Pickalbatros Laguna Vista Hotel - Sharm El Sheikh — Hotel in South Sinai

I am always very sceptical when reading reviews, I genuinely only ever belive the bad ones, and I looked at sooooo many before we booked here. The good, bad the ugly and we was a little apprehensive because of the bad ones. However, 12 of us have just finished 7 nights here, 7 adults and 5 children ranging from 1 to 7. ||The rooms, are spotless, the hotel grounds are absolutely immaculate! Like one of the cleanest places iv ever seen, but not just that, the the trees, bushes grass etc is like Wimbledon, not a thing out of place, there’s people cleaning all day and night, we was sat on the balcony one night having a drink and wondered what this man was doing so I asked him and he was doing pest control and honestly he didn’t miss an inch with his spray gun. ||The food… I’m no where near as fusyy as my Mrs or kids, my kids lived off chips, nuggets and pizza all holiday, my Mrs ate the pasta every day which they cook fresh for you and it’s really really nice, I ate pretty much everything all day and night except for breakfast I just had omelettes and cereal, my sisters kids are less fussy and they ate the pasta too. At the snack bar they do chicken and it’s hit and miss but when it’s nice, it’s 10/10, me and my nephew said it’s better than the thighs at Nando’s, but then the next day it was over cooked and chewy. The evening meals… the golden Buddha restaurant, the food and staff were amazing, it was very similar to a Chinese back home, and if you’re a big eater like me, there’s sooo much food, they just keep filling you up with chicken or beef, it’s a very limited menu tho, sweet n sour chicken and beef sizzling, obv the rice and noodle etc. the other restaurant was called Concerto, again limited menu, chicken goat cheese with rice / chips, beef steak or lasagna but again, really really really nice and the staff were so quick. The bread and mushroom soup was very nice too. The other main food courts are decent enough to eat in each night, not amazingggg but some nights very good some nights just alright, I never left hungry tho so can’t complain. ||The pool bars are approx two min walk from each pool, not the longest walk but a bit annoying in the heat every time you want a drink, the waiters do come round and ask you every now and then tho. ||The beer, lager is alright, I drank it all holiday, it’s your typical holiday beer, it’s a bit hard to get drunk at night tho coz it’s table service and it’s not the quickest, the night time entertainment is average, too much techno music my mum and sister said, they had like Colombian dancers on one night but it’s nothing to write home about, the kids entertainment is average, like one women dancing but tbf our kids all enjoyed just copying her dance, me and my nephew went to a foam party one night which was half decent. ||The activities we did were brilliant! Banana boat, the other boat thing, snorkelling , quads, camels, dolphin. BARTER / HAGGLE like mad and you get it much cheaper. ||Quad bike excursion was crazyyyyyy! Crazy as in you have to cross two live roads to get to the camels / food, I felt like I was on them wacky roads you see in India, but the actual quad biking once one the desert was more chills than anythin, I had my one year old son on with me an my Mrs had our three year old girl, all kids loved it, but if I went with the lads I’d be a bit gutted coz you can’t go fast, you all just follow in a line. ||Everyone else’s overall comments were “ very good “ “ rooms were massive “ “ cleaner Ahmed Hani was brilliant “ “ few mosquitos at the beach so bring repellent “ “ yeah decent “ “ no complaints “ ||Oh I forgot, the gym!! Mint gym, I went four times in the week, it’s literally got everything you could need, it’s the same|Machines we get in England, lots of cardio stuff too, lots of free weights and every machine you can think of. No complaints at all, decent enough music on and it’s got AC. ||Fake Windsurfing, bikes, tennis, paddle all free of charge. Would defo recommend. ||Lastly, it’s next door to a HardRock cafe and they had two nights on whilst we were there, £15 unlimited drinks all night, karaoke etc, brilliant nights, unlimited beer 8-11, well worth it but they get slow from like 10:30. But top night and it’s really busy. ||Take £1’s in English or $1 dollars for|Tips in and around the hotel etc. the average wage here is £220 a month! So they really appreciate...

Our family had an overall enjoyable stay, and my kids especially loved the slides. The room was spacious, and I truly appreciated the high level of cleanliness maintained throughout the hotel. However, for future trips, I would likely opt for a better alternative. Below are a few areas where I believe your service could improve: Service and staff attitude. The housekeeping team, lifeguards, and bus driver were exceptionally polite and attentive. Special appreciation goes to the lifeguards, who were always vigilant, ensuring the safety of every child and informing guests when something wasn’t right. In contrast, the staff in restaurants, bars, and reception seemed indifferent, a basic level of politeness should be expected. Beach volleyball court. As a volleyball player, I was shocked by the condition of the sand on the beach volleyball court. During our first match, many of us sustained injuries because the surface was too hard. Padel court equipment. The hotel has two fantastic padel courts, yet there were no proper padel rackets available—only beach tennis rackets, which are not suitable for padel. Additionally, the balls provided were tennis balls, which are not suitable for padel. Padel balls typically last only two games, yet the ones provided seemed extremely old. Kids club experience. The kids' club was almost non-existent. No staff greeted them upon arrival, and there were very few toys to play with. The club itself lacked energy, enthusiasm, and engaging activities. Loud music at the pool. The music volume at the pool near Capitano was consistently too high. It was so loud that it was uncomfortable to walk past the speaker without covering our ears. A more moderate volume would improve the atmosphere. Food quality & variety. The food was generally mediocre. The selection of fruits was very limited, with the same options every day. I also missed having a variety of starters, such as different cheeses. Expanding the food variety would significantly enhance the dining experience. Early morning wake-up call mishap. On our departure day, we had originally been scheduled to take the bus at 5 AM but instead booked a taxi through the hotel for 6:30 AM to get a bit more rest. We informed the reception, and they noted it down. However, despite this, we were woken up by a call from reception at 5 AM. This completely defeated the purpose of arranging a later taxi and was quite frustrating. Better coordination in such cases would be appreciated. Unfair towel charge. At check-out, we were charged €10 for a towel that we accidentally left on a lounger, which the hotel staff had collected. It feels unreasonable to charge for a towel that remained within the hotel premises. Uncontrolled smoking areas. It was extremely frustrating to see guests smoking everywhere, with no regard for children being around. My kids were repeatedly exposed to cigarette smoke, which is unacceptable in a family-friendly environment. The hotel should designate specific smoking areas and enforce a strict policy to prevent smoking in public areas where families and children gather. Language use at the hotel. It was unpleasant to hear Russian being spoken everywhere. While I understand that the hotel has many Russian-speaking guests, as Europeans, we are deeply shocked by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and hearing Russian frequently felt uncomfortable. It would be more appropriate for hotel staff to prioritize speaking English, ensuring a more inclusive and neutral environment for all guests.

While we enjoyed certain aspects of our stay, these issues significantly impacted our overall experience. Addressing them would greatly improve guest satisfaction and the hotel’s reputation. With better service, facilities, and attention to guest needs, the hotel has great potential to offer an...

Laguna Vista Resort – Holiday Review (5th–16th September, Room 3001, booked with TUI)

Overall, we had a really enjoyable stay at Laguna Vista. The hotel is spotless, the staff work incredibly hard to make sure you’re looked after, and we were lucky with our room location which made everything very convenient. There were definitely highlights that made the trip memorable, especially around the pool with the animation team and certain staff members who went above and beyond. That said, there are a few areas where the experience could be improved to make it even better.

Positives Room/location: We didn’t book a garden view bungalow, but were given one (Room 3001) which turned out to be a great location, close to the spa, pools and reception. Animation team: Tito, Mando, Kris, Liza and their manager were brilliant, really friendly, polite, high-energy and very good at their jobs. They brought so much life around the pool and always had time for guests. Staff & service: The waiters and staff genuinely can’t do enough for you. Special shoutouts to Mohamed in the lobby bar and Emad in the Capitano/Red Sky bar – Emad in particular really made our holiday around the pool with his service and personality. Food: Despite seeing some negative reviews before travelling, we actually found the food very good. There was a lot of variety, and we never felt like we were eating the same thing every day. Cleanliness: The resort is spotless. Rooms and public areas are kept extremely clean at all times. Sunbeds: No sunbed rush! It was refreshing not to have to fight for a spot, there were always plenty available.

Areas for Improvement Food flavouring: While the food variety was good, a lot of dishes could do with more seasoning. Salt and spices were available at the tables, but the food itself was often a bit bland. Daytime entertainment: The animation team were great, but the schedule itself felt repetitive. For example, darts at 11am followed by pool zumba every day. A bit more variety in games or activities would have been nice. Drinks menu: The all-inclusive drinks list was quite limited. That said, if you tip, staff are often happy to make off-menu drinks, but it would be good to have more choice as standard. Evening entertainment: This was the weakest area. Shows often ended too quickly, and activities relied heavily on guests participating (such as couple games) rather than proper entertainment. Most guests want to be entertained, they don’t want to be the entertainment. The DJ created a good atmosphere and got people dancing, but this was often interrupted by games that stopped the flow and led to people leaving. Golden Buddha opened at 11pm but was always very quiet.

Notes of Interest Guest mix: The hotel is very multicultural. This isn’t a criticism of the hotel at all, but we did find some of the non-English-speaking guests quite rude at times, pushing in at buffets, bumping into people without acknowledgement. A smile, please, or thank you goes a long way and is universally understood. Hard Rock Café nights (Thursdays & Saturdays): These were a brilliant recommendation from the animation team. The atmosphere was fantastic – live performers, including a harmonica player, great singers, and staff joining in. A special thanks to Kris and Liza for taking us along and making it such a fun and...