Set on a private golden beach in Nabq Bay, Pickalbatros Royal Moderna builds the day around water: eleven pools, a long snorkelling jetty that walks you straight out over the reef, and a spa to retreat to when the sun has done its work.
This is one of the flagship properties of Egypt’s Pickalbatros group. It opened in late 2004 on a broad sweep of Nabq Bay sand and has been polished season after season since, its low-rise room blocks threaded through lawns and palms rather than stacked into one tower. The scale is generous, around 680 rooms, yet the grounds divide themselves neatly into zones: an active pool where the daytime programme happens, a relax pool where nothing happens at all, and a long, unhurried beachfront.
Days here revolve around the water. Eleven pools cover every mood from swim-up sociable to genuinely quiet, the spa brings a proper hammam and sauna, and the house reef starts at the end of the jetty rather than the end of a boat trip, which is why snorkellers rate this stretch of Nabq so highly. Evenings run from seven themed restaurants through live music and shows.
Our honest take: this is a big, sociable, full-throttle resort, and it is excellent at being exactly that. If you are after hushed boutique calm, ask us about our quieter Sharm collection, but guests who want food variety, a short transfer and a huge amount to do tell us Royal Albatros Moderna Sharm El Sheikh holidays are very hard to beat on an all inclusive basis.
Call our Egypt specialists free on 0800 041 8400 or request your tailored quote online. Every holiday is ABTA and ATOL protected.
There is a layout here for practically every shape of party. Around 680 rooms and suites spread through low-rise garden blocks between the pools and the beach, all with a balcony or terrace, air conditioning, a minibar and a safe. Views split three ways, garden, pool or sea, and the ladder of categories is refreshingly simple: the further up you go, the more space and the better the outlook. Sizes are generous by Sharm standards, starting at a proper 35 m² for the entry grade, and interiors are bright and contemporary, with a seating corner, large windows onto the balcony and modern shower rooms. Every published category is below.
The core of the resort and a comfortable base for couples or a family of three. If the budget stretches, take the sea view version; watching the light shift over Nabq Bay from your own balcony is worth every penny.
One of the most booked categories here. A king-size bed plus separate single beds, with bunk beds in some layouts, and enough floor space to actually unpack for the week.
A step up again for bigger parties, with extra space over the standard Family Room and a leafy garden outlook. Numbers are limited, so for school holiday dates we suggest securing one early.
Suite space without suite formality: a proper sitting area alongside the bedroom and a wider balcony. Garden and pool aspects are both sold, and it makes a sensible pick for couples staying ten nights or more.
The top of the tree, with a separate living area and generous balcony. There are only a handful, and our customers celebrating milestone birthdays and anniversaries book them well ahead.
Dining is where the resort really flexes its size. Seven themed restaurants cover Egypt, Italy, Germany, Asia and the sea, backed up by the Club MC food court, a Bakery Station for pastries and the 24-hour Columbus Café. Most venues work on a dine-around basis under all inclusive, so a week here can taste different every single night.
Generous Mediterranean cooking with plenty of variety, and the easy first-night choice while you find your bearings. Fussy younger eaters are well catered for.
The Oriental restaurant and, in our view, the one to try first. Egyptian and Middle Eastern cooking done properly is the thing you cannot get at home; eat here before you eat pizza.
The Italian crowd-pleaser and a reliable shout; nobody ever objects to an Italian night.
Pan-Asian flavours on the dine-around, a lighter, spicier change of pace midway through the week.
A German restaurant is a rarity on the Red Sea, and this one has a loyal following among returning guests. Hearty, generous and pleasingly different.
The seafood specialist, leaning on the Red Sea for its menu. Save it for the most grown-up evening of the week.
The showpiece venue in the main building, its menu heading east with sushi and sashimi among the highlights. It sits outside the standard all inclusive and carries a supplement, and it books up first, so reserve early in your stay.
Around ten bars keep the drinks moving, from swim-up refreshment to late-evening live sport.
All inclusive is the board basis we sell for Royal Albatros Moderna, and it is one of the more complete versions of it in Sharm el Sheikh. Meals run on a dine-around footing, so evenings need not mean the same buffet twice, and the drinks package keeps going until midnight. Here is what your wristband covers.
Most themed venues serve buffet style and seat you on arrival, so there is no round of bookings to make. The White Elephant is the exception on both counts: it is a la carte, carries a supplement and takes reservations, and it fills its book fastest. Room service is available around the clock for lazier mornings.
For all the splash and noise elsewhere, the spa is a genuinely calm pocket of the resort. The facilities run to a traditional hammam, sauna, steam room and jacuzzi, with a treatment menu of massages and beauty rituals, plus a salon and hairdresser for anyone dressing up for a special dinner. Treatments are chargeable, and in our experience a post-flight massage booked for day one is the smartest money you will spend all week; the hammam is best reserved early too, as slots go quickly in peak season.
Staying active is easy without ever leaving the grounds. A well-equipped gym covers the basics, and the outdoor roster includes paddle tennis, beach volleyball and a genuinely charming mini golf course that works for all ages. Bikes are free to borrow for a turn around the resort, and billiards and darts fill the hotter hours indoors. Between the morning aqua aerobics and an evening walk to the end of the jetty, you can be as busy or as idle as you please.
Classic Holidays when selling travel arrangements is a trading name of Co-op Travel Services Ltd. Classic Holidays is an Accredited Body Member of Co-operative Travel Consortium. (ABTA P7508, ATOL 12904).
Your Financial Protection: Book with Confidence. Classic Holidays is a Member of ABTA. ABTA and ABTA Members help holidaymakers to get the most from their travel and assist when things don’t go according to plan. We are obliged to maintain a high standard of service to you by ABTA’s Code of Conduct.
All of the flights and flight-inclusive holidays on this website are financially protected by the ATOL scheme but ATOL protection does not apply to non-flight holiday and travel services offered on this website. Classic Holidays will provide you with information on the protection that applies in the case of each holiday and travel service offered before you make your booking. If you do not receive an ATOL Certificate then the booking will not be ATOL protected. If you do receive an ATOL Certificate but all parts of your trip are not listed on it, those parts will not be ATOL protected. Please see our booking conditions for information, or for more information about financial protection and the ATOL Certificate go to: www.caa.co.uk
