Grand Makadi Palace Hotel

We had never been to Egypt or traveled with My Travel before but both are now definites for the future. The hotel was stunning both in it's layout and architecture and the staff helpful and always jolly.
The sister hotel Makadi Palace next door made the complex an astonishing selection of pool space and eating facilities, but we were told that from May 2006 the hotels are being separated so there may not be as much facility sharing after then. Check this out before you go as the fact that there were two hotels and both were only half full when we went added to the laid back, easy access to all restaurants and facilities experience. The one and only down point was waiters constantly trying to sell you the bottle wine rather than the free 'all inclusive' stuff.
The Monday night snake charmer on the terrace is a must! Would suggest you invest in your own snorkeling equipment before you go, a mask and snorkel aren't that expensive, as the ones available disappear pretty quickly in the morning. The access to the sea is very rocky and slippery and footwear is essential.
This costs about £5.00 when you get there or take your own. The complex is frequented by a large German contingency so an early morning start for the beach is essential, although space around the pool is not an issue! Finally must agree with the other reviewer that Rory was a great help when we needed him and didn't pester you with stuff the rest of the time.
We'll definitely be going back next year, probably early March as when we left on the 24th this year it was just about 95 degrees. Happy Holiday!

Together with my wife and 19month old son, we stayed at the Grand Makadi for 2 weeks, Feb / March 2006.
A beautiful hotel complex, lots to do, and generally very good service.
The coral reef 20meteres off the beach is a sight to behold - absoloutely out of this world - the free snorkel hire is well worth taking up!
The hotel grounds will make anyone’s day - a mixture of both everyday and rare flowers and foliage.
We were fortunate to hit a very hot spell - fortunate except for the fact that the hotel turns off the air-conditioning for the winter season! A bit uncomfortable, but probably not going to happen every year.
The all-inclusive was a bit restricted. We found that there was no problems with the food - Thai restaurant and Discovery restaurant (both Makadi Palace) were very, very good, however the drink situation was not so good. On occasions, requests for drinks were questioned, and it was very difficult to get a full glass! It is obvious that tipping is an essential element to service, but even so, some of the staff needed a bit of a rocket to get them going. Not a huge problem, but slightly disappointing in what is described as a 5 star hotel.
We paid extra for a suite, and I have to say it was well worth it. The room was huge, and the standard of cleanliness exemplary.
Hurghada itself is an absolute hell hole. Not for the faint hearted. The hotel runs a shuttle service every two hours, which is good, however unless you are in to copy T-shirts and worthless tat, not really worth the trip. The local "businessmen" are not content with a simple no, and pester relentlessly. It is quite intimidating.
I would definitely recommend this hotel complex. However, if anyone is reading this with a view to holidaying in Hurghada in general, please, please check out the hotel before you go - anything in the town/city is definitely going to disappoint.
Finally, prepare yourself for the airport! I have traveled the world, and this is certainly one of the most memorable!!

1 reader found this review helpful

Just got back from Grand Makadi and already trying to book for Easter 2007.
First impressions of hotel were fantastic which carried through to the rest of the hotel. The rooms and grounds were spotless with staff constantly cleaning thoughout the day. The Grand Makadi and the Makadi Palace are adjacent to one another and all facilities are shared. The hotel is located on the beach where the snorkeling is fantastic. No need to venture too far afield, plenty of sea life to see in shallow waters.
We went as a group of nine and booked three junior suites. The panorama rep was very helpful in accommodating our requests of sea view rooms adjacent to one another. The rooms were very large and spacious and the junior suite accommodated a family of four with plenty of room to spare. The rooms were cleaned twice daily and supplied with fresh bath and beach towels and plenty of bottled water. There was a minibar in the room with the average drink costing 25le
There were 11 restaurants in total all of which were of a high standard. You are required to book into the a la carte restaurants, Italian, Thai, Lebanese, which normally requires 12 - 48 hours notice. For those not so adventurous plenty of English food was on offer. Tipping was an essential part of the holiday where little and often was appreciated.
The staff were always very helpful and polite and very good with the children. The pool area, which was very large, was safe for them with life guards on duty throughout the day. There was ice cream available for the children as well as burger and chips, fish fingers and chicken pieces.
All Inclusive meant just that, breakfast started at 5am and snacks finished at midnight. You could eat and drink as much and as often as you wanted.
The excursions were excellent and there was no pressure from the rep to buy. The two day trip to Luxor is a must with a balloon flight over the valley of kings/queens. The day trip to Cairo was just that, leaving the hotel at midnight visiting Cairo museum, Giza pyramids and sphinx then onto a perfume factory arriving back at the hotel at midnight. Very long day but worth it.
Overall the hotel facilities were excellent and definitely worthy of 5 star status. Without any doubt I would recommend this hotel to anyone wanting a stress free holiday.

Just returned from a fantastic holiday to the Grand Makadi in Hurghada, and what a big surprise! I have traveled to many hotels over the years but I have never seen such a beautiful hotel, - in one word stunning! The architecture of the two hotels and the gardens are lovely.
You have the Grand Makadi and The Makadi Palace next to each other and you can use the facilities and restaurants in both hotels.
The food in the buffet restaurants was probably worth a 3 star rating but the specialty restaurants were really excellent, but you do need to book or you wont get in, We enjoyed the Thai in particular but also found the Lebanese and Italian very good, there was also a good selection of snacky type eateries, serving pancakes, sandwiches, burgers etc.
The staff in the restaurants/pool/bedrooms were lovely and nothing was too much trouble for them and they would do whatever they could for you, as for the reception staff this was another thing, they could barely acknowledge you and were quite rude.
The pool areas in both hotels had many sun beds with big thick padded mattresses, and there were lots of them spare, with a parasol to every two sun beds.
One pool was out of action and we were assured before we traveled this would be rectified 2 days after we arrived, but that never happened which was disappointing but we used the pool at the Makadi Palace.
The hotels were both spotlessly clean the staff were constantly cleaning up and and tending to the grounds.
There is still a little bit of building work going on but not enough to be troublesome to you it never bothered us.
I would just say one comment, we traveled with MyTravel and the rep in the hotel was Rory what a rep... he was fantastic , very knowledgeable of the area and hotel and nothing was too much trouble for him, he treated you very special and very individual, and he was always completely truthful with you.
So in summary We will definitely be going to one of the Makadi hotels again, hopefully soon, the hotel is 5 star in appearance but not in the food quality, take small amounts of Egyptian pounds for tipping as they do get tips in £ coins but they cannot exchange them. My advice is to book as soon as you can and get the holiday of your dreams.

What can I say about this hotel, it was lovely! It is stunning at night with all the lights on around the complex and pools.
There are so many restaurants offering a variety of foods.
The hotel is spotless and all the staff were so friendly, always at hand if you needed anything. The beach is lovely, and there were always sun beds available throughout the day.
All I can say please make sure you change your money before you go, getting change in the hotel was difficult.
We found that if you tipped your waiter, he was at your service every day, average tip per day per person 10 le which is £1.00, they are so grateful. We were running out of change and we ended up tipping around 50 le which is £5.00.
I will definitely be going back there, I really couldn’t fault the hotel, it was very relaxing, a lovely holiday, with beautiful weather.
The town centre was an experience, lots of gold and silver at great prices, but remember to knock them down. Great fake handbags, also very cheap and also at the airport there are lots of shops for your last minute gifts.
Things to remember to take:
Travel kettle, iron, mosquito cream, Egyptian currency (plenty of change).

Eight of us( 4 adults & 4 children) enjoyed a wonderful relaxing one week holidayat the Makadi Palace.
The rooms were to a high standard and so clean, lots of restaurants to choose from, we found the Italian the best.
The hotel is beautiful and at night looks like a magical Palace.
Dont forget your snorkle, its just like the Disney film 'Finding Nemo' its a sight not to be missed.

We travelled as a family of three to the Makadi Palace to enjoy a Christmas break. The hotel was excellent. The rooms were spacious and the house service excellent. There are a large variety of restaurants available for guests.
Service at the bar was good providing you tipped the waiters. Altogether an enjoyable experience. We have booked to go back during the summer. We are due to fly from Birmingham with Direct Holidays but I have noticed that their website is no longer accepting bookings on this flight for any dates.
I have phoned Direct and they have assured me that there will be a flight but it all seems very strange. Anyone know anything?

Just got back from the Grand Makadi and what an amazing time we've had!
The hotel is in Makadi Bay, which is a quieter part about a 20-25mins drive away from Hurghada. If you want a relaxing holiday this is the place to come to.
Staff were excellent very helpful, and the food on offer was outstanding as we went on AI basis!
We stayed in a junior suite which was very roomy and to a very high standard.
We weren't aware at the time of booking that the Makadi Palace, its sister hotel is on the same complex, which means that you can use the facilities at both hotels. There are 10 restaurants/Bars so there is a lot of choice, whether you want to go buffet style or use the al a carte restaurants and order from the menu. The Thai Restaurant at the Palace was our favourite and try the crepes in the afternoon at the palace pool bar gorgeous!!!
We didn't go to the bars, but there's 2 and I think one turns into a night club but think its all low key. You can use the AI in all bars until midnight apart from the Lobby Bar.
Hotel is right on the beach, we did find it quite windy but majority of the loungers have a wind guard around them so you can sunbathe fine.
Snorkelling was really good, your best to go on the righter side of the hotels beach... and if you wait till the afternoon the tide goes out, making it easier to get into the sea! Coral Reef and fish were amazing, make sure you've got a waterproof camera!
If you need a cash machine or need to use the internet the Meridian which is about 30 mins walk away on the beach (Right of the hotel) has these facilities, and its a really lovely walk.
We did a couple of trips while we were there... quad biking in the desert included a camel ride and went to a Bedouin village, and went to Cairo to see the Pyramids which was really, really tiring, but glad I went.
I'd definitely go back to the Grand Makadi again.

Me, my husband and two children stayed the Makadi Palace hotel for 7nights, 23rd Dec - 30th Dec, over the Christmas period. We had a wonderful Christmas there at the Makadi Palace hotel - a superb hotel with beautiful weather.
There are still lots of building work going on in the Makadi Palace, although it didn't bother us during our stay.
The pool is absolutely fantastic at the Palace, it is huge, with the sea being literally minutes away from the hotel. The pool at the Grand Makadi wasn't quite as good as the Palace, and showed signs of wear and tear and years of usage. Hundreds of sunbeds, although Germans were a nightmare.
The rooms at the Makadi Palace were very nicely furnished, although we had to move rooms immediately, as the first room we were given was not finished off (walls not painted, picture hooks with no pictures), which frankly would have met a 3* standard.
However, we were moved quickly and easily into a much nicer room, well furnished and decorated. Despite it being comfortable, we still believed the rooms only met a 4* standard.
Restaurants at this resort were great! 11 restaurants, with cuisines from across the globe, from Thai to Lebanese to Italian. Breakfast was good, but not great in the Buffet style "Dome". The only criticism was the "Joker Club" at night for the evening entertainment. Animation Team in our opinion were poor, although German's appeared to differ. Drinks in the Joker Club were also of poor quality, with common soft drinks often being unavailable.
Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the Makadi Palace Hotel Resort, as we relaxed in a luxurious atmosphere. In our opinion, this hotel would meet its 5* rating in a few years time, however factors such as uncompleted or rushed rooms have meant that in our opinion the hotel is currently of the standard expected of 4* accommodation.
All in all, a great stay. We would recommend the Makadi Palace especially in the future. I am sure you will have, like we did, an enjoyable and relaxing holiday in an impressive hotel.

I stayed at this hotel over Christmas and was very disappointed. We were moved 3 times in four days due to 1st room building site conditions, with a nice yellowy brown shad to the water. 2nd room no hot water for two days over Christmas, 3rd room not bad but again hot water quite often Luke worm!
We found only two of the seven or so restaurants worthy of a five star rating hotel, the others food cold, dirty tables and mediocre service. Astatically this hotel has wonderful swimming pools and beautiful Arabian architecture. Some of the staff are first class but unfortunately not all.
The Palace was built to quick and they are having all sort of problems with the maintenance Plaster and Paint peeling from the walls. The water boilers are also a problem, the hotel complex with the Grand and Palace is Large perhaps to large to get that five star treatment. The hotel Management has a job on there hands but with the architecture and situation on the Red sea I think this could be put right and turn into a good Hotel.
If you are used to good Five star facilities with the Pampering you receive from those type of accommodations, then I would not recommend this Hotel, not at this moment in time at least.