JAZ Makadina — Hotel in Makadi Bay

I've travelled to many countries on business and for holidays over the years. Stayed in many 5* hotels and resorts over the world, Europe, far east, Carribbean and also some in Egypt for context, in Hurghada, Sharm and Marsa Alam.

Personal holiday travelling has changed over the years, from travelling as a couple and in the last 8 years, it's been family orientated holidays, kids growing and needing to find places to suit our taste and needs.

I've used TripAdvisor heavily over the years and also Google to ensure that we generally get what we're expecting. Nothing worse than coming away and finding out that you've got to spend 7,10 or 14 days in a hotel or resort from hell. I've also stayed in some that push travelers for review and even witnessed staffing resorts pushing guests and typing reviews. Safe to say there is a mix and growing distrust in so called traveler reviews.

Our stay in the Jaz Makidina, arrived in the evening and was pleased to be ushered to dinner before they closed. That was a good start, it always bad arriving late and having little to eat.

The resort itself is small, a number hotels that form a much larger complex. There is open path was between them all, but guests seem to stick to their own hotels.

The beach area is all sandy, the part for the resort is quite small, as such there is little room between the sun loungers, you feel quite close to others on the beach. There's enough parasols that offer pretty good shade. All feels to packed in which is a shame. There is just one pool split by a bridge. It's good size however. Very little shade around the pool and in the heat of the day it's somewhere to avoid.

There is a beach water service, the guys do a pretty good job with the amount of guests. Drinks are ok, nothing special. The service is polite and with a smile, these guys do a good job. It's still pretty slow at times so be prepared for that and get up and get yourself service at the bar. There is no bottled water, just some fairly bashed up old cups that you're served water in. You can get from the machine at the main bar, it needs ice and with that comes risks.

We stayed in block 3, so very close to the main pool area. The block we stayed in was the same as the others, pretty standard layout here in Egypt. It was very clean but a little tired would be the best description. The Aircon worked and was cold. Sadly it sounds like you're sleeping in the cabin of a Lancaster bomber. It's so noisy and not even in it's sound, at times it's almost rumbling. Like it's shaking itself apart. The bathroom is small with a single sink and small shower. Quite old but clean. The cleaner did a great job of tidying and sorting out room... Often left us some very interesting towell sculptures.

Food overall is pretty good, the buffet food varies quite a bit, the restaurant is pretty small and seating can be difficult, best to go after it gets quiet. Can't really complain about the food. Drink service at meal times was pretty poor. On one occasion we'd finished and sat elsewhere for the small show. We saw him go up and leave the drinks at the empty table. Not very good. We had a meal at the Indian, overall we thought that was great, service was also very good.

One of the days we went to the water park that's on the complex, don't be fooled, it's not at the hotel, this was quite misleading. Anyway, got on the coach and went up the road, you can't walk it in that heat. Arrived and it went downhill from there. It's ok, bit concrete hell for me. The slides look pretty impressive, as the kids are small we didn't get the chance to use them. The kids pool was pretty good with the big pirate in the middle and a few slides. No drinks there, you need to take your own that's hard with no bottles or buy some. We didn't stay that long...

Overall the stay was ok, wasn't worth the money in the school holidays, it's an average resort at best, 4 star at a push, on a generous day. 3.5 would be more fitting on a...

Beach: the quality of water and sand is brilliant. However the beach infrastructure is old, like wind protectors and laying pads. There are also very noisy and nerving beach sellers who are trying to sell you spa, sailing, diving offers. No matter how many times you warn them, it is not enough even for half a day. They will keep coming up. Room: very cosy and roomy space. The beds are incredibly big. Housekeeping staff is nice and friendly, we appreciated different figures made with towels on our bed every day. On this note: the area of the hotel is very well looked after for and is kept clean. A big plus. Service: the waiters and the housekeeping staff are very friendly and hard working. The receptionists are often rude and do 20 tasks at a time and let you wait without giving you any reason. Chefs are also professional, although food sortiment could have been better. The recreational activity manager (responsible for Tennis booking) was allowing himself to speak improperly with guests, like "you are making problems" after we asked two times to get a reservation. Especially worthwhile mentioning are waiters at the beach who deserve much appreciation. Entertainment: overall, very positive animation team however do not expect as a young Traveller anything interesting for you. The songs at the evening are old and repetitive. Moreover the shows take place in the area in front of reception which is not an Amphitheater or something like that. You sit behind each other and don't see what the performers are showing. Recreational activities: literally 1/10. Only present and usable amenitie is tennis court which is harder to get booked than a Michelin star restaurant. The manager expects you to pay in order to reserve a good time slot for you. We tried 3 days in a row to get a place for 17 o'clock and all without success, although we called in ealry in the morning. No own spa and Fitness area. Small gym area is a size of a bedroom - not usable. Food: in General, a decent selection of food, but do not expect a really 5 star hotel quality food here. The dishes are repetitive and sometimes even not that what the name suggests it needs to be. We had a beef lasagna one evening where there was no beef visible between the layers, no crusty cheesy top and the layers were falling apart. Meat, on the other hand, was good grilled all the time. All in all, good selection, good quality, however normal taste. Check-in: it started with a friendly greetings at the front desk. We arrived at 2 o'clock in the night. Then, we got assigned a room and got taken to it. Our luggages were also taken. We discovered later on that night that there is a very loud hotel equipment building directly opposite to out balcony and that the windows didn't get it silenced in any way. We called in the reception early in the morning and got changed our room without problems. It was a bad experience at first, but they managed it alright. Check-out: we were checking out at 23 o'clock for a night flight. We informed the hotel reception 24 hours in advance that we will need a lunch box to take with us and reminded them once more at 14 o'clock. We come into a reception at 22:30 and it turns out that they do not know about the lunch box. They rushed out to prepare two for us, and brought us a literal Box with stuff in it. Three concernes: 1) why box? This is not an ideal form factor for traveling. And they are huge. 2) they presented them to us open. We did not manage to close them ourselves on our way to Airport since it was complicated and ended up cherry picking from the box what we wanted to have and packing it in our own bags. 3) there were among other processed food and drinks in the box two "sandwiches" with literally one slice of chees in one sandwich and one slice of beef salami in the other. No butter, no salad, no...

Well, this review will be long—because it deserves every word. Our family of four, including two teenage kids, spent the last two weeks of July at Jaz Makadina, and it was one of the most memorable holidays we’ve ever had.

🛬 Arrival & First Impressions From the moment we stepped through the reception doors, we were greeted with genuine warmth. Omar from the front-of-house team was especially helpful, giving us a tour and making sure we felt at home right away. Throughout our stay, any query we had was met with prompt and friendly assistance—no hesitation, just pure hospitality.

🏡 Accommodation – House 9

We stayed in House 9, and it was fantastic. The layout of the resort is cleverly designed so that even during evening shows, you’re not disturbed by noise. I’ve seen comments about loud music, but honestly, we didn’t experience that at all. Our family room was always spotless, and the entire resort is immaculate. You constantly see staff working—cleaning, serving, prepping—it’s a well-oiled machine.

🍽️ Food & Dining The restaurant offered tasty and varied meals every night. I personally missed simple scrambled eggs at breakfast (unless you queued at the egg station where they scramble three eggs in a tiny pan—no seasoning, no milk). Otherwise, it was boiled eggs only at the buffet. But lunch and dinner? Always exciting! The daily BBQs were a highlight—absolutely delicious.

We had a couple of days with unsettled tummies and realized it was likely from fresh vegetables washed in local water. So, a tip: stick to cooked or steamed veggies, peel your fruit, or rinse it with bottled water if you’re sensitive to changes in digestion.

🍹 Pool Bar & Staff Shoutouts Evenings at the pool bar were a joy thanks to Ahmed and Mahmoud—absolute stars who kept the cocktails flowing and the vibes merry. Mohamed, one of the bar servers, was always on hand with drink top-ups, no matter how busy it got. And mornings? Nothing beat a coffee at the pool bar with a COOKIE 😊 (one special waiter will know exactly what I mean!). Faris deserves a shoutout too—always tidying up, keeping the area safe and spotless.

🎭 Entertainment & Atmosphere The entertainment team—Afro, Cheeto, Alberto, and Bogy—were phenomenal. Their energy and charisma brought life to every day. That said, a couple of suggestions:

Evening shows end abruptly at 11pm, and the resort goes silent. It would be lovely to have some chilled background music to wind down and finish drinks in a relaxed setting. Music during the day and evening can get repetitive, especially on longer stays. A bit more variety—some current dance tracks—could really elevate the vibe and get guests dancing without needing a nudge from the entertainment team. 💧 Room for Improvement

One small issue: the lack of bottled water or refill stations. It would be great to have easier access to water without needing to ask waiters constantly, especially when you’re drinking glass after glass in the heat. Shame that all water activities in the day are carried out only in the pool, beautiful see and classes in the sea water would attract much more people. 💖 Final Thoughts Make sure to appreciate coral reef on the beech, take time to get your snorkels out and observe beautiful sea life which is mesmerising. And if your budget can stretch- Scuba diving experience is a must! What truly made this holiday special was the people. We felt so welcomed, cared for, and appreciated throughout our stay. It’s no surprise that we’ve already booked to come back in 2 months 3rd October—because Jaz Makadina is absolutely worth it.

Thank you to everyone who made our first visit unforgettable. See you...