I've never stayed at Hilton Long beach but have stayed in Hurghada many times and Sharm 3 times. Hurghada has a very different feel from Sharm. I love Hurghada but some prefer the more sanitised version of Egypt with the larger British presence that you get in Sharm.

Hi

We stayed at the Hilton Long beach last September, we went with my two daughters and one of their boyfriends. Like you we also read some bad reviews and were a little bit apprehensive, but we really enjoyed it, so much so me and hubby are going back again this September.

As it was our silver wedding anniversary the girls upgraded us to a beach front view which was lovely. The rooms were spotless and cleaned every day. The staff are lovely, really friendly. The food was good, not outstanding but we could always find something to eat. There is not much around, you would have to take a taxi into the town. The beach is manmade which is a downside if you like a sandy beach but it didnt bother us and the sea is beautiful really clear. The reception is always busy but you just use that as a walk through.

There is hardly any entertainment but if you just want to chill out its a lovely holiday. We also managed trips to Caira and Luxor, but this September we are just going to rest.

Hope this helps

Sue

thanks

i generally just read these reviews as a guideline but these are quite bad on t.a.

we have seen that there is a boat trip to giftun island and the photos of that beach look lovely also i read that there is a water park nearby has anyone been ?

none of our party are terribly fussy eaters but there is a hard rock cafe in hurghada that we will prob go to

i just dont want it to be as awful as some are saying as its my daughters 18th birthday.....

if anyone is going in the next couple of weeks please post a review ...
if it is still really bad i might have to change our hotel.

Hi

The Hard Rock cafe is really good, we went there for an evening and really enjoyed it.

I really dont think the hotel is that bad and I certainly wouldnt be going there again in September if it was, still you have to do what you think is best for yourselves.

The only thing that I will say is that the British are in the minority a lot of Russians use the hotel, but again didnt cause a problem with us.

Good luck anyway

Sue

thanks sue

i have been to hotels before that had lots of russian guests and yes they can be a little pushy but it has never bothered me either - im not easily intimidated!!! lol !!!

the things that have really bothered me is reports of holes in towels, dirty sheets and someone said that there was brown water coming out of their shower all week !!!

there are always people who complain of egypt tummy and the food being bad but as weve been to sharm several times we know the difference between a 5 star hilton in the carribean and a 5 star in egypt - we dont expect gourmet restaurants!

i think we have made up our minds just to go and see for ourselves - we did get a bargain price £440 per head and you cant get self catering for that in a lot of places in july !!! i have noticed the price has gone up to £620 each now for the same week!!

are there any other restaurants in hurghada apart from hard rock ? and how does the shopping compare to sharm ? does hurghada have a duty free shop like sharm where you can only go for a day after you arrive ?

thanx

The Grand Resort hotel, about 5 minutes walk from the Hard Rock Cafe, has several good a la carte restaurants which I am sure are open to non residents - an Indian, Steak house, Italian and Lebanese I think. The Grand Hotel opposite offers a set menu Chinese restaurant.

Both of the above hotels offer entertainment - good local shows (Nubian dancers, belly dancers etc) in the hotels themselves early evening followed by entertainment in the Grand Mall -the area outside open to the public - a bit later on. Usually a singer followed by a show by the animation team (lip synched versions of Saturday Night Fever etc). Not West End standard but by far the best entertainment I've come across in Egypt. Last year Wednesday night was Voodoo Party night in the Grand Mall - an entrance fee was charged and it offered a little bit of Ibiza in Hurghada. My daughter enjoyed it but I didn't go!

One main difference between Sharm and Hurghada airports is that Hurghada has plenty of small tourist shops airside - the prices are not fixed and are comparable to resort - useful for last minute souvenirs or if you are up to your full baggage allowance!

Hi Yvonne

Good god never experienced anything like that, honestly, I cant stand dirty places, like most of us I suppose.

The towels were clean every day and they were fine, our rooms were cleaned really well and sheets changed regularly, and defininately no brown water. As I say we did upgrade but even the standard rooms we passed were cleaned every day. Like you we got a very good price again for this September.

Sue

hi

for the help

i will write a review when i get back

we go july 4th

yvonne