What Russian chocolate or gifts do hotel staff in Sharm el-Sheikh actually want?

Alcohol is off-limits as a gift for staff. For staff they know well, one traveler also brought Russian marshmallow (zefir) in addition to candies.

A guide in Sharm reportedly explained that even cleaning staff can't afford good quality chocolate themselves since it's expensive, so cheap 'chemical' chocolate is what's common there. One traveler shares a routine: bringing 5-7 good chocolates plus a box of candies for reception, leaving a couple of chocolates and $5 on the bed the first 1-2 days, then giving cash tips at checkout — noting $2-3 is always more appreciated than chocolate alone.

One traveler reports that at Sunny Days in February, staff would ask guests for candy or chocolate, and currently at Bellagio nobody turns their nose up at Alyonka or other chocolate — it's always well received.

If choosing chocolate other than Alyonka, look for a halal certification mark. Alyonka has it, and the traveler also reported seeing it on Akkond products.

Besides chocolate, a traveler wrote in August 2026 that staff enjoy black salted sunflower seeds from the Ot Martina brand — she shares them and staff are pleased. For several years she has also brought boxed Marsianka candies in assorted flavors, which went over well too. Cash tips are still added on top.

Chocolate is also sold locally. In September 2026 travelers noted that a local Fix Price store had a wide choice of chocolate at prices lower than in Russia. In August, other travelers said they could not find simply good chocolate: small bars sold at checkouts for 5 Egyptian pounds, and pricier ones seemed no better to them.

Opinions on "Dubai chocolate" are split. In July 2026 one traveler suggested bringing date-filled candies or a pricier Dubai chocolate instead of Alyonka, calling it very tasty. Others who bought "Dubai chocolate" on an excursion were disappointed — an ordinary bar with a thin filling — and in August another traveler called it money wasted as a gift. Date candies, on the other hand, were praised.

Travelers describe cases where staff asked for Alyonka themselves. In June 2026 a guide on the airport transfer bus said the chocolate is popular. In August, reception staff asked a guest to bring them a bar, and according to another traveler, a porter declined a dollar tip and asked whether they had Alyonka. In her view, the value lies not in the chocolate itself but in it being a symbol of Russia.

Participants offer different explanations for why Alyonka in particular. One theory is the wrapper picture of a girl in a headscarf. Another is that local chocolate is worse: in June and September 2026 travelers wrote that chocolate they bought in Egypt was unappetizing, which made it clear why staff want the Russian kind. There is also the opposite view: shops sell plenty of chocolate that tastes better than Alyonka.

If you bring chocolate, one traveler in June 2026 advised choosing something better than Alyonka — she brought Osoby chocolate from St. Petersburg and Babaevsky with nuts — and always as an addition to dollar tips, not a substitute.

Skeptics believe staff hardly need chocolate. In June 2026 participants wrote that almost no one actually eats Alyonka, Egypt has plenty of its own chocolate, and what everyone wants is money. A traveler who visited in spring 2026 concluded that staff did not care about the chocolate bars but did appreciate dollars, and brought some of the chocolate back home.

An alternative to Alyonka suggested in June 2026 is a set of mini chocolates with matryoshka-doll packaging: the reviewer found the taste decent, and it looks like a souvenir.