Sharm El Sheikh Airport

If there was "no star" to fill in I would take that one! Customs not polite rude etc. Buying in duty free shops = mob practices. They say they don't accept Visa and you have to pay cash. Then they take a currency rate which is sky high! Don't let them get you!

Sharm El Sheikh is an airport full of bureaucracy. In order to fly out from Sharm El Sheikh you need to go through not one but two x-ray machines. Your passport is checked twice and stamped. The staff in the airport can be rude and unhelpful. Baggage handlers do not treat your cases with any care or respect. If you pay in anything but Egyptian Pounds expect the total sum to be loaded - just because they can.

Including getting the visa we were through the airport in about 25 minutes from landing to getting into our coach. The staff were very friendly and polite and beat quite a lot of other airports I have been through. Just one word of warning for the smokers! Whilst waiting for the luggage I spied a door to the outside world and went through it for a cig leaving my daughter to watch for the cases. I wasn't allowed back in. A lot of people were kicking off about it but when you think about it - if you left the baggage collection area at Manchester went outside then tried to get back in you wouldn't be able to. So my feelings are - just go with the flow don't fret about the airport and enjoy your holiday!

From reading previous reviews I can only think it is luck or the day you travel. We arrived 9pm Sunday and departed 5pm Wed. Avoid Thursdays if possible as it is known locally as 'crazy Thursday' with 25 UK flights alone. Arrival experience was 10 mins max from leaving plane to getting into car including getting a visa! No queues or crowds. All thanks to the swift service of Sylvia Tours guide. Departure experience also swift check-in passport and security. Duty free and departure gates not crowded. No hassle. Toilets not brilliant several loos out of order but have seen much worse in UK. Asked by Ministry of Tourism rep to fill in a long questionnaire which we did so they are trying to put things right.

Arrival was lots of shouting and pushing around. Departure very overcrowded both before and after security. Go into the departure lounge all seats taken and people all sat on the floor - didnt end up buying any duty free as far too cramped. The toilets had no loo roll and not very clean and the departure boards were showing the wrong information (flights showing as left when they hadn't).

Just arrived back from Sharm El Sheikh and found the airport a very pleasant experience going in and coming out. The airport staff were very niceand we had no trouble getting a seat in departure.

Departure marginally worse than arrival. Waited almost an hour for luggage to appear and told several different carousel numbers. large numbers waiting to get visa's and through passport control. On departure long wait at check in duty free shop and departure gate. No seats available filthy toilets. Never want to repeat this experience.

I travelled through this airport going to Newcastle on a charter flight - just about the worst airport I have had the misfortune to use. The crowds to pass through security checkin passport control are disgraceful and you don't have hope of getting a seat in the terminal or cattle market as it can be described. The cost of food and a drink is also outrageous use this airport at your peril.

Seems to be the luck of the draw and mainly down to what time you arrive. On arrival we were though the visa purchase and passport checks within 5 minutes. By that time our baggage was on the carousel. It took about 10 minutes to get out of the terminal. Departure not as quick but nothing to moan about. Certainly no worse than some British airports I've been to. The baggage boys and toilet paper sellers seem to have disappeared when we were there however.

Travelled through terminal 2 - a living nightmare. First queue outside airport to get into terminal - 45 minutes 2nd queue to check in bags 45 minutes 3rd queue Passport Control 45 minutes totally disorganised and a free for all. Once through to Duty Free shelves empty sample perfume bottles empty and then another queue to pay for purchases. 20 minutes queue for toilets Mens toilets had to be opened for women and they were an absolute disgrace. Nobody seems to take ownership or charge of anything. We wont be back and from listening to most of the people beside us they wont be back either. Management get your act together. The worst airport I have had the misfortune to visit never again.