Le Meridien Makadi Bay Hotel

For the price of this holiday, this represents serious value for money. Try and get 7 nights accommodation, four meals a day and unlimited drinks in the UK for the same price.
As an hotelier I spent some time watching other holidaymakers, and the ones who didn’t seem to get served very quickly (or get a round of drinks in before the midnight cut-off) fell into two camps - 1. Rude 2. Poor tippers.
Tipping is a way of life in Egypt - get used to it, tip little and often and see what happens. By the end of our holiday the bar staff could remember our drinks order (not bad in a hotel with 1000 bedrooms).
Rooms and public areas are lovely, possibly just lacking in the five star extras you would get in say London or New York. There are many attempts to get you to upgrade to fresh juice drinks, seafood buffets by the pool (which was amazing value for money) and other extras. A firm and polite no thank you, or just plug yourself into an IPOD and ignore the outside world.
Food is varied and very nice - don’t expect bacon sandwiches and Findus Crispy pancakes (some boorish guests were!), but be prepared to try something new. Even if you’re not adventurous there is a pasta chef on the buffet at most mealtimes.
There is little to do in the local area, and Hurghada is not for the faint hearted when it comes to a stroll through the shopping district. Say nothing, smile and walk on as you are hassled to come into various shops. And don’t feel forced to go in to the shop where the hotel minibus stops - they will try everything, just move off quickly. And above all, remember it isn't Bluewater.
Excel airlines are nothing special, they make BA look wonderful. Do pay for the extra legroom seats, fellow passengers looked very cramped. AND - keep a change of clothes, toiletries etc in your hand luggage - 200 cases were missing from our flight, which we heard was a regular occurrence...
For the price charged and with a bit of local knowledge, this can be an exceptionally good holiday - the weather was superb, the pool a lovely temperature and the hotel does exactly what it says on the tin...

This is an excellent resort hotel- You are surrounded by eloquent guests and most of all the staff are respectful and pleasant- the entertainment in the evenings is good.
I found the food very good and you can upgrade for little extra.
It is a well known hotel company and they have protected their reputation here.
Snorkelling is great fun and the beach very clean and tidy- no hassles and no heavy selling.
Much to see and do outside the resort.
I would recommend this one to anybody.

Hotel is nice, Very Big. Don’t expect much outside the hotel though. There is a nice small supermarket in the Makadi Bay complex next door. All-inclusive not as good as it seems. Food is very repetitive, and drinks are only free at certain bars. Waters will offer fresh fruit drinks, Beware, these are chargeable, and are extra.
SCUBA Centre is excellent. Beach good too. House Reefs offer superb snorkelling. When sat around the pool you will be pestered with touts offering Henna tattoo’s, snorkelling, evening meal bookings / seafood restraunts bookings, hair braiding etc. AGAIN, These are NOT FREE.
Hotel is 3 Hours bus ride from Mars Alam airport, and only 20 minutes from Hurghada airports.
If you take a local taxi, pre agree a price to include ALL THE PERSONS travelling, as it is common for drivers to demand double fare, saying it is per person!
Cairo is 7 hours by bus, but can be done easily by air (45 minutes flight).
Luxor is 5 Hours by Bus
All Hotel Bars shut at Midnight, except the disco (all inclusive not available at this bar), last food is available at 10:30PM. Pool Bars shut at 17:00. Waiters and bar staff friendly, but seem to work at their own pace... often serving tables than people stood at the bar.
All together, not a bad place, but certainly not 5 star service.

Having read a number of negative reviews after booking this holiday, we were more than a little nervous about what we would find at the hotel on arrival and at one point, even considered cancelling.
I am SO pleased we didn’t. The hotel, resort, service, accommodation, weather, staff and overall holiday were excellent and far exceeded what we had hoped even before reading the negative reviews.
It is possible that in high season some of the service may be stretched a little but as an out of season luxurious holiday, this hotel and resort cannot be beaten.

A decent hotel located close to the beach, with good snorkelling in the bay and boat trips out to excellent reefs.
Buffet food of a good quality, staff very friendly, plenty of organised daytime activities, but evening entertainment virtually non-existent.
The hotel is part of a large complex with other hotels, shops, restaurants and a disco all nearby.
All inclusive package was comprehensive, including free use of pool room and hubbly bubbly pipes!
Local beer was fine, but local spirits were an acquired taste. Quite a long way out from Hurghada and taxis in were expensive.
I would recommend it for a chill out/beach holiday.

A relatively short flight from the UK to a hot destination. This hotel is five star - a large site, but the drawback is that your room could be as far away as 10-15 minutes walk from the main hotel building - so specify a nearer room when booking, it’s worth the minimal extra cost. There are a wide variety of restaurants to eat in with different nationalities of food if you are all inclusive - and an excellent upgrade restaurant for around £5 per head, which is worth a visit once or twice.
The beach is spacious, but you need to put your towels out by 6am or risk not getting a sunbed!
The hotel is beautiful, but the games room needs updating (broken or out of date machines) but it has four pool tables.
Entertainment in the evenings is a bit cheesy but after a few all inclusive drinks you ignore the British holiday standards and enjoy the enthusiasm of the entertainment staff.
The daily entertainment is varied and mainly sporty. I recommend the boat trip to the coral reef island for the day for snorkelling at a cost of around £35-45 per person, it’s well worth it.
If you are looking for ancient Egypt - you can spend the day on a bus to Cairo and other site rich towns, but I would recommend a split resort holiday if you wanted to also take in the Nile or pyramids - best to enjoy Hurghada for the sea, sun and sand!