The Cascades Golf Resort, Spa & Thalasso

A hotel above the course

The Cascades stands at the highest point of the Soma Bay peninsula. The building overlooks the golf course, and its name comes from the waterfalls that run down from the hotel towards the 9th and 18th fairways. From the balconies, the view takes in the greens, the lakes and the Red Sea.

The hotel has 159 rooms and suites and employs 218 people. It won awards in 2025 at the World Luxury Hotel Awards and the LUXlife Magazine Awards, then in 2026 the Haute Grandeur Global Hotel Award, three international hotel award schemes.

The beach is separate: a shuttle bus leaves every 20 minutes and takes about three minutes to reach the private beach. A stay here is therefore split between the golf course, the thalasso centre and the beach.

The Gary Player course, hole by hole

The 18-hole, par-72 course opened in 1998. It was the first championship course in the Middle East and North Africa designed by one of the three great players of the 1960s, South Africa's Gary Player. It is laid out as an elongated figure of eight: each nine returns to the clubhouse at the heart of the peninsula. The fairways are kikuyu, a hardy warm-climate grass; lakes come into play on a few holes and the desert sand acts as a natural hazard.

A few holes to know before you go:

• the 2nd, a 614-yard par 5 from the back tees and the hardest hole on the course, with a bunker-lined fairway that narrows sharply and, behind the green, the stone lions of the hotel entrance;
• the 5th, the signature hole, a par 3 played over water to a green on a narrow spit running into the sea;
• the 9th, with its island green;
• the 12th, a par 4 with a split fairway: the longer, safer route on the left, or the shorter one on the right along a headland;
• the 14th, a 186-yard par 3 over a gully to a wide, shallow green guarded by three bunkers.

Holes 5, 6, 14 and 15 run along the sea. The British website Top 100 Golf Courses ranks the course third in Egypt.

The clubhouse, in the middle of the course, has changing rooms, showers, lockers and a pro shop. The academy, run by PGA (Professional Golfers' Association) professionals, gives individual and group lessons for beginners through to advanced players. For a long stay, the peninsula's second course, Hidden Coves, adds variety.

7,500 m² of seawater

The thalassotherapy centre covers 7,500 m², with 65 treatment rooms. Its centrepiece is a 750 m² pool, the Thalasso-Tonic: 830 m³ of seawater divided into zones, each with its own jets, currents and counter-currents, showers and bubble baths, and each designed for a particular part of the body. The hotel describes it as the only one of its kind on the Red Sea.

The menu covers massages, scrubs, wraps, facials, before- and after-sun care, treatments for two, men's grooming, hands and feet, and slimming programmes. The centre also serves guests of the neighbouring Kempinski, so in high season it is worth booking treatments as soon as you arrive.

In the hotel itself, the gym (7 am to 8 pm, free for guests) looks out over the pool and the course; two sauna and steam cabins, an outdoor Jacuzzi, and tennis and squash courts complete the picture.

A typical day

Tee off early, before the heat. At lunchtime, head down to Seashell on the beach (12 noon to 4 pm) for a pizza, sandwich or salad, or stay by the pool at The Spikes, the bar just off the 18th green (12 noon to 5 pm). The afternoon goes to the seawater pool and treatments. The Gallery, the clubhouse lounge with panoramic views (9 am to 11 pm), serves afternoon tea; in the evening the Eagle's Nest, a British-style pub on the top floor, serves dinner from 4 pm to 1 am. All times are local.

Which room to choose

All rooms are 44 m², with a balcony and a bathroom with bath and separate shower. The Standard is enough for an active stay; the Deluxe adds golf and sea views. The Executive is worth the extra for those who like to snack between activities: its lounge serves a light breakfast (7 to 10.30 am), sandwiches (12.30 to 2.30 pm), tea (3.30 to 5.30 pm) and soft drinks until 11 pm.

For a long golf stay, the 15 Gary Player Suites (120 m²) have a kitchenette, dining area and large terrace. Families or two couples should look at the Garden Suite (205 m², two bedrooms, three bathrooms) and the Imperial Suite (340 m², up to three bedrooms).

Sabaro's view

Who it suits: golfers, couples and spa-goers who want a stay built around play and treatments.

Strengths: the course right outside your room; the 750 m² seawater pool; spacious suites for families and groups of golfing friends; a score of 8.5/10 on Booking.com from 742 reviews.

Good to know: the beach is reached by shuttle; the hotel lists a kids' club without publishing ages or hours.