Reviews of Hilton Sharks Bay Resort Hotel, Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt

Sharm El Sheikh is a fantastic...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Aug 2006

Tour Operator:

First Choice

Submitted By:

Mr K Parker

Comments:

Sharm El Sheikh is a fantastic place to go. The only thing I would say that’s a negative is the hassle you get from shop keepers in Naama bay.



The overall standard of the hotels is very good, as long as you go to one of the 4 or 5 star hotels.



The coral reefs are just out of this world. There are plenty of restaurants to try, including British if you are unsure of eating the local delicacies.



I would thoroughly recommend you try going to Sharm for a touch of something different!

We went to Hilton Sharks Bay for...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Feb 2007

Tour Operator:

Fleetway

Submitted By:

sunny32

Comments:

We went to Hilton Sharks Bay for one week on the 1st Feb.



The food was nice but not to everyone’s taste, like my daughter, who’s a vegetarian and only ate cheese pizzas for the week! It could have a bit more selection but the food they had was nice.



The hotel staff was excellent and very helpful. We had a waiter called Mohammed who was very helpful and couldn’t do enough for us.



Its a shame there is building work going on for the next few months which makes the beach a bit noisy but it cant be helped as it was on the plot next to Sharks Bay. They had a lovely pool and health suite.



We had a full body Egyptian massage which was very relaxing.



We booked up a Ras Mohammed snorkelling trip which turned out to be a nightmare. The sea was very choppy and we were unable to even stand up when we finally got on the boat as it was rocking so up. We never enjoyed this trip.



We then booked up a scuba diving course with Sinai diving club which was on our resort. We had Khaled as an instructor who was excellent and was very calming if you have difficulties like my husband did.



He gave us all the help we needed to pass the test and even more than that. He made it very enjoyable and although we only had enough time to do the PADI Scuba diver course but we would love to continue to do the open water course.



Julia who worked in the office was also funny and made our course enjoyable while we were ding the theory work in the office. I would recommend this course and especially recommend the Sinai diving club.



Another trip I would recommend was the quad biking through the desert which was excellent. We booked this through the Sinai club also. The trip lasted for three hours and we got to climb a mountain and watch the sunset before having some Bedouin tea, which was lovely and it felt almost unreal.



Overall it was a really enjoyable holiday apart from the snorkelling trip and we would defiantly go back to the same hotel.

We have just returned from 2...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Jan 2007

Tour Operator:

Excel Holidays

Submitted By:

Miss N James

Comments:

We have just returned from 2 weeks at this hotel and have had an absolutely fantastic time.



We went with Excel holidays and the airline was Excel, the flight was good, it seemed slightly more leg room than usual, meal was OK for a flight meal.



I had read all about the nightmares of Sharm El Sheikh airport and was expecting to queue for ages to get a visa to be able to go to Cairo (if you do need to queue for a visa then join the queue on the left hand side and not the right, this is the queue to go outside).



Our Excel rep had the visa stamps and we were able to buy them straight from him in the airport which meant that we were through quickly.



Luggage very battered (my boyfriend is claiming for a new case as his now has no handles and is torn!) but this could happen in any airport.



The hotel was a very short journey from the hotel which was good, there is some aeroplane noise at the hotel but not very often and it really didn't bother us, only the occasional plane.



Good security at the hotel with the bus being checked before we could drive up to the main door. The security guard at the hotel didn't seem concerned when the metal detector went off as we walked through though!



We were greeted with a welcome drink and we were showed to our room quickly. The room we were in was 1025 and was very nice; we had a view of the sea (also of a building site) and the pool area.



Housekeeping came every day and even though we did not leave towels on the floor which it asks you to do if you want fresh ones, towels were replaced every day and nice towel sculptures were left on the bed regularly.



The room was well cleaned every day and any hotel toiletries that we used were replaced.



The only slight complaint would be about the food but I was not expecting gourmet meals every night from an all inclusive hotel, so probably shouldn't complain!



The food was nice so no complaints there, just quite repetitive and we did get a bit bored of it.



There is not only the main buffet restaurant though, there is an 'Italian' downstairs where you can get freshly made pizzas (very nice) and pasta, you can also have a 3 course set menu down there which we had one night, it was very nice but quite small portions if you had been used to pigging out all holiday!



You can sit upstairs or downstairs and get food from either the buffet or the Italian which is handy if not everyone wants the same thing. For the set menu you have to sit downstairs.



The Italian is only open in the evening but at lunchtime the outside area is open for burgers and chips, you can also get lunch from the Sunset bar (sandwiches and hotdogs).



My favourite meal was breakfast which I never got bored of! There were pastries, salad, fruit, yogurt, and cereal, cooked breakfast (Muslim country so no pork but chicken sausages and beef bacon were a good substitute!).



We mostly enjoyed the freshly cooked food which at breakfast were pancakes, waffles, fried eggs, French toast, omelettes, these were all very good, it is a shock to the system having to get used to boring old toast again! Fresh coffee, tea and orange juice are served to your table at breakfast.



The waiters are fantastic and cannot do enough for you. We tipped on our first night and were treated like royalty for the rest of our holiday, our waiter was called Tamer and he was a really nice guy.



He told us that they work 6:30am - 11pm every single day for a month and then get a week off which must be so hard but they are always smiling. When we tipped it was 20 Egyptian Pounds (about £2) which we later found out was a huge amount to them but they deserve it.



We had decided to do a diving course while we were out there and our rep recommended Aquarius diving club which is based at the Sheraton hotel, about a 10 minute drive. We did the PADI open water course which cost £220 and took 4 days, it was fantastic.



Aquarius picked us up and dropped us off at the hotel every day. We had an instructor between 2 of us but apparently during the summer it is much busier and there can be up to 8 people per instructor. Our instructor was Julia (English) and she was really good.



There are plenty of excursions available, we went to Cairo for the day which cost us £160 each through our rep (we later found out that the excursions man in the hotel based in the shopping arcade sells the trip for £130 pp), and it was absolutely fantastic.



A very long day (5:30am pick up and not back until 9pm) but well worth it. We went to the Pyramids, the Egyptian museum, a papyrus shop and a perfume oil shop, there was also free time to go to a market at the end of the day but we didn't have the energy for all the hassle so we opted out of that one!



Tip for the pyramids is do not talk to the camel men, they totally ruin the experience, they will follow you round trying to get you to sit on their camel and have your photo taken.



We were followed for ages by one and eventually said we would sit on his camel to get rid of him, I asked how much and he said 'whatever you want to give', yeah right, after a 2 minute camel ride I gave him £2, he was disgusted by this so I gave him another £2, a few of them then crowded round and said that other people gave £10 notes or more and we should give that.



I said that they should have told us a price before, they were getting quite intimidating and we just walked away in the end with the camel man shouting abuse after us.



So don't talk to anyone, even the 'holy men who aren't selling anything', they are, they will try to make you take their picture so they can charge you, they also get quite aggressive when you walk away.



We were very lucky in Cairo because we were the only 2 people from our tour operator on the trip so we had a guide and a car just for the 2 of us, very bizarre but very good!



Another excursion we did was the Bedouin Nights trip, I can't remember how much this was but I think it was about £25 pr £30 pp, this is where you get taken into the desert and have a camel ride at sunset and then site with the Bedouin Arabs and have a meal with them. Then sit round the camp fire while they sing songs, then back to the hotel for about 6:30pm.



This was nice and good if you want a camel ride but not quite as authentic as they make out it will be, not sure I would do it again, I thought we would see more of how they actually live which I thought would be very basic but I caught sight of mobile homes lurking behind one of the mountains so I'm not sure that is the case!



On this trip we had an armed security guard with us, not sure why and I didn't want to ask! There was also a cameraman so you could buy a DVD of the evening, I think it was about £15 and a few people bought them. A bit annoying if, like me, you hate being in front of a camera but everyone has to make a living I guess and he wasn't too in your face.



We only had to complain once during the holiday and it was not the hotel's fault, it was very noisy neighbours late at night (a number of Egyptian families on our floor shouting in their rooms and in the corridor right outside our room for ages and kids screaming).



The hotel staff came to see straight away and the next day we came back to our room to find a fruit basket and our fridge full of bottles of pop and a couple of cans of beer.



We only travelled into Naama Bay once but I don't think we would have missed anything if we had avoided it altogether. The hotel has a shuttle bus which goes backwards and forwards every hour or so during the afternoon and evening, it costs approx £1.50 per person each way.



We spoke to some people who highly recommended the Hard Rock Cafe and said it was really good fun, apparently it is a great place to go on your birthday (you have to show your passport to prove it).



We really wanted to find an authentic Egyptian restaurant but unfortunately this proved impossible, it was pretty much the same as any other holiday resort and served only pizzas, steaks, seafood etc.



We eventually managed to find a Lebanese restaurant which was absolutely delicious, huge portions though. No alcohol served there which we were disappointed to discover!



Drinks in the hotel are good, only local spirits but the gin and tonics were extremely drinkable, red wine was nice but I would steer well clear of the rose wine.



Beer was also good. I had ice in my drinks and did not suffer any bad tummy; I also ate fruit and all the other things they warn you off and was fine. I did not hear anyone complaining of being ill.



If you do happen to feel a bit dodgy then go and visit the man in one of the shops in the hotel arcade who sells tea, herbs, oils etc, he is very nice and invited us to drink tea with him, lots of people seemed to be coming in for cures for sunburn, headaches etc and he was only too happy to help!



In terms of the weather in January, the evenings are quite chilly and if you want to site outside then you will need a jumper, during the day it was very hot, the notice board by the pool said 23-24 degrees but it felt much hotter than this, we managed to get quite nice tan!



The sun went down quite early, it was pitch black by 6pm but I definitely prefer this to the summer weather which sounds unbearable at 50 degrees!!



I would recommend that when you change your money you ask for small denominations for tipping, you seem to have to tip everywhere you go so it is handy to have a pocket full of money!



The only dampener on the holiday was on the way home when we were delayed for 4 hours and then diverted to East Midlands instead of Manchester. This was all due to fog in the UK though so completely unavoidable, the airline had coaches waiting for us at East Midlands so a quick transfer to Manchester.



Overall we had an absolutely fantastic time and Sharm El Sheikh is definitely somewhere we want to go back to especially for the diving, it is just out of this world.

The hotel was very clean, staff...

Overall Rating:

8/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Jan 2007

Tour Operator:

Not Specified

Submitted By:

Mrs S Gale

Comments:

The hotel was very clean, staff friendly. Not great choice of food but managed ok on what was on offer.



Entertainment not very good, but did not affect us as we went with company.



Overall this holiday was good.

Just got back from a weeks stay...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Jan 2007

Tour Operator:

Booked Independently

Submitted By:

Mrs J Odell

Comments:

Just got back from a weeks stay at this first class hotel on 3/2/2007. Having been previously with my hubby and a couple of friends.



We recommended it to our dive club for a quick winter break, and so off set 10 of us including a wheelchair bound lady along with her diving hubby.



The hotel surpassed all expectations with regard to disabled facilities. Even though we had been told it wasn't set up for this.



The staff as always were simply brilliant, food was so good we never ate out in Naama bay at all; the rooms are very big and spotlessly clean. House reef is good but was plagued by juvenile jellyfish this time.



We had booked our diving with emperor divers who collected us each day from the hotel, we did try the dive co on site Sinai divers and they too were good.



We had a bit of noise with guest's from Russia celebrating until 03.00am a couple of night but is was quickly stamped out by the staff thankfully.



There was a lot of Egyptian families staying here as it was school holidays, and they also are so polite and welcoming of the British tourists.



My only niggle is that the entertainment in the "Chill-out" bar needs a rethink, quite boring really reminds you of a latter day Butlins. Bit more imagination needed and the karaoke songs want updating.

We have just returned from a...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Oct 2006

Tour Operator:

Fleetway

Submitted By:

Chalky

Comments:

We have just returned from a very enjoyable holiday in Sharm El Sheikh on the Red Sea Riviera staying at the Hilton Shark Bay Hotel.



The Sharks Bay is an exceptional hotel in many ways making this holiday truly wonderful.



The hotel is ideal for snorkelling addicts and the main attraction was the house reef, which provided immediate access to the most beautiful corals.



All the management and staff were efficient, willing, friendly and very courteous, they often volunteered to perform tasks which were not strictly part of their jobs.



Food in the restaurants was varied, tasty and it was clear that high hygiene standards were maintained at all times as one should expect from a Hilton run hotel.



The rooms were well equipped and kept spotlessly clean. We intend to come back next year and will have no hesitation to recommend this great hotel to family and friends.

We have just arrived back from...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Dec 2006

Tour Operator:

Libra Holidays

Submitted By:

Miss J Backhouse

Comments:

We have just arrived back from the Hilton sharks bay hotel on Sunday 07/01/07. We went for 2 weeks, Xmas and the new year, it was fantastic.



The hotel was very clean and staff were brilliant they looked after all the guests very well, (even the ignorant Russians who were very horrible to the staff and the other guests at the hotel).



The food was OK but after a quiet word with the food manager and it stepped up a level and was even better in the second week.



The location of the hotel was brilliant to, it is 10 min from Naama bay and the shuttle bus from the hotel is only £1.50 each way pp.



The coral reef was lovely and sharks bay is one of the better area for diving and snorkeling.



I would definitely return to this hotel in the near future, in fact we booking up to go in April.



I would give the staff in this hotel 110% commitment to the guests, they made our holiday extra special.

I had a good look at all the...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Nov 2006

Tour Operator:

Longwood

Submitted By:

Mr M J  Dunning

Comments:

I had a good look at all the comments made on this website before our recent trip to Sharm and found them to be very helpful and informative, so I thought that I would return the favour by giving my view of the Hotel and resort.



We were lucky enough to fly BA, plenty of leg room and flight only half full - compared to full flights and hardly any leg room on the Monarch flights I was informed! There seem to be many flights landing at Sharm from the UK at the same time, so it was carnage at the carousel and also at passport control.



It is a short ride to the Hotel and we found ourselves checking in - we were asked if we wanted to “upgrade “to a sea view which we did, but I wouldn’t say it added much to the holiday other than a further £100!



The staff are extremely friendly and cannot do enough for you - the food is also of a high standard and there is quite a selection to choose from. There is also entertainment in the evening, which is okayish, or you can venture into Sharm itself.



We could not decide on doing the day trip to either Cairo (Pyramids) or Luxor (Valley of the Kings) and because of the reviews I had read on this site about Cairo we went for the latter and boy did we choose well.



It was £150 each and we were picked up at 5am a short internal 35 min Flight to Luxor and we were met by the tour operator who then introduced us to our OWN driver and guide for the day! They were both fantastic and made the trip a day to remember... we started off by visiting the Temple of Hapshetsuts (very impressive)



And then onto the Valley of the Kings, what our guide did not know about this period was not worth knowing, he gave us plenty of time and space (to take snaps etc)

And then recommended that we went back to Luxor by a small boat across the Nile.



We then had a buffet lunch in a 5 star hotel and chilled for an hour or so. It was then off to Karnak and then finished off at the Luxor temple. A long but a very cultured day was ended with a few chilled beers with our new found friends next to the Nile, we were back at the hotel by 8.30...tired but elated.



We booked the trip through the travel agent on the Hotel, a nice enough chap called Mohammed.



We mainly relaxed by the pool and very occasional got involved in the aerobics ( wifey ) beach volleyball and water polo - there is also ping pong, a fully equipped gym, sauna, steam room etc



We also had a go at snorkelling in and around the hotels own coral reef, which was for free and very enjoyable. We very good week was had and I would fully recommend both the hotel and resort, but I may try a different resort and Cairo next time - well, you have to see a pyramid when you go to Egypt, dontcha!!!

Wow, What a fantastic place. We...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Jan 2005

Tour Operator:

Panorama

Submitted By:

richardsoa

Comments:

Wow, What a fantastic place. We loved every second of it. Food was fantastic, people where lovely. They were so helpful.



If you sunbathed on the beach the nice guy who ran the beach bar, he would come up to you to offer another drink as soon as your glass was nearly empty. We gave him a tip at the end of our holiday and he was very reluctant to taking it.



We went to the town were they had a lot of different shops. A lot of them had the same things in. They couldn't keep away from me as I have blonde hair and they love blondes. So if you go, don’t go with a jealous boyfriend.



We went on the bikes through the desert and through the mountains. What a wonderful place it is. You get to see camels, (they don’t smell that bad). The people that took you round took us up to a mountain to watch the sunset. Wow.



The entertainment at night was ok. I got dragged up by these people and I had to stand on someone who was laid on a bed of nails.



Overall, excellent holiday, would definitely go again.

We found that all staff could...

Overall Rating:

5/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Sep 2006

Tour Operator:

MyTravel

Submitted By:

Mr Keith Thompson

Comments:

We found that all staff could not do enough for you hotel very clean, very nice.



But had a hard time with food, flies, noise, entertainment dire. We had a great holiday the food was not as good as a couple of weeks earlier work colleague said food was great but hotel not full as it was when we stayed.



If they could sort out another dining area and more bar space plus a change in night time entertainment this will be a cracking hotel.



P.S. entertainment the same exactly as last year in hotel down road 5*+.

The hotel was very clean and...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Oct 2006

Tour Operator:

Cosmos

Submitted By:

Mrs D Hingson

Comments:

The hotel was very clean and well looked after. Although there is still building work going on around it didn't disturb us. The food was excellent and plenty of variety. The staff were friendly and helpful.



The entertainment could have been better. There were hardly any children when we stayed there which suited us but there was a kids club. I don't think there would be enough there to keep teenagers occupied for an evening. We never had any trouble finding beds by the pools either. I would say that it was mainly Brits when we were there but there were a few Russians. Everyone we spoke to said that they would stay there again and so would we.



There are quite a few stairs at the hotel and it's built on a slope which is fine walking down to the beach and the other bar but it's a hell of a walk back up, if you're not fit check where your room is first.

An absolutely amazing hotel and...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Aug 2006

Tour Operator:

Libra Holidays

Submitted By:

Miss JL Collins

Comments:

An absolutely amazing hotel and area. The Hilton Sharks bay has it's very own private coral reef just 200yards walk from the hotel. The reef itself is out of this world, but more about the hotel first.



The accommodation is beautiful, large spacious rooms with balcony and air conditioning (which was very necessary in 48 degrees!), walk in shower. The room was kept spotless and everyday different creatures were made out of the towels. The hotel reception staff are on hand 24 hours a day to assist you with anything (including booking a taxi). The hotel restaurants served delicious food every evening to cater to every taste. Back to the reef. You can see angel fish that are as bigger than a Jack Russell, parrot fish, moray eels and even a Spanish lady.



I would recommend this hotel and resort to anyone, the staff at the hotel are so friendly, the resident dive club team are there if you wish to scuba or speedboat, children have their own kids club, entertainment fantastic.

My partner and I spent a...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Feb 2006

Tour Operator:

Longwood

Submitted By:

Mrs K F To Be!

Comments:

My partner and I spent a wonderful week at this hotel in Feb/March 2006. Weather was great, food was wonderful especially breakfast!



The staff are so friendly and polite, nothing is too much trouble. We had the majority of our evening meals in the Italian restaurant, food was superb, in fact as time went by the chef was cooking whatever dish we fancied. The only reason I gave a rating of 9 and not 10 was due to the terrible flight with monarch. We were both so uncomfortable due to the small seats.



The seat formation was 333 and I was in the middle 3 seats. I’m 5ft 1 ish and petite frame but I felt so irritable so if you’re taller than me you have no chance! To be frank we would never fly with monarch again, but we would certainly revisit this lovely hotel!

Me and my fiancé stayed here on...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Apr 2006

Tour Operator:

Libra Holidays

Submitted By:

Miss L Jones

Comments:

Me and my fiancé stayed here on our first visit to Egypt, not having traveled to Egypt before we were unsure of what to expect, we need not have worried.



The Sharks Bay is a fantastic complex, it is incredibly clean and the staff are amazing, they work so hard yet remain polite and friendly. Nothing is too much trouble they remember your names and often will sit and chat with you round the pool. I can't praise the staff highly enough!



The food was another worry for us but again there was always something we could eat, the pizza restaurant on the outside terrace makes the best pizza ever.



Tipping is the Egyptian way so be prepared! the airport can be a little intimidating as there is a lot of noise and shouting, You will have to fill in visa's you will also be asked for payment if traveling outside the Sinai, for travelers staying in Sharm you do not have to pay this though the airport staff will not point this out just say no and they will give you the cards to fill in. On leaving the airport ladies the Egyptian men will try to carry your cases, they will then ask for £1 sterling.



Whilst there we went on the city tour trip where you go into the old town and Naama bay, I’d really recommend this if like us you want to see the sights but are wary of venturing out alone. We also went on the lazy day snorkeling trip, I cannot recommend this enough! As a nervous swimmer it was daunting but the guides are excellent they are fully qualified and are kitted out with life jackets etc. It is really unmissable.



The Sharks Bay is an ideal place for couples or small groups of friends there is an entertainment program but generally people stayed round the beach bay or pool bar.



This is the ideal place for a relaxing holiday I would definitely go back again.

This was a FANTASTIC holiday....

Overall Rating:

10/10

Board Basis:

All Inclusive

Date of Holiday:

Jun 2005

Tour Operator:

Longwood

Submitted By:

xemillax

Comments:

This was a FANTASTIC holiday. The hotel is amazing, weather amazing, country amazing. I could not fault this holiday at all. The staff were friendly and helpful, any problems and they would sort them straight away.



We went to the cocktail party with the manager of the hotel, he asked us if they could do anything to improve the hotel, we mentioned the pool leading down to the sunset bar and beach needed a light on it as when it was dark the steps could not be seen, the next day a spotlight was put up!



The All Inclusive feature was brilliant and loved the daily cocktail specials! The food was different everyday and never the same-we were there for 2 weeks and never had the same thing twice! The Egyptian night is fantastic and they go all out! I would go back to this hotel today, I love it and the area around it was just great. Even with all the bombs and trouble I would not hesitate going back tomorrow!



This is a must for everyone! I know people that have stayed here 6 times in 18 months and that says something!