Is this Egypt’s best kept secret? Maybe, because it is often undervalued with Egypt’s GREAT historical power; the Sinai Peninsula takes a back seat.
However, between the aquatic life, the Bedouins and the history of its mountains, Sinai became one of my favorite destinations.
If you are looking to connect it with the rest of your trip, or you got a cheap flight to Sharm El-Sheikh, or you just want to see what else you can do after diving, you are in the right place. the right place.
My Ultimate Sinai Itinerary
- Day 1: Sharm El-Sheikh – where my flight arrived
- El 2: Sharm El-Sheikh – exploration day
- Day 3: Dahab – exploration and diving
- 4: diving in Blue Hole
- Day 5: Hike to Abu Galoum
- 6: Day at Blue Lagoon and return to Dahab
- Day 7: Mount Sinai Excursion
There’s a lot to talk about, so make yourself a cup of coffee or some mate and I’ll help you organize your trip.
How to get to the Sinai Peninsula?
The easiest and cheapest (especially from Italy) is to fly to Sharm El-Sheikh Airport. I recommend you to search for flights in Skyscanner; I flew from Milan for only 35 EUR. Yes, it’s that cheap, go check it out.
VIsa to Egypt: what you need to know
Once you arrive in Egypt, you have two options depending on your itinerary:
- If you stay alone in the Sinai Peninsula (up to 15 days): There is a free permit “Sinai Only” and you are exempt from the standard visa.
- If you are staying longer or traveling to the rest of Egypt: You will have to get an on-arrival Visa which costs 25 USD.
Beware of scams, at the airport you will see many people pretending to be immigration crew. In reality, they are travel agencies that will charge you a commission for “helping you” with the process. You don’t need them, go directly to the bank window, pay your 25 USD and that’s it.
🧚🏽 Transport tip:
Once you pass through immigration, the best thing you can do to get out of Sharm El-Sheikh airport is to download Careem. It is the equivalent of Uber in Egypt and it works great because it allows you to request a car and negotiate the price in advance, avoiding fights with local cabs. Try to offer a little more than what the app suggests to be accepted without so much negotiation.
Tips for visiting Egypt
Internet and SIM cards in Egypt
The cheapest way is to buy a SIM card directly at the airport, Micha (my boyfriend) used Orange and it worked perfect; it is the best option if you are going to spend a medium-long period in Egypt and if you need to have a number there.
My phone, however, does not receive SIM cards anymore (only e-sim) and there was no provider that would sell me a local e-sim without me being Egyptian. So I signed up for the Airalo; It is easy and convenient, especially for short periods. If you are new to Airalo, you can use my code (GUADAL1787) with 3 EUR discount.
Travel insurance
Although Egypt may seem cheap, mishaps and medical access is expensive. Especially if you are planning to dive in Dahab, I recommend you to go with a medical insurance.
I always recommend Heymondo, which is reputable and has a lot of positive reviews (especially for short terms), but… if you are traveling for at least a month, I recommend SafetyWingwhich I use for longer trips.
Cash and card situation in Egypt
This is super duper important for us who travel on a raaancid budget, in Egypt cash is king! and the “blue market” (parallel market) is huge. What does this mean? That for most things, especially those small expenses or in more local stores, you will have to pay in cash.
The best way to get Egyptian Pounds (EGP) is to carry cash in your currency (Euro, Dollar, Pounds Sterling) and exchange them at exchange houses once you get there. I typically use Revolut and Micha N26, which are two spectacular traveler’s cards and have a free rate for withdrawing money abroad.
However, I recommend you to do it only from the ATM at the airport in order to be able to move to the center. Once there, the best thing to do is to change cash like in the old days. To give you an idea, handling money like this in our month in Egypt helped us to save more or less 300 EUR.
Well now, let’s go through each destination of the Itinerary.
Visiting Sharm El-Sheikh
This city is famous (mostly by Italians, amazing how much Italian is spoken in the streets), for the beaches and the All Inclusive, quite inexpensive, but the reality is that there are plenty of things to do.
In this itinerary I show you what you can do in 2 days; but there are some interesting excursions you can do if you decide to stay longer.
Where to stay in Sharm El Sheikh
Naama Bay: This is the area where most of the “big hotels” are located and the tourist infrastructure is more developed; the beach is also very well prepared. The truth is that it is much farther away from other attractions, it is a little more expensive and the contact with the culture is almost null. However, for a few days of relaxation after the chaos, it should be spectacular. The Stella Di Mare Beach Hotel is a tremendous option in that area.
Hadaba: This area also has a lot of beachfront hotels with pools and is a bit closer to the action. The beaches here are beautiful! The Xperience Hill-Top Beach has been on my list of favorites for a long time. If I were to come back, I would choose this area.
El Centro (Old Market): This is the best option if you are traveling on a lower budget or if your plan is not just to be on the beach, but to go from excursion to excursion. I chose the Turquoise Beach because I found a great deal. Although the food all tasted a little bit the same, the staff was super cool, the room was huge and had a small beach in front of it, including the deck chairs.
What to do in Sharm El-Sheikh?
Beach and snorkeling
Keep in mind that most of the coves charge an entrance fee. Fanar Beach is my favorite, it costs 200 EGP (about 4 EUR) and includes the use of umbrella, deck chair and a bottle of water.
Al-Sahaba Mosque and the Old Market
It’s super nice. You will find a lot of colorful stores that contrast with the desert tones and the architecture of the mosque. My recommendation is to visit it in the evening when the sun goes down and the lights come on.
“Best view in Sharm El Sheikh”.
It sounds like a joke, but look it up literally on Google Maps. It has beautiful views of the center with the mosque in the background and the ocean.
Farsha Cafe
The most beautiful coffee shop in the world or the biggest scam? It really is a beautiful place, full of color and with an incredible atmosphere, but the prices are super inflated. There are so many people that they have machines to take turns and there are crowds at the entrance. Near the area there are many other cafes, perhaps less beautiful, but with the same view and half the price.
If you are into diving (like me), you have probably heard of Ras Muhammad National Park, and it is only 20km away. Most dive centers include it and there are also live boards that go around the national park.
If you feel like going for a day trip, you can go by boat on a day trip like this one.
How to move around Sharm?
Then, from Sharm we continue our trip to Dahab. The easiest and most comfortable way is by bus; my favorites are the ones from Go Bus (they are cheap, comfortable and super punctual). You can book here the ones that go to Dahab in advance; the trip is short and you can enjoy it a lot.
However, if you want to visit the canyons without changing accommodation and still be in Sharm, you can hire one of these day tours. This one includes the canyons and this one includes snorkeling.
If, on the other hand, your itinerary continues to Cairo, you can check the options in this other website. Here I recommend you to be patient because it is going to be a bumpy ride. There are a lot of stops and police checks, especially when crossing the tunnel under the Suez Canal.
Travel to Dahab
Oh, I have so much love and affection for Dahab that I don’t know where to start. It’s so, so different from Sharm; it’s a compact little town, all closer together without being crowded. It’s full of cafes and stalls to watch the sunset.
The disadvantage is that it has sea, not beach. And that makes it spectacular for diving, but not for sunbathing. It is full of young people, lovers of marine life and Egyptians looking for a slightly calmer life.
Where to sleep in Dahab?
There are not so much “good or bad areas” in Dahab, but there are places that are close and others that are farther away. If you are going to dive, better choose the company first and then the hotel. But here are a couple of recommendations:
Sunrise Dahab is super centrally located and very nice. If you have a little more money, The Bedouin Moon, you won’t find that quality-price ratio anywhere else.
We chose Desert Camp, they have rooms of all types and I got confused… I booked one without air conditioning and there was no availability to change. So well, I didn’t have the best experience but it was my fault.
Diving in Dahab
Most of the town is focused on diving. There are some more centrally located centers that have a lot of divers and some smaller ones that operate on a more personalized basis.
The prices are quite similar, but the experience varies a lot depending on your level and the feeling you have with the instructor. We chose (after an exhaustive search on Google Maps) Desert Divers Dahab.
Micha did his Advanced Course and I, who already have it, dived with him as fun dives all 5 times. The price for diving in Egypt is spectacular and so is the marine life. If you have the opportunity for at least one day of diving around Dahab, I would use it to do the Blue Hole and Canyon.
Blue Hole, in the Sinai Peninsula.
Imagine how much I loved this place, I made a reel about it. Blue Hole is known as “the graveyard of divers”, but this fame is due purely and exclusively to a tunnel entrance at 55m (called The Arch) that connects to the open sea. It is easy to run out of oxygen or become disoriented. However, the dive you have to do is The Bells to the Blue Hole, it is 28m deep and really beautiful.
The canyon, my favorite dive site
This spot is close to the Blue Hole, it is less commercial and so spectacular. The Canyon is a canyon that works as a coral garden from 5m to 28m, where you see fish and marine life of all colors. I recommend it 100/10.
The Blue Hole area also has small snorkeling areas and several restaurants or cafes. We went one day to dive (transportation and everything covered by the dive center) and the next day on our own, to start the hike to Abu Galum.
Hike to Abu Galum and alternatives
On day 5 of our itinerary, we decided to spend a night in a Bedouin camp in the tiny community of Abu Galum (or Galoum, because we found it spelled both ways). You’ve probably heard of the Blue Lagoon excursion, but this alternative is not only cheaper, it’s more adventurous, cultural and fun. I’ll tell you everything you need to know.
How to get to Blue Hole on your own
As with most destinations, I try to do everything without tours and as authentically as possible. Egypt was to be no different.
If you approach the main road, a little further away from the center, you will see minivans or vans with lots of people that you can get on to go to the Blue Hole, and they will probably drop you off at The Canyon, at a booth where the entrance fee to the “protected area” is charged.
You can also negotiate with a cab (the guys from Desert Divers helped us a lot) and we went faster for about 5 EUR.
🧚🏽El access to the Blue Hole and the area is approximately 10 USD. We arrived after noon and there was no one in the offices, so we got in for free.
Hike from The Canyon to Abu Galum
It is only 8 km EMPTY, with no one. Past the Blue Hole and the viewpoints, you are walking along the seashore with desert mountains on the side. We passed several Bedouin tents along the way; it felt so authentic that it became one of the most real and enjoyable experiences in Egypt.
We used maps.me, which had the route marked. The road has some ups and downs but is not tiring at all. The goal was to reach the small settlement of Abu Galum and sleep in one of their camps.
💁🏽♀️ If you want to go to this area but don’t feel like walking, there are boats that make the trip for 20 USD per person (from the Daniela Hotel or from Blue Hole). You get there super fast and the views from the water must be spectacular.
Bedouin camp at Abu Galum
Once in the settlement, we found a couple of pick-up trucks, a very small kiosk and about 5 campsites. They are not tents as you can imagine; they are small wooden cabins, very simple with shared bathrooms.
We booked ours through Booking.com because we didn’t want to fight prices. And in the end it cost us 5 EUR less than what they were asking in town. You can definitely book the spot when you arrive. Your host will probably take care of the food, but it never hurts to bring a couple of snacks in case you arrive too late.
Hike from Abu Galum to Blue Lagoon
I wouldn’t call this a hike anymore, it was almost 5km from our lodging to the Blue Lagoon area. There are a lot of vans making the journey and every house they pass will offer you tea.
We had a super windy day, which judging by the amount of people kitesurfing and windsurfing, is normal for the area.
The Blue Lagoon of Egypt
The water of the lagoon is so, so turquoise that it looks like you are sunbathing in an Instagram filter. There are many little places and restaurants to have tea, leave your stuff and go for a swim. There are a lot of people doing day trips, so sleeping in this area would also be a good idea to enjoy it more calmly.
What surprised me the most was the abysmal amount of jellyfish in those waters. I was so skeptical about swimming or snorkeling until someone told me that they were “like water”, and that they didn’t sting or hurt.
It’s spectacular;/ above the surface there are lots of cafes, lounge chairs of all kinds and atmosphere. Below, there is a universe of jellyfish moving with the current and swimming in your direction.
Return from Blue Lagoon to Dahab
To get back, we did exactly the same but in reverse. We started quite early because, ideally, you should arrive at the Blue Hole when the last dive team is coming out of the water; this way you can take advantage of the transport that is already there and save a few pesos to go back to town.
Of course you can also go back by boat, but hey…. this road is so beautiful that I would walk it 10 more times.
Mount Sinai and Santa Catarina Monastery
The excursion to Mount Sinai, the place where Moses received the 10 Commandments, is one of the most important religious sites and one of the most treasured destinations in the Middle East.
The best way to visit it is on an organized organized tour (yes, really). They usually start at 10 pm, go up in the early morning and watch the sunrise at the top, right where the Greek Orthodox Church of the Holy Trinity is located. Really, whether you are a believer or not, it is a place full of energy, historically rich and beautiful scenery.
Now, the reality of the tour; we hired one with Soul Sinai (I leave you here their Instagram, but you can find them in the streets of Dahab). The service of the agency was spectacular; they even kept our bags for us while we were on the tour and we picked them up the next day.
But… we didn’t have much feeling with the guide! Let me tell you about it.
The Mount Sinai tour
We started the tour at night; by 12am we were at the foot of Mount Sinai. You can easily do the whole thing on foot, but there are many people who hire camels to save the climb (don’t be those people!), it costs about 20 USD.
In total, it’s about 6 km with elevation and the famous 750 final steps. In my group there were people of all ages and fitness levels; there were about 10 of us in total. The guide just wanted to get to the top fast and overexerted more than half of the group.
By 2 am, you arrive at a kiosk that has benches and rents blankets. They are dusty blankets (not very clean) for 3 EUR, and another 3 EUR if you want a mattress for that little time (about 40 minutes). Then you continue up a couple of steps closer to sunrise and the last task is to find a good place to watch the sunrise.
I hope I have not been too negative in the description, hahahah, but it is worth it. On the way down, there is a stop at the Monastery of Santa Catalina, but it has specific opening hours and is not open every day. So, if your highlight of the trip is to visit it, try to coordinate well the opening days before going.
Conclusions:
With Mount Sinai we ended our week-long itinerary through the peninsula. If you have more time, there are some canyons that look spectacular and I was looking forward to going there. Check out Wadi El Weshwash, for example. Most of these places can be visited on your own, but also on day trips from Dahab.
If your trip ends in Sharm El Sheikh and you need to fly from there, you should do the tour from there. If, on the other hand, you continue on to Cairo, it may be better to do it directly from Dahab.
How to get to Cairo from the Sinai Peninsula?
The most comfortable way to make this journey is by bus. It is about 10 hours of travel in which you will cross the famous and very protected Suez Canal. So, maybe the 10 hours turn into 12 hours or more, depending on the security controls and who is on the bus.
The alternative of less control is the train, but you will have to make transfers between bus and train; I really do not recommend it because of the logistical complications.
You can check the transfer options here (I recommend the night bus to get to Cairo early in the morning and take advantage of the day).
I continued touring Egypt.
Well well, we are at the end of the Sinai trip; but there is so much more to see in Egypt and around the world. Sinai was the first week of my ONE MONTH trip in Egypt and I am writing it all down and leaving you here.
This blog is a little piece of my dream made web; where I write and travel at the same time. I hope you found it useful and if so, I invite you to follow me on my other networks.
🧚🏽♀️ Some of the links used in this article, are affiliate links, that is to say, that even though they don’t represent an extra cost to you, they give me a small commission. And that helps me to keep on traveling. So, thanks! see you around the world.
Guadi.
