Who advised you of that?

If you book a package holiday the weather is usually pretty good. If you Do It Yourself, well, who knows?

Seriously, treat Egypt as you would Spain, France, Turkey etc. It is a perfectly normal holiday destination that is well up there with modern technology etc. Dont be scared of it, just enjoy it!!!!!

Behave yourselves you two.

Mind you Miss Cheif 1 after listening to these two and their cronies rambling on (see the rambling thread) Andy and I are tempted to do a DIY haliday to Nuweiba soon.

I think it depends on how far in advance you book the flights and what it is you want to do.

Totally agree with Raksha,

We booked flights for next Oct half term about 3months ago and already the same flights are up inprice by about £100!!!!!!!!!!!!

What's wrong Rak? Perfectly normal question. At least I can spell "holiday".
Seriously though, if you are confident in booking DIY (which you probably are by now) and you can do it cheaper than packaging, then why not? It's no different than DIY-ing anywhere else.

Thanks for the replies.

I'm a confident DIYer and have been doing it before the dawn of the internet............yes I am THAT old

The points made to me against the DIY option were cost....more than a package ? Transfers......poor ? Hotels not keen to play ball ?

So if you could clear those up with personal experiences that would be more helpful

Thanks

hi miss chief . Well I have saved a packet compared to the cheapest package i found which was via portland. Saved between £900-1600 depending which flight day i would of opted for. this is for easter school holidays booking direct via http://www.hilton.co.uk and flights booked with XL. As for airport transfers from sharm there really isnt much of one and most hotels are within 10-15 minutes of the airport. if you dont fancy running the gauntlet with the cabbies at the airport you will find that probably most of the hotels will arrange to collect you at a very reasonable rate . cant comment im afraid on hotels not playing ball. I certainly never found this .

hope that helps

lyn

We booked last year through Travel Republic which was a separate flight and hotel but I suppose you class it as a package but basically we built our own. We saved around £1,000 for our family doing it through them.

Anyway, this was a good experience and the hotel we stayed in would of collected us from the airport (although we didn't find this out until after we arrived).

If we go again which I am sure we will, we will do the same again but contact the hotel direct for the transfer (airport to hotel is a small distance 10-15 mins).

We stayed in the Crowne Plaza in Sharm which was great. When we spoke to the reception staff about booking direct with them for the future, they said we would pay more going direct because they give companies a certain amount of rooms at special prices.

We've just saved about £400 by booking the flight direct with Excel, and the hotel with Hilton. Most hotels do pre-sell rooms to TOs at low rates. However, larger hotels that are part of an international chain keep a number back for themselves, and if you book at the right time, you can certainly get bargains. I could only find one TO with vacancies at the Hilton Sharks Bay for the week I wanted, but the Hilton website had plenty on offer, very cheap. If you're a regular DIYer, give it a go.

- Tony -

Hi all ~ looking for a bargain holiday in Egypt in March, our daughter is joining us for the 2nd week to dive with her dad. Looking at the options available we are booking flights and hotel seperate and Sarah will join us at the hotel for the 2nd week. We are looking to stay at the Intercontinental on the Garden Reefs, anybody stayed there? We know the area because the last 2 years have stayed at the Crowne Plaza but fancied a change of hotel but still on El Pasha Bay because the sea is calm and the snorkelling fab.
and yes Miss_Chief1 the weather at the end of April is hot!!! we were there last year from 20 April and it was too hot for me at the end of the holiday and I lov the sun. Returning this year around 20 March just before the easter rush..... elaine.

I don t think one way is always better than the other way. Sometimes buying a package works out cheaper and easier and sometimes DIY is cheaper and easier.

Certainly, as a hotelier, I welcome all guests regardless of how they book. Best to just compare prices each and every time, and see if the flight times are suitable for you or not.

For those who are a little wary of independent travel in Egypt ,a DIY holiday to El Gouna couldnt be easier or safer. Flights to Hurghada are easy to book online and from as little as £120.

Remember that you do not have to stay in a hotel either . In El Gouna there are a large number of privately owned apartments and luxury villas with private pools to enjoy and get some more well deserved privacy and space. Any owner can easily organise transfers from the airport with a reliable driver (£10 each way) and you could even send a shopping list to have your fridge stocked ready for when you arrive .

Getting around the resort is also easy reliable and cheap with regular resort buses (£1.50 a weekly ticket),taxis (£1.50 a journey)and the infamous Tok Tok's (50p per person) !

Renting a private residence also gives you the freedom to enjoy the many fantastic restaurants that El Gouna has to offer in most of the cuisines you can think of,so you do not have to cook .Best of all you do not have to wear a dayglo wristband for 2 weeks .

You can also stock up on Good branded spirits at the duty free shop when you arrive (3 bottles each on top of what you bring over) so you can enjoy a decent drink rather than th AI fire water

Why not give it a try ?

PM me if you want more info

Briar

Of Course . Wasnt sure if I was going Off topic

Also if you are looking for cheap flights there is redseaflights and ba do some reasonable offers. I got one way for £73 to Sharm.
I wuld say go DIY!!!

Me and my gf got AL at Tropicana Grand Oasis 4*+. For £960 for the pair of us for 10 nights.

Not sure about DIY!

We did DIY this time to el Gouna - great, sailed through everything with no problems, taxi cost us 28 Euros return from airport to Downtown however this was arranged before we left the UK and the driver had our names on a board so no confusion.

Hi everyone,
looking for a good hotel deal booking direct. we have booked flights from gatwick on 21 march with ba for 14 nights. i am looking to book hotel, been looking at hilton chain, intercontinental, marriott - anyone know of any special deals? do the hotels do rooms for 3 adults our daughter is joining us for 2nd week, or will we need a suite. any help appreciated. elaine

Hi Elaine,

Not sure if you have tried direct with the Hiltons UK web-site, I think it is http://www.hilton.co.uk they often have good prices, and when I have emailed them they have responded quickly. They may give you a deal and let your daughter into a triple room for the 2nd week if you explain what you want. The one I was looking at, the Hilton Sharm Dreams seemed to have triple rooms.

They have about 4 hotels in Sharm some are B&B or HB but it may only be the one at Sharks Bay that does AI if that's what you require.

When I was at the Conrad I met a couple who booked direct with the hotel.It is aslo a Hilton owned hotel so will be on the Hilton website.