When in Hurghada, do it with Meraki

HURGHADA TIPS & INDEPENDENT REVIEW OF THE MERAKI RESORT

Context: The review is based on circumstances of the second half of April 2019, by a well-travelled Belgrade-residing female in her 30s.

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post whatsoever.

One of the most convenient vacation options for a European in search for the sea&sun during non-summer months is certainly Hurghada, Egypt. Think of a relatively short direct flight, fair value for money and a good combination of resort-type of All Inclusive (AI) experience with stunning cultural and historical sites seeing.

In addition, once a small fishing village is very inviting re scuba diving and snorkeling with hundreds of species of fish in the coral reef ecosystem of the Red Sea. Finally, if in a country covered 90% with desert on either side of the Nile, it would be only natural to explore the Bedouin villages, ride a camel or drive a squad.

Diversity of possibilities offers a good chance for a stressless break and I took mine at the Meraki Resort – the 4-stars hotel from SunRise chain with (as they claim) the longest beach in the entire Red Sea area.

It was actually a no brainer choosing it, following warm recommendation of a close friend, but it also toped the list on Booking.com in terms of cost-ratings ratio.

27.260130 (27°15'36.47" N) / 33.815140 (33°48'54.5" E)

Location and transportation

Meraki is easily accessible from the Hurghada International airport. It takes 15-20 min by car to reach it. Between bargaining with taxi drivers (might be cheaper) and hotels’ limo service (over-priced but not crazy), I went with Booking.com (Rideways) and paid around 25$ for the round trip beforehand online, which seems to be decent. If you booked with the agency, I assume they should sort out your transportation.

In terms of the hotel’s location, I wonder does it even really matter in a relatively small city? For some who prefer to just stay in the resort (which I think happens a lot) especially. Finally, even if you go out to various excursions it is not up to you to worry about the location – you will be picked up anyhow, probably by microbus or similar. So I would conclude that in this context it is mostly irrelevant to discuss it.

Nevertheless if you indeed want to go to check out few things worth checking up in the city itself – there is Uber. And it will cost you peanuts.

BLAME IT ON MY GYPSY SOUL

Design and concept

The key word Meraki is using to describe itself is ‘bohemian’. Bohemian being about despising conventionalities, spirit of revolt, informality, liberty etc, it is a bit paradoxical given Egypt is a country where kissing and public display of affection is looked down upon and is even sanctioned for Egyptians. 

Nevertheless, seeing yourself as boho or not, you’d love Meraki’s lazy hammocks, wide green areas with palm trees tucked in flowers, comfy chairs in earthly colors and vastness of sand, lazy bags, walking and sitting area which even when hotel reaches full capacity manages to provide you with privacy.

Whoever designed the lobby area did an impressive job with curved lines, functional wooden elements, plants and calming whiteness. 

Some details are also quite charming, including mandalas painted on various doors and affirmative/inspirational messages hanging all around the resort on plain twines (Blame it on my gypsy soul, Be a nice human, Happiness looks gorgeous on you etc.). Even the areas on the walls marked as ‘dangerous’ (electricity?) are displayed as square shaped colorfully painted wooden tiles. Kudos for the esthetics, indeed.

The resort advertises itself as a clubbing place with pool parties and music/other events. Nevertheless, I really didn’t experience it as overwhelming in this regard, nor I went there (with my mom!) because of it. Perhaps in April the party part is not as dominant, but although there are indeed multiple loud activities, one has a choice to participate in them or not, at least during the daytime, and browse this huge space for a different vibe. In any case, even at night if there is any noise, it will stop by midnight the latest (which doesn’t mean the fun stops I guess). (Or perhaps I was lucky enough with the location of my room?)

TRIPLE TROUBLE

Rooms

Speaking of those 270 rooms… Cleanliness as one of the fail/pass criteria seemed to me quite ok in the one I occupied. What would be good is that cleaning service finishes their work by the end of the lunchtime the latest. It happened one day that at 5pm they were still cleaning, exactly when I needed to use the room. (And you want to use it then as 5pm is close of business for sun)

I used a so-called “Triple Trouble” type of room on a ground floor. Although it didn’t provide the sea view, it did provide good ratio of sun and shadow, easy access and relative silence most of the time (if I don’t count neighbors and their guests’ for one night). On the other hand if you want a view, most of the time you should have a room floor or two up – by stairs. If on the ground floor, you may be exposed to by-passers too much in the first row of rooms. But honestly – how much do you really plan to stay in the room? If you do – I guess you’ll use a balcony – and good news is that every room has it. Bring also some spray for super small invisible mosquitos.

Nevertheless, even for a short stay, comfort of beds matters. I find it to be excellent.

www.merakiresort.com

What I would really change is the size of the bathroom. It was simply too small – the shower is intended for a single person not to move too much and when on toilet your chin can literally touch the sink.

It remains a mystery to me why the same tip landed me some days special arrangements on the bed and the other days not?

EVERYTHING FOR SOME, SOMETHING FOR ALL

Activities and for whom is this place

One may wonder is the target group of this object…. everybody? Or they are still defining it, given how new the place is. So far it is for adults only – which is one of the reasons I went there.

I saw people of all ages – couples, friends, families. If I managed to notice well there are also many different nationalities including though more Russians than others. Actually thousands seem to also live (and own real estate) in Hurghada and there are even Russian schools. There are Eastern Europeans such as Polish and Ukrainians, but also Western (Belgium, Germany, France). And of course Serbs J Egyptians themselves also come to Meraki from Cairo or Alexandria.

I’ve read online some comments that vast majority of activities offered by the resort and implemented by youngsters of Animation team are for younger people.  I participated in some of them and although they might be interesting to the extent of trying it out once (aqua aerobic, belly dance, dance ‘classes’, stretching, some sports and games..), I must disagree on their lack of inclusivity. Moreover, I think they are mostly non-demanding and that the only age you need is age of your spirit. Yes, some are including drinking, too.

As for the Animation team – as you assume, these young people should animate you to do offered activities and not be bored J Some are of course better than the others in terms of remembering who you are (not asking 4 times for name, country and other questions from their dialogue list) and actually able to converse something but standard instructions they’ve learned. In any case, these are young people doing their best to earn a bit of money so you may go with the flow or have a red flag on your sunbed to not be disturbed.

Same goes for numerous commercial offers for safari, scuba diving, wind surfing, camel ride in the resort itself, massages etc, etc. As expected, prices of some of these may be higher than if you engage a bit to organize the same yourself directly. Nevertheless, I really need to recommend few women working in the resort (why is that??) in the Beauty salon – I had experience with two and felt rejuvenated after pretty serious massages for not more money than Western standard.

CARPE DIEM, BUT FROM 10AM TO 5PM

Beaches and sunbathing

Great asset of the resort is that it has multiple beaches. One of them is actually like a private peninsula (called Carpe Diem) with a great view and occasional yoga hours.

While I have to admit that due to some windy days and cold seawater I spent quite some time by the pool that is heated (next to Floaters bar), it is great there is a choice to change sunbed from time to time. It is never super crowded and all beaches have some sort of bar and/or restaurant for your supply of all inclusive drinks and food. There are towel stations where you can get new ones as you please.

There are windshields on all of the beaches and kind staff will always help you arrange it as you please. The sand is not super soft and the bottom of the sea might be somewhat muddy. So having a pair of those shoes for water is not a bad idea. If there are medusas, they are harmless.

Note that is quite easy to burn, even when it might seem not too hot. So sunscreen is a must at all times.

At the heated pool area constant music is to be expected, which is mostly upbeat or ‘café-del-mar’ kind of style. For silence, one can move anywhere else, more or less. DJ has a ew favorite songs though, so if you are a fan of lounge covers of Black’s Wonderful life or Reamonn’s Super girl you’ll like it.

Pool can be used from 10am (although people are actually sunbathing even earlier) and by 5-6pm you hopefully used the day on some of the beaches or pools areas.

“LIFE IS UNCERTAIN. EAT DESSERT FIRST.”

Food & Drink

Meraki claims to have 7 restaurants – international, Greek, Asian, Arabian, and then fast-foods like pizza, noodles, burgers and seafood. Unfortunately, the seafood one was not operational at the time of my stay.

Basically, international restaurant (Munchery) seems to be most used – it has a different theme every evening, which is relative as you can always find options outside of the particular concept. Choice is wide enough and presentation of food, especially sweets is remarkable. Sweets I didn’t eat much but I have to notice that they are not as sweet as maybe here, which suited me. Strawberries made me also happy and their size was normal, probably GMO free. What is expectedly amazing is of course hummus and baba ghanouj. Wish this was available all the time for all meals J Interesting is that mashed potato is offered for breakfast. As this we got in the plane, too I take it’s a domestic thing. My mom who never eats livers, enjoyed the ones grilled in Meraki. While there might be more fruits like pineapple, in overall food is simply great and choice is fairly big. Really useful is so called ‘late snacks’ as of 10.30pm, which is actually not a snack but a decent dinner buffet.

Other restaurants such as Arabian, Asian and Greek require booking the table in advance. During the 10 days stay we visited Arabian twice and with the exception of hot mezze like falafel not being available (but available for breakfast?), it is worth trying it out. As a no fan of Asian food I didn’t go there so can’t comment. Greek restaurant is outdoors next to the beach, which is lovely. Perhaps for the same reason not so lovely for dining as evenings can be fresh and windy. No gyros there though :/, which is a pity. I can say that also because we actually tried it during the Ortodox Coptic Easter celebration that the hotel sort of organized – and it was delicious.

What I really really liked is the coffee. Just when I stopped drinking it, I had to revisit such a cruel decision J

As for drinks – one can get all kinds of cocktails and regular hot and cold drinks. Ok, coldness part may improve, and actually it did after feedback I had on this on one occasion. There is also a 24h open bar next to the lobby, but most drinks are chargeable after midnight.

HOME IS WHERE THE WI-FI IS

Technology

Wi-fi is absolutely reliable all over the place. Not that I watched Game of Thrones while I was there, but YouTube worked well and regular browsing of course.

There is couple of computers available in the lobby area that might be used. I actually brought my own and didn’t use it almost at all. I assume that majority of guests would not come to a resort with expectation to work, but perhaps some small noise-free, nice and cool area for potential working would be a good asset.

Booking of dining is done through the touch screen computer available in the lobby in multiple languages. Meraki also has its on app (pretty cool ha), but it could use some improvements in terms of updates of daily events and meals bookings, which didn’t work at the time.

SMART CASUAL

Security

It is a young city we are talking about here. It started development in early 20^th century but locals would say it exists really for max 50-60 years. Perhaps due to this there are vast of unfinished, empty buildings that might feel a bit creepy at night. I read online that women might be somehow harassed especially if wearing ‘indecent’ outfit.  Didn’t happen to me, though there is a lot of attention, which at times might come across as ‘too friendly’. In terms of accepting any courtship, I guess one should be cautious, as anywhere with the person you know for 5min.

After years of the Egyptian tourist sector suffering a number of setbacks (including several terrorist attacks precisely in Hurghada), it seems that security is not such an issue nowadays. Of course, this partially also depends on you and on having realistic expectations not to equal it with Berlin.

Each hotel has a metal detector and security guards at all times, so is Meraki. At each departure and return you’d be asked for a room number, which some might find disturbing and some might find it as taken care of.

I didn’t experience driving of Egyptians as dangerous and unsafe in a way that is described for Cairo. Yes indeed, there is a lot of siren usage and bending the traffic rules and yes, you will be crossing streets without pedestrian area or traffic light. But in overall, no big deal.

At the airport, security procedures might also take some time, which is good at the end of the day.

EAT SLEEP DANCE REPEAT

What to do while in Hurghada

When I was preparing for this trip, my friend told me that the hotel offers so many options and that the area is so big, that I might not even have the need to go elsewhere. This is pretty true and due to so much content time really flies fast.

Before noon there are always some activities by the pool or on the beach – be it sporty or playful or creative. In the evening there is also a programme each night. What I would particularly point out is Sunday – devoted to a dance troop (I guess from Russia). They were very professional and the show was certainly impressive, which is actually something I wouldn’t expect in the hotel resort. Another interesting evening for me was Thursday – on this day live music is organized at the open air and again I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of performers. Mostly they performed globally popular music, but also some domestic songs. All in all music programme is quite satisfying for all ages.

As I mentioned earlier, there are so many other things to be done there – wind surfing and some water animation is available for a fee in the hotel itself. There are also a billiard and a table tennis, but also proper tennis and football courts. If physical activity is not your thing, there is also a super cute, colorfully designed outdoor area where you can smoke shisha.

But, in my view it would be a pity not to also go out. As service provider for excursions (Serbian guiding possible for Cairo and Luxor) was recommended to me in advance, I really didn’t consider hotel’s offers in this regard. What I defo consider a must experience is safari in the desert (20 EUR), snorkeling and visits to some nearby islands (15 EUR) and at least Luxor (45 EUR), as Cairo might be too much of a hustle if you go by bus.

Walk around Sheraton Road might also be an interesting experience. There is a pretty damn good Syrian candy shop with high quality delights (before Gad restaurant).

Checking out small but pleasant Hurghada marina in the evening is yet another thing you can do. During the day from here you can also self-organize parasailing and other surface water sports without the middleman.

BACKSHEESH, BE A NICE HUMAN

Money

Currency in Egypt is Egyptian Pound, but Euro and Dollar are good to go anywhere. 1$ is approximately ~15-17 EGP. Nevertheless, inflation rate is ~14% so the current ratio may vary (for reference, note that currently in Argentina is 54%, Turkey 19%, Russia 5%, Germany 2% etc).

I paid for instance my stay at Meraki in US dollars in cash. I believe that for an AI, cost-benefit analysis is fair. For genius Booking users is even fairer J And probably for group arrangements via some agencies.

Actually, I almost didn’t use at all local currency for anything, and people were always able to return change in dollars or euros.

Given the economical situation and average hourly wage as low as 3 EUR (and less), I believe one should be motivated extra to tip all provided services. Nobody at Meraki ever asked me “backsheesh” though (some other places yes) but I think there is certain etiquette in the country in general and certainly a dollar here and there wont make a huge difference to a European, while each extra earning means a lot to people who are sometimes working even 12 hours shifts, 6 or 7 days per week. It also happened that few workers at the hotel refused to take the tip J

Buying stuff at the resort is of course more expensive then elsewhere, as is usually the case. For instance, pack of cigarettes could cost 4-5$, while the box of ten at the airport is for instance 10-12$. Anyhow, it is still cheaper than in most of Western Europe.

If you do go to bazaars, bargaining can take you far. It is not a bad idea to have an Egyptian with you, as they might get local prices.

WELCOME HOME

People

Finally, important part of any visit is the people. With the exception of some super pushy sellers during site seeing in Luxor, I find people to be quite friendly, positive and welcoming.

What I think is good is to find proper measure in accepting favors/services and returning friendliness. In some cases that can mean you should pay for it… also in kind. Meaning, many (young) man might invite females for walks, ask phone number and show a bit of too much interest very directly. So signals of general politeness might mean more in Egypt, especially as it is probably expected that as a non-Egyptian you would be more liberal in all ways.

Some people in shops/bazaars might invite you for a cup of tea. This is not obliging you to buy something, but eventually you will J Supposedly favorite drink of the pharaohs, hibiscus tea (karkade) – hot or cold is pretty tasty. In Meraki is offered as a cold drink during breakfast (probably later also).

The rating (9.2) that this resort has for its staff is much justified. With only rare exceptions of over-friendliness, people are most helpful, kind and smiling. While English is not their prominent asset (some also speak Russian and German), there is always a good will to somehow cater to your needs. In this regard I honestly felt like a queen. Front office desk proved to be quite capable and early check-in and late check-out were also made possible. One detail also points out for the care for quality, i.e. when Food&Drinks manager jumped in to assist the waiter clear the queue for drinks faster (instead of just being a big important manager that poor leaders tend to do).

I wish there are more local women working in the resort as gender disbalance is quite obvious, but as UNDP this year awarded Egypt with the gender equality seal, probably further progress might be noticed in the future.

With some space for improvements, that the resort readily accepts, it is truly a great diverse experience even for non-resort type of people. Affordable, fresh, positive and both peaceful&fun, #merakiway is a good bet for most of age groups heading to Hurghada and for tourists seeking proper vacation by one of the saltiest bodies of water in the world.

As they say – Welcome Home J