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Ghazala Hotel (Egypt)
by sazzyuk
The Ghazala Gardens (sister hotel to the Ghazala Beach across the road) is an absolutely stunning hotel, which I highly recommend.
It is part of the highly regarded Red Sea Hotel Group.
The front of the Ghazala Gardens welcomes you immediately and is very imposing with a dramatic front with a bridge and huge domed ... roofing.
If you search for this hotel, please do not be put off by what you find out. The event happened a long time ago and Egypt is now a very different place. I felt VERY safe here and you should not be worried.
I cannot comment on price because I stayed here with work (MyTravel) on a photoshoot.
I should also note, MyTravel / Thomas Cook no longer contract this hotel, but I believe you can book it through Flyglobespan.
Location - The Ghazala Gardens is situated on Peace Road - the main road through Sharm el Sheikh - however, you wouldn't realise it when you're inside the hotel as it's so quiet. The only problem is trying to cross the road if you want to go into the centre of Naama Bay, trying to dodge all the crazy taxis! The hotel is across the road from the beach and the centre of Naama Bay, which means you are near to the action, but just far enough to be away from the hustle and bustle. The drawback is not being on the beach.
Food - The food at the Ghazala Gardens was pretty good for an all inclusive hotel, although I have been to another Egypt hotel and that had better choice. However, there was always something to eat and it was all hot and cooked well.
Hotel Facilities - The swimming pool here is just stunning, it meanders through the gardens with sun beds integrated, bridges over the water, lights, fake beach and shelving into the water. In the evening it looks amazing! I'm not sure what other facilities it has, as I didn't see any others. You have use of the beach across the road at the Ghazala Beach.
Rooms - Very spacious, light and modern, with big balconies. Some of the rooms even have terraces which go straight into the swimming pool, which are great.
If I ever get the chance to return to the Ghazala Gardens Hotel I would jump at it.
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Sonesta Sharm El Sheikh (Egypt)
by sazzyuk
I stayed at the Sonesta Beach Resort in May this year for 10 nights. I cannot comment on the price, as I was lucky to work for MyTravel at the time, so got it through staff discount :)
Location - this hotel is in the ideal location for sampling everything that Sharm el Sheikh has to offer. It is in a perfect location, near ... enough to the centre to enjoy the amenities, but far enough to enjoy the peaceful surroundings. It is also only about 20mins from the airport, so no long transfers to worry about! This hotel is right on the beach and has it own private beach (as mentioned below, very busy). The sea at the Sonesta Beach is amazing, it is like a tropical fish tank! There are even fish swimming up onto the beach! Walk to your knees and your are surrounded by the most stunning and HUGE fish I have ever seen. You can walk along the seafront promenade to the centre of Naama Bay, which is nice in the evening :)
Food - Fantastic! Always lots of choice for all different tastes catered for. Breakfast was bread, cereals, omletes, eggs, beans, fruit, yoghurts. Dinner was great, with hot and cold meals. Tea was even better, as it is served in hot platters outside by the main swimming pool, with desserts and bread inside. You won't go hungry here!
Hotel facilities - About 7 swimming pools, all of which are a decent size. Our block of rooms had its own private swimming pool, which was really quiet and relaxing. There are two main large swimming pools with a few smaller ones dotted around. From what I saw, there was also diving faclities, spa as well as a few shops on site - this was great for shopping, as you didn't get hassled :)
Rooms - I believe there are some HUGE rooms here, but ours was a great size room for two of us, so no problem. It was also beautifully decorated with stained glass everywhere and domed ceilings all over. We had massive wardrobes as you walked in, the MASSIVE bed (could probably fit 5 in!) was through an arch and there was also a seating area leading onto the balancy. The bathroom was great as well, had a bath and shower. However, be careful letting water draining out, as I flooded the bathroom doing this!
Weather - Fantastic!!! It was 40 degrees each day and about 30 degrees at night. We didn't have to worry about the weather any day, as it was already boiling when we woke up. Remember to put plenty of sun cream on :) We even got burnt going to breakfast at 9am!
All in all, a great and relaxing hotel, which is ideal for families, couples and older people alike. I would certainly return here and hope to over the next couple of years.
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Sonesta Sharm El Sheikh (Egypt)
by BrenDale
I stayed at the Sonesta Beach hotel in Sharm, in April 2008, with my now Fiancee (I proposed whilst there).
I do not have a bad word to stay about this hotel.
Our room was large with a double bed easily twice the size of the king size bed and the free air con cannot be under estimated when it is averaging 38 degrees ... celcius every day.
The hotel is set within lush grounds complete with 7 (maybe 8) swimming pools, most of which have their own swim up bars. The room we were allocated had it's own private pool, only available for use for the occupants of the adjacent blocks (approx 50 rooms). The gardens that are everywhere are beautiful and always maintained on a daily basis.
There are a wide range of places to eat within the hotel grounds which offer, european to middle eastern food all of which had a large choice with a different tyrange of dishes on offer each night.
The private beach was lovely, but extremely crowded. The best bit was the ocean which boasted shallow waters. Walking out spprox 50 metres the water was only up to my waist, just as were the wide range of tropical fish that come up to say hello to you! There are such a wide range of fish, including stong rays, that are within 30 metre of the beach and it is like nothing I have ever seen before.
On one of our last nights there we decided to go watch the sunset from one of the rooftop restaurants which ended what was a perfect holiday, complete with a engagement and Rochdale getting to the playoff finals!
I would recommend Sonesta beach hotel to anyone, young old, families, couples, and cannot comment how friendly and helpfl the staff were.
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