Grand Waterworld Makadi - Couples and Families Only

You will be understood here in English, as well as in French, German, Russian and Arabic. That matters when you are discussing an early breakfast, a room request or the practical details of getting to the water; nobody should have to mime “mask strap” before coffee.

Grand Waterworld Makadi is a couples-and-families resort with the sort of scale that keeps everyone occupied without requiring a daily taxi expedition. The focus is firmly on water: a full waterpark, large slides, an Aqua Loop, wave pool, Flow Rider and lazy river sit among the gardens, while the private sandy beach gives the resort a slower option.

You can choose between a lively holiday centred on pools and entertainment or a more settled routine of beach, food and a room with space to spread out. The resort works particularly well when divers are travelling with people who have no intention of spending their week discussing surface intervals.

The address is in Hurghada, Egypt, in the Makadi Bay area, directly on a private white-sand beach. Sun loungers, parasols and a beach bar are part of the setup, so the sea is not an abstract promise on a distant horizon: it is one of the resort’s immediate places to go.

Makadi Mall is next door, adding shops and another reason to leave the resort grounds when you fancy a change of scenery. Other named beaches nearby include Fort Arabesque Beach, about 0.6 miles away in a straight line, and Xanadu Makadi Bay Beach, about 1.2 miles away by road.

Hurghada International Airport is 16 miles away by road, with a drive of around 23 minutes. That is a manageable arrival and departure day, even with dive luggage that appears to multiply while nobody is looking.

The Junior Suite is the practical choice when you want more than a bed and a narrow strip of floor. It has a separate lounge area, a sofa bed, a private balcony and room for up to three guests, making it the sensible option for a small family or for two divers who prefer not to live on top of each other between dives.

Views vary between the garden, pool and sea, so the outlook is part of the choice rather than a detail to discover at check-in. The interiors use warm finishes with marble bathrooms, a bath or shower, a dressing room and a private entrance. There is also a minibar, useful for keeping drinks close when the body has reached the “not moving until dinner” stage.

Air conditioning helps after a hot day in the Egyptian sun, while daily housekeeping keeps the return from the beach or the pool reasonably straightforward. A desk, seating area, flat-screen television with satellite channels and a private balcony give you somewhere to sit, dry off and decide whether the evening requires dinner, a drink or absolutely nothing.

This is an all-inclusive resort, with breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks and snacks spread across a sizeable collection of venues. The main Sun, Sea & Sand Restaurant handles buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner, including continental, vegetarian and halal choices, while the wider resort has 16 restaurants in total.

When a buffet feels like too much after a morning in the water, the à la carte options change the pace. Fino offers fine dining at breakfast and dinner; La Terraza covers Italian food at lunch and dinner; Los Amigos serves Mexican food beside the beach; and the Swiss-German Restaurant brings German dishes to the table. Tropical Restaurant provides lunch and snacks, while Kebab Island is a lunchtime grill.

There are 10 named bars, including the African Bar and Beach Bar by the shore, the Relax Pool Bar for swim-up drinks, the Sports Bar, Show Bar, Lobby Bar and Biergarten Bar. La Pergola Café handles afternoon coffee, tea, biscuits and cake, while the Crepes & Sweets Bar is the obvious stop when the day calls for sugar rather than another serious conversation. Drinks include soft drinks, fresh fruit juice, speciality tea, coffee and alcoholic drinks. Room service is available as an additional service.

The waterpark is the headline act when you are not diving: waterslides, a wave pool, Aqua Loop, Flow Rider and lazy river give families and energetic adults plenty to get on with. For a quieter swim, there is a heated outdoor pool and an infinity pool, plus the private beach with loungers, parasols and a beach bar.

You can also book time around the water rather than in it. The resort has a fitness centre, yoga classes, tennis courts and table tennis, with golf available within 3 km. Snorkelling, windsurfing and other water-sports facilities are available on site, with some activities carrying an additional charge.

For the less athletic part of the day, the spa and wellness centre offers massage and body treatments, alongside beauty services such as facials, manicures and pedicures. Evening entertainment, live music and televised sport keep the resort moving after dinner, while the kids’ club and play areas give younger guests somewhere to burn off the last of their energy.

Check-in starts at 14:00 and check-out runs until 12:00. The resort asks you to share your expected arrival time, which is worth doing if your flight lands outside the usual rhythm of the place. A 24-hour reception, luggage storage, concierge, tour desk, currency exchange and an on-site cash machine cover the useful jobs around arrival and departure.

An airport shuttle is available and can be arranged with the hotel, either privately or as a shared service. Free private parking is available on site, and the building has a lift as well as ground-floor accommodation. A minimarket is also on the property, handy for the small items that somehow never make it into the suitcase.

Laundry, ironing and dry-cleaning services are available, and room service can be used when the sensible plan is to eat without putting shoes back on. Children of any age are welcome; cots can be requested for younger children, while extra beds are not available. The property does not allow pets, and guests under 18 must check in with a parent or official guardian.