TUI BLUE Crystal Bay

Having visited the Rixos in Sharm in May it was difficult not to make a comparison. However for a last minute, 10 night trip Crystal Bay fulfilled most of our needs. Check in was quick and easy and our room (505) was perfect for us - adjacent to the lobby with a pool view. I had seen many criticisms of the rooms but whilst it showed some signs of wear and tear it was a good size and kept very clean. No issues there... Grounds were immaculate and constantly tended to. Food was decent. At breakfast we ate mainly in the buffet seated in the adults only area which was nice and quiet with excellent service. We did eat at the breakfast alacarte in Yades twice during our stay which provided a more relaxed experience. One of the upsides of the hotel was the unlimited alacarte offering in the evening, easily booked through the app. We didn't eat in the evening buffet at all during our stay and I was surprised at quite how easy it was to select the restaurant we wanted on the evening/time we wanted. We ate at all five restaurants (my wife isn't a fish eater so declined Felucca). Yades was so-so, Manohar Indian and Elia Mediterranean were good. The Mangal BBQ and Dalila Egyptian were excellent so dined at each of these twice. Location/atmosphere at both of these was fantastic - especially in Dalila at the end of the promenade sat overlooking the sea. Just be prepared for the meat sweats!! We spent no time around the pools at all - really couldn't be doing with sunbed wars and prefer sunbeds that aren't in the shade; not easy around pools as most are under fixed canopies. We preferred the Oasis adults only area and spend all of the time on the pontoon which was lovely and peaceful. This was truly wonderful; shaded cabanas if you did want to cool down and bean bag beds when in the sun. Direct access to deep water was great and bar service impeccable. Drink offering was OK; cocktails hit and miss at the sports bar and some outside bars, very good on the lobby terrace but excellent in the lobby bar inside. My main complaint was evening entertainment and that's where I can't help draw a comparison with the Rixos Sharm (admittedly this was adults only so catering to a different audience). The entertainment team were very friendly and did a decent job but calibre of evening entertainment was poor. There is insufficient seating on the lobby terrace where most shows took part especially if you choose to eat later as we do. However this wasn't too much of an issue as the shows weren't really for us. On the two evenings they staged professional shows they were in the amphitheatre - however this lacked a bar, was way too hot and lacked any atmosphere. Likely why most people stayed away. This was a shame and can definitely be improved. All in all we had a really nice relaxing stay. Would I return? Possibly if the price was right......

We had the best time here at Crystal Bay it has been the best holiday we have ever had. The animation team Fe Mo Ahmed and Maria are great they make you feel so welcome they get you to participate in the activities which are great fun. We had Foam party’s on the beach Pool party Belly dancing and fire show on the beach too. Festival in the hotel next door where they take you by coach and at the end of the show we danced our shoes off. Then they drive you back to the hotel. The room was very nice it was big enough for us we had 2 double beds sofa 2 chairs we slept like a baby it was that comfortable. Everyone was so accommodating from the cleaners to the waiters and the pool waiter was always on form getting you your drinks etc. The lifeguard would also help you find a sun bed put the umbrella up get you your red flag so you wouldn’t be bothered whilst Sunbathing. We also enjoyed going to the Sunrise Festival on both evenings. I’m just saying we had the best time and we are planing another visit soon.

This was our first time to this hotel but not to Egypt. Arrival. We arrived around 11pm and were given drinks and hot towels. It was too late to eat. Room was very clean and what we ask for on the ground floor. Food We only ate at the buffet one which was fine. The rest of the time we ate at the other restaurants. The bbq was our favourite which we had twice. Entertainment No much to say about this than don’t expect and thing too good, but we like a quiet evening anyway. Beach The beach was lovely and clean and a real bonus to the hotel. Staff All very good and will go above and beyond to make sure you are happy. Posh club We upgraded to this while in the hotel and got a much better price than booking beforehand. We love this as own part of the beach plus swim up room and butler service. Thank you to Hajer whom made our stay even more perfect. Overall we really enjoyed our stay and would recommend this hotel to couples looking for a very relaxed and chilled holiday.

First of all, we booked through TUI & we booked another hotel. That was not ready at the time of our holiday so we were moved to this one, in a jacuzzi suite with no posh club. Despite multiple requests for posh club to be included, due to us booking posh club at the other hotel. On arrival - posh club included - thanks TUI? Ahmed was wonderful, really couldn’t do more for us if he tried, very friendly attentive and personable. I would not book posh club if you are an active couple/family, who don’t like to spend much time at the beach, you won’t get the most of it. However if like us, you enjoy nothing more than lazing about in a private cabana with excellent service , book it. We didn’t even really use the hotel much, just stayed in our little posh bubble. We have stayed in a lot of TUI blue hotels, this one is the best by far in terms of rooms, value & service. However it’s not a 5 star for two reasons. the room was lovely, spacious, and clean, however clear wear and tear was apparent. Cracks in the mirrors, uneven floors, nothing to impact your holiday , but not what you’d expect from a 5 star. And the food. the buffet was very underwhelming, as were the à la cartes - except for the BBQ one, that was outstanding , some of the best meat I have ever had. The Greeks do food better, the Egyptians have superior service. In my opinion. The beach was lovely, a little rocky in places but quite stunning. The grounds were very well maintained , the staff were lovely. Housekeeping especially, above and beyond. brought me extra wine, milk etc. check in and out was smooth - I think that’s push club tho, we did see other couples waiting longer to check in and be taken to their rooms. Overall, it’s a gorgeous hotel, with exceptional staff. average food & rooms In need of an update/ refresh. Would recommend and would return.

Background: We spent 11 nights at the TUI Blue Crystal Bay from 12th September 2026. There are a mixture of positives and unfortunately a few negatives about the hotel. If there was a marking of 3.5 I would probably mark the hotel as that as it would be a bit better than average. We predominately stay in 4 star but occasionally 5 star hotels and are aged in are 50's and 60's. The average age of guest 45 - 50 as a guess. Starting with the positives: The workers at the hotel are within the best that I have experienced. The staff at the pool bar, bars and restaurants are so hard working and attentive. As are the lifeguards who also chip in and assist with putting your daily beach towels on your loungers and assist with putting up your sun umbrella's. We tipped regularly (either personally or via the tip boxes that the staff would put their tips into to then share out), but the service was to the same standard should people chose not too tip. They will also source and move them to where you want them around the pool and also maintain the pool and pool filtering. The grounds are extremely well kept and is pretty. As is the beach area. Everything is kept very clean. The food is decent both in the main buffet and the themed restaurants. We liked the Mangal BBQ restaurant beat followed by the Manohar Indian restaurant. Booking restaurant tables was easy via the TUI Blue App and you could attend the specialist restaurants as many times as you wanted. The entertainment team chatted to people around the hotel but were predominately from Germany and seemed to focus more on German guests, although included everyone. And the not so positives: The room that we stayed in (637 family suite) appeared dated. It was a partial sea view room on the top floor as requested but did not appear to have seen any major update in years. The bathroom was particularly tired. (Our cleaner was very friendly and did a good job by the way). Both of us came down with Egyptian Belly within a day of each other on the 6th and 7th day respectively. It lasted for at least three days. There could be many reasons for catching Egyptian Belly, but we had the same routine and are used to visiting hot countries (Egypt, Mexico, Jamacia and others) and haven't had it before to this degree and it did impact on the holiday experience. We went to the local shopping mail after putting up with it with two days and got some Antinal for about £1 per pack of 24 which eventually sorted it out before our holiday ended. The entertainment is not up to much with it being mostly an external singing act of a reasonable standard. Do not expect groups of people on stage performing. Conclusion: Nice holiday overall but not somewhere that I would return to.