Emma, You have a slight problem there then...
What happens to the price once you take out the parts that are nothing to do with the specific holiday, ie the costs to the airport, overnight stay, car parking etc. As those costs would appear as an extra on any holiday you could convince your Dad to ignore them.
As for Egypt, the costs rose dramatically last year and even more so this year with the main TOs as , following the mergers and companies going into administration last year, they seem to have cut down on numbers to keep the price inflated.
There will be bargains about, but not necessarily for the holiday you want, so you have to bite the bullet and grab it at a satisfactory price.
I have been to that hotel twice now and book late for off season, but even so the prices are not often reduced, and tend to go up nearer the departure date.
The main point with the Imperial as it is now called is that the house reef is easily accessible and a true joy to behold. If you have non or poor swimmers in the party get some life support systems, eg jackets or floats. I am not a strong swimmer and following a fall on the beach on the last holiday had a problem breathing properly, so I borrowed my grandsons bright blue polystyrene float stuck it under my chest to provide buoyancy and snorkelled around to my hearts content. On one of her stays, Pippy bought a life jacket in one of the local shops and used that on her holiday, you can see pictures on the Conrad thread. In December they sold lifejackets in the first or second shop on the left from the beach as you go into the Baron Palms shopping plaza, but as I am not a skilled negotiator, I did not get a price. No one cares about appearances in the water as it is about safely sharing the joys of the underwater world.
On the last trip I noticed a couple of "glass bottomed" personal floats at the end of the jetty, but did not see a hiring price. Two people could lie on it looking through the windows whilst using a little joystick to move around on the water, I think.
I have been snorkelling in Cuba, the Domincan Republic and Mexico looking at some good reefs but none have offered the numbers or diversity I found on the Conrad house reef. So the premium is worth paying.
Apart from that I would have thought at this stage of the game you would have lost a great deal on the deposits if you seriously looked at cancelling and going somewhere else.
Have a good holiday and look out for the young Mohammed who is always friendly and helpful to us.
Hi Emma,
We are going to the Imperial in June (19th-4th July). This will be our first time to Egypt so felt the same as you as with regard to Hotels! I also needed somewhere that served Diet drinks as I am Diabetic & I have been assured that they do serve these! I'm also sure that I have been told that they have a cocktail list! Well I hope so anyway
! As for price....we booked through FC but got a reduced price as they price matched Eclipse Holidays (online & owned by FC). There is my O/H, me our son who will be 14 so is charged as an adult & our daughter 8yrs. We paid £2714 for an Ocean front 4 room! I checked the website today & they are charging £3350 for the same holiday now, so its gone up since we booked 6 weeks ago!
I have been watching the reviews on Tripadvisor & they are mostly 5/5 so hopefully we have both made a good choice!
Debs
We are going to the Imperial in June (19th-4th July). This will be our first time to Egypt so felt the same as you as with regard to Hotels! I also needed somewhere that served Diet drinks as I am Diabetic & I have been assured that they do serve these! I'm also sure that I have been told that they have a cocktail list! Well I hope so anyway
! As for price....we booked through FC but got a reduced price as they price matched Eclipse Holidays (online & owned by FC). There is my O/H, me our son who will be 14 so is charged as an adult & our daughter 8yrs. We paid £2714 for an Ocean front 4 room! I checked the website today & they are charging £3350 for the same holiday now, so its gone up since we booked 6 weeks ago!I have been watching the reviews on Tripadvisor & they are mostly 5/5 so hopefully we have both made a good choice!
Debs
Thank you all for, again taking the time to reply to my posts, it was very kind of you all and we really appreciated your thoughts. It has been a great help deciding on what to do, much better then Trip Advisor! We have decided to stay with the holiday, so heading to the Coral Sea Imperial on the 28th June till the 12th July and cant wait. I will definately be letting you know how we get on. Im really looking forward to it already.
Debs - As we are going to be there at the same time for about 5 days or so, we really should meet up for a drink at some point and maybe you will be able to fill us in on all the whats good, where to go, what not to do, etc etc. That would be great. We are the Bevan family, consisting of my mum, dad, myself, brother and his girlfriend. I saw from your profile that your from Herne Bay, we are from Broadstairs
So, hope to see you there.
Thanks again everyone!!
Lots of Love
Emma
xxxx
Debs - As we are going to be there at the same time for about 5 days or so, we really should meet up for a drink at some point and maybe you will be able to fill us in on all the whats good, where to go, what not to do, etc etc. That would be great. We are the Bevan family, consisting of my mum, dad, myself, brother and his girlfriend. I saw from your profile that your from Herne Bay, we are from Broadstairs
So, hope to see you there.Thanks again everyone!!
Lots of Love
Emma
xxxx
Debs and Emma
You won't be disappointed with your choice. We went last year and are going back in June this year.
Garry
You won't be disappointed with your choice. We went last year and are going back in June this year.
Garry
Hi Garry,
I have just read a review on T.A & its not that good!
It says the drinks are terrible & you can only use one buffet resteraunt as the Italians use the other.....Is this true?
Debs x
I have just read a review on T.A & its not that good!
It says the drinks are terrible & you can only use one buffet resteraunt as the Italians use the other.....Is this true? Debs x
No need to panic yet...
We went in December so I doubt if much has changed, or if it has changed much!
The two buffet restaurants were next door to each other, they share the same kitchen. The first one you come to looks impressive and it used to be the Italians buffet restaurant and so is probably the one referred to, the other one is down at the back and does not look so impressive from the outside but it is much larger, spacious and more open inside ....
I actually went into the front buffet on a couple of occasions and both times walked back out again.
The large buffet restaurant at the back had an egg/pasta/ sometimes meat station, where they cooked whilst you waited. There was a chap cooking pizzas with your specification of topping and there was often a chef cooking up some dessert. I did not see any of that in the other smaller buffet. The set up was slightly different and I did not feel at ease there at all, with the seating, lighting or the serving area, so we basically decided there was nothing special there for us and we would be happier back in the large buffet. The staff seemed friendlier in the larger buffet too, or that may be because we actually ate there rather than popping in and out. I could have gone the entire holiday without setting foot inside the other buffet and not lost anything from the holiday.
Drinks wise, I am afraid you are always onto a loser with A/I in Egypt. I am not a drinker and so it does not bother me if I am on soft drinks all night and day, however the odd glass of cold beer was refreshing, even for the wife. Spirit wise it all seems strange, we were told afterwards back in the UK by one holidaymaker more adept at the art, that the spirits taste like different ones over here, although I can't remember which way round it was, something strange like gin tastes like our vodka and vice versa, whisky tastes like brandy, brandy tastes like rum, etc etc, ie try everything till you find one that tastes to your liking and remember it!
If you wish to meet up with people I would suggest that you all pre-agree a time and date before the evening meal or at 6pm and meet in the lobby bar for "cocktails". During the day you could meet at the posh beach bar (in front of the beachside rooms) or the pool bar for afternoon snacks etc. Otherwise you may keep missing!
Of course the problem with that is that once you arrive at the hotel, you may find that the time or date clashes with a day trip, so you may have to have a back up!
Holidays are often what you make them: Our first ever foreign holiday was to a hotel in Turkey that we then found out was probably the original holiday from hell destination, however despite strong advice, we went ahead with the holiday and we had a fantastic trip, ate every meal at the hotel and enjoyed them (There were 27 in the party). We met some fantastic, friendly Turks on every corner and all in all had a brilliant time. We later heard that two weeks after we left that many of the hotel guests ended up in hospital on drips!
The golden rules for the buffet still remain the same: If you wouldn't eat it here don't eat it there, by which I am not talking about different foods, but the way they are cooked/ not cooked and also if you are unlucky and your stomach reacts to certain food in the UK, it will still react the same abroad even if it is called something different (You would be surprised by some holiday makers who seem to forget to pack their intelligence); Locate everything you want first before you start putting food on the plate and then go and get it in the right order. Even at Xmas there were still people stashing their plates high with accompaniments and then waiting in a queue for food to be cooked and then moaning everything was cold!
You will be there when it is fairly hot and a lot of people say problems arise from the sudden transitions between temperatures so be wary about that and don't go staight from the restaurant into the pool/sea etc and above all have a good time.
If you want to see what trips are available google charm of sharm, who run many trips from Sharm, which will give you an idea of the prices currently charged. Note that the FC charges are higher!
We have only been for a week at a time and so did not have time for trips, but if you decide to go on one or two many of the other forum members have been on the trips and can offer sound advice.
Edited to add:
Possible word of warning. When I entered the above google search term with no spaces it removed the name automatically. I have never used them and so cannot vouch for them, but was using them as a source of trip info. I suggest that you do more research if you actually decided to use them as I am not sure why the name is blocked.
We went in December so I doubt if much has changed, or if it has changed much!
The two buffet restaurants were next door to each other, they share the same kitchen. The first one you come to looks impressive and it used to be the Italians buffet restaurant and so is probably the one referred to, the other one is down at the back and does not look so impressive from the outside but it is much larger, spacious and more open inside ....
I actually went into the front buffet on a couple of occasions and both times walked back out again.
The large buffet restaurant at the back had an egg/pasta/ sometimes meat station, where they cooked whilst you waited. There was a chap cooking pizzas with your specification of topping and there was often a chef cooking up some dessert. I did not see any of that in the other smaller buffet. The set up was slightly different and I did not feel at ease there at all, with the seating, lighting or the serving area, so we basically decided there was nothing special there for us and we would be happier back in the large buffet. The staff seemed friendlier in the larger buffet too, or that may be because we actually ate there rather than popping in and out. I could have gone the entire holiday without setting foot inside the other buffet and not lost anything from the holiday.
Drinks wise, I am afraid you are always onto a loser with A/I in Egypt. I am not a drinker and so it does not bother me if I am on soft drinks all night and day, however the odd glass of cold beer was refreshing, even for the wife. Spirit wise it all seems strange, we were told afterwards back in the UK by one holidaymaker more adept at the art, that the spirits taste like different ones over here, although I can't remember which way round it was, something strange like gin tastes like our vodka and vice versa, whisky tastes like brandy, brandy tastes like rum, etc etc, ie try everything till you find one that tastes to your liking and remember it!
If you wish to meet up with people I would suggest that you all pre-agree a time and date before the evening meal or at 6pm and meet in the lobby bar for "cocktails". During the day you could meet at the posh beach bar (in front of the beachside rooms) or the pool bar for afternoon snacks etc. Otherwise you may keep missing!
Of course the problem with that is that once you arrive at the hotel, you may find that the time or date clashes with a day trip, so you may have to have a back up!
Holidays are often what you make them: Our first ever foreign holiday was to a hotel in Turkey that we then found out was probably the original holiday from hell destination, however despite strong advice, we went ahead with the holiday and we had a fantastic trip, ate every meal at the hotel and enjoyed them (There were 27 in the party). We met some fantastic, friendly Turks on every corner and all in all had a brilliant time. We later heard that two weeks after we left that many of the hotel guests ended up in hospital on drips!
The golden rules for the buffet still remain the same: If you wouldn't eat it here don't eat it there, by which I am not talking about different foods, but the way they are cooked/ not cooked and also if you are unlucky and your stomach reacts to certain food in the UK, it will still react the same abroad even if it is called something different (You would be surprised by some holiday makers who seem to forget to pack their intelligence); Locate everything you want first before you start putting food on the plate and then go and get it in the right order. Even at Xmas there were still people stashing their plates high with accompaniments and then waiting in a queue for food to be cooked and then moaning everything was cold!
You will be there when it is fairly hot and a lot of people say problems arise from the sudden transitions between temperatures so be wary about that and don't go staight from the restaurant into the pool/sea etc and above all have a good time.
If you want to see what trips are available google charm of sharm, who run many trips from Sharm, which will give you an idea of the prices currently charged. Note that the FC charges are higher!
We have only been for a week at a time and so did not have time for trips, but if you decide to go on one or two many of the other forum members have been on the trips and can offer sound advice.
Edited to add:
Possible word of warning. When I entered the above google search term with no spaces it removed the name automatically. I have never used them and so cannot vouch for them, but was using them as a source of trip info. I suggest that you do more research if you actually decided to use them as I am not sure why the name is blocked.
As stevebell011 says most of the AI's in Sharm are set up along the same lines. I've just returned from another hotel in the Coral Sea group as they are now called and we only had one buffet restaurant, but it was fine.
Just be sensible and take the precautions you would anywhere. Make sure hot food is hot, chicken is cooked through, I often took items from the back of the trays where there was less chance people had breathed all over them or scooped stuff up and put it back, look out for things being cooked fresh in front of you. I ate plain salad everyday, lettuce, tom, cue etc, not the ones mixed with mayo. Drink bottled water, sprite, diet coke. Alcohol is known not to be brilliant in Egypt after all it's a Muslin country so they don't drink. Branded drinks if you can get hold of them are expensive as is bottled wine. Some people buy a couple of litres of their favorite tipple on the plane and keep it in their room for a pre-dinner drink or nightcap. The cold larger is nice though (well according to my DH). Their fruit drinks are sweet and tend to be mixed with spirits and sprite to make cocktails, some are pleasant some aren't. After a week you tend to crave tropicana or even tesco's own fresh orange.
I also only go for a week at a time, so dont tend to do trips. I'm sure Charm of Sharm are blocked because they kept spaming members. Another company people use I beleive are Fayed travel, this is not a personal recommedation though you would need to do your own research. FC seem to add about 25% to all the trips, but some people prefer to go with them as it makes them feel safer. If you go off with another company, nobody at the hotel really has a record of where you are.
Doe
Just be sensible and take the precautions you would anywhere. Make sure hot food is hot, chicken is cooked through, I often took items from the back of the trays where there was less chance people had breathed all over them or scooped stuff up and put it back, look out for things being cooked fresh in front of you. I ate plain salad everyday, lettuce, tom, cue etc, not the ones mixed with mayo. Drink bottled water, sprite, diet coke. Alcohol is known not to be brilliant in Egypt after all it's a Muslin country so they don't drink. Branded drinks if you can get hold of them are expensive as is bottled wine. Some people buy a couple of litres of their favorite tipple on the plane and keep it in their room for a pre-dinner drink or nightcap. The cold larger is nice though (well according to my DH). Their fruit drinks are sweet and tend to be mixed with spirits and sprite to make cocktails, some are pleasant some aren't. After a week you tend to crave tropicana or even tesco's own fresh orange.
I also only go for a week at a time, so dont tend to do trips. I'm sure Charm of Sharm are blocked because they kept spaming members. Another company people use I beleive are Fayed travel, this is not a personal recommedation though you would need to do your own research. FC seem to add about 25% to all the trips, but some people prefer to go with them as it makes them feel safer. If you go off with another company, nobody at the hotel really has a record of where you are.
Doe
Hi Debs and Emma
We also have been following tripadvisor reports. Yes some of the drinks are horrible. Mary drinks Bacardi and they didn't really have a substitute for it. She ended up drinking the dark rum and said it wasn't too bad. I drink lager and have to say it was fine.
Mary also tried a couple of the cocktails and said they were horrible, but this didn't spoil our holiday.
We also ate mostly in the Tiran and never went hungry. We tried the other one a couple of times but much prefered the Tiran. We didn't try any of the a la carte ones so can't really comment on them.
We only went on the one trip which was to Cairo to see the pyramids. We booked this through FC.
I know we could have got it cheaper but we are quite lazy and can't be bothered with looking around for better offers.
Remember everyone is looking for different things from a holiday, but we really enjoyed ourselves and it was one of the most relaxing holidays we have ever had.
Anything else we can help you with please feel free to ask.
Garry
We also have been following tripadvisor reports. Yes some of the drinks are horrible. Mary drinks Bacardi and they didn't really have a substitute for it. She ended up drinking the dark rum and said it wasn't too bad. I drink lager and have to say it was fine.
Mary also tried a couple of the cocktails and said they were horrible, but this didn't spoil our holiday.
We also ate mostly in the Tiran and never went hungry. We tried the other one a couple of times but much prefered the Tiran. We didn't try any of the a la carte ones so can't really comment on them.
We only went on the one trip which was to Cairo to see the pyramids. We booked this through FC.
I know we could have got it cheaper but we are quite lazy and can't be bothered with looking around for better offers.
Remember everyone is looking for different things from a holiday, but we really enjoyed ourselves and it was one of the most relaxing holidays we have ever had.
Anything else we can help you with please feel free to ask.
Garry
Hi we use the same English chap for our trips and they are fab. The quads are £15 per person and you go to ' Little Egypt ' which is really good. We have also been on his boat trips. Also does Cairo, Luxor etc etc. Cant recommend him highly enough - if you want more details let me know.
Ref the motorised lie on thingys - my son hired one for an hour and it was £20. He said it was really good. The guide goes out with you but be wary - my son was so fasinated he didnt realise he was getting burnt and the backs of his legs were red raw!
Ref the motorised lie on thingys - my son hired one for an hour and it was £20. He said it was really good. The guide goes out with you but be wary - my son was so fasinated he didnt realise he was getting burnt and the backs of his legs were red raw!
Hey everyone,
I was just wondering does anyone know how close the baron resort is to the coral sea imperial. I have just found out my boyfriend is going their with his family and was wondering if it was close by enough to meet up??
Also, does anyone know what injections you need for Egypt?
If you can think of anything else that we may need to know before we go, I would appreciate your thoughts. I am right in thinking that the coral sea imperial have their own beach towels we can use, dont they?
Not long to go now, yay!!
Thanks
Lots of Love
Emma
xxxx
I was just wondering does anyone know how close the baron resort is to the coral sea imperial. I have just found out my boyfriend is going their with his family and was wondering if it was close by enough to meet up??
Also, does anyone know what injections you need for Egypt?
If you can think of anything else that we may need to know before we go, I would appreciate your thoughts. I am right in thinking that the coral sea imperial have their own beach towels we can use, dont they?
Not long to go now, yay!!
Thanks
Lots of Love
Emma
xxxx
Hi if it is formerly the Conrad then they are in the same area - Montazah - behind the airport and near to Soho Square, Sharks Bay etc. You are near to each other.
...sorry ref injections there are non that are compulsory there is a thread on here that the mods will direct you to. I always make sure all mine are up to date though.
The recommended injections are Hep A and Typhoid as well as the DTP which we need for this country anyway.
If I can find the thread I will bump it. If not just stick 'injections' into the search facility.
Doe
If I can find the thread I will bump it. If not just stick 'injections' into the search facility.
Doe
Emma, The Baron and CS Imperial are alongside each other and share the same bay and the parade of shops is in between them.
If you look on Google Earth you can see the layout.
You will be able to meet on the beach, by the shops or out the front, but I think they are very particular about entering the wrong hotel grounds (jetty's included). you will just have to try and see.
They may turn a blind eye to young love!
If you look on Google Earth you can see the layout.
You will be able to meet on the beach, by the shops or out the front, but I think they are very particular about entering the wrong hotel grounds (jetty's included). you will just have to try and see.
They may turn a blind eye to young love!
If I can find the thread I will bump it. If not just stick 'injections' into the search facility.
Is this the topic you are looking for:
http://www.holidaytruths.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=30364
David
Hey everyone,
We are off tomorrow to start our holiday in Egypt and I cant wait, it is soooooo exciting. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to post replies over the last couple of weeks, it is very much appreciated.
Just one last question (unless something else randomly pops up in the next few hours, lol):
What travel plugs do we need for Egypt? Is it round pins or flat pins? Does anyone know?
Also, to prevent upset stomachs, I am assuming just drink lots of water and avoid getting too much sun. What do you think? What are your views on the salad and ice, would you reccommend avoiding them both altogether, or just have occasionally?
Thanks everyone.
Lots of Love
Emma
xxxx
We are off tomorrow to start our holiday in Egypt and I cant wait, it is soooooo exciting. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to post replies over the last couple of weeks, it is very much appreciated.
Just one last question (unless something else randomly pops up in the next few hours, lol):
What travel plugs do we need for Egypt? Is it round pins or flat pins? Does anyone know?
Also, to prevent upset stomachs, I am assuming just drink lots of water and avoid getting too much sun. What do you think? What are your views on the salad and ice, would you reccommend avoiding them both altogether, or just have occasionally?
Thanks everyone.
Lots of Love
Emma
xxxx
hi Emma
Just a quick point re drinking lots of water. Obviously you need to drink a fair amount so as not to get dehydrated in the heat, however if you are drinking bottled mineral water, drinking huge amounts can actually bring on an upset tummy. (not bad as you would get with food posioning though, so probably no pain, just looseness)
Its probably better to drink some bottled water and then something like sprite as well to keep hydrated. So sort of mix it up a bit.
The ice is supposedly made with water that has been purified and I have always had it and been OK, but if you want to play it safe you will find most drinks are chilled anyway.
I ate salad but only plain, lettuce, toms, cue, gerkins anything that looked like it might have been yesterdays offerings and then chopped up and mixed with mayo/meat/fish and served the following day, I gave a wide berth.
Have a brilliant holiday.
Doe
Opps just seen I have replied to this before.
sorry.
Just a quick point re drinking lots of water. Obviously you need to drink a fair amount so as not to get dehydrated in the heat, however if you are drinking bottled mineral water, drinking huge amounts can actually bring on an upset tummy. (not bad as you would get with food posioning though, so probably no pain, just looseness)
Its probably better to drink some bottled water and then something like sprite as well to keep hydrated. So sort of mix it up a bit.
The ice is supposedly made with water that has been purified and I have always had it and been OK, but if you want to play it safe you will find most drinks are chilled anyway.
I ate salad but only plain, lettuce, toms, cue, gerkins anything that looked like it might have been yesterdays offerings and then chopped up and mixed with mayo/meat/fish and served the following day, I gave a wide berth.
Have a brilliant holiday.
Doe
Opps just seen I have replied to this before.
sorry.
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