Pickalbatros Royal Grand Resort Sharm El Sheikh

My husband and I stayed for our fourth visit 2-16 July. We hadn’t been for a couple of years and was pleasantly surprised by the changes. As well as a Beach bar, they now have a new beach club that serves food at lunchtime and there is also a DJ that plays mello Ibizia vibe music so nice to sit there at lunchtime having a drink and looking out to the sea. The beach bar is also nice to chill in the shade. It is a shame that they only have high chairs. It might be more popular in the day if the seating was more comfortable (like the beach club seating). The animation team are great especially Mando and Pepsi. Weekly beach, pool and foam parties were great and regular day and night activities. For the younger travellers they also arrange trips to the local nightclubs. Evening food is top notch. The Cullina offers à la carte Mexican or seafood. Many types of tagine cooked meats in the Mediterranean along with lots of Mango for dessert (also lots of cake choices). Soprano (main restaurant) has lots of choice too. Bravo to all the chefs and staff in the restaurants. Special thanks to chef Goma for the special requests. Thanks to Andy for keeping us supplied with (English) tea and coffee and a smile at breakfast time. All the bar staff and waiters were great looking after us. We were never left thirsty. Daytime pool bar drinks served by Emad, Nader and Mahmoud. Mediterranean’s happy Omar and of course the super stars in the Lobby bar - Ahmed, Mohammed and Eisham always looking after us and everyone else even during the busy football matches. Not least Khalid who was on the graveyard shift (appreciated for the late night/early morning football matches). We stayed in room 1136 which was convenient as was right next to the main pool. This room is a little dated but has everything you need. I understand refurbishment is ongoing throughout so ask for one of the new rooms near reception if you prefer modern. Thanks to Ahmed for keeping our room so clean and the amusing towel art. Not least thank you to Sobhy, Roma and all the lifeguard team (Mohammed and Abdeldiez “Zeus” at the main pool) for your help, humour and professionalism. Special thanks to Roma and Samy for helping us get down the jetty. It only took 4 visits to finally experience the delights of snorkelling off the jetty. Thank you to the whole hotel. We look forward to returning again. Outside the hotel: There are some shops up the road in Il Marcato including a MacDonalds for the kids. There is a great little shop that sells snacks including nuts and crisps at excellent prices. There is also a Syrian restaurant that is popular with locals. I would recommend avoiding the supermarket opposite (you go up a few steps to enter) if you are after some tobacco as it is all fake (as we found out when we got back to then UK).

The architecture of the buildings is simply fascinating: stylish, harmonious, the atmosphere of an oriental resort is immediately felt. Animation at altitude — Nastya, Ksyusha and Yamal make your vacation really fun: the activities are interesting during the day, and the program is excellent in the evening. You definitely don't have to be bored! I would also like to mention the cleaning in the rooms — it is always clean, towels are changed regularly, the maids are very diligent. In general, it is a great option for a holiday, I would love to come back here again! 😊

I travel a lot but this was the best hotel Ive ever stayed at. Everything was clean and well cared for, the food was brilliat but it was the staff who made it amazing, they could not be more helpful and nothing was too much trouble, it was an amazing experience and we'd go back tomorrow if we could, special thanks to Khaled, Nader and Ismail but thank you everyone.

Just arrived back from a great holiday at this resort. In the interest of being fair and unbiased i have listed some of the many pros and some considerations: Pros: 1. Fantastic staff who are warm, friendly, funny and welcoming. Whilst it sounds cheesy, it is true that the staff really make the resort what it is!! I’ve listed a few people below that deserve a special mention. 2. The resort is well maintained and is clean throughout. 3. Our room (3303) was modern, clean, a good size and comfortable. Bottles of water are delivered daily by the housekeeping team so you never run out! 4. Food is good and varied. We never struggled to find something to eat. Soprano is the main Buffet restaurant, Mediterranean is a smaller buffet style restaurant which has a different offering to Soprano. Culina is the a-la-carte which can be visited once per stay. 4. Lots of daily activities to do with the animation team, or if this isn’t your bag, then there’s a quiet pool for guests who want to just relax. 5. The onsite reef is ok. We found some other better ones on a boat trip to tiran island but if you want to snorkel and see the types of fish that reside on a Red Sea reef then you won’t be disappointed. Considerations: 1. Whilst the resort caters for multiple nationalities, the vast majority of guests are either local (Egyptian, Palestinian, Israeli etc) or Eastern European (Russian, Albanian etc). Very few English/British guests, however everyone gets along well. 2. Some areas of the hotel could do with an update and/or a little improving. The pool bridge looks a little dated with tiles missing from the sides etc and some of the older rooms could be refurbed. 3. A fixed jetty rather than floating one would be easier for guests 4. Sales people from the spa, salon, dive centre etc will approach you every day. Beware of some of the prices. These can be expensive - haggle if you are interested. Special mentions: Staff we found to be truly amazing and should be commended for their hospitality, and amazing service: Roma - absolute legend who runs the pool area and lifeguard team. Thank you for everything!! Lifeguard ceaser (not his actual name - apologies) was amazing and helped with towels everyday! Animation team are great, especially Pepsi, Mando and Omar. Great guys, full of energy and always laughing! Pool bar team; Emad, Nader, Mahmoud - never saw us go without a drink and even made us some special ones! Restaurant teams across the resort; Omer (the smileys person we have ever met), Amr, Mahmoud, Ahmed, Halthan - all amazing guys who make you feel very welcome every day!! Lobby bar team; Ahmed, Khalid (DJ), Mahmoud always remember your order and are great fun. Overall the report offers a great holiday experience and we look forward to returning. Thank you for making our stay a fantastic experience!!

The location, atmosphere, and the warmth of the hosts were excellent. The entertainment was fantastic. Many thanks to Anastasia from Guest Relations, and to Moustafa and Ahmed at the beach bar; it was a wonderful week. If I had to point out a downside, I would say that the à la carte restaurant is in an open-air setting, which isn't very comfortable during a heatwave, and the jetty is made of floating blocks—which isn't really recommended when the sea is rough.