Egypt / Sinai

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 Sharm El-Sheikh, Sinai (Egypt)

The simplicity of sun, sea and sand. The luxury of five-star hotels, water sports, shopping and entertainment. This is Sharm El-Sheikh, one of the most accessible and developed tourist resort communities on the Sinai peninsula. All around are Bedouins, colorful tents, mountains and sea.

There are small, intimate hotels with modern designs, as well as larger hotel complexes belonging to International chains, plus about all the amenities one could expect of a tourist center, including casinos, discos and nightclubs, golf courses and health facilities.

In fact, with scuba diving and snorkeling, windsurfing and other water sports, horses and camel riding, desert safaris, and great nearby antiquities attractions, it is almost impossible for a visitor not to relax and enjoy.

 

The many surrounding cultural attractions offer the ideal opportunity for forays into the desert in four-wheel drive jeeps. Dine under the stars in a Bedouin tent and savor the majesty of the mountains as they come alive with strategically placed lighting. Barbequed lamb and other Egyptian delicacies are served to the backdrop of an exciting Rababa show.

Naama Beach, the center of tourist activities is 6 km to the south standing on a cliff overlooking the port, and is a great view. This area is developing into a resort town of its own. Most hotels at Naama Bay have their own, private beaches with comfortable amenities such as chairs, shades and even bars.

For those who love to shop, the Sharm El-Sheikh mall provides shops with both foreign and local products, including jewelry, leather goods, clothing, pottery and books.

 

Over the past 30 years the Sinai has become a tourist destination due to its natural setting, rich coral reefs, and biblical history. The most popular tourist destination in Sinai are Mount Sinai ("Jabal Musa") and St. Catherine's Monastery, which is considered to be the oldest working Christian monastery in the world, and the beach resorts of Sharm el-Sheikh, Dahab, Nuweiba and Taba. Most tourists arrive through Eilat, Israel and the Taba Border Crossing, by train or bus from Cairo or by Ferry from Aqaba in Jordan.

Most of the Sinai Peninsula is divided among two Egyptian governorates, or provinces, named Ganub Sina ("South Sinai") and Shamal Sina ("North Sinai"). Three more governates span the Suez Canal, crossing into African Egypt. el-Sewais ("the Suez") is on the southern end of the Suez Canal, el-Isma'ileyyah in the center, and Port Said in the north.

The Sinai Peninsula or Sinai (Coptic:sina; Egyptian Arabic:Sinin in most Semitic languages, Sinai) is an inverted triangle-shaped peninsula in Egypt. It lies between the Mediterranean Sea (to the north) and Red Sea (to the south), forming a land bridge to Southwest Asia. Its area is about 60,000 km². The Egyptians call it the Land of Fayrouz. Main Travel Destination is Sharm el Sheikh for Holiday. For Backpackers its the small Village of Dahab that attract most for relaxation and diving, also windsurfing is famous. Also in Dahab you find the most natural Area to come in contact with foreigner and bedouines. From there you also can start to make a safari trip into the desert and for example to mountain moses as that is cult. In the North you find Taba with famous Hotels like Hilton and Moevenpick. In the Middle you also find a lot of small camps in the Area of Nuweiba.