Iberotel Casa Del Mar Resort — Hotel in Red Sea

Me and my partner stayed here for 10 nights all inclusive. Overall we had a good stay, however, we rated this hotel a 2/5 stars because of several different reasons.

To start with the good, the catering, bar and cleaning staff were fantastic. They went above and beyond to make sure our stay was impeccable and they were super friendly and approachable. A special shoutout to Ahmed, one of the workers in the main restaurant, who approached us every day to see if we needed anything and was always super helpful. The rooms are very clean and modern, a good size and had everything you needed. Thank you to the cleaning team that left us wonderful towel animals in our room! The Italian restaurant was amazing, the food was so good and included with all inclusive which was great. It was a god send that they had the Italian restaurant because the food in the main restaurant was quite poor. The resort is beautiful, including the spacious pools and 2 pool bars on site, which were perfect. Another great thing, was the private access to the beach via the sister hotel (Jaz Elite Casa Del Mar). You could go over to the hotel across the road and use the beach facilities including having drinks free of charge as all inclusive.

Onto the bad, to start with as already mentioned, the food in the main restaurant is quite poor, due to the very limited variety of food, with the same food most nights.

Next thing that wasn’t great, was the entertainment. As mentioned in several other reviews, this is a French orientated hotel. The entertainment was mostly in French, with English music sang in French instead. There was very limited entertainment, with nights where nothing was on unless you paid 20€ to go to the beach parties that the hotel try and get you to go to. As we are not party people, we did not go, however, we found out through other English people here, that if you go by yourself to the party, you pay 8€ on the door instead of paying 20€ by going with the hotel. Every night we were at the entertainment, the animation team pestered us to go to the beach parties, even after saying no on several occasions. A lot of them still continued to ask us, even when we had stated that we do not want to go and we don’t like to go clubbing. Even when we said no, they asked why and we had to justify why we didn’t want to go. This is because they can make money from us going. We felt as though we couldn’t sit peacefully and enjoy the entertainment they did have, without being pestered to go and dance, or to go to the beach parties/club nights.

We didn’t appreciate that when we had just sat down to watch the entertainment, the animation staff tried to get us on the dance floor. Even after persisting with saying no we didn’t want to, they then grabbed us and physically tried to drag us onto the dance floor. Due to this, we felt we needed to go out of the hotel at night time, or stay in our room to avoid this.

One final thing that we didn’t like about the hotel, was that they had a building specifically for French only, called the Le Bouchon. On several evenings, the French got sent invitations to these special events and if you weren’t French you didn’t get invited. I think the hotel should specify these things on the websites, so you know to expect it.

Lastly, we didn’t appreciate that the staff come around to ask you to leave a 5 star review on the hotel, stating 5 stars only. They try to push you to do it there and then, which might be why this hotel has a lot of 5 star reviews.

UPDATE FROM ORIGINAL REVIEW - after leaving our original review, the management team approached us and sat us down to discuss the things we were unhappy with. They were very apologetic about our complaints. We really appreciated this and felt we had been listened to and that they wanted to make a positive change. They even gave us complimentary gifts and a special dinner to apologise. This has changed our view on the hotel as a whole and we have therefore changed our 2 star reviews, to a 4 star. Thank you to the team at Iberotel Casa Del Mel...

This hotel is ok, average at the most. I can compare this hotel to the others we've stayed in over the years but I wont and only base it on this holiday alone. I booked for November 2024 based on the 4.9 google reviews, not ideal but hey. We've been to Hurgharda 3 times before so we know what to expect. The staff are great, friendly and definitely work hard. Animation team were great with the kids, even though there were no more than 10 kids (outside of school holidays) they did a great job during the evening kids show. Restaurant staff were attentive, they recognised that we had a small child and pulled up a baby chair most evenings when available. The food is ok, not a massive choice which was fine, normally these buffet type hotels have too much of the same but they limited the choices and it was decent. Downside is the food wasn't always piping hot and dry, this could be down to overcooking and the lights the foods sit under. The pools are nice, it wasn't overly crowded but i can imagine if it's summer and packed it wont be fun sitting around due to the lack of actual area for sunbeds, but it wasn't a problem for us, did feel a little close to others at times. i felt the pool wasn't designed great, they have a sandy grip type edge I'm assuming for anti slip but when you get in and out of the pool you tend to scrape your body. one of the pools is heated which makes going in November a treat, the weather wasn't overly hot which makes this a nice touch. Kids pool was good. We swapped rooms only because it was a little far to walk with kids, the hotel were kind enough to find us a better room poolside. the room sizes are decent, plenty of room to relax. its modern however our room had a few defects within the shower which could have been sorted, mostly all aesthetic just poor workmanship like horrible silicon finish around the shower tap and patching up of walls. you have an option to try the Italian restaurant at the hotel, which you need to book, its just an escape from the main hustle and bustle of the main dining area, but to be honest the food isn't great, risotto was really dry so don't expect anything amazing. the spaghetti for the kids is the same as the restaurant but works for the kids. Like I said its just an escape from the main dining area for one evening. the beach is separate to the main hotel, need to walk about 400m out and across the road. the issue I have with the beach is that it's sectioned off from their sister hotel (Jaz Casa Del Mar), I understand its different hotel under the same group but the drinks are served from this sister hotel why cant the beach be shared, they have sectioned a small small area for Iberotel and it is ruined with the magic of being down the beach. nevertheless it serves it purpose as a beach and the kids enjoyed it. beach food is good, choices of pasta and burgers. Even though the staff are great, there's one thing the hotel did which wasn't great, they did pester us all the time to write a 5 star google review on the first day and they had staff walking around throughout the day asking us how we are and making sure everything was good. it became quite a horrible daily occurrence. I understand why it is important, however customers just want to enjoy their pool time, beach time or whatever they're doing not review you. so my advice is note down when your guests arrive and when they leave and on the final few days find out how everything was not hound them every day. Overall we had a really nice family holiday, staff were great, hotel is close to the airport and close to the mall if you fancy going for a walk (advice book using uber £2.00). Did the job for a last minute...

Disappointing Holiday Experience in Egypt with TUI – 2/5 Stars

I recently booked a holiday to Egypt via TUI, expecting a relaxing stay at a 4-star hotel. Unfortunately, the experience fell far short of expectations, and I feel compelled to share an honest review to help others make an informed decision.

Accommodation – 3 Stars at Best The hotel was advertised as a 4-star property, but in reality, it was outdated and poorly maintained—closer to a 3-star at best. Built in 2008 and never refurbished, the rooms were small, dated, and in desperate need of renovation. The bathroom doors didn’t lock, and housekeeping was practically non-existent—our room was cleaned only once during our week-long stay. To make matters worse, the hotel frequently ran out of basic essentials like toilet paper and towels. Despite pointing this out to reception three times, the issue was never properly resolved.

Staff – Friendly Only for Tips The staff were initially very welcoming—until they realized tips weren’t flowing as expected. After the first day, service dropped significantly, and we were largely ignored unless we were handing out money. The entertainment team was particularly pushy, pressuring us to leave a 5-star review. When I left a fair 4-star rating (which was already generous), they asked me to delete it, claiming it would cause "big problems" for them. This was extremely unprofessional and made the whole experience feel manipulated.

Food – Repetitive and Poor Quality The food was a major letdown—overcooked, bland, and the same options every day. Even when trying to be cautious, many guests (including myself) ended up with stomach issues. I later learned that dishes were being washed in dirty tap water, which likely contributed to the problem. The only saving grace was the beach restaurant, which served some decent meals.

Excursions – Scams at Every Turn Booking excursions felt like navigating a minefield of scams. A supposedly cheap quad bike trip ended up costing much more due to hidden fees (e.g., "government charges," forced scarf rentals). Locals were constantly trying to overcharge or trick tourists, making it hard to relax.

The Few Positives Despite the issues, the beach was beautiful, and the cocktails were good. The beach restaurant also offered a few edible meals, which was a relief compared to the main buffet.

Final Verdict – Would Not Recommend While Egypt itself has stunning sights, this TUI package was poorly managed, with misleading hotel ratings, subpar cleanliness, and pushy staff. If you’re booking with TUI, research the hotel independently and be prepared for upsells and stomach troubles. A 2/5 for the few positives, but overall, a disappointing experience.

Advice for Future Travelers: Bring your own toiletries (toilet paper, hand sanitizer). Stick to bottled water only—even for brushing teeth. Be extremely firm with vendors to avoid scams. Manage expectations—this is not a true...