Pickalbatros Water Valley Resort - Neverland Hurghada

“Honest Review - Family of 6 who are sad to leave”

Firstly, I appreciate that everyone has their own opinions and has had different experiences of 5 star all inclusive accomodation. However, there is very little that I can say that is negative about this hotel. We are fortunate to have seen our fair share of the good, the bad and the ugly when it c… more

Firstly, I appreciate that everyone has their own opinions and has had different experiences of 5 star all inclusive accomodation. However, there is very little that I can say that is negative about this hotel. We are fortunate to have seen our fair share of the good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to holiday resorts and this is up there with one of the best! We are in room 5340, which is in the Alf Leila part of the hotel (our room is basically at the rear exit of the hotel) We are right next to midway and all of the fair rides. There are shops, easy access to most of the restaurants and snack bars and a short walk to Midway stage. The water parks are are about a 10minute walk or you can take the blue bus which circles the hotel. There are always plenty of sun loungers by our room pool and you still get waiter service at your sun lounger for drinks. Yes there are people that try to sell you trips, hair braiding and the spa treatments, they are not forceful and very friendly. After a few days, they recognised we weren’t interested and passed us by. (Often making a joke or having a laugh asking if we had changed our minds etc) You can ask for a do not disturb sign also. However if you venture outside of the hotel, they can be a bit more pushy. But when you understand the poverty outside of the complex you will hopefully recognise that these people are trying to earn a living to provide for their families. We are a family of 6, with 4 children with different appetite preferences. And when I say these kids have eaten well, I mean it. Also they overlap restaurant times so you can always pretty much get something to eat somewhere) For breakfast we used Le Marche as it is connected to the Mediterranean restaurant next door. So you can get food from both. The selection included pancakes; waffles, toast, omelettes, cereals, boiled eggs, pastries, yogurt, fruit, salad and the usual sausage/bacon/beans. For lunch, we used the Rocking Burger, Sopranos and Snack bar by our room. There’s freshly made to order pizza, pasta and pancakes with whatever toppings/sauces you like. And usually chicken nuggets and chips. For dinner - there are so many options. The QR code they give you on arrival will tell you the menus for the time you are here. We have eaten at the Tangine (Moroccan), L’Asiastique (Chinese), Alfredo (Italian), Le Marche (Mediterranean). There is also show cooking in front of the restaurants where they are cooking BBQ’d meat (absolutely stunning). We found that if we sat outside in the restaurant area we could get a selection of things from various restaurants. There is also a second Italian called La Casa which we haven’t tried yet and the Indian and German restaurants. Snacks - in the main building there is pastries, ice creams, cookies and lollies available most of the day. Some snack bars also have ice cream available. 4 main flavours each day - vanilla, chocolate, mango and strawberry. There is a shop to buy ice cream also which offers more flavours like bubble gum and candy floss. We tried this once, it came to £1.50 for a single scoop tub, so really not unreasonable. Things that are free - we have only really spent money on excursions and tips and the odd trip to the supermarket when we needed more sun cream. I have never been to a hotel with so much included in the price!!! All of the fair rides Pedal bikes Pedal boats Bouncey slide VR Room Candy floss Popcorn (although it’s salted not sweet) Donut balls (amazing!) Surfing High ropes (height restricted) Roller skating Bottled water (replaced in your room and located in fridges around the hotel) (There is probably more that I haven’t even seen myself yet) Our room is huge, we have two rooms of 3 and both rooms have a large double and large single bed. Most rooms open out on to a pool. We are above my partner and have a huge balcony. Rooms are cleaned every day and the towels and bedding changed. There are some wear and tear marks around the room but generally there is no issue with the room. Our shower wasn’t working properly when we arrived but they came and fixed it straight away and our con has been a little temperamental but we have managed, my partners has been freezing he’s actually kept it off. The water parks are only open from 10-12 an 2-5 however there are a selection of smaller slides that stay open over the lunch break. Some pools are not heated but our kids have played in them regardless! It’s been boiling hot even when it’s overcast so they are great for cooling down. There are no sun loungers in the water park only chairs, however in the larger water park the lifeguards will offer to get you a “sunbed” these are bean bags that I think are actually comfier than a sun lounger! Yes there are people that will reserve sun loungers and seats at the water park but if you cannot find one, the staff are really helpful and will look for you. The staff here are predominantly all male, you will see the same faces morning, noon and night. They work so hard and cannot do enough for you! Spinneys in Senzo Mall - 10/20 minute walk depending on which exit you take but oh my god so cheap if you want any snacks for your room. My kids are snack monsters, we had 3 shopping bags of crisps and sweets and it came to £20!!! We ventured out to Marina for an evening meal, the inDrive app (like uber) is easy to use and costs 200 Egyptian pound for a 30 minute taxi (approx £1.40 - how is that even possible!) and our meal for 6 fillet steaks, 4 desserts and loads of drinks came to £98!!!! You can get taxis from the hotel but these are more expensive approx £14 (still not bad in comparison to UK prices) they don’t do 6 person taxis so we had to get 2 cars on the way there. They will offer to squeeze 6 of you in if you’re happy with it…. (Each to their own) but let’s just say that the Egyptian Highway Code is very non-existent, I’m sure the white lines on the road are just for show 🤣 but we got there and back safely! When you go on an excursion, the hotel security will record that you have left the hotel and who with, apparently they are legally required to record this to ensure that you are returned to the hotel. This is why we made sure we only booked excursions through our hotel reps. However people have used other companies and been equally as safe!!! We also went to the Bedouin village on the Sahara Safari and learnt so much about the culture and it really puts things into perspective and gives you an appreciation of why you see these people grafting so hard to try and give us all a wonderful holiday! I personally cannot recommend this hotel enough, the all inclusivity of practically everything, the service by every single member of staff and the resort itself is amazing! My only complaint (which is out of the control of the resort) is that my children would decide on one pool or activity and stick to it as I have done laps of this hotel over the last 9 days. 🤣 Please try not to be consumed by negative reviews, come and see for yourself as everyone’s personal experiences influence their opinions! ❤️

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“5* hotel and great for kids”

Very good was amazing service and kids loved it

“Fabulous”

Fabulous holiday, lots of food options available. A child friendly hotel with lots of entertainment and activities for kids.

“Family holiday”

Room was beautiful, always something to do, kids were never bored, staff were also very friendly.