After months of trying to decide on where to go on holiday we finally decided to go to egypt, somewhere myself and my girlfriend had both wanted to go. We decided on Taba, we hadn't heard much about it, but we didn't want to go somewhere to touristy and we were advised that this wasn't. We went in September and got a particually good deal on our holiday, half board for two weeks.
So after months of waiting it was finally time to go. We were flying with excel, a company neither of us had flown with before or heard of either. The flight took us about 5hrs, there were two films shown, Just my Luck and Over the Hedge, however headphones had to be bought £2.50, we had puzzle books to keep us amused though. A meal was given,which was not great, some kind of chicken and rice and sauce, you also got a bread roll, cracker, cream cheese and a drink.
When we landed in Taba it was already evening so you couldn't see anything when you
flew over.After getting the most pointless bus from the plane to the building which was within easy walking distance we had to buy our visa. This costs £15 and is not optional, they'll put a little sticker and stamp in your passport as you can't travel around Egypt without it.
After a 45minute coach journey on winding roads we arrived at Taba Heights. To be honest first opinions were not amazing as it looked like there was a lot of rubble surrounding the area. However as we got closer to our hotel The Marriott we started to see a different side.
The security in Egypt is very strong, the coach being stopped a few times and underneath checked before we drove up to the hotel.This continued for the whole holiday which was a good thing as it made you feel much more safe.
When we made our way into the hotel it amazing, the lobby was absolutely immaculate. An easy check in and we were shown to our room. Right from the start the staff were particually friendly especially, the receptionist who took a shine to us and was great to us for the whole holiday.
We'd been warned about tipping in Egypt and the warnings weren't wrong, as soon as we stepped off the plane anyone who did anything for us a tip was expected, some even asked for a tip, so its a good idea to keep some American dollars on you as they are good for tipping with.
When we got to our room it was lovely, it had a huge bed, a sofa and table, a dresser wardrobe etc. The room was spotless with everything you need, including a mini safe which was very handy. The bathroom again was lovely and spotless, with a bath/shower, toilet, sink and b-day.As usual you have the little shampoo and shower gels, which smelt very nice.
The balcony we had was massive, which had a table and two chairs on and had a beautiful sea view by day and by night you could see boarders of other countries, shown by flashing red lights.
When we explored the hotel and its facilities we were not disapointed. The swimming pool was massive and beautiful, it had its own little caved area with waterfalls it was stunning. It also had its own swin up bar so you could have a refreshing and drink at the same time, this was no problem.
Other facilities included a little games room with a table tennis table and arcade games. There was a Pool table as well as a tennis court and spa.
The beach was pretty much faultless, what can be wrong with golden sand and clear blue sea. The beach was so quiet so it was never a problem getting a sunbed, and you didn't feel like you were squashed in. The only fault with the beach/sea, was the ammount of shells as you entered the sea, which really hurt your feet, there is a special sea entrance where there are less shells which was better, but there were still a few shells.The sea was so blue it made snorkling easy and fun.
Many excursions were offered in a welcome meeting, all of which we seemed to want to go on, however we limited ourselves to three! A lazy day boat trip, a star gazing night and a trip to cairo to see pyramids etc. All of which we enjoyed.
One big disapointment of Egypt was the food, the hotel had 4 restaurants, all of which were diffrent, however the food was not up to 5 star standard. A lot of the time the food was over cooked or dry which was a big disapointment. The dinner which was included was in a buffet style with many different dishes. some nights there were different themes such as an Italian night, which had a chef making whatever type of pasta you wanted, with a variety of pasta, sauces and things to put in it, which we enjoyed.
Breakfast was nice, but after two weeks became repitive, again it was in a buffet style with a choice of toasts, pastries, fruit salad and hot foods such as sausages and egyptian porridge. Again every morning therer was a chef at the workstation making fresh eggs anyway you wanted, fried, scrambled or omelette with you choice of filling.
Other restaurants we visited we Tuscany and the Grotto, which were nicely decorated and in nice settings, but the food was a bit of a let down.
Evenings were very quiet in the resort with limited or no entertainment which was a let down as after dinner there was not much to do, and sitting in the bar all evening couldn't be done as the drinks were fairly expensive.
Taba is a beautiful place to go and i recommend it to anyone, it was very hot so people who cannot stand humid weather this is not the place for you.However apart from a few faults like food and entertainment, this was a great holiday
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Advantages: Guaranteed sunshine. The private beach is safe, clean and half empty and the staff are lovely. Disadvantages: The dreaded Pharoah's curse! I didn't meet anyone who had not suffered from a stomach upset.
VanillaSpy 18.08.2004 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Taba, Egypt
Advantages: Guaranteed sunshine. The private beach is safe, clean and half empty and the staff are lovely. Disadvantages: The dreaded Pharoah's curse! I didn't meet anyone who had not suffered from a stomach upset.
VanillaSpy 18.08.2004 ·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Taba, Egypt
Nov 11th, 2006
very helpful by (100%):
