The Marriott is a beautiful hotel, in an amazing location. Perfect if you want to get away from it all for a bit of peace and quiet. The rooms are huge and spotless - the biggest bed I've slept in!! The food was tasty and varied, lot's of english people were moaning as it was a buffet, but the egyptian chefs took pride in their food and we loved eating there each night!! The coral is incredible and we saw all types of fish including sting rays! I definatly recomend this hotel!

Went to TABA Marriott in November 2004 with our two young girls and had an excellent time. We could not complain about anything in this hotel, the staff were superb, the rooms were emmaculate and cleaned every day to a very high standard.

There is a childrens club so we could get a few hours to ourselves each day.

The resort is relatively new so some of the planting is not very advanced but the landscaped pools are wonderfully relaxing.

One of the things that we realy liked is there is very little to do in Taba other than excursions. Currently there are no retail outlets, bars or clubs other than the ones in the hotels.

The night entertainment is "sparce" however after a day of lying by the pool relaxing or snorkling off the hotel beach on the coral reef that suited us just fine.

The hotel beach was the best one in Taba heights, although it does get a little rocky by the sea.

We will definetely return again this year and would recommend to anyone, I just hope that this place does not develop too quickly.

This was our first trip to the Red Sea, and we loved it. Taba Heights is very quiet, (unlike Sharm apparently) and has little there apart from the hotels and the sea. However, as we went for a relaxing holiday, thats exactly what we got. The snorkeling was amazing, and although it was quite windy, it was warm and sunny every day (25-27 deg C in early March).
The Marriott was a good choice, as the spa is lovely - the jacuzzi, steam room, sauna and gym are all free. Also, the loungers are all free, contrary to what the tour operator told us. Food was pretty good, although by the end of the week we were a bit bored.
The downside of the holiday is that the tours are all very expensive, plus as there arent any local shops, you are rather held to ransom by the hotels when it comes to drinks and snacks.

We stayed at the Marriott from Feb 6 2005, Lovely quiet hotel, clean, comfy, spacious. It was windy, as it apparently always is there. We had to make wind breakers on the beach. Weather wasn't up to much - a bit cloudy and cold. Better to go later in the year.
St Katherine's monastery good but crowded.
A relaxing holiday with great snorkelling off the jetty at the Hyatt.

My boyfriend and I stayed at the Marriott Taba in June 2004. The hotel is set out very well and is kept very clean. The rooms are lovely. The dining area was ok, not as bad as some people have said, but you don't go to Egypt for the food do you. We had slight stomach up sets but weren't sure if that was due to the intense heat rather than the food. The pool is fab BUT even better- the private beach is lovely with marvellous reefs just off shore and lovely tropical fish, manta and even a turtle! Just up the road is the dive centre and we had the best day going out on their yacht to snorkel I REALLY recommend this trip - excellent.
We also went out for a trek in the Sinai desert.. Blimey, not for the faint hearted! Extreme heat and having to squeeze through tiny spaces not to mention a long, wild jeep ride with no seat belts! Quite an adventure if you are up for it- However avoid having to go to the awful hard sell papyrus and jewellery shops with your guide (who gets commission) on the way back.. horrendous.
We would go back, it's a great, hot week away with fantastic snorkelling.. total relaxation

07.01.05
Guests " Adults aged 46 & 21

We booked a winter break in the hotel intent upon catching a few rays of sunshine & snorkeling. As this was our 4th trip to Egypt we believed that we knew what to expect.

On arrival we were impressed by the efficient & rapid check in procedure. We were quickly directed to our room which was spacious, well appointed and beautifully clean.

Hotel gardens are well tended with a wide array of local vegitation. There is some building work going on adjacent to the hotel but we didnt find the noise at all intrusive. Adjacent to the beach is a huge swimming pool with a water slide and plenty of free sun loungers and pool towels. Sadly when we visited (first week in Feb 2005) the pool was very cold and had various bits of rubbish floating around- which didnt exactly encourage us to swim there!!

The beach is slightly better but is man made. The sea is clear and relatively shallow. There are plenty of sun loungers and parasols. The shore line is VERY rocky - you will need your beach shoes - take them with you because there is no-where to buy any in resort. Also if you are looking for great reefs go to Sharm - the man made beach has polluted the corals at Taba and many have died back. The fish are still as fabulous but fewer in number.

We would recommend a visit at least once to the hotel Spa. It is great, providing massages, saunas etc (around £30 sterling for a Thai massage)

We were aware that Taba was quiet (that was what we went for) however we had not anticipated that it would be quite so desolate. There is absolutely nothing around the hotel except the Sinai mountains, 3 other hotels and the sea. No shops, no bars (except for a small bar at Water World approx 30 minutes walk down the beach and a tiny shop at the Esso garage 30 minutes walk towards the mountains) As a result every night was spent within the hotel. Drinks are relatively expensive (for Egypt) in the hotel at around £3 for a half litre of the local brew Sakara. However I can recommend two of the bars - the Lobby Bar (which had a happy hour each night) and the Grotto which looked a bit like a cave. Staff waiting in both of these venues were efficient & very friendly.

The dining experience in the Andalus Resturant was another matter. The meals are all self service buffet style - and depending upon the time of dining can be a bit like a saturday afternoon in a busy produce market. We found that the tables were regularly grubby from the previous diner/lacking in the necessary equipment to actually eat the meal(forks/knives/spoons/glasses etc) The wine service was either so slow that the wine arrived when we got to the desert course or didnt arrive at all. By the middle of the week we were so fed up with the pathetic service that began to take our drinks into the resturant with us.

We frequently resorted to room service ("At you service"). The food was available 24 hours a day and was always freshly prepared and delivered speedilly to the room. We found the service to be excellent value for money & an efficient alternative for dining.

Would we return to the Marriott? No.

A truly enjoyable time was had by all including two teenaged sons. Beautiful location, clean & spotless hotel, friendly & delightful staff.

Visited January 2005 & initially concerned by earlier reviews regarding food & illness ... absolutely nothing to worry about, presuming negative reviews were made by those expecting fish & chips or roast dinners.

All food is varied, freshly prepared with many regional dishes.... if you are expecting British grub you will be disappointed but if, like our family, you have varied & adventurous tastes then you will be more than satisfied. None in our party suffered tummy upsets either, though it is a good idea to ensure you bring medications with you just incase.

The hotel itself is very tranquil, beach is glorious.... just a great place to chill & unwind. Definitely take a few trips to surrounding areas as there is little to do apart from sunbathe, swim, dive & read. Massage at the spa is fantastic & highly recommended.

Weather was great for January, very windy but hot enough for a good tan. Good idea if you have children with you to take your own table tennis & tennis equipment.

Avoid the influx of Israelis on Friday & Saturdays by taking a day trip. Unfortunately they can be very rude & arrogant with little respect for anyone

Cairo is a must, stay overnight & enjoy real Egypt on the 5 hour journey there. Biro pens are really useful for tipping within Cairo Please tip the staff at hotel (just a couple of dollars can go a long way) We tipped our room cleaner at the end of our holiday, a generous tip. We felt it is par course to tip in Egypt, so long as a good service was provided.

Marriott Taba Heights is a wonderful hotel, quiet, tranquil & spiritual area ..... we will return again!

Marriott Hotel Taba Heights - December 18th 2004 to 1st January 2005

Taba Heights is within sight of three other countries, Israel, Jordan and Saudi. It is a beautiful location and the hotels enjoy a backdrop of stunning mountains. There is another development hotel adjacent to the Marriott but this is far enough away from the hotel not to be a problem and progress is slow anyway. Towards the mountains behind the hotel a plaza has been built which is going to house offices and shops, we understand this is not yet fully open.

the other hotels up the beach have their own culture and flavour but we concluded that the Marriott was best for us after an ispection and a meal at the one of the others.

You will enjoy seeing the two camels on the beach and you can negotiate a ride for around LSD 30.00 or so. The Bedouin also sell trinkets off the beach but they are not too pushy or intrusive. It is comforting to see security guards keep out any unwanted visitors to the hotels 24 x 7.

Personally we found the snorkelling not as good as Marsa Alam in Egypt (where we went in 2003) and the water was very cold (hey it was December) so we did not go in as much for those two reasons. However, the hotel is extremely pleasant and has a wonderful Grotto restaurant near the beach and you can be entertained by belly and traditional dancers at night and smoke a Sheesha, during the day you can enjoy a very pleasant and enjoyable lunch at very reasonable prices. I recommend you pay the additional $30 per head for the Bedouin dinner experience on a Tuesday evening in the Grotto - worth every dollar. The waiters are a lot of fun and will come to the beach or poolside to take orders for coffee, drinks or lunch etc (remember to tip them).

The weather was a disappointment at first due to the wind often bringing in cloud which of course blocked out the sun and reduced the temperatures considerably. Some days were just cold because of the wind itself, we actually had rain one day we were there. The second week however was glorious and the sun was almost too hot to sit out in at noon.

The Marriott hotel is a delight, not least because of its layout and style but mainly because of its friendliness and desire to please among the staff. The rooms are very nice though we opted for an upgrade after the first week to one of the best blocks (400) with a sea view.

We stayed for two weeks over the Christmas period to avoid the ususal nonsense, rush and panic back home. We certainly made the right choice though unfortunately we were constantly reminded of Christmas and New Year by the eager to please staff of the hotel who would not have understand our desire to leave it all behind.

On New Years eve, the Marriott (as did all the hotels) put on the most amazing new years eve gala dinner in a marquee complete with entertainment (we were not charged extra for this event). It has to be said that the job the hotel staff and chef's did was truly magnificent and would be difficult to give justice to in the this review, it was simply excellent and visually amazing, complete with ice and vegetable sculptures!

We found the combination of Peltours arrangements, transfers and general looking after us, unobtrusive and enjoyable. We would definately use Peltours again.

We found the idea of having to pay supplements to attend Chrsitmas Eve or Christmas Day dinners unattractive especially at $50 and $60 a head (particularly as we had already paid for half board), so we gave these a miss and opted for the standard buffet.

The buffet restaurant (I don't like buffet's anyway) is fine but gets a little monotonous after a week. The Italian A La Carte (Tuscany) restaurant was exceptional for a quiet romantic meal and would put most quality restaurants in the UK to shame in terms of service, quality and standards.

One must understand the culture and incomes in Egypt, Tipping from our point of view was a must, the staff work very hard are very servant like in their attitude and genuinely desire to please. LSD 5.00 (Five Egypitian pounds) is only 40 or 50 pence for us but for them is a significant amount of money. Alternatively, you can tip with USD ($)'s which were equivalent to LSD 6.00 whilst we were there. The guys that transport you bags, clean your room or wait on you all deserve tips and we were careful to follow this through throughout our two weeks there. Be prepared for an ajustment to your political correctness. Going to these resorts seems like going back twenty or thirty years in terms of safety and protection for your children. What is politically correct in England does not appear to be so in Egypt. we noticed that the hotel staff especially the waiters all made a fuss of children and made friends with them, they often played with them, picked them up and generally gave the children and insight into an alternative way of behaving and operating. I understand that in this day and age one could not be so liberal with their children in the UK.

We would definately go back to Taba and to the Marriott in the future.
The staff of the hotel were wonderful and 90% of them celebrated us as valuable customers. Special mention goes to Sayeed on the front desk and Accram and Ahmed who took us on the Jeep safari to the coloured canyon.

We also went on a day trip (mini pilgrimage) to Jerusalem hosted by Mickey in Isreal (organised by Peltours at the hotel). Recommend this trip if you have always wanted to go to Israel. We opted not to do the five hour journey to Cairo but may do that on a future trip. I recommend also the JeeP Safari to the coloured canyon but you should be reasonably fit to achive this as there is some walking, climbing and difficult places to manouver through on foot through the canyon. If you are in luck like us you will be met at the other end of the canyon by a small group of Bedouin who will provide tea, coffee and coke or a 'CAMEL RIDE' - wonderful.

Do be aware you will not get Costa or Starbucks coffee in Egypt, you will either have to have instant Nescafe or the strong muddy (but enjoyable) Turkish or Egyptian coffee in most of the restaurants. You will also not be able to get a decent bottle of wine there under three hundred Egyptian pounds, Take my advice and pick up a wine box from Gatwick or Manchester and keep it in your room as we did!

i stayed at the marriott in the october school hoildays, ive read the other reviews and i am really shocked about what they say about the hygene, the whole place was very very clean, the rooms and the staff brilliant. my husband was ill with stomach upsets but he didnt have the injections b4 he came away. i did, and i didnt have a problem!
its a lovely relaxing holiday, beautiful beach, and lovely reef. take snorkle and sea shoes!! shoes are a must in the sea!!! the current does get pretty strong as well around the reefs.
room service and the mini bar in the room are CHEAP!! you can get a great sandwich and fries for about £3. and cans of drink all about 90p, they stock up the bar everyday so its very handy if you want that cold drink., choclate crisps, nuts, this is your only shop!! your mini bar.. you can buy 12, 1 litre bottles of water from reception for £10 a box, they fit in the mini bar 2 at a time if you empty out all the other stuff.. they have happy hours which you can buy beer buy one get one free.. its about £2 for a beer. 2 for £2 not bad!!
get a bottle or 2 at the airport to take with you. theres a quite a few trips, but because we were only there for a week we didnt go on any, just chilled, but we did go to the diving centre...there is a mini bus hourly.. and theres a great cafe at the place that does great steaks for about £3.
the one thing i DIDNT like about the hotel was that all the waiters wanted to charge all the trips and drinks to your room, and at the end of the hoilday it wasnt right and took me about 2 hours to sort.. so if you can, try and pay cash all the time... everything was in egyptian pounds in the hotel... but at driving center you pay in american $... no need to take both thou they convert it... its just hard to work out how much is what all the time.
the hotel is huge and at night all there is to do is walk around the grounds... its in the middle of nowhere so no walking out of the hotel at night, i found the food great.. abit shamey but very well presented and some of the best breads and deserts ive ever tasted. i surpose if your a meat and two veg man looking for your roast beef and yorkshires then you wont like the food! all in all, i would go back, but in a few years time when more developed, i just love the weather and the warm sea and the fish!! the huge colourful fish... and the trip you must go on is the snorkling trip on the gallon.. what a wonderful day.. saw tuna and turtles on the way home.. anything else you need to know janehello@hotmail.com

Do not stay at this hotel!! We ended up with Salmonella poisoning which ruined our holiday. The rep didn't want to know at the time, same as the travel agents Peltours do not want to know now!! my advice is to avoid this place unless you want to loose a stone in a week!!