just don’t be taken in by all the locals trying to get you into their shops, unless you want to be there all night. Certainly worth a trip, experience it once if nothing else.
The ½ day boat trip to Tirana Island, which includes snorkelling stops for those who wish to get in the water, was great. Can be booked down at the Aquarius hut, next to the beach. Cost £19 per adult and £15 per child, includes transfer to harbour and drinks on board. This is also not a First Choice run excursion, so they will not mention it!
That’s pretty much all I can think of now, just don’t be put off by the bad reviews, we had a great time and will definitely go back, a holiday is as good as you make it, go with a positive attitude and you’ll have a wonderful time to.
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Gallant party from Essex travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 07 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Just returned from a 2 week holiday at Holiday Village Red Sea Egypt and family had fantastic time. The hotel is in an excellent location and only 10 mins transfer from Sharm airport. Hotel is very clean and fully air-conditioned. We had a 'select' double room, which was quite large and a massive King size bed, which is quite hard!! The kids had individual fold out beds, which they found very comfortable. The rooms fully air-conditioned and can be used through-out the day and night and you will need it as it gets very hot. We had a TV and DVD player, which the kids enjoyed. The room also has a safe, which you don't have to rent and it's free for the whole duration. There is a 'mini-bar' but it's more expensive that buying from the shops on site. We only used it to keep our bottled water cold. The balcony is quite sizeable and had a great view of the swimming pool areas and the sea. We went all inclusive and this is great as you can have what you want when you want. We should have received wrist bands on arrival but were never given them but never had any trouble getting served.
The restaurant is fine but the food is a bit repetative. However, there is a massive selection to choose from and you'll never go hungry. Breakfast is from 6.30am - 10am and is in the main restaurant area. We never had any problems getting a table but we did notice over the last few days that it was getting busier. Bottled water is available free during the breakfast period only and you can take as much as you want. You will need a lot as you can de-hydrate very quickly in this heat. we were taking up to 12 bottles per day.
lunch is available between 1pm - 2.30pm in either the restaurant area and/or at the snack bar near the pool. The menu is generally pizza, chips, burgers, salad, chicken etc...
Dinner is available between 6.30pm - 10pm in either the main restaurant or you have 3 other a la carte restaurants on site (although we never used these).
Swimming pools - very clean and the deepest part of te biggest pool is around 5', which is great for the kids. There is an activity pool but be warned that this is often used throughout the day for kids games and you are often asked to vacate it for certain periods. The main pool is massive and is split into t section either side of the bridge, which also has a swim up bar. their are 2 water slides, which are 'manned' during the day and are great fun!!
Sun-beds - there are plenty of them and the pool staff are very accomodating in getting you these. However, i used to get up around 6.45am to get mine and towards the end of the holiday i was finding that more and more people were getting up earlier so set your alarm clocks!! You will find that from 2pm onwards people do start to leave the pool area so sun beds are easier to get.
Weather - well it's what you go to Egypt for isn't it!
it is very very hot every day. you will never see a cloud in the sky. They say the average temperature is around 38-40 degrees. However, we spoke to some people who had a thermometer and they had it reaching the early 50's some days. The evenings are cooler but still very hot so all i can say is use plenty of sun cream. When we landed at Sharm airport at 9.30 evening it was 35 degrees! However, you get a lovely breeze for most of the day, which is very welcomed.
Entertainment - the entertainment team of 6 are excellent and very professional and do a great job. They put on shows every night and are great with the kids and adults and during the day get involved in games around the pool i.e. water polo, volleyball etc...
Hotel staff - very friendly and will do what they can to help you. if you tip them occasionally they will get you most things. they are paid very poorly and a small tip will go a long way. The cleaners do an excellent job so make sure you tip them when you leave.
little moans - the entertainment in the evening is generally set around the ampitheatre. this is an open area, which has been heated up during the day and the floor / walls are very warm. there is no allocated seating and you have to find your own seats, which is a mix of hesian mats and the sun bed cushions from around the pool. it's on a first come first served basis and does get very busy. i noticed that a lot of the parents let their kids just run around and took up a lot of space on the floor area with the sun bed cushions and this can be a bit frustrating at times.
The music and entertainment generally goes on until midnight and is very load. if you have small kids or babies, who need to go to sleep early i would ask to be sited away from the ampitheatre area.
The pool bar has an awful chlorine smell, which if you are down wind from it, can take your breath away!
Rooms - the double rooms are just one main bedroom, which you all share so there is very little privacy. bear this in mind when booking. especially if you have older children.
Shops on the site are generally more expensive than those just outside the hotel. there is a 24/7 supermarket just out of the complex on the left hand side and an ATM just a bit further up.
Overall - despite a few moans i would certainly recommend this hotel. i think its good value for money and the location is great. Sharm is a relatively new resort so not much to do outside of the complex unless you like water sports but a great place for a family holiday. i went on a 1/2 day snorkelling trip to Tiran island, which was organsied through the Aquarias team (located on the beach) and it cost me approx £20, which was great value for money and this includes pick up to/from hotel. it's quite a bit more expensive if you do it through first choice.
| | |
neil parker from warrington travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
first choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 06 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: stayed at this hotel from 19th june for two weeks weather was fantastic not a cloud in sight for the full two weeks. food is good but watch out for the people pushing in.
yes we all got very ill for several days and we found out that a child got took to hospital being very ill which the doctors put down to the pool water and the following day their was lots of pool staff round all the pools and doing a lot of discussing. the sea is fantastic you can walk out about 800 yards before it drops in to the reef i was snorkelling in the shallows which is just as good dont forget to take a underwater camera.entertainment is good but it does get a bit tedious. hotel staff cant do enough for you if you stay in block 14 on 3rd floor say hello to wahal for me these people get paid very little but work very hard and always happy to help. just one more thing it took me several days to wonder why you need a telephone in the toilet and then it hit me to order lots of toilet roll say no more
| | |
Debi Jones from Porth S Wales travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
Firstchoice
on a family holiday.
There were 3 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 06 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: We had a great holiday in sharm the staff were very friendly and helpful. the in2action team were fantstic keeping the children amused and entertained.The excursions were well organised and value for money we enjoyed the quadding snorkling at ras mohammed the bedouin experience and we flew to Cairo all were a good way of seeing different parts of Egypt.We would definetly be going back to Sharm and we hope to stay in Holiday village.
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mr n bennett from bradford travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
first choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 06 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff |  | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: The hotel was very clean the food was a bit repetitive but what do you expect.
The staff were so friendly and the entertainment staff God knows how these guys do what they do.
I would definitely visit this hotel again.
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Paul Watts from Bridgend South Waqles travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a couples holiday.
There were 2 adults and 0 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 06 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: There are so many mixed reviews on this Hotel I cant believe that some people stayed in the same place as we did.
We had a Swim Up room in block 7 which was fantastic, the pool was cleaned and tested on a regular basis. The room was cleaned daily and was spotless. Yes some of the finishes around the hotel maybe a little rough, but this in no way affected our holiday. Please remember that this hotel is open all year round and things will get damaged and broken and I am sure will be fixed in due course.
The food is good, plenty to choose from, people say that food is repetative, but you decide what to eat its not forced upon you, there is plenty of choice. The soups at lunchtime and evening meal are really good and there are lots of fresh breads to choose from.
We had no problems with food running out. One of the problems is not with the hotel, but parents letting their kids run riot around the food, picking food up and putting it back, dropping it on the floor etc.
All of the hotel staff work exceptionally hard and are always smiling, saying hello and very helpful and friendly.
The hotel is in a good location, its a short transfer from the airport to the hotel. Yes planes do go overhead, but this was not a problem. People who compalin about this should haved booked a hotel with a longer transfer. Beach is great, with a bar and a jetty. There is a walkway along the beach front so you can get to see all of the hotels.
We only saw the evening entertainment which was very good, all of the entertainment team work very hard. The First Choice reps were on hand and we had no problem in speaking to them they were always helpful. We made sure on our last day we told them what a good time we had.
Alot of people were nit picking about minor things, one person even complained that it was too hot and wanted to go home. If the reps were allowed to get on and do what they should be doing rather than dealing with nit pickers, people with genuine complaints would be dealt with quicker.
This hotel is really good value for money, excellent location and of course the weather (please be aware it is very hot here). There were no clouds in the sky so the sun shone continiously (it was really nice). There was a nice breeze in the morning.
What lets this hotel down is some of the client group staying here, parents that dont control their children, people who just pick fault with the slightest thing and people who have no idea how to respect people including other guests and other holidaymakers.
The Adult Only View Bar is great (no kids allowed)
We are planning to return next June
| | |
pody27 from cambridge travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
first choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 06 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: First off,i think alot of comments about this hotel have been a bit harsh..sohere goes,
We arrived back yesterday and wow the hotel is really beautiful,our room which was in block 10 over looking the quiet pool was lovely and the cleaners made it spotless everyday,no complaints at all there.We ate in the buffet restaurant for most meals and they had something to suit all tastes at all times,the waiters,chefs and bar staff were all lovely,very polite and helpful and great with the children.The hotel itself is in a great location,near to the airport and shops,we felt very safe wandering about in the evenings with 2 small children.All the hotel staff were friendly and helpful and always greeted you with a smile which you dont see very often.The entertainment staff and swimming instructors were great,it was the best entertainment i have seen in a hotel-the 5 main entertainers are so talented and funny and work so hard like all the staff seem too there. The only staff in the hotel who were a dissapointment were the First Choice Reps in Customer Services,who really didnt seem to give a damn about anything you had to say,and were more content just sitting in the office,when we had problems with our room service bill due to the on site spa messing up and charging us twice the repswere no help and nowhere to be seen which was dissapointing,and we wernt the only ones saying that!!!
Would i go back to the Holiday Village?? Of course i would.Yes i had a dodgy tummy whilst there but to be fair and i have spoken to alot of people who have been to lots of different hotels in Sharm it seems quite a normal thing wherever you stay in Egypt,i really think it is because its so hot out there and the air con-which is heaven probably doesnt help,but it didnt spoilour holiday in the slightest!
| | |
Mcclintock from Leeds travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 3 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 06 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Well where do i start, reception on arrival absolutly packed we were queing out the door before being check-in not a great first impression, once checked-in through into the lobby wow!!! very very impressive, clean, tidy, friendly staff...
Now the restaurant, heard a few bad things about this hotels food, me and my family thought it was great tho always sumthing on offer a lil repetative tho, but hey what do you expected your in Egypt.
Entertainment: excellent the guys and girls where great entertained us every single night with out fail, my girls loved the kiddies disco. main shows scott great voice, Alli the entertainments manager what a great character she was our favourite always happy. All round the team were all very good.
Activity Clubs, Well can honestly say these guys made our holiday my girls paris and paige loved it, always in and out of the clubs superb, and Anna around the pool everyday dont think she had a day off while we were there she was great worked very hard, Paul or (sweeney) as the girls and eventually me and my wife started calling him this was his surname we think, this guy was Fantstic, said hello every morning, afternoon and evening in and out of work he definalty led by example, always encouraging to the kids and we even spotted him giving advice to other reps we coming back in October and hope he is still there, he's a Portsmouth fan so if anyone reading this is going out he is die-ing for a pompey shirt, cause he forgot his, the whole team once again were Fantastic. my girls say hello to Linzi and Linda in Wavelength.
The beach is very gritting so be aware we brought pool shoes from the shop there to stop grazing our feet. swimming where great us and the girls loved the slides.
Just also want to say thank you to everyone for a great holiday and were see you in october hopefully
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brad from manchester travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
first choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 06 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: we were a family of 4. 2 kids 9 & 6. we all had such a great time. hotel is very clean, room was massive big cleaned daily. our cleaner was very pleasent and took good care of us. the staff in general very friendly and would do anything for you. the food is good. there is always something to eat. in simple i would say we had a great time and will not hesitate to return. forget about the moaners.
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McCoombe Family from Ellesmere Port travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: We stayed at this hotel 15th-29th May. Reading some of the reviews left it is hard to believe we were in the same hotel.
Rooms - we had a standard room in Block 10, 3rd floor, overlooking the quiet pool. This was ideal at night because it was very quiet. The room had a massive bed and a very comfy camp bed for our daughter. Yes, the finishing in the bathrooms wasn't up to much but it's not going to spoil your holiday.
Food we found to be ok and I am a very fussy eater! Never had a problem getting into the al a cartes or finding a table in the main rest. We all ate pretty much the same things at meal times but I did get an upset stomach (husband and daughter were fine). I honestly don't think it was food poisoning because we would of all had it. Go to the chemists at the first signs because the stuff they give you works straight away.
Entertainment was ok too. Fair enough it's not fantastic but so what? It was fun, the kids loved it and they all work really hard.
Kids clubs - our daughter (12) went to Wavelength and had a great time. It was nice for her to see reps from last year (Dom Rep HV) and the year before (Turkey HV).
Staff - all of the staff (egyptian and english) we came into contact with were very nice and friendly.
During our second week we went to the beach because we couldn't be bothered playing the sunbed game. The pool boys did always appear to get beds for people though. Even if, like me, you hate the sea give it a go. The fish are beautiful. Also have a go on Nando the very friendly camel.
If you want a sand bottle don't buy from the man in the hotel. He wanted £20 for one. We got 3 for £15 in the shopping centre just past MacDonalds. Speaking of MacDonalds, go just to see how big the burgers are! Also if you fancy a change try Churchills (turn left at main gates). They do lovely sandwiches.
A nice end to our holiday was our daughter winning E1600 (£160) on the magic envelope!
We had a lovely holiday and would definately reccommend it.
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carding family from norfolk travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
eclipse direct/first choice
on a family holiday.
There were 4 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Firstly we had problems when we arrived we had booked an interconnecting room or so we thought but first choice reps told us we had only booked the door, so beware of that when you book, they took 2 days to sort that out & that was only because we had to harass them. The reps were next to useless unless you wanted to spend money on trips or upgrades.
Hotel appeared fantastic on arrival.Very clean and the maids are always cleaning not a problem with this, the rooms are very spacious although we did struggle to find enough storage space for clothes for 2 weeks. Our room we did find had not been finished of very well our air con did not work for 2 days when we arrived and several plug sockets didn't either, or the hairdryers.
Food was OK we got a bit fed up with it, the restaurant was fine for our first week but as it got busier we did struggle to get a clean table and food ran out a lot so you were standing around waiting a lot, I think the restaurant needs to be bigger or they need to have a sitting plan. We did visit the meditteranean restaurant but the food was no different in there than the main restaurant. Lunchtimes got a bit fed up with as it tends to be pizza aand chips a lot this could be varied, although we did go to mcdonalds a couple of times.
Entertainment we didn't really enjoy my son is 9 years old and need something more than party dances there were only 4 proffessional acts in the two weeks we were there and they were very good, the rest of the time it was the entertainments team which was OK but when you are all inclusive stuck in a hotel for 2 weeks you do need something more. The ampitheatre was so uncomfortable drinke were being knocked over and having to sit on a sunbed cushion which had had god knows what on during the day was not my idea of fun, my parents struggled to sit down on the floor all night. I think there were quite a few accidents while we were there with children falling down the steps etc as they are very steep.
We did have a bit of stomach upset while we were there but nothing major, although I know there were a lot of other people with it and it was quire severe, you are supposed to log it with first choice so they could find out where the problems coming from but we didn't know this until we left.
We didn't have a problem with sunbeds while we were there the pool guys found us beds no problem and there were 5 of us, just give them a tip and i think they will remember you although they do not expect tips. Also pool towels are great don't bother taking your own we got clean ones every day. The pool bar have now brought in a 2 drink per person rule to avoid people going up to get loads at a time but the only time we had a problem with this was when on the beach as there is only one bar and if you are sat too far away its a bit of a trek backwards and forwards.
We did enjoy our holiday and we have never been all inclusive before so did not know what to expect, we didn't find the hotel value for money as food and drinks were still quite limited, and not much variety. This could be a great hotel perhaps once they sort out a few problems which I think they are trying to do. We did have to pay for more than expected ie. activities which were quite expensive. I think these should be included. Also the food and drink quantities should be bit better, ice-cream was served in small plastic cups as were the drinks.
We would not go back to this hotel but we loved egypt and the people are very friendly, but we would not use first choice again as this is the second holiday we have booked with them and had problems, which they do not want to seem to rectify.
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J Regan from Cardiff travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Holiday Village Red Sea was Excellent would definately go back, we only came back 2 days ago and looking already to going back next year. The Staff cannot do enough to help you, you don't always have to tip if you don't want to, the food is amazing something for everyone and if people complain there's something wrong with them, Sunbeds yes there was a problem with people getting up early but I stayed on the grass for 8 days or more and never complained once as long as my children were happy I was fine. The entertainment within the hotel was fab, my 4 year old son had swimming lessons and can now swim 50 meters and my son of 8 went to Soccer School and loved it, the staff within First Choice and In2action and the Entainment were fantastic with the children.
We had a room with Kids Den which was fab, very clean could not complain at all the bathroom was fine just needed a better seal around the bath, and yes we all had really bad tummy upsets but we got on with it and tried not to ruin our holiday, but as I've said before and told people out there why complain over silly little things when your in Egypt in the middle of a desert for goodness sake, what do they expect!!! 40 degrees everyday beautiful sea amazing. As far as I'm concerned it's what you make of your holiday and I must say it was fab Excellent ************
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Shepherds from Newport Pagnell travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: First time in Egypt, Airport was not a problem as we did not require a visa, once outside it did appear a little confusing, being approached by the local taxi firms trying to direct you to them, very short delay on the coach as a guide (not english)tried to steal a buggy which our rep was assisting police with.
arrived at the hotel in no time at all and luggage unloaded.
Once at the hotel we were given labels for our cases which were then delivered to our rooms (block 9). Big problem there are no lifts!!! so if you have a buggy you will need get down the reception stairs which has approx 30 steps.
Bedrooms were fantastic, only problem was we paid for a 12 year old, adult price and she was given a camp bed with a sheet, which when your paying full price was unacceptable.
The housekeepers were good, although i agree with previous reviews toilet paper was a problem, we took to stealing from the trolley outside as we all had stomach problems.
The Pharmacy outside the hotel tends to rip people off walk outside to the right yo La Strada shopping centre and you will get a better deal.
The Staff are overworked at all times, we took to the quiet pool most of the time although it was'nt that quiet but seemed to get a better service from the pool staff.
Our first week was excellent beds available ect but then the half term happened!!!!
Not one day on our last week were we able to get a bed unless we were up at the crack of dawn, we did try and beat them a few times but were never lucky enough. (Even the pool guy could not understand what was happening.)
The staff were great and very helpful they do love the kids and were always very respectful towards mine.
When you book all inclusive you need to understand they are mass catering, we found something to eat most of the time. The drinks are misarable beer included.
We did try McDonalds which was a nice change. Great value for money, regretfully we discovered an english cafe just outside the hotel on our day of leaving. ( Turn left out the hotel about 300 yards.
Snorkelling is fantastic both at the hotel and in Ras Mohammed national Park. we completed a trip there and had the most fantastic time, We DID NOT book wih the reps we found an agent just up from McDonalds who gave us a great price for the Boat and Quads which we all very much enjoyed.
Would we go back..... No....For what we spent i would have expect more with regards to the entertainment although they all did try very hard after a few nights we were bored and yes you will need a sunbed cover at least 2 so you are comfortable, forget about heels and a lovely dress ladies once you have tried them steps you wish you had trousers on.
Last but not least when you go out take loo roll with you, there was never any of an evening and when at the bar by the ampithearte order as many drinks as your hand can hold because only one member of staff serving majority the hotel.
P.S Make sure you visit the hard rock cafe excellent value and great staff who will entertain you family all night.
We all look for different things in a holiday and this was not our worst, it is what you make of it.
Happy Holidays x
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Annonymous from Manchester travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 3 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food |  | |
| Entertainment |  |
| said: Well, I gave the staff 3 because we had to chase the cleaners for toilet paper, then he have us a box of tissues with drops of blue stain on, THEN we had to threaten him telling manager and he said "manager on holiday".
Then we said we'd ring reception and he came back with 2 half full toilet papers. There are not enough staff, the hairdryers were shut down during our visit because someone electrocuted themselves!!
Very unsafe!!
There were so many injuries caused by the water slides and I got an ear and a foot infection from this trip, another member of my family got a water infection!
On this entire trip of 2 weeks there were but 4 nights where the entertainers did not just come up on stage and sing, the amphitheatre is very uncomfortable, people actually went and pulled sunbed covers to make a good seat.
I'm sorry but thinking it through this hotel is a nightmare!
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eccleston from stoke on trent travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
eclipse
on a family holiday.
There were 4 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Last year we went to the Holiday Villiage Costa del Sol which was great, this year we went to the Holiday Villiage Red Sea at the beginning of May for two weeks which was just as fantastic, if not better.
Flights- The plane was not really suitable to travel for 5 -6 hours, i think that a long haul plane with extra legroom would have been more suitable as sitting cramped up for 6 hours on my return journey was unbearable. Also be aware that in Sharm airport ther is some confusion and the monitors may say that you plane has departed when it hasn't even boarded!
Hotel - The hotel is extreemly clean and has beautiful gardens, pools are a little cold but clean and well maintained. We had no problem getting sunbeds everyday and we did tip the towel attendants £1 a day as they save your beds for the next day. The finishing in the hotel is not the best but to be honest this does not effect your holiday at all. The rooms are spacious and clean, the only thing they lack is a bath as it is difficult to shower small children. On arrival we worried about the beds as they are very hard but we had the best sleep that we have ever had on holiday. Just be aware that you do have to pay for the mini bar in your room and it is quite expensive.
Staff - The Egyptian staff are the really friendly and willing to help, they do not expect a tip but are very grateful for anything you give them. They are over worked and the bars only ever seem to have 1 person staffing them and this can sometimes lead to a long wait.
Food - The food was very good we went to all of the al a carte restuarants exept the seafood one which you do have to pay for. The service in all the restaurants is good and the food is good. The buffet restaurant is clean and there is a good choice of food. The is also a snack bar by the pool at lunchtime which is OK, we prefered to go to the buffet restaraunt, just personal choice. There is also afternoon tea, cakes and snacks available which are very nice.
Entertainment - The daytime activities are brilliant as are the staff, yes you have to pay for some activities such as high ropes (£20)and swim kids, which is brilliant and resonably priced, my son had both group and private lessons and can now nearly swim, the teachers Emily and Lyndsey are fab. The nighttime entertainment was OK, The kids loved it. The staff tried very hard and the kids adored them.The only down side was that the ampitheatre is very uncomfortable and really needs proper tables and chairs installing as it is not good for older guests also the bar is awful ther is one bar that is understocked and understaffed.
I would recommend visiting Naama Bay and a trip on the glass bottom boat (£10 adults £5 children) Just amazing. A tip is to get any currency you need when you get there as the exchange rate is a lot better in the hotel than in the UK although you can easily manage with sterling as they prefer that and you get more for your money also take a bag of £1 coins for tips very useful.
We really enjoyed our holiday and would definately recommend it, the hotel is very good, the snorkeling is fantastic, the people are lovely apart from the Russains who in general are arrogant and extremely rude. We will definately go back in the future also I would recommend May as the temperature is as hot as small children can stand and the hotel doesn't have many russians staying after the first week in May. Hope this review is helpful, enjoy you holiday.
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Brennan Family from Redhill/Surrey travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: We have just returned from Holiday Village.The hotel was fantastic. We had a standard room in block 5 which was a brilliant location. The room was huge with a massive bed and 2 childrens camp beds which were very comfy. Huge bathroom with a walk in shower and separate toliet and was basin. Ok the tiling was not great in the shower but you don't spend your holiday in a shower looking at the tiling.
The food took a bit of getting used to. It was ok once you had found things you liked. Breakfast was cereals, omlettes cooked as you waited which were lovely,croissants and pastries. Also toast,pancakes,scrambled eggs,tomatos etc.
Lunctime food was served at the poolside area. Different things each day,chips,pizza,fahitas,shepards pie. Also salad,rolls,fruit etc. Alot of people moaned that it was chips every day,the simple answer to that is don't eat them then!
Entertainment was great. Scotty,Natasha,Ali,Natalie & Gareth all worked so hard. Natasha was really funny and used to run the evening games which were fun.
We re-booked before we left to return next May.
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wendy from dudley travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
first choice
on a family holiday.
There were 6 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Village Red Sea.... Not for Me!!!!!!!!
I was writing this review and asked my husband what was the best thing for him about the Village Red Sea.... He said the Road out of it... Sorry but I agree....................................
Arrival; Hotel is approx 15 mins from airport, we had an easy flight no delays and collected our bags quickly and were directed to a coach to transfer us by First choice Reps; There were a few guys helping us to load the cases on the coach, then asking for tips.... The eygiptians are not backwards in coming forwards when requesting tips..They love the English £ There is not much happening around the hotel; a few shops both directions left and right, and a pharmacy to the right if needed!!! there is also a Mc,Donalds directly opposite ... more on that later!!!!!!
We were given stickers to put on our cases on arrival and bags were taken to our rooms, we were given vouchers for a towel at the poolside, which we handed back at the end of each day for return of the voucher.
Trips; There is a bus service from the hotel into Naama Bay £1.00 each way for everyone regardless of age. we had a baby in our party under 2yrs.
The Red Sea Village is approx 30 mins from Naama Bay which is full of bars,restaurants, and shops..Be careful of prices not particularly any cheaper than hotel, worth checking in hotel shops, to compare prices, and you do get hasseled. Well worth a visit though.
We also went to the water park.. £16 per adult .. quite a nice park.. a few slides, pool with kiddy features, and a pool with wave machine,small by most standards.. but appeared clean ... You are not allowed to take food or drink inside, bags are checked as you enter.. Pizza, burgers & chips are available inside.
A couple of our party did the Mohammad National Park scuba dive trip, and had a fab day, it was their 1st time scuba diving and they said the guy who ran it was very experienced and friendly, they said the food was the best they had eaten during the holiday.
they also went on the Quad biking in the desert, and said that was great fun.
We had booke hte Bedouin experience where you go on camel though the desert but were to ill to go.....
Site;; The hotel is on a large site and when running at full capacity caters for 1200 people ( to many for my liking) there is only 1 main restaurant, & 3 a la carte,and when busy as it was the end of our 2nd week it is like a cattle market trying to get food in the main restaurant. We were in Block 10 on the 3 rd floor. This overlooks the quiet pool, there are no lifts and lots of stairs, so if you have a buggy, or are not fit it may not be the place for you. We were advised that a lift was in the process of being organised.
The swim up rooms looked lovely, they had sun in early morming but were shaded in the evening, and you didn't have to get up early to try to reserve a sun bed, if you are going I would definatley advse to upgrade.
Where the outside entertainment takes place is approx 5 min walk from main hotel, this is also where the main pool and kids clubs are situated, the grounds are lovely and the location opening up onto the beach is quite stunning.There is a boulevard running along the hotel between the beach and the main pool which also gives you acces to other hotels, but obviously you have to pay to use these.
The ampitheatre is cut into of a huge rock with the steps making up the seating not the most comfortable, but they do take the padding of the sunloungers to create a little extra comfort. The al la crte restaurants are close to the end of the site near the main pool. There is a distinct lack of toilets in the grounds, with only 2 per sex serving the entertainment area, 2 serving the 3 al la carte restaurants, 3 to the main restaurant and 3 to the reception / bar of the hotel, these are quite spread out as earlier mentioned it is a large site. With a full capacity of 1200, and a huge amount of upset tummys it is a major issue that needs addressing. You would expect a least a toilet block and shower block at every pool.
There is a camel on the beach that you can ride for £7.00 for approx 5mins short walk, so funny to watch if it's 1 of your party, there is also mopeds available that you can take along the boulevard at approx £14.00 per half hour.
We had a motorised scuba boat that you lie on and can look at the fish and coral, although the area you are allowed to go in is limited, it was a nice hour , great for the tan. £30 seats 2 and a child.
There is a ent type seating area were you vcan go to smoke fruit pipes!!! didn't try this so can't comment, looked very authentic though..
Hotel;; The hotel appears to be very clean, your room is made up everyday, you have a swich on your door to request it, We had a standard room with a larger than average kingsize bed... it was the most uncomfortable bed I have ever slept in.. so hard you could be sleeping on the floor... we had a childs bed also, this was very very very soft.. bit like the 3 bears... (no baby bear bed though, that may have been just right!!)
The bath room was partiallty partitioned into toilet, bason area with workspace/ mirror then large walk in shower. Very spacious but left a lot to be desidered regarding the finish, the standards would not be accepted here. There were exposed wires in shower to lighting and tiling was very rough, when we closed bathroom door there was no paint behind it.. I think in the rush to get hotel finished it was all hands on deck.. this must have included gardeners, cleaners and anyone else available....but apart from the lack of comfort in the bed the room was passible.
The maintenance was not the best and the lighting on the stairways was left broken for a few days, it was pitch black...
Staff; The staff are helpful, and will help you look for a sunlounger, and carry your towels to it if you can find 1, if you tip you get better service. When hotel is full, you will struggle to get a bed at the pool we took it in turn last few days to secure some at 7am as they were all gone by 8am, with people leaving towels on empty beds for hours....
The staff can be a bit over friendly for my liking, they were constantly taking our 2yr old by the hand and leading her away, and they certainly have an eye for the teenage girls, which can be a bit letchy.
Drinks:
Water by the bottle is available at breakfast till 10am. there are filters dotted around the site near to bars about to refill if ness. Squash is available at poolside bar along with all other inclusive drinks.
Poolside bar gets quite busy and if there are queues at poolside bar, you may be asked to get out of pool and join the queue, as we saw happen a few times.
Beer was warm, white wine was warm and awful, red was not the best. Rose' was passible, if you like rose'
Spirits were fine, large measures, not branded , but that is quite normal with all inclusive, most cocktails were chargeable. (i.e black russian my fave!!) as tia maria and the like not widely available.
Ther eis a fridge in your room but everything is charged for including water so be careful. we didn't have anything out of it but the tried to charge us £5.00 when checking out.
You can have freshly squeezed orange juice with breakfast but it is chargeable.the alternative is orange or pineapple squash if the haven't run out.
Food;
This is where we were most dissappointed!! this is our 4th all inclusive and from a food aspect, our worst, if you like plain unseasoned ( apart from salt) food it may be ok for you.
Selection was very poor. cooking standards not high although we were advised they had brought a British chef in at the end of our 2nd week for 3 weeks to try and address the obvious culinary issues.
I felt that we spent 2 weeks eating slop.
We were all ill with very upset stomachs during our stay and I didn't eat for 4days, it was no great loss.The reps advised it was a bug!!!
Bread selection was very fresh and good, Cheese selection just average to, Egg station at breakfast. where you can have fried eggs or omlettes-- which were always undercooked. pancakes and cakes were always available and cereal. Ther is no pork of any discription served, so no bacon, some kind of sausage was served and the cold hams!! were not ham....
There is no alcahol used in the cooking, which is probably part of the reason for the blandness...
Lunch was similar to evening,
Evening meal: They do a great selection of fresh breads, a nice looking but bland salad bar, always fries available, not so tasty pizza and pasta bar. There is always a baked fish (same every night) partially cooked chicken portions, cheap cuts of beef. There is either boiled ( to death ) chicken, fish or beef. and usually a vegetable in cheese sauce.
If you like chips take your own vinegar as they don't have it.
There were a couple of bottle of chille sauce around for a few nights, these dissappeared as I think people were desparate for a bit of flavour so kept them.
We tried all of the al a carte restaurants as the main restaurant was so poor, book early as we only managed to get 1 booking in each due to availablity, food not to british standards, but at least you avoid the scrum....you get table service.... some of the items on the menu are chargeable so be careful...all the cooking is done by egyptian chefs. so chinese, indian and mediteratian is their impression of the dishes. I personally found all the meat to be poor quality and so avoided it, although not am not veggy.
We also booked the fish restaurant which is situated on the beach .. beautiful location... you pay for whatever fish you have and it is served with either rice of chips..
The ingredients looked superb, fresh lobster, king prawns, salmon, squid and various other fish freshly caught. Unfortunately then just overgrilled, no seasoning, not even a little garlic butter. So very disappointing, and not cheap.. We paid £30 p/h for fish platter and lobster. Which if it had been cooked well would have been worth it.
In desperation (my husband and self excluded) the rest of our party went to mcDonalds and said it was the best they have ever had except for the chicken nuggets, prices were less than Britain.
Cleanliness; overall the hotel appeared to be clean. There coulod have been more visibilty around the pool area and public toilets of cleaning staff, due to the lack of toilets, I think the pool was used for more than swimming!!! , we heard a few people say they needed the loo, then got in the pool!!! After that I avoided the pools choosing to go have a swim in the sea which was lovely and clear, and probably much cleaner.
There were 6 adults in our party a 10year old and a 22month old baby, everyone of us were ill with stomach cramps and eygptian tummy. So pachk some imodium, we spent over £50 at the parmacy, and still have side affects a week after returning, we heard many people complaining of the same thing, and even at the airport people who were not at our hotel had had the same symtoms so maybe it is just a culture thing!
I had spoke to the f/c Reps re: food quality and pool cleanliness and the next day saw people round the pool checking the water, there appeared lot of head shaking going on........
Entertainment.... Having traveled with 1st choice a few times, I can say this 1 thing they do well, our 10yr old used the kids club regularly, and loved it, they do a great variety of activities so if their sporty or not, there will be something for them. From quizzes, raft building, sports on the beach, computor games, video nights to chocolate parties ( chargeable £5.00). Running from 10am -10.30pm for 1.5hr sessions
Tere is pleanty od adult entertainment arounfd the main pool if that's your thing, if not the quiet pool, is as it says quiet...... we tried both when we could get beds... and enjoyed both....
The entertainment at the ampitheatre is great for the family, the team work very hard to put on great shows.
Scotty is First Choices own Robbie Williams, Natasha is a fantastic dancer, and such a dry sense of humour, Natalie is the princess of the group and Gareth so camp!!!!!! they are all lead by Ali who like Scott has a fantastic voice...... the entertainment made it worth the stay........
To summ up for me;
Climate in May was perfect no rain here for 4 years, high ninties with a fab occasional breeze off the sea, Naama bay can get a bit oppressive in afternoon as it's inland a little, but if like me you like it hot, it's great.There is an air conditioned KFC if your in Naama Bay and to hot.
There were many things in Eygpt I would like to sea, we didn't get to do Cairo which we would have liked to do.
Would I go back to The First Choice, Village Red Sea,......NO... food was to poor for me... location to big .. catering for to many people. In my opinion, First Choice have taken on to big a site, you would need a nother couple of restaurants and a lot more toilets to adeqeutly cated for so many people.
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winspear family from north yorkshire travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
first choice
on a singles holiday.
There were 2 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 05 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: the hotel is lovely clean tidy friendly, the gardens were in full bloom with gardeners tending to them evey day, its all inclusive so no shortage of different food in a wide variety also snacks and ice cream through the day, also there is water coolers around to fill up your water bottles through the day. the location was a bit naff as ther is not much outside the hotel but the shuttle is only £1 each way to naama bay where there is lots of shops n pubs etc, also as the hotel is close to the air port 30 mins which is a bonus you get a lot of low flying planes but you soon get used to that.the staff are always busy trying to please every one all the english staff were lovely n bubbly always happy to help. the entertainment was fantastic especially on a night there were 5 ents on a night doing differnt things each night they were brill big thumbs up. also the kids club my daughter loved it can't complain as it give me a few hours to relax knowing she was safe.would defo go back as long as it was same people entertaining
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Mark & Mandy from Cumbria travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 2 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 03 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: This was our 5th time in Egypt, and we stayed the holiday village, kids loved it, it was a very nice hotel, our room was massive and so was the en suite, the food was nice, we ate at the buffet restaurant breakfast and dinner times, we had afternoon teas and chips, pizza, chicken and burger for lunch everyday, and we also ate a the Mediterranean & chinese restaurant. The hotel itself had its own sandy beach where we went everyday, but the snorkeling wasn't very good, you have to swim quite far to be able to see more fishes. We booked a speed boat ride which took us to the middle of the sea and the snorkeling was good there, we also booked the quad bike which was a great experience, and a water park which was a great day out, the staff are friendly, and we meet our good old friend (Mahamied) who use to work at Hilton sharks bay, he serve us drinks everyday & everynight. The Entertainment was fantastic, live shows, music and game shows everynight, and activities & quizzes everyday.
We has a brilliant holiday, We will go somewhere else but this was a very nice hotel.
We will go back to holiday village again.
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Griffiths from Wales travelled to Holiday Village Red Sea with
First Choice
on a family holiday.
There were 2 adults and 1 child(ren) in the party. The travel date was 03 2008 | rated the Holiday Village Red Sea as follows:| Cleanliness | | | Location | | | Staff | | | Food | | |
| Entertainment | |
| said: Just arrived back from the HV and I must say it was fantastic.On arrival you book in and they give you stickers to put on your luggage with your room no's on, your luggage is then delivered to your room for you.We didn't have any hassle from the bus drivers about tipping him for unloading the cases.
We had a swim up room this was amazing, your own private sun terrace with two sun beds (our room attendant brought us another bed as we were 3)only the people staying in the swim up rooms are allowed to use the pool so it's lovely and peaceful.
You don't really need to take beach towels as you can have clean beac/pool towels each day.
The room itself is very large,the walkin wardrobe very spacious with bathrobes provided.The bathroom is also very large in 3 separate sections, sink area with complimentry toiletries, the wet room(you can't call it a shower it's too big)and the toilet.
The hotel is very clean the staff are contantly cleaning all the areas and the gardens.
The food was very good in the main buffet, they have a different theme every night and the waiters dress up accordingly there is always plenty of choice in the food, and the waiters are very quick to clear your plates away for you.We visited the al a carte restaurants, they were all good although the service was very slow in the medeterrano they took 20 mins to give us the menu.
The entertainment was good lots going on in the day which we did not see much off as we did stay mainly by our swim up pool. The evening shows were good although mostly in the same theme. The staff worked hard at these shows, there were 5 main entertainers Nick, Scott, James,Tash and another girl. (James left same day as us to go to HV Turkey and Nick is going to the Coral Sea resort). The one main thing I felt let the evening entertainment down was the lack of comfortable seating. The entertainment is hel in the outside ampitheatre which has great big stone steps, they do put some large cushi |
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