In Egypt it is good to relax in the summer, and even better in the winter. When there is snow and frost in the homeland, it is warm and sunny, everything is buried in greenery and flowers, and most importantly, you can swim in the sea. The Russians favorite resort of the country of the pharaohs is the city of Sharm el-Sheikh. Dessole Cataract Resort is one of its wonderful four-star hotels, pleasing with its good location, excellent service, delicious food and the hospitality of the staff. Reviews of tourists about him are not entirely ambiguous. Some people come to Dessole Cataract Sharm Resort 4 * for the first time and are happy with everything, while others believe that he does not reach his four stars. Let's take a short virtual tour of the hotel and, based on the opinions of holidaymakers, give it a rating.
Location
In the south of the Sinai Peninsula, washed by the waters of the Red Sea, is the resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh. Among its districts, Naama Bay is especially distinguished, called the Egyptian Riviera and considered, although unofficially, central in the city. It is in this fabulous place for active recreation that the Dessole Cataract Sharm Resort 4 * is located. Arriving here, tourists immediately plunge into the atmosphere of a universal holiday, because within walking distance from the hotel there are many places where you can have a wonderful time - bars, hookah shops, restaurants, cafes, discos, night clubs. All this is located on the main tourist promenade of Naama Bay, a pedestrian street that reminds many tourists of the Moscow Arbat.
The airport, where all planes arrive from Russia, is only 15 km away from the Dessole Cataract Resort, which is very convenient, since the round trip takes no more than 30 minutes. The hotel is a five-minute walk to the coast, but the path lies through the neighboring Dessole Cataract Layalina.
Description
Dessole Cataract Sharm Resort 4 * received its first tourists in 1994, and the last update was carried out in 2012, so the room decor, as well as all the appliances and sanitary ware, are in satisfactory condition.
Hotel workers constantly monitor the cleanliness of the territory, pool, rooms, which tourists certainly note in their reviews. Like almost all hotels in Naama Bay, the territory of Dessole Cataract Resort is small, only 5700 square meters, but green and drowning in colors. Many curly flowers, planted near the buildings, they beautifully wrap around the balconies.
On a relatively small area, two-story buildings are harmoniously located, a large pool for adults with an enclosed children's area, a separate children's pool, a bar, an outdoor terrace, and parking. All buildings are connected by paved paths.
The reception is located in the central building, where tourists are served 24 hours a day. The staff speaks good Russian. At the reception you can use the safes for a fee (they are not available in the rooms), the Internet, call a doctor, order a taxi, buy sightseeing tours, take things to the laundry or dry cleaning, rent a car. Nearby, in a compact but cozy lobby, there are upholstered sofas and armchairs, billiard tables, a lobby bar, a souvenir shop where you can buy unique Egyptian products at fairly low prices.
For business events the hotel has a small (capacity up to 50 participants) conference room equipped with all necessary equipment.
Rooms
By international standards, the Dessole Cataract Resort 4 * hotel is considered average in size. It has a total of 124 rooms, all categories of which are Standard. The hotel buildings are two-story, without an elevator. The rooms are quite spacious, up to 34 squares, but the balcony is not everywhere. In addition to this nuance, the rooms are very different in view from the window and whether they will have the opportunity to sleep at night. Tourists, for whom silence is fundamentally important, must indicate in the voucher that they need a room with a view of the pool or the wall of a neighboring hotel, because it is here that they will expect relative peace.
In those rooms with windows facing the street, you can not hope for a good night's sleep, since in Naama Bay, active life and fun with loud music begin in the evening and end with dawn. It is also necessary to indicate that a balcony is desirable.
If for some reason you didn’t like the room, it’s easy to change, for which you need to contact the Dessole Cataract Resort 4 * reception. Reviews of almost all tourists note that they require a surcharge of $ 5 to $ 10 per day for replacement, and in order to receive a good room immediately upon arrival, for example, with a beautiful view from the window, you also need a small present (about ten dollars).
As for the design and equipment, there are practically no differences between the rooms. All of them are furnished not with new, but high-quality furniture, everywhere the plumbing works fine, and the bathrooms provide individual hygiene products in this set: toilet paper, shampoo, soap, shower gel.
The situation in the rooms is simple, without pretentiousness, light colors, including white, beige, pistachio, prevail in the color scheme. There is no carpet on the floor, there are only small bedside rugs. The walls are decorated with inexpensive paintings. The windows are panoramic everywhere, the curtains are dense enough not to let in a lot of heat and light. Electrical appliances are represented by a flat-screen TV, a small refrigerator (its cleaners regularly replenish with one plastic 1.5-liter bottle of water), a telephone and air conditioning.
The hygiene room has a washbasin with a small countertop, toilet, hairdryer, shower with a small tray and curtains. Cleaning, as well as changing sheets, pillowcases, towels, is on schedule. For tipping, the cleaners create different figures and compositions of towels on the beds (the last is issued three for each vacationer). Slippers and bathrobes are not provided.
Nutrition
A rather interesting food system is offered to its tourists by the Dessole Cataract Resort. Breakfast and lunch (buffet type) are held at this hotel, and dinners are served at the neighboring Dessole Cataract Layalina, which is approximately 80-100 meters away. Some tourists see this as a minus.
Many infrastructure facilities of these two hotels are common. In particular, three restaurants are open for tourists from both establishments: Arabella, which offers an international menu, Oriental, where you can taste local dishes, and Beach, which always offers fish dishes and seafood on the menu.
The all-inclusive system is valid from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. The breakfast menu offers sliced sausages and cheeses, sausages, egg dishes, salads, sliced cucumbers, tomatoes, two or three hot dishes, side dishes, legumes, cereals, milk, tea, coffee, pastries. For lunch, there are always two or three kinds of soups, meat and fish dishes, potatoes, pasta, rice, vegetables in salads and stews, desserts, fruits. For dinner, meat, fish and grilled vegetables are prepared on the open veranda , the menu also includes salads, meat dishes, sweets.
During the day, guests of Dessole Cataract Resort can have a meal at the beach bar, which offers french fries, hamburgers, pizza, vegetables.
Free drinks, without exception, in any of the available bars are provided for bottling in glasses. In bottles and cans drinks are paid. Beer, local wine, cocktails, juices, water, powder drinks are given for bottling. The restaurant has a vending machine in which you can get milk, coffee, cocoa, tea. Nearby is a cooler.
Leisure in the walls of the hotel, animation
Dessole Cataract Resort 4 * (Sharm El Sheikh) on its territory has a large (400 square meters) pool, which has a children's section. The depth of the bowl is from 50 cm to 3 meters. Nearby is a bar, open until 17-00. The pool can be used while the sun is shining, that is, from dawn to dusk. There are always free sun loungers and umbrellas around the sun terrace.
Not far from the adult pool there is a separate children's pool with a depth of no more than 50 cm. The building has a wonderful gym and SPA salon, which offers massage, jacuzzi, sauna, and beauty treatments.
On site you can play darts, badminton, the beach has a place to play volleyball.
So that guests do not get bored, every day they are entertained by the animation team at Dessole Cataract Resort. Reviews note that children's animation is especially well organized, including exercises, games, fun contests, a mini-disco. For adults, sports contests and games are also held, evening shows are held, and a disco is working.
Dessole Cataract Layalina Resort 4 *, room description
This hotel compares favorably with the neighboring Dessole Cataract Resort in its proximity to the sea, which is more than a minute's walk away. The hotel began to function in 1994, and the latest innovations affecting rooms and individual infrastructure facilities were held here in 2004. Such a long time without repair affects the environment of the rooms and the functionality of the plumbing, but in general, tourists who know in advance that the equipment presented by travel agencies the Dessole Cataract Layalina Resort (4 stars) are actually three-star hotels have no complaints.
This hotel accommodates guests in two-story buildings without elevators. There are 98 rooms, among which there is one Standard category, but there is a view of the neighboring hotel and a view of the sea (the latter costs more). If you want to move to such apartments, an extra charge of $ 5 per day is required.
The hotel is designed so that the size of the rooms can be different. There are spacious (about 34 squares), and there are those where it is not comfortable enough due to cramped spaces. The interior is made in the Egyptian style on the principle of minimalism, but everything you need is available. Electrical appliances are represented by a TV (2 Russian channels), air conditioning, safe, small refrigerator, telephone. The hygiene rooms have a hairdryer, toilet, washbasin, shower with a floor tray and curtains (there are rooms where instead of curtains there are sliding doors). From individual hygiene products provided liquid soap, toilet paper, shower gel.
As for the cleaning of the rooms, the reviews of tourists differ. Some complain that they didn’t clean at all, while others, on the contrary, are satisfied that they cleaned well every day. This circumstance depends on the subjective factor, namely on the responsibility of the cleaner, who is assigned a specific number.
Dessole Cataract Layalina Resort. Description of the Territory
The territory of this hotel, as well as the neighboring Dessole Cataract Resort, is compact, but green, surrounded by flowers. Most of its area (300 square meters) is occupied by a swimming pool for adults with a separate section for children in it. Around the pool is equipped with a sunbathing area, where there are always free sunbeds and umbrellas. Beach towels can be taken free of charge and without collateral, but they need to be changed in a neighboring hotel and strictly in time (from 16 to 17 pm). For the loss of towels, as well as keys and bracelets, a fine of $ 50 is charged.
There is a restaurant and bar next to the pool, open until sunset. Tourists vacationing at the Dessole Cataract Layalina Resort can receive services in the SPA-salon of its sister Dessole Cataract Resort. Access to the jacuzzi and sauna will be free, subject to the acquisition of massage sessions.
The territory of Dessole Layalina has a peculiarity: through it all tourists go to the beach, which not every vacationer likes. The second characteristic feature: Dessole Layalina has a karaoke bar with a night disco located in the reception area and not owned by the hotel. It works until 6 in the morning, which creates certain difficulties for tourists whose rooms are in close proximity.
Sea
Dessole Layalina and Dessole Cataract Resort have not only a common infrastructure, but also a common beach. Egypt is famous for its unusual, exotic, clean warm and gentle Red Sea. Unfortunately, tourists vacationing in these two hotels have some problems with a beach holiday. The thing is that on a not very large beach owned by Dessole, there is a leased pier. There are constantly mooring boats of various categories (yachts, boats, motor boats, catamarans, etc.), here they all refuel, and sometimes they wash, which is why there is often garbage in the water and the smell of fuel in the air.
There are also tourists' claims regarding safety, because people who manage these boats do not particularly care about vacationers bathing in the sea and plot their boats and boats at a fairly close distance from them.
The beach itself is sandy, the entry into the water is gentle and comfortable, the depth is so small that you do not have to swim, but go to the buoys. Regarding exotic corals, it should be noted that in Naama Bay there are much fewer of them than in other bays of the coast, but you can see exotic fish in the sea near the coast.
Many vacationers prefer to relax on neighboring beaches, where the water is much cleaner and more beautiful wildlife. Those who want to go in for snorkeling can buy a mask at a hotel very inexpensively, for only $ 5-10, or rent it for just $ 1 per hour. Beautiful corals are located on the left side of the beach. There, especially in the morning, you can see the greatest variety of fish. Special shoes for a beach holiday are not required here, because there are no stones in the sea, and dangerous living creatures such as sea urchins are extremely rare, and even then only at a depth where corals still remain.
Leisure outside the hotel
The vibrant nightlife, filled with music, dancing, unusual exotic shows and just relaxing in a good restaurant - these are the main criteria by which Dessole Cataract Resort 4 * is chosen. Sharm El Sheikh, and especially its district of Naama Bay, is famous throughout Egypt for its entertainment centers. An active life and unforgettable adventures here truly lasts from dusk to dawn.
You can walk along the main promenade in the afternoon, when it is very convenient to make purchases. The Carrefour supermarket is especially popular. This network is one of the cheapest in all countries, and in Egypt it is also pleasantly pleased with reasonable prices and good quality goods. Nearby is the Pyramids Mall, where you can buy and profitably exchange currency. Hard Rock restaurant is very popular among cafes, where they serve well and cook deliciously, as well as numerous fast-food points, such as McDonald's, pizzerias, fast foods and others. It should also be noted the two-story institution Little Budha, working as a restaurant during the day, and in the evening as a night club with two ballrooms. Not bad also a nightclub Dolce Vita and many others.
Tourists can buy tours at the Dessole Cataract Resort 4 * hotel. Sharm el Sheikh will be remembered for a lifetime if you make a short trip to the bathyscaphe, visit Tiran island, a water park and night shows. In addition, trips to Cairo, Luxor, Israel are organized. All these and other excursions can be purchased on the beach, which will cost slightly less. If tourists go on long excursions, they are provided with a lunch box.
Reviews
In the public domain you can find several ambiguous ratings that are exhibited by the Dessole Cataract Resort. Reviews in 2015 note the following advantages:
- an unusually good location for entertainment and shopping in Naama Bay;
- Nice rooms, spacious, functional;
- nice pool;
- close to the sea and the beach;
- funny animation;
- plentiful and varied nutrition;
- Friendly helpful staff.
The disadvantages of this hotel are as follows:
- poor sound insulation of rooms;
- poor-quality cleaning;
- surcharge for changing the wrong number;
- a pier is located on the beach, which greatly interferes with relaxation;
- the sea with spots of gasoline and other types of fuel for boats and boats;
- there are no lifeguards on the beach;
- it is impossible to rest (not swim) near the pool after sunset;
- Wi-Fi is not working well.
Disadvantages of the Dessole Cataract Layalina Hotel:
- not very new rooms with a long repair and poorly functioning plumbing;
- a very rare change of bed linen (once a week or even less);
- unfriendly staff.
Conclusion: the described hotels are suitable for unpretentious tourists who travel to Egypt for an active, full of fun vacation.