Falcon Hills

I returned from a weeks-diving holiday at the Falcon Hills on 5th November. The main purpose of my holiday was diving and this hotel was chosen because it appeared to offer very good value (I got a good late deal) and also because of its location.
Upon arrival I was very pleasantly surprised, as the hotel had been described in some brochures as “budget”. All hotel facilities were of a high standard and it was even better than I had expected.
The hotel itself appeared to be relatively new; it was pleasantly decorated with nice pool areas. The bedroom was spacious and included a free safe, fridge and TV. All areas of the hotel were kept immaculately clean and the cleaning staff deserves the utmost praise.
I found all the staff and management to be courteous, friendly, pleasant and helpful with a personal touch that can be lacking in larger establishments.
I stayed B&B and found the breakfasts to be very good with a fairly wide selection of choices, certainly better than many other 3 star hotels I have stayed in. A couple of times I had an evening meal and again found that there was a decent selection of a good standard, but perhaps slightly repetitive.
As regards activities there was a reasonable beach with good snorkelling. Amphora’s Reef, about a 10-15 minutes walk from the hotel, I saw an Osprey fly right over me with a fish in its talons here.
For trips ignore the reps, take a taxi to the old town and book them yourself. I did the boat and snorkelling trip to the Ras Mohammed marine park, a pleasant day out for 30 Euros.
I was slightly disappointed at the lack of evening entertainment within walking distance of the hotel. However this should be offset by the fact that Naama Bay and the old town of Sharm El Maya are only a taxi ride away.
You may think twice about taxis if you are of a nervous disposition! However they are fairly cheap, order them at the entrance to the Falcon Hills.
Naama bay and the old town are total contrasts. The beach at Naama is very pleasant during the day but has been carved up between the Luxury hotels. Nightime in Naama is loud and frenetic and will undoubtedly appeal to the younger holidaymaker but do not expect any local atmosphere or culture.
However there is no shortage of establishments to choose from.
The Old town is a quite different experience. It has a bazaar feel with a reasonable number of shops and a few restaurants. Try a local restaurant and pick one that the locals are using.
Finally if you are a diver, or want to learn to dive, or just snorkel, do not hesitate to go, book it now!
The diving is just out of this world; you will not be disappointed. I will be back to the Falcon Hills early next year.

My Partner and I have just returned from staying at the Falcon Hills for the second time this year. Having got an excellent deal for this stay I can definitely say that the Falcon Hills is great value for money.
The hotel is very well situated between Naama Bay and the Old Market with taxi rides to both costing no more than £2/3. The taxis in Egypt are an experience in themselves!!
On both occasions of staying there we found it to be very good. I can't understand the reviews that slate it as it seems like they were staying at a different hotel. It was very clean and tidy. Every day the housekeeping staff where around cleaning.
The pool areas are very pleasant. We stayed both times in the Falcon Hills new block and I would recommend that you ask for that if you can. From what I understand the water pressure is much better in the new block!
The food is good and very good value for money if you are not all inclusive. We went all inclusive in August and our only criticism is that it gets a bit boring.
The only other thing I would comment on is that they need to improve the bar area. It is not very inviting or comfortable and doesn't encourage you to sit around and drink, maybe that's what they want if you are all inclusive!!
Both our stays at the Falcon Hills this year were to facilitate our need to go scuba diving. We went with and I would highly recommend the European Diving Centre , which is less than 5 minutes down the road from the Falcon Hills.
All in all we would be very happy to stay there again.

My friends and I have just returned from our holiday at the Falcon Hills Hotel. It was the third time I have visited Sharm and having stayed in higher graded accommodation before was slightly apprehensive about the quality of a 3 grade hotel.
On arriving we found the rooms to be spacious enough for 3 beds and clean and comfortable.
The staff are definitely this hotels biggest asset. They are friendly and helpful and always willing to help. Especially Ahmed at the bar who has a wonderful smile!
Tariq the manager is always around to help with any problems quickly and efficiently.
If I had to moan about anything is that the pools could do with being heated in the winter months. Although the weather was fantastic! A handy hint is to get the sun beds on the left side of the pool as they get the sun longer.

For what we paid we were delighted with this hotel and would definitely return.

Having just spent two weeks staying at the Viva Sharm Falcon Inn with my boyfriend I would not recommend this hotel to anybody. The hotel has a problem with a vile sewage smell. On our first night as our bags were taken to the rooms we noticed the smell.
Once in the room we were disturbed all night by a loud constant sound rather like a washing machine, investigating the next day we found it to be a pump to an open sewage system only a few metres from our room and only 30m from the hotel pool. The smell was vile and unbearable the closer you got to it and it radiated all around the southern and western sides of the complex.
As well as that problem the room we were staying in had no balcony or patio as promised in the literature, not that we would have spent any time on one had it of been there due to the smell.
If you do intend staying here take some air freshener and lock up your valuables.

OK where to Start. On the 24th of September. We arrived in the Falcon hills. And for the cheapest place in the book we were amazed. The rooms were fantastic the staff were brill. Mohamed (the pool guy at the 600 bar area) was great. Good laugh. Had our towels laid out for us each morning kept the place night and tidy he was a good man. The 600 bar area is the new section of the hotel out the back. Just opened a month ago apparently. its got its own pool, bar and nice gardens. Its a nice intimate spot and the English and us two (Irish) formed a nice lil community.
Basha the bar man was great too.
The food wasn’t fab but was more than edible. So no real complaints there.. oh and by the way if you are there don't order the Cesar salad. They put anchovies in it urghh
Myself and my wife can highly recommend the Falcon Hills for anyone. Its in a great location not to far from everything yet not too close. The hospitality is first class. its so, so clean there’s no real complaints at all.
We liked it so much we're going back in march. Can’t wait.

What a lovely hotel this is. It's classed as a 3-star, but I would consider it at least a 4-star. I can't see why people had complained about things on previous reviews as we had a fantastic time. Yes, the all-inclusive option wasn't good (from what we heard from people on that option), but we just had bed and breakfast and that was fantastic - you couldn't get more choice: fruit juice, cereals, toast, hot options, cold options, various breads and rolls, plus fried eggs or omelettes if you wanted them. Yes, the evening entertainment was virtually non-existent, but we like that - if you want more to do, get a taxi into Naama Bay and then come back for the peace and quiet.
Situated mid-way between Naama Bay and Old Sharm, we felt it was in an ideal position (wouldn't want to stay in Naama Bay itself, far too busy, but great to walk round in the evenings). Our room was great - two big beds (which were very comfortable), plenty of wardrobe/drawer space, good bathroom area and a big balcony, all kept spotlessly clean by Eamon our room boy, with linen changed daily. The hotel also provided a free safety-deposit box and the free use of a hair dryer (which if I had known before would have saved me the effort of taking my own). Every evening at sunset a man came round and sprayed out the front of the hotel (and the sister hotel, Falcon Hills, opposite) to prevent mosquitoes.
Don't bother taking towels with you as they provide them for use by the pool or to take down to the beach with you. I would agree with a previous comment on this site about the stairs into the pool being slippery, but taking your time getting in was all that was needed. We only used the pool once, the water was far too warm to cool you down, so we headed to the beach every day.
The staff were very warm and friendly and couldn't do enough to make your stay as pleasant as they could. Our one bad experience was on our first day when we took the courtesy bus to Fawanes Beach - as they ripped us off by a good few quid when we paid the bill. The next day we refused to go in there and went to the next beach area along. The guy from Fawanes came up and asked us why we were not using the hotel beach area and then made various explanation excuses when we said we'd been ripped off - in the end he offered us tax and service free and 25% discount on any food and drink purchased; however, this was too little too late as we had settled next door on better sunbeds and with more room. Although we had to pay LE20 (£2) for a bed, we thought it was better value and were well and truly looked after by the staff in there (Ibreheim - better known as Freddie - and Hussein).
Getting the cheapest deal for a taxi was great and, after the first day or so, the guy who called us a taxi outside the hotel knew we wouldn't pay more than LE15 (£1.50) to go to Old Sharm or LE20 (£2.00) to go into Naama Bay, so didn't have to haggle at all. Haggling was the order of the day in the shops though, and even when you save 50p on a £2-3 item gave you a good feeling! Although tax and service is included on purchases at the hotel, you should note that most restaurants/bars include a 10% tax and 12% service charge on their bills, so don't leave anything extra as a tip!
Talking of taxis - that's an experience in itself! Mention 'Michael Schumacher' and they think you're asking them to drive like him! Most of the Blue & White taxis are old Peugeot Estates and emit fumes that, unless you have the windows open, tend to make breathing difficult! The drivers also have a tendency to turn round to talk to you whilst driving and the only time they put seat belts on is when you go near the police station in Old Sharm (or it could be when near the Mosque, we couldn't quite work that out)!
There is an awful lot of building work going on in the area - including another part of this hotel being added at the side, but you'd be hard pressed to complain about noise, as we didn't hear a thing all the time we were there.
If we go back to Sharm (which we probably will), we'd definitely book in this hotel again as it has everything we want or need.

Very clean and tidy. Bar area a bit too open and lacking a cozy atmosphere. Drinks at bar very good value but limited choice, even for those of us buying our own on a non all inclusive basis.
Food in the main beach resorts great for both lunch and evening meals, we never had a meal we did not enjoy.
Beach life great, boat trip to reef/tiran island a must.
A great place to unwind once you get your bearings and accept that all and sundry away from the hotel are after you for your holiday cash.

Could not fault the hotel for one thing. Out of all the places I have stayed on holiday this is has been the cleanest and the most friendly staff I have ever come across. They go out of their way to do anything for you.
Pool side very clean and the pool was regularly cleaned out at night time.
Personally I am glad we went Bed & Breakfast as my partner is a very fussy eater and they didn't have a big selection for the evening meals and it was very repetitive.
Didn't like going into Naama Bay one bit, dragging you into shops and just generally annoying you!! Hard Rock cafe is very, very good for food and very cheap if you can ignore the annoying shop keepers
Went on Cairo trip by bus and didn't find it all that bad although both myself and my partner were sick the day after. 95% of all tourists that come to Egypt get "Egyptian Belly" and this is only caused by whatever is traveling in the air.
Would really recommend going on the snorkeling boat trip to Ras Mohammed National Park. Be careful with the prices of the trips the reps charge, although you are guaranteed proper insurance
All and all good holiday and would recommend this hotel.

The worst holiday I’ve ever been on. Every one of my family got sick. Stay out of pool because the water is full of germs although it looks very clean its far from it. Also the food is rubbish same every single day. If you sit down staff won’t take your order for about half an hour unless you wave money in the air or get up and drag one of them over to your table.
Out of all the bar staff only two were good and that was basha and the bar manager who calls himself Danny Devito, very funny people. The rest are a bunch of lazy fools especially the one at the till who won’t serve you but waits until another barman comes along. Also a lot of the staff barely know any English. The cleaners are very good.
There is nothing to do apart from swim which I don’t advise (ask the doctor if you want. He told Meweni got sick and had to pay £400 to see him) and play table tennis and pool on a dodgy table which you have to pay for. So I definitely wouldn’t advise this hotel to anyone!

As regards the hotel, it couldn't be faulted. Very friendly staff who were more than happy to chat, and generally help you out. Checked in quickly on arrival, and one of the staff helped with the suitcases. Room was very clean and comfortable.
As we were there on an all inclusive basis, we ventured down for breakfast on the first morning. Superb choice of food - usual buffet style, including cereals, toast, pastries, sausage, eggs, bread, and a chef doing fresh omlettes with your own personal mix of ingredients (cheese, mushrooms, onions, peppers, chilies, etc), with of course tea/coffee and orange juice - all very nice. Lunch we skipped more often than not as with the heat we just didn't have the appetite, but usually included food such as pizza, chips, etc. Dinner was again buffet style and included a poultry, meat and fish option each night, as well as home favourites such as shepherds pie, and pasta dishes. A variety of soups were available each night as well as a selection of desserts.
The all inclusive option on the bar was good, the local Stella beer was fine (though only served in half pint measures) and we found that if the waiters were tipped a little on a regular basis the spirits became stronger and the waiter would bring over the next round of drinks just as we were finishing the previous order. Tipping £1 or £2 a day was well worth it. The bar was open 24 hours which was fab (though the all inclusive deal finished at 11pm - but the drinks were not overly expensive - working out about £2.50 for a full bottle of Stella) and bar snacks such as sandwiches, pizza and chips could be ordered anytime (6am one morning!) - Great if you have the munchies after a night of drinking.
The pool was clean and extremely inviting and there were always enough sun loungers to go round. Zizzou was the pool attendant on hand to dish out the towels and make sure everyone was comfortable, adjusting the parasol to suit. Zizzou (the poolside cowboy with his all white hat) is a genuinely nice guy that took time out to give advice on the resort.
There are a few shops within the hotel, all reasonably priced. Aggi runs the perfume and lotion shop - quality products at prices a lot lower than elsewhere, Isham ran the souvenir shop which sold everything from ornaments, t-shirts, to sweets and cigarettes, and Gimmy is the poolside artist and henna tattoo man - all very friendly people and would often talk for 30 minutes plus about this and that.
Outside the hotel, the beaches were the best I’ve seen - Fawness Beach superb with comfy loungers and a live dj playing some great dance music (and drinks reasonably priced), Reef Beach was very picturesque and good for snorkeling.
As regards nights out, Fantasia is the best place to go - great show called 1001 nights can be seen for about £9, the belly dancing show is superb (enjoyed by locals, and we met a whole host of nationalities in there including Russian, Italian, Israeli, Dutch, etc) and it then turns into a nightclub before closing. This is all set in open air breathtaking surroundings.
Naama Bay I found stressful and unwelcoming - constant hassle whether walking down the strip or actually sat in a bar, whether it be 'taxi' touts, shop owners, or the bar staff trying to sell you excursions. Not worth the effort of visiting in my opinion, but if you do choose to go it has all the usual suspects including a Hard Rock cafe, McDonalds and a KFC.
Excursions - didn't venture as far as Cairo/Luxor as it would have been a long sticky day on a coach, but visited the Moses Mountains/St Catherines Monastery which was a long day but enjoyable. Quad Biking through the desert was a highlight, great scenery, a good laugh, and some Egyptian tea served up by the Bedouins. Well recommended.
Overall, a great holiday, some great experiences, though a little too hot in July for my taste. It was still hot at 3am drinking at the poolside bar, and some people still out in their swimwear moon bathing!