As a first time visitor to Sharm El Sheikh I was really unsure of what to expect, the chaos that met us at the airport did fill us with confidence but once we were through passport control and out into the open things just got better and better!

We were met by a guy from the hotel who quickly took us to the door of the hotel and took our bags for us and led us to the reception where check in was quick and smooth, we were given time to have a much required drink prior to being taf taffed off to our room.

The room was a great size, we were down at the front with a direct sea view. Twin bed's, great TV with Premier League football. The bathroom was clean and bright and there was a basket of toiletries (toothpaste, shaving foam, toothbrush etc) for our convenience. We also had two robes, slippers and a couple of bottles of soft drinks in the fridge along with a large bottle of water which was replaced daily. What more could you want ?!

As the week went on, things were going great, we had out spot at the bar by the quiet pool in the evening where we could enjoy Shisha and a few drinks.

We did, however have a couple of problems which were promptly rectified when brought to the attention of Basel and the Manager on Duty.

I work as the Director of Leisure Travel for a large UK based hotel company and I have previously held a similar position for Hilton Hotels, I have in excess of 12 years experience within the industry I would not hesitate to advise visitors to Sharm to visit the Sultan Gardens. If you are looking for luxury, go to the Hyatt but if you are looking for a well run hotel with excellent food, excellent staff and a manager who will go out of his way to make sure that everything meets your every requirement, Sultan Gardens is for you!

I hope to return!

Today is 12th May and I was due to stay at the Sultan Gardens tomorrow, 13th May. I booked this hotel in febuary after much deliberation and using trip advisor. I was really looking forward to the break as it is the first hotel I have actually researched & picked prior to booking (normally I use last minute deals). I am fuming and wanted anyone looking to book here to be aware of the problem.

I booked with sunshine.co.uk who use somewhere2stay.co.uk as the supplier. They tell me that most of the hotels will overbook, and as us Brits always get such good deals and pay far less for the hotels than other European travellers, they get priority of the rooms. So it appears the less you pay the less secure your booking is.

The fact I booked 3 months ago seems to have no bearing at all, and despite sunshine being governed by ABTA, as they have offered me a full refund or alternative accommodation (albeit of much lower standard) I haven't a leg to stand on!

So beware, fellow travellers, bear this in mind when booking here in peak season!

And a note to the manager - You have managed to ruin my holiday experience, and not only am I fuming this has happened, I am also devastated. Please note that when you are overbooking your hotel, you are having a negative affect on other people's lives, who are just wanting a holiday to escape the trials and tribulations of life.

We stayed at the Sultan Gardens on the 17th April for a week and we were not dissapointed.
The staff were very friendly, always smiling and helping when they can, even down to our friendly cleaner.
Our plan was to relax the whole week and do nothing (we didnt even leave the hotel) but there is entertainment if you want it but we stayed between the pool and the beach each day. The beach has plenty of sunbeds but if you want the main pool you need to be up before 9am to place your towel on it - the hotel has a policy that your towel will be removed if you do not return after a certain time but this does not happen (we many a day had towels next to us from 9am and they didnt return til 3pm+ in the afternoon) but we always could find somewhere on the beach if no luck by the pool.
We had a suite, which was spacious and clean. I wouldnt say this hotel is 5*, probably more 3 + - 4* but that is reflected in the price - its still worth going.
Now the food, every night there were different dishes and always a pasta bar but if you like your desserts you will like the choice of about 30 plus desserts each day - yum! like all buffets they are never going to be Jamie Oliver meals but still fine. Big shout out to Abdul, who was our friendly waiter some nights. Sometimes you get your drinks bought to you and some nights you just go up to the drinks counter section.
I would recommend the italian (free) - 4 courses, enough to fill you but book on your first day there as it gets booked up quickly. We also went to the fish restaurant - not all inclusive but still cheap - and well worth going - the fish and service was great.
Evenings we spent relaxing watching a local singer (who does repeat his songs most nights but its still quite relaxing) and sometimes you can get a good laugh from the Russains dancing! One night we went to the night club which was a mixture of RnB and dance music.
Drinks measures were too strong though (4 x the usual) so we stuck to the beer (unless we wanted to be drunk after two drinks!).
Overall this was a nice hotel with great staff and well worth what you pay.

Stayed at the sultan for 10 days april 2008. This was actually my honeymoon. The food is repetitive and not very appetising, i ate pasta and bread for the whole 10 days. The place is well maintained with staff buzzing about eveywhere gardening etc.
keep an eye on what you are being charged if you smoke etc, my husband was charged £5.00 for a packet of cigs one day and £2.50 the next, be prepared to haggle or you will be ripped off. This is no way a 5 star hotel, i have stayed at the hyatt in taba, and thats a 5 star i would say the sultan is more a 3+ star. The hotel has a policy whereas you cannot reserve your sunbeds, however this is not the case, at 7 in the morning there are towels on the beds, although there are plenty, the ones in the prime positions are allways taken either by people or their towels. The beach is nice but shingle not sand. The taxis that are arranged by the hotel are more than double the price than if you was to go outside the front gate and let the security guard get you a cab. The internet doesnt hardly work in the internet cafe, not sure about the internet connection in the room but i expect if the hotel connection isnt working that isnt either. Mainly the guests in the hotel are italian and russian. The hotel has both good and not so good points. I wont return in a hurry. Shame really considering this was my honeymoon.