Just returned from an amazing holiday at the Holiday Inn, Taba.

After reading plenty of mixed reviews, we felt that our own opinion needed to be posted. Basically we had a great holiday. We went with intentions of having a relaxing week, and this is exactly what we got. We did travel at a time when the hotel was only half full and out of school holidays.

The room itself was basic but had everything we needed (safe, fridge, phone, hairdryer, A/C and TV). The bed was bigger than kingsize and the view as you'll see from the pictures was lovely. The cleanliness of the room was of a very high standard. We were greeted each day with a new towel creation on the bed, made by the cleaning staff. The TV channel selection for when your resting from the sun was quite limited though.

The pool area was clean and possessed a lovely view onto the beach and sea. Beach towels were provided by staff, (advise you still take your own though). The staff were always on hand to help move sun beds and umbrellas. Water Polo and Aqua aerobics were offered daily. The pool itself was nice and spacious. The pool bar also serves the all inclusive drinks all day. We did read that others had become ill from going under water etc, but we found no such problems. Pool music was played from 10 til 6 but was highly repetitive in an amusing way!

The beach was peaceful however sometimes very windy. It is a man made private beach and therefore fairly rocky in parts, but still better than most visited else where around the world. The Red sea was completely clear and allowed for great snorkelling experiences. All snorkling equipment and footwear can be bought inside the hotel shopping arcade.

The food on offer was plentiful, but repetitive. Breakfast offered toast, cereals, fruit, pastries and some hot foods. Fresh eggs and pancakes were always available. Lunch and Dinner were very similar and always consisted of a selection of breads, salad, soup, rice, chicken, beef, cooked veg, potatoes and mixed desert. They also had fresh pasta available which came accompanied with a variety of sauces and toppings. We did read before we left for our holiday that some people became from the food, therefore we avoided uncooked foods, i.e. salads and fruit. Again just for the record we felt no ill effects from the food. Be warned that there are no snacks available between meals under the all inclusive deal.

Entertainment was one of the weaker areas, but this was owing to the low number of people at the hotel. Music started about 8 o'clock in the evening. The night entertainment consisted of a Mr/Miss Holiday Inn competition, bellydancing, music quiz's and karoke. None of which were very successful due to the lack of participation from guests. The all inclusive drinks finish at 11pm and become expensive after this time. Massages and tennis courts are available at a very low cost.

The staff were always attentive to our needs. Our fridge did stop working at one stage and was repaired immediately. Reception staff were always on hand and shop staff were friendly and trusting! The shops within the small arcade consisted of a bank, jewellery/nik nak store, traditional Egytian store selling papyrus paintings etc and a store which seemed to sell everything ranging from lilos and snorkelling gear to cigarettes, snacks and suncream. We felt that tipping wasn't too necessary but did feel that some of the cleaners, porters and pool staff went above and beyond their duties.

There are a number of excursions available, which definately look interesting. As we were only there for a week, 2 day trips to Cairo seemed a bit excessive, though a two week stay would require such trips. We went on a camel trip for £15 per person one evening. It was very traditional to say the least! 6 of us were picked up by a clapped out jeep and taken into the eerily silent mountains. We then trekked 30 mins up the mountains on camels where 'dinner' was being cooked by hand and over a log fire!! The jeep then returned us safely back to the hotel an hour or so later. This trip is highly recommended if you want to experience the real Egypt and don't have time to travel out of Taba. Extensive Scuba diving sessions are also available.

Overall we had the perfect relaxing holiday and here are just a few tips which we think we may help through your stay here;

1) Drink bottled water all day long!

2) Take some of your own general snacks

3) Have available small denominations of either US dollars and Egyptian pounds for tipping staff. Amounts like 1USD and 10 Egyptian pounds are handy to have.

4) If you have a late returning flight (we left hotel at 6pm), we recommend paying the extra £12 (120 Egyptian pounds) to keep the room and all inclusive drinks until 4/5pm. Otherwise you lose your room and drinks from 12pm.

We hope that this review has helped and that you have a great time if you go!

3 star full board with drinks! Very disapointing - go elsewhere!!!!!

We have been to the Hilton at Nuweiba on an All-inc last year so we knew what to expect. This hotel is a 3 star, not potentially 5 as advertised. The rooms are fine, though not always clean and we had to ask for our sheets, containing pubic hairs and blood to be changed on arrival. The food is not great. We like continental food, and have travelled extensively, but lots of this food is bland, lacking taste and left us with severe stomach cramps and frequent trips to the loo! The bar in the evening is a joke. They have no idea what they are doing. We were served beer in wine glasses, then when we drank spirits, which are rank, they either hardly serve any spirit with lots of mixer, or half and half, also often quite warm. The area is booming with music and on some occasions there were no chairs left. The entertainment is poor, with a kiddies disco: agadoo, biride song etc! The adult entertainment included a belly dancer - 1 night and some student like audience participation games, a quiz and a karaoke!

The pool - well you had to get up and 07.30 to reserve a sun bed or even earlier if you wanted one with shade. The pool itself, whilst offering a nice cool alternative in the 40 degree heat, was filthy, and even when supposedly cleaned - a scrubbing brush basically washed the pool scum into then pool water! There was grit throughout the pool bottom, and often floating fag ends, hair etc. There was booming music all day from the pool bar with drinks served by the rather casual barman, who unless you had tipped, gave other guesst priority. The glasses the drinks were served in were frequently dirty, when washed only in water! Water polo was the highlight of my day - morning stretching and aqua gym from a very enthusiastic instructor didn't appeal. The beech is simply a load of sand dumped on rocks, though the snorkelling wasn't too bad. There is no pedaloes, or sea kayaks etc - as supplied at the Hilton!

This is not an all inclusive - you have to pay for room service food, ice cream at 50p a scoop, pool table at £5 for 1/2 an hour and internet at £5 for 15 mins. The bar closes at 11 and you have to pay for the same old rubbish after this time, if you have a seat. In the end we used to stay for one drink (tolerating the birdie song!) and go back to the room with a bottle of lukewarm water. Luckily, my fridge would have chilled the water from the previous night by now!

All in all we were very happy to be going home, though there was a 12 hour delay. Peltours are not very good and we won't travel with them again. The rep, when we complained about the food, told us to see a doctor, pay 75E and have an injection! Equally there were lots of people who picked up ear infections, poss. due to the pool.

It's not a holiday I would recommend and you can get much better value for your money elsewhere!

Very relaxing and enjoyable

My boyfriend and i have just returned from the holiday inn taba. We had a great holiday here. There is something for everyone to eat even the fussiest of people, the only food problems which seemed to affect the majority of english people is no bacon at breakfast, but this is a muslim country and there are plenty of over things to eat. If there is nothing on the buffet the chef is happy to prepare something which you can eat. Staff are very friendly and go out of their way to help you. We made freinds with a lot of the bar staff and DJ, the entertainment in the evening is not great but there is a childrens disco and some games, karaoke and belly dancing, one night of our stay there was a BBQ which was lovely. After the AI finishes at 11pm drinks are available at local rate , this does not work out expensive.

There are no snacks during the day but the shop in the hotel does sell crisps and chocolate bars. I recommend a visit to the hotel shop which sells pictures on papayus speak to victor he will give you a good price and the pictures are high quality we have quite a few of these. We both enjoyed the snorkelling every day there are some wonderful fish out there, watch out for the jelly fish! Overall we had a great holiday, we met some great people and would definately recommend this to anyone looking for a relaxing holiday. The views from the rooms are amazing, ours looked directly onto the Saudi arabian mountains,definately try to get up at 6am and watch the sunrise this is a great experience. And at night venture onto the roof tops to watch the shooting stars.

We had great weather around 45 degrees every day. Warning the AI finishes at 12 noon on your departure day if your flight is late likes ours well worth paying the £18 per room to keep the room and AI until departure. For a first trip to Egypt we got a good impression and will be returning soon. Thankyou Holiday Inn for this experience.

Relaxing...

My wife and I have just returned from the Holiday Inn on Monday 30th. Had a really nice time, even though we went out the day that the bombing happened in Sharm. We found out that Taba was about 3-4 hours away..200miles.

OK - Just to give you a break down of the hol/hotel;

Food and Drink ...

You get what you pay for.. all inclusive- great on the drinks side. OK on the food side. They offer EGYPTIAN oriented food - not burger and chips as standard (as some of the ignorant guests wanted and complained... HELLO... if you want burger and chips... why step out the UK.. infact go to the US..;-).. mind you they do offer burger and chips at a cost (room service) ... but you can always get a plate of chips with your meal at no cost.. the selection is lots and lots of appetizers, a soup, a beef dish, a chicken dish, rice, fish, - a pasta station, and a selection of sweets - with lovely watermelon. for breakie - dont expect the bacon and eggs sarni's - its a Muslim country in which pork is against their religion. They do some nice omelettes and they do offer the continental brekie... cakes and toast etc. and more.

Weather ...

Just Amazing.. ;-) talking 40 plus each day .. although I think it did drop below that on our last day. Its not humid - it dry heat, so you can still breathe ok, and you hair doesn't look like you've been electrocuted. sun rise at around 5-6ish and sun set is about 7ish pm.

Hotel....

Still not finished... but nearly there.. the main structure all done.. just a few bits like adding water to the running fountain and putting a few more plants and flowers in... They were in the process of adding a diving centre on the beach - which should boost the place up a bit. The rooms are good too. The standard room has a massive bed.. (imagine a king size with a single next to it) The room has a TV (with bbc world on) so you can keep up with news back home... and an English film channel for those you prefer a night in front of the box.. The bathroom - loo, bath with overhead shower, hairdryer and sink - all you need really... be prepared to see the room service guy do some really funky things with the towels.. lots of different designs.. The main hotel is self is very close to its stretch of beach.. 5 mins walking distance.. you walk past the pool... which is rather large.. but did get a bit rowdy (school holidays) .. the beach was really nice.. a bit rocky.. but once you was in the water it was really nice. Lots of fish to see and relaxing away from the hustle and bustle of pool music and splashes around the pool.. (ok if you like MJ and Kyle)

Overall a nice place and pleasant to the eye.. and getting better as each day passes

Activities....

Pool - or beach.... There were some pool games, volley ball (was in the later days we were there - not that many people there to start off with to have a proper game)

we went with peltours - they offer the 1 day ciro trip ..to see the pyramids..etc.. Something you really must do if you have gone all that way.. be aware that it will take you 5ish hours getting there... (we had a good driver going) and 7 hrs coming back.. (a lighter foot I think) so make sure you take some pillows with you... something we didn't and regretted... (There's a hand rest on the window side that really digs in your back...) all in all a good day out.. and I think they offer it on a Monday, so even if you are there for a week, you can do it and get it out the way and then just relax for the rest of it. - check out the hotel papyrus shop prices before going on this trip - he looked a lot cheaper than the shop we were taken to.

Entertainment.....

Not a lot... but as the week that we were there went on more and more people arrived and they offered more. a few beach parties, a belly dancer and just a general music point just outside the main lobby of the hotel where I think everyone used to gather once they have had dinner.

General point..

Plus side;

Weather FAB.. met some nice people while we were there.. Big hello to Paul and Rita (hope your still having fun on your second week).. and Dave (good luck with giving up smoking..) and his Crew.. Pete and Lu.. and Chris and her little girl - oh and Harold ;-) beach was brill - nice sea breeze..! Lots of fish to see.

Down side

Service on the drinks wasn't lightning fast.. but we put that down to them not being used to having so many people to cater for before.. so a bit of a learning cure for them.. shame we were the lab rats for them to realise this on.. sure this will pick up.. (and then cut down on the moaners..)

the pool... well accidents do happen... and they did (on two days) a little boy and lets just say a water proof nappy would have helped (and maybe a bit more concerned folks).. but that didn't deter people from jumping in once it was all cleaned out.. - not us though im afraid.. once we found that out.. no more pool for us. Also there were a few people coming down with ear infections (due to the pool) .. bear in mind that the doc out there charges 70 euros per check up... take something with you.... sure that should be ok now though as they poured alot of chlorine in the pool.

the hotel not being finished - would have been good to see it in its full finished state - not that it wasn't good how it is now.

Overall...

....we had a really nice relaxing break... I would recommend this place to others provided you can take things with a pinch of salt... your holiday will be as good as you make it..!!!

Now back to the Norm again.... WORK WORK WORK.

P.S I know you cant get many pictures looking on the net of this place.. so im adding some on this site for you.

Our best holiday yet.

My partner and I spent two weeks at the Holiday Inn Resortin Taba and we had a fantastic time.

Everything was absolutely amazing, the rooms were lovely (we had a kingsized bed!), and the cleaner payed magnificent attention to detail, levaing petals on the bed every morning after changing the sheets, towels, bins and mopping throughout.

The food was great, and there was an excellent selection. All the staff were very friendly and helpful and very attentive to your needs, ensuring that you have the perfect holiday.

There is not a lot to do at night time, however we made friends with the manager whilst there and suggested several ideas regarding possible programs of entertainment which he started to employ onour last few nights. We made the most of the entertainment that was available, including entering the kareoke competition, dancing alongside the bellydancer, playing bingo, going for a late night swim at the pool party! The music bothh in the daytime by the pool and in the evening by the lobby was good and it was not too loud, it was actually really enjoyable.

The pool is huge and the water was lovely, just the right temperature tocool down in and also to enjoy a swim. The staff by the pool are great,bringing you a towelevery morning and putting your sun lounger wherever youwant, they really do treat you like royalty and try their best to ensure that you do not have to strain yourself at all, not even to move your sun lounger!

The beach is a man made beach, and so the sand does not extend right into the sea and so it is rocky when you are walking into the sea, however we bought some shoes from the shop inside the hotel (or you could take them with you) that were suitable for swimming in, and once you get out about ten metres into the sea and snorkel, the coral reef that is there on your very own beach is amazing and the colourful exotic fish are astounding. There is also an area which you can paddle in for several hundred feet which again has coral and fish everywhere, it reallyis beautiful.

We had a fantastic holiday and would defienitely recommend the hotel and resort to anyone searching for a relaxing holiday in beautiful surroundings.

All in all, thehotel is gorgeous, the staff are great and things will get better with every extra day that they are open as they are still learning due to the hotel only having opened 10months ago.

Good Time Had by all!!

I have just returned from a lovely week at the Holiday Inn, Taba. Yes I had some concerns at some of the reports I had read prior to our departure, but these were totally unfounded.

We landed at Taba Airport around 6.30 pm to temperatures of around 34 C, fantastic we thought!! Arrivals was pretty painless and quick. We then had a coach trip of around an hour. we did one drop off at the Sonesta Beach (looked lovely) then onto the Holiday Inn. This hotel is the furthest resort from the airport.

Our first impressions were what a lovely place. The only daunting thing was going through a security metal detector at the entrance! But this is the same at all the resorts in the area in light of the recent ptoblems in the Middle East. Check in was quick and the porters brought the suitcases to the room. We had 2 interconnecting rooms with the most fantastc view of the sea and the pool. (rooms 1316 and 1317!!)

The hotel is lovely very clean and well kept, the swimming pool is fantastic, just warming up nicely! There were plenty of sunbeds and parasols to go around, bearing in mind there were only about 50ish people in the whole hotel!! The restaurant was ok, food not too bad, my very fussy 6 year old daughter even managed to eat something!! Towards the end of the week it got a bit repetative, but if you wanted anything they didn't have and you wanted the staff were more than happy to cook it for you - i.e chips for the kids!! The drink was ok - the beer not too bad, the Rose wine drinkable but the red and white was revolting!! The local spirits were ok and served in massive shots!!

The weather was fantastic it reached 44 C some days but it didn't feel that hot because it was so dry not humid at all, you could quite happily lie by the pool and not get hot it was quite strange really!! Its my kind of ideal weather - gots lots of bronzing in!!

The staff were lovely, yes a bit slow and laid back, but why the rush we were on holiday relaxing! The kids loved going to the pool bar and ordering a coke!!

Now for the not so good bits! Its not really All Inclusive but Full Board with drinks. There were no snacks available at all throughout the day and nowhere to get them from either just three meals a day. For adults this is ok but with small children its a long time to wait from lunch at 1.00 pm till dinner at 7.00 pm. There wasnt even ice lollys for the kids. There was some ice cream in the foyer but it had been there some time and you had to pay extra for it. we did take some bits with us but I do advise if you are travelling with small children to take a good supply of snacks etc.

We did all suffer from upsets tummys but luckily the children were fine! I dont think it was the food but the heat, they do advise on arrival not to drink ice cold drinks and have the air con on too cold - but of course we did! But you sort of expect it going to a country like Eygpt, go well prepared as you can't get anything there.

We did take a trip to Nuwieba to to buy some touristy things and we did manage to get some crisps and biscuits there. This was a real eye opener and worth doing! The supermarket was a little shack!! It was a tiny place with lots of camels roaming about and goats - no women any where all men!

All in all we had a lovely relaxing week, no there is nothing to do at all and the evening entertainment is none existent but that didn't bother us at all. The beach is very rocky and not what I thought it would be but the snorkelling was fantastic.

My husband has put lots of pictures on our personal web site as pictures were one thing we couldn't find any where before we left!! Please feel free to have a look the address is: www.winniesworld.co.uk

Relaxing....

Having read some pretty scary stuff about this hotel prior to leaving, we arrived at the Holiday Inn with some very real concerns. The brochure and First Choice directly had promised there were two restaurants. Due to the tiny numbers of guests they had not yet opened the A La Carte and incidentally are not intending to do so for two months.

This meant dining in the buffet restaurant every night. The food was fine but personally I prefer a little variety and it would have been nice to have sat at a table without having to get up three times for each course.

The swimming pool was gorgeous, just starting to heat up to a very nice temperature for our second week. The beach needs a little bit of fine tuning and it would be useful if they had actually opened the beach bar during our time there.

Entertainment was very limited and music was played quite loud, but the staff always turned it down if we asked!

The one thing I will always remember about this holiday will be the absolutely wonderful staff. They would do anything for you and they made what would have been a very average holiday into a very special one. From the pool attendants who would turn your sunbed to face the sun more whilst you were still lying on it!, to the housekeeping staff who went to absolutely momentus effort with the towel arrangements every day.

Overall, I would recommend this hotel - it just needs some fine tuning and if you want to be treated like royalty, this is the place!

Holiday Inn - Heaven!

Literally, having just come back from a week at the Holiday Inn in Taba I thought that I just had to write a review, considering some that I had read before I left.

Myself, my 11 year old daughter and two members of our family went for a relaxing holiday and that is exactly what we got.

There were not many people there when we arrived (about 30, 12 of whom were British including us), which at first made us have some doubts -which were totally unfounded.

The hotel itself was only opened in September 2004. The buildings are complete but the gardens still need some work done (as do the tennis courts) but this in no way interfered with our holiday.

The staff are really, friendly but not overly so - they will do anything with a smile and sincerity that is hard to find.

Yes, the pool is cold but once in it, in the hot sun you appreciate it and it does seem to get warm quickly.

Yes, the food is warm, not hot, however my friend asked them to microwave her food every lunch and dinner and they did so quite happily.

Yes, there is a bedoin man camped out in the grounds - he is very friendly and will take the time to talk to you.

There is very very little entertainment in the evenings (two nights of belly dancing) but even that did not put a downer on our stay.

As I stated before, it is a recently opened hotel and they need to find their feet - it will not happen overnight - however my view and that of my fellow travellers, is that they are doing a really good job so far!

I would highly recommend this hotel to anyone who wants to get a way from it all and enjoy good weather, good food and great hospitality.

Desolate

26 /02/05 to 05 /03/05

On arrival at hotel there was a bleak cold buffet left in our room for us as we arrived late at night. After sleeping in a bed as comfortable as an gym mat we went to the canteen style restaurant for buffet breakfast. nothing flash then went to the unfinished tennis courts with its hardcore surface and looked into the "health Club" With its four pieces of equipment we couldnt find the heated pool but did find a pool too cold to swim in. it has a very nice half completed man made beach with a not very well equipt beach bar, a pool bar that blares out Rap Music at a extremly loud volume, for lunch we went to the canteen /restaurant to find that the leftovers from breakfast had been rehashed into salad dishes for lunch. boring afternoon as this hotel is in the middle of nowhere wait for evening meal and evening entertainment. Evenings in the speed bar are not possible the music is too loud and the residents of the hotel all forty of us were driven into the foyer for a little peace away from the noise. my husband and I had been sold a 5 star hotel and this is barely a 3 star and at £479.00 each for a weeks holiday it is certainly not cheap. (lots more to moan about at the Holiday inn)

After two nights at this hotel we paid £100 to escape to the Raddison along with eight other guests and salvaged what as left of our holiday. by the way the raddison is cheaper and streets ahead in the comfort, entertainment and food stakes thank you Raddison.

Unique

In February 2005 we went to this hotel why unique, Well here were only 25 Brits in this hotel & no one else!!! It was great more staff than guests we were treated like royalty, The food was good, The rooms were spotless ,clean sheets & towels every day, All the staff from the General Manager down to the pool cleaners were magnificent.

On arrival there was plates & plates of food in our room(As we had arrived too late for dinner)

The only down sides were no entertainment except karaoke & the pool wasn't heated ( their web site said it was!) Otherwise we had a terrfic holiday

On leaving, The TOUR DE EGYPT cycling racers arrived all MEN , us ladies in the hotel adored the lycra, as I said before a very unigue holiday!!!!! What a pity we had to leave!!!!!!!