Wadi Sabarah Lodge

I took time to write this as I wanted to complete my trip in other parts of Egypt to see if I was being irrational in my overall dissatisfaction. After staying for 5 days in Dahab at a lower end dive hostel where I had a better experience with the staff and quality of facilities, Im confident in writing about the issues at Wadi Sabarah. Poor communication is the biggest issue. The biggest problem was when I booked a day tour to Wadi Gemal, which was one of the main reasons I choose Marsa Alam. I woke up early and was ready waiting in the lobby at the agreed upon time. After 45 minutes, I went up to the dining room to ask the breakfast staff to call someone to ask as no one was at the front desk. This is where its not clear what happened, but I was eventually told that Ahmed at the front desk wrote down the wrong tour, instead booking the 3 hour desert safari nearby rather than the full day one in the reserve I traveled to Marsa Alam for. The story about what went wrong kept changing, so I suspect he forgot to book it in the first place. He then offered me a 20% discount on the desert safari which only came to about 10 off, which shows me he did not take into consideration how disappointing of a mistake this was. Furthermore, better communication could have been made regarding the diving. I had contacted beforehand asking for information about it, and was told we will discuss everything when you come. When I arrived, I found out that the rates for the dive center were quite high and frankly deliberately unclear. It says 1-2 days of diving for 91 (not including equipment, insurance, or reef fees). However that apparently means only 1 day of diving, which was just 2 dives in the same location. I later traveled to Dahab and was able to do 5 dives for that price. The facilities in the room also left more to be desired. Specifically the quality of the bedding; low quality mattress and linens.

The mosquitoes are horrible, like cant sleep at night levels of bad. There shouldnt even be mosquitoes in this bone dry part of Egypt but the large gardens contain stagnant water where papyrus plants are grown. The solution inside the hotel is liberal application of insecticide which is not great. The food is uninspired and frankly overpriced. Almost everyday I had some type of vegetable or bean in the same exact red sauce for both lunch and dinner. Meat options were grilled chicken or stewed beef. Weve been in Egypt for a month and this type of typical food should cost a fraction of what we were charged. The WiFi in the hotel doesnt really work consistently and the hot water did work consistently either and when it did work you had to run the water for close to 10 minutes for it to get hot. That is an outrageous waste of water in the desert and not really in keeping with the green experience the hotel advertises. The beds are also small and hard, not really in keeping with the price point of the hotel. I am currently in a super cheap Cairo hotel with bigger, better beds.

We loved our experience in this beautiful hotel. Everything is made for you to be relaxed. The location, the architecture, decoration, even the way the light is perceived makes you feel at ease. The food was incredible, the best food we had in Egypt by far. They even made their own bread, which was amazing. The service and the facilities are even better than in the pictures: the restaurant offers amazing views to the sea and they even have a library where you can borrow books and relax. Moreover, the hotel is right next to a coral reef that remains untouched and full of live. The hotel can provide you with masks and fins for snorkeling. The people working at the hotel are super nice and will make you feel at home. I would highly recommend to stay at Wadi Sabarah if you are looking to disconnect and relax in the dead sea.

WADISABARAH is an extraordinary and wonderful place in the middle of nowhere. We have been fascinated by the kind of "modern pharaonic" architecture, built with local coral stone, always allows soft air turning around, keeping the heat outside. We appreciated the beautiful big room and perfect cleaning. We loved to spend time in the big library with hundreds of books about Egypt, culture, nature and life (in various languages). The friendly service in the restaurant and the real good local cooking (especially Sads fresh bred) - makes a difference to most of the big international hotels we know. Ahmed at the reception - important turning point of the hotel, all day long open minded for all questions and needs, well organising transports and excursions. We enjoyed best service and like to thank to all of them !! Nice pool and few sun loungers, perfect for relaxing and reading. The new desert garden with more than 2000 plants, has been created by Irina, an outstanding women, doctor in biology and former professor of Assuan University. Thank you Irina for all the information and fascination you are passing to the visitors. This place is a precious Oasis in the desert and fortunately there is a big distance to the next hotel, a free view over sand and sea. Empty long beaches for walks, a jetty for swimming and coral reefs for snorkeling or diving, innumerable and colorful fishes in the sea. Exceptional experience!