Makadi Bay was built for ease, and it makes no apology for it. A purpose-built crescent of all-inclusive resorts south of Hurghada, it gathers families and first-time Red Sea visitors into a sheltered bay where the hardest decision is pool or beach. There is no old town to explore, no working harbour — just landscaped grounds, broad sands and a warm, shallow shoreline that suits paddling children as much as snorkellers. The character is relaxed and generous: buffets, kids' clubs and sun loungers within easy reach, with the reef and the open desert waiting just beyond the resort gates for those who want more.

The bay's quiet showpiece is its house reef, a living coral wall close enough to shore that you can swim out from the beach and find butterflyfish, parrotfish and the occasional turtle without a boat. For pure family fun, Makadi Water World delivers a sprawl of slides and lazy rivers, while the Madinat Makadi Aqua Resort builds its own waterpark right into the stay. Boat trips fan out to Tobia Island, a sandbar lagoon perfect for a lazy snorkel, and further afield to Orange Bay's photogenic shallows. Back on the sand, big resorts like Stella Di Mare anchor the southern end of the crescent.

When the heat softens, the desert takes over. Late-afternoon safaris by jeep or quad bike climb into the hills behind the bay for a Bedouin dinner under the stars — sweet tea, drums and a sky thick with constellations far from any city. Evenings inside the resorts are easygoing: a poolside show, a stroll along the floodlit beach, a quiet drink as the warm air settles. Makadi won't surprise you with hidden depths, and that is rather the point — it is engineered for the kind of holiday where the children are happy and the grown-ups can finally exhale.