Swissotel Sharm El Sheikh — Attraction in South Sinai

We chose Swissotel Sharm El Sheikh for our honeymoon, expecting a 5-star Rixos experience. Unfortunately, it didn’t live up to that standard.

Positive thing is access to other Rixos Hotels: The best part of our stay was being able to visit other Rixos hotels in Sharm, where the quality and service were far better.

Landscaped Grounds: The hotel grounds are beautiful, with lush greenery that’s well-maintained.

Room: We were upgraded to a Swiss Select room, conveniently located near the lobby.

Despite the upgrade, our Swiss Select room showed signs of being outdated. No bathrobes or typical 5-star amenities like razors, toothpaste, etc. The minibar was reduced, no snacks available. However, housekeeping did a good job of keeping the room clean. Had only bath towel and face towel provided, no additional towel for feet.

Wi-Fi worked fairly well in the lobby and inside our room. However, throughout the hotel grounds, such as around the pool and the terrace near the main restaurant, the connection was poor.

Service: The level of service was the most disappointing aspect of our stay. Despite notifying the hotel about our honeymoon both before arrival and at check-in, the only acknowledgement we received was a room upgrade and a small cake. The service at Swissotel felt like a 3-star level, far below what we’d expect from a 5-star Accor hotel.

Dining: Dining was a chaotic experience due to the hotel’s apparent inability to manage the number of guests. We encountered long waits for tables at dinner, sometimes standing with plates in hand. Breakfast was similarly challenging, with queues for food stretching to 10-15 minutes, and items often running out well before the end of service.

Additionally, don’t expect to be served drinks at your table, guests had to queue at the bar for water and other drinks. When I ordered two glasses of wine, I was informed that they’d run out of glasses and was served wine in tumblers instead. Clean plates were hard to find - on several occasions, I had to search multiple times to find one without dried food on it.

The food selection was disappointingly limited, even compared to Rixos Golf. Salmon at breakfast wasn’t served every day, fresh juices were limited to watered-down orange and apple, and the cakes were repetitive.

Beach: The beach was sandy with enough loungers, but murky water and constant insect issues made it hard to enjoy. The towel card system was also complicated and inconvenient.

Pools and Water Park: Only one small heated pool, and the water park was unusable in cooler weather due to freezing water.

Spa: Well-equipped, much better then in Rixos Golf, but lockers didn’t lock, and shockingly, a male masseur and cleaner both entered the women’s changing room while my wife was there - an unacceptable situation that other Rixos hotels avoid by assigning female staff to clean women’s areas.

Additionally, towels, slippers, and robes were not readily available and had to be requested. There was also no hairdryer in the spa, which caused significant inconvenience when we needed to freshen up before our evening flight. Despite complaints, the staff at the spa offered no solution, and it was only after escalation to guest relations that we were given a room for 20 minutes to use a hairdryer.

Reception

The receptionist who handled our check-in was friendly and upgraded our room, which we appreciated. However at check-out we encountered another receptionist Mona who was dismissive and rude. We requested a packed lunch for our long journey home, but the staff refused it. By contrast, when we spent our final day at Rixos Seagate, their guest relations kindly arranged packed lunches for us - a difference in service that was hard to ignore.

In summary, while Swissotel’s grounds and access to other Rixos hotels were nice, the poor service, chaotic dining, and lack of attention to detail make it hard to recommend. This hotel feels more suited to Russian guests, who may tolerate the lower standards, but it fell far below our expectations for a...

The staff treat Egyptians and “local-looking” guests much better. Their attitude towards Russian-speaking guests from CIS countries was dismissive, while Europeans and Americans were treated more decently. It really felt like CIS guests simply don’t count as customers here. à la carte restaurants: Italian - the food was tasty, service was good, overall positive impressions. Greek - a complete disappointment. We had to wait a long time for a waiter, and our dessert took around 40 minutes to arrive. The waiters served us with an attitude, as if they were doing us a favor. Brazilian- the only interesting dessert was a mochi-style ball. BBQ/Grill- only the Turkish appetizers (like hummus, yogurt dips, etc.) were nice. The meat was mediocre, and desserts were poor. In general, desserts in the hotel were a letdown. The only decent ones were the crème brûlée at the Italian restaurant and the chocolate ice cream. Everything else was bland and tasteless. At breakfast, the plates near the sandwich corner were dirty. I picked up two myself and both were sticky and badly washed. Spoons were almost always missing – the waiters just wandered around the hall waiting to be called instead of serving proactively. The late dinner was nothing special, and overall, there was simply not much to eat. Housekeeping was careless – things were placed randomly without neatness. Even with a “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door, the staff still entered the room, sometimes when we were resting or sleeping. The slippers provided were in poor condition. The bathroom was shocking: nails were sticking out after unfinished repairs, the bathtub had marks, and the shower curtains were in terrible shape. Overall, the room did not meet the standards of a 5-star hotel. My aunt felt unwell as her blood pressure spiked. We waited for the doctor for about 20 minutes, even though they kept saying “5 minutes, he’s on the way.” Eventually, we found out the clinic is private, and the doctor wanted to charge money just to measure blood pressure. He refused to give her medication, even though she explained she always takes it when her pressure rises. The so-called “clinic” was in awful condition: a dusty couch, one chair, and everything messy. On top of that, we were told to wait outside in the midday heat, which made her feel even worse. The aqua park was fairly good, and the sea itself was fine, but the entry is extremely uncomfortable – very rocky. By the time you get to sandy depth, you risk tripping and injuring yourself. There were no free sunbeds. People would occupy 8–10 loungers for just two people, and no one from the staff controlled it. Service at the beach bar was average: not very slow, but definitely not fast enough for a resort of this level. The toilet near the bar was in terrible condition – the flush didn’t work, everything was sandy, and the shower hardly worked, which is disappointing since you need to wash off the salt water. The food court was okay but not tasty. The pizza was especially bad – even Papa John’s makes it much better. In the lobby bar, coffee was served in paper cups, and you had to carry it yourself, spilling along the way. No straws were provided, and the paper straws they sometimes gave fell apart in the drink. Many alcoholic drinks were missing – no tequila, no mojito. Only after asking multiple times did they bring us a so-called “mojito,” which was just Sprite with a bit of mint. Waiting for the shuttle car was almost impossible after meals, so we often had to walk in the heat. Yes, the aqua park and the views are beautiful. But the service, food, housekeeping, and medical care are absolutely not on the level of a hotel that calls itself 5 stars and “ultra all inclusive.” In reality, this is a 4-star hotel at best. We’ve stayed in Rixos and higher-class hotels before, and this was by far the worst experience. Honestly, I just want to go home as soon as possible because staying here is uncomfortable. I will never return to Swissotel and would not recommend...

We stayed at the Swissotel in Sharm El Sheikh from April 9th to 17th with our family, including twin toddlers. I’m writing this review from the perspective of a family traveling with small children, and with the hope that this feedback helps other travelers – and ideally the Rixos Group management – to better understand where the experience fell short.||To be fair: some staff members, especially at the coffee bar and in the main restaurant, were very friendly and welcoming. We sincerely appreciated their efforts. Unfortunately, they couldn’t compensate for the many structural and service-related issues throughout the hotel.||Here’s what didn’t work for us:| • The food was repetitive and not of high quality, with very few healthy options. At the à la carte Italian restaurant, for example, “Bruschetta di pomodoro” was just plain toast you had to make yourself from the salad bar – disappointing for a 5-star setting.| • The main buffet area was always overcrowded. It felt like a daily battle for tables, especially with a stroller. The atmosphere was tense – guests didn’t seem relaxed, and we certainly weren’t.| • Service processes were inefficient: It took us three days and multiple follow-ups to finally receive a second child bed. This kind of issue should not happen in a family-friendly resort.| • The Kids Club was poorly maintained – many toys were broken, and for children under 4, there were very few usable offerings.| • The All-Inclusive package was inconsistent: Simple things like filled donuts or chocolate near the entrance came with unexpected extra charges.| • The gym was unusable – both treadmills were out of order.| • Overall, the infrastructure felt worn down, from public restrooms to room fixtures and supplies.||What we did like:| • The kids’ entertainment in the evening, especially the Mini Disco, was very well done. The location was thoughtfully decorated, and our kids truly enjoyed it.| • This was a key highlight of the trip – and honestly, without it, the experience would have been even harder for our children and for us as parents.||After this stay, we moved on to the Steigenberger Resort in Hurghada, which also holds a 5-star rating – and the difference is night and day:| • Reception, dining, service and organization are far better and more thought-through.| • You can tell they think from the guest’s perspective, and everything flows more smoothly.| • Even the general atmosphere among guests is better – no crowding, no pushing, a calm and structured environment. That may not be 100% due to the hotel, but the framework they set clearly helps.||Final verdict:|I’m writing this review critically and honestly because I want other families to make an informed decision – and because I sincerely hope that the Rixos Group management in Turkey sees this feedback.|If Swissotel in Sharm El Sheikh could reach the same standard as Rixos in Belek or Maxx Royal in Antalya, that would be fantastic – for the region, for Egypt, and for future guests.||While some staff were friendly and well-intentioned, the overall experience was not relaxing, not up to 5-star expectations, and not truly family-friendly.|As it stands, we...