Baron Palace Sahl Hasheesh

Everything was as good or better than the reviews. The hotel is beautiful, spotlessly clean, full of smiling friendly and helpful staff. It was good to meet the manager Mr Ali and see him doing regular patrols. Outside the gardens are immaculate with a wide range of flowering plants, shrubs, trees, and grasses some of which are named. We enjoyed the fact that it was not too full and could get into all the restaurants we wanted to and find chairs and cabannas on the beach. We chose our pillows and liked the fluffy gowns. It is not a hotel with lots of activities on offer but we walked along the promenade each way, played in the boule competitions on the beach and regularly swam. There was snorkelling from the beach although the sea was fresh. Otherwise we enjoyed the rest and relaxation with the attentive service on hand which is what we had gone for. Breakfast was a treat sitting in the sunshine on the terrace by the fountain listening to gentle music from the cellist or violinist. I have just a few comments to make. The Club lounge had delicious looking snacks laid out daily but I was not tempted with the savoury ones as I had no idea how long they had been sitting out especially as they were not in a cool cabinet. A waste bin would be nice - to save leaving a mess on the counter. Indoors the marble corridors and stairs were lovely and always shiny and polished. However it was always difficult seeing each step - I wear vari-focal glasses which makes it doubly difficult. A dark strip although not attractive would make them much safer. I found others who agreed with me. The restaurants offered a good choice of options but why make them quite so dark? We struggled not just to read the menus but in the Egyptian I had to use my phone torch to see what I was eating, being careful not to upset other customers. In the Bellavista we had a light clipped to our menu which I kept for the meal. The Mikado was one of our favourites but found the bar counter quite uncomfortable without a shelf for your knees to go under. It meant either sitting some way back and leaning over to eat (not easy in white trousers) or sitting sideways beside the counter. I've eaten terriyaki around the world but never not had a shelf to eat from. Another positive point to make is that we met some delightful and friendly guests, all as happy as we were. We hope to return.

The hotel itself is beautiful but the whole experience depends on the room you get to stay in... So careful there. The gardens are spectacular, pools and views breathtaking. The staff is amazing, especially in beach bars. I was very lucky to be helped and cared by Ali, the Head Bartender, who made my stay a dream vacation every day and helped to deal with any issues. Look for him on the beach!

When I first looked at the reviews for this holiday, I read through loads and they were mostly all great so we took a chance and went and we were not disappointed! This was our 3rd time at this hotel and even though we enjoyed our wedding and honeymoon in the Maldives, this for us, is our paradise. You can read all the great reviews, but it's not until you come here, can you experience and feel the calm, serene, tranquil energy of this place. As soon as you arrive, it’s like you take a deep breath and you're home. What really makes this hotel and holiday above any other holiday that we have had over the years, and makes us want to come back year after year, is the staff, they are so lovely, polite and kind, and genuinely happy to see you and want to help you, that it makes it feel like home away from home. Through the staff, I feel that you can tell the way the hotel is run and managed and the general manager, Osama Ali is one of the kindest gentlemen I’ve ever met. I see him in the mornings, when the sun is just coming up, walking around the hotel grounds talking to all his staff and he does this all day long, every day. He stops and talks to all the guests and checks in with them to see if they have any worries or concerns, and he is so approachable and I have not experienced this in any other hotel we have stayed at. I also had the pleasure of chatting to manager, Rabie Bahr every morning while I was sitting reading and watching the sun come up and he always checked in with me to see if I needed anything, which was lovely. We booked a swim up room for our 2nd and 3rd time here and this really made a huge difference to our experience, as the rooms are so much bigger with a lot more storage space. In the mornings, we would go down to the adult pool and spend time in both this pool and the meditation pool, then late afternoon, we would go back to our swim up room and float around on our lilo’s in our pool (and it was closer for having an afternoon siesta). Our cleaner, Ali Ahmed was so lovely and by the time we got back to our room in the afternoon, our rooms were always spotless, with clean fresh sheets and a full mini bar, stocked with our favourite drinks. Also manager Saaid AAirahman always checked in with us and would always accommodate us if we ever needed anything, which we were so grateful for. The food at this hotel is outstanding, I am a fussy vegetarian and there was always plenty of delicious food for me to have, and the staff always go above and beyond to make sure I always had plenty of food that I liked. For breakfast and lunch every day, staff would greet us smiling and make sure we always got our favourite table and our drinks were on the way without us having to order as they remembered what we liked, plates were cleared as soon as we were finished and even the chef already had my food cooking as soon as he saw me come in to the restaurant, what more could you want, the service is impeccable! I am so grateful to manager Mostaf