Steigenberger Pure Lifestyle (Adults Only)

My wife and I went here on our honeymoon and in all honesty, we were blown away by how fantastic this hotel was. Our experience throughout our stay was nothing short of excellent. From the moment you arrive at reception the staff are courteous, frinedly and efficient. We were provided a welcome cocktail on arrival in the wonderfullly air-conditioned and stylish reception. They checked us in quickly, with the luggage portered to our room. As we were quite late gettign to the hotel, we were quickly advised that the main restaurant was still available, if we wanted anything to eat. There are many elements of a hotel that contribute to the overall experience, so I will break the review down into those components... First of all, the staff... They are amazing. From the managers to the gardeners, they really do make you feel very welcome. Staff are corteous and friendly, and extremely attentive. I don't recall meeting any member of staff who did not greet us with a smile, even when passing them in the corridors. I number of them are worthy of being highlighted due to the service provided. I'll begin with Mary, the customer relations manager. She really puts a shift in and was very visible throughout our stay, walking around the hotel and engaging with the guests in the restaurants, poolside and even the beach. Very friendly and knowledgable and always promoting the various activities the hotel were putting on. One day, she was chatting with us on the beach and me casually mentioned we might vist the beachfront restaurant. She immediately pulled out her phone and called reception to make a booking for us that evening. I just find that level of service to be exemplary. Down by the pool we have Sobhy, who is very attentive & friendly. He manages the pool bar & outdoor restaurant. He provided great service throughout our stay and would offer suggestions on what specials they had on etc. Always happy to greet his guests, and we ended up having lunch there almost every day. In the main restaurant we have Merna, who is a fantastic waitress. She remembered our names from day 1 and even tried to teach me some Arabic (poor girl). As with all of the staff, she's hard working, friendly and a great asset to the hotel. I should also mention the hotel manager (whos name escapes me, but I have his card somewhere), who went out of his way to come to speak to us following an unfortunate accident my wife had (on day 1) which was in no way a fault of the hotel (more on that later). Overall, the staff really go out of their way to make your stay very relaxing and enjoyable, this includes the lifeguards, who will sort you out with your towels and loungers. The hotel is spotlessly clean, inside and out. There was never a time we didn't see staff cleaning every area of the hotel. Food!!! You will not be disapointed by the range and flavour of the food available. The main restaurant operates a buffet-style service with most of the main dishes being cooked to order. We did not have a bad meal once throughout the entire fortnight. We ate in the main restaurant every evening, except one, which is more down to our own laziness (lol) and on the one occasion we went to the beachfront restaurant we had a really nice meal in fantastic surroundings, very chilled and relaxing. I suppose the only small cloud to this silver lining in the breakfast box they provide for when you go on an excursion that necessitates you missing breakfast. They provided a cheese roll and fruit, but there was no butter and it felt a bit dry. The evening entertainment was very good, with live singers and dancers performing by the pool and the daytime stuff was lively. I had my first foam / pool party at the tender age of 56, which was great fun. :-) The private beach has plenty of sunbeds and is very clean, with staff regularly coming to see if we needed drinks etc. The same can be said for the service around the pool. As mentioned, we had an unfortunate accident on our first morning. My wife slipped on the tiles outside our room (we had one of the swim-up rooms) and fell heavily, and stunned herself. One of the gardeners saw it and immediately called over to see if we needed help. He obviously alerted reception as they were calling our room in under a minute to ask if we needed any assistance. I asked for ice, and within a minute or 2, Mary landed at our door with ice in hand. She was genuinely concerned and offered the services of the hotel doctor. We initially declined, but after 20 minutes I decided it would be better for my wife to be professionally checked. Another 15-20 minures later, the doctor arrived and recommended a trip to the E.R. at the local Azeel Hospital. They arranged transport (there and back) and did not apply any additional charge, despite me asking several times subsequently. So we cannot fault the hotel in the least. Finally, we did not book the 'Honeymoon experience' but when our Easyjet rep found out the nature of our holiday, he arranged for our room to be made up specially as a surprise. We returned to find a delicious cake and the bed made up with red petals and the towels in the shape of a heart. Truely, above and beyond service. You are entitled to eat at their sister hotel, as well as getting discount at maybe another 5 or 6 restaurants. Overall, this is a fantastic hotel with great facilities and staff. I highly recommend it.