Sunrise El Palacio Resort Hurghada

We had two great weeks at the "Sunny days - El Palacio" hotel from February 25th to March 10th 2008. We - my wife, me + our two daughters - would go there again.
Please note: the "cheap" cost rating refers to the price we payed for the package tour. If you book this hotel individually it is average priced. Or even expensive.

The webpage:
http://www.sunnydaysegypt.com/en/Palacio/home.html

Some details.
The hotel is located just 15 minutes by car from the International Airport. Perfect if you don't like long transfers. The whole complex is U-shaped. And huge! There is a bathing bay within the "U". Our rooms were a little bit old fashioned but nice and clean. The bay was just ten steps away. We had chosen rooms at the far end of the bay to avoid the possibly loud animation in the evenings (it wasn't loud at all). Therefore we had to walk 150 metres to the restaurant.

Most fascinating was the coral reef on the outer side of the hotel. I spent many hours there. Surprisingly almost no other guest snorkelled there. Speaking of the other guests. Before we booked the package tour to Hurghada we had read through many online reviews - including the "Palacio". There had been two points of criticism by former guests. The first point was the fact, that 90 percent of the hotel guests come from Russia and other East European countries. well, this was not relevant for us. We did not expect any problems and we had no problems.

The second point of criticism had been the food. Well, you will probably find not a single hotel review without critics on this topic. But, anyway, the food was good in my opinion. It was multifaceted and fresh. And everything looked clean. We liked it and got no stomach problems. I even ate a full plate of salad every evening.
Since we went there in the low season the lines at the sideboard weren't too long. If there were many people waiting inside I went outside and got something there. Usually within seconds - no problem. I can imagine this could be different during the high season when the hotel is crowded.
By the way: The waiters always joked around with our little daughters. That was fun.

The only thing we really took care of was drinking only bottled water (used it for teethbrushing, too).

Room service was good. Sometimes a little bit late.

There is a beach volleyball court outside and a single table tennis table (indoor). For the younger guests the hotel offers a Mini-Club and a short children disco in the evening.

A little bit, eh, breathtaking is the way the hotel staff takes care of the insects. Once every two or three days two guys walk around with a kind of supersized smoke launcher. If you spot them flee to your room immediately! The whole complex is being wreathed in mist for minutes when they are on duty!

Within and outside the hotel there are some local travel agents who offer different trips (e.g. glassboat, submarine, off-road driving). There also is a small Internet Café, two billard tables and some shops.

It is a typical package tour hotel. If you book this hotel as a part of your package tour it will be much cheaper than the price listed here.

If you need any more information on this hotel please let me know!