EG
Sharm el-Sheikh
The World's Finest Diving Destination
The World's Finest Diving Destination
The Red Sea at Sharm el-Sheikh has 250+ dive sites with consistently 25–40m visibility, water temperatures of 20–30°C year-round, and the finest hard coral concentration in the world outside the Coral Triangle. The resident Napoleon wrasse, reef sharks, and turtles at the main Naama Bay sites make it the finest day-dive wildlife in the Red Sea.
💡 Ras Mohammed’s Shark and Jolanda wall (boat from Naama Bay; 8am departure; LE 80 park entry) is the finest single dive in Egypt — hammerhead sharks November–January, turtles year-round, near-pristine hard coral.
Ras Mohammed National Park (gazetted 1983; LE 80 entry; the southernmost tip of the Sinai Peninsula) has the Shark and Jolanda Reef wall — a vertical drop to 800m with schooling hammerhead sharks in November–January and the finest hard coral forest in the Red Sea. Accessible only by boat from Naama Bay.
💡 The Thistlegorm wreck (PADI Open Water minimum; day boat from Sharm; 60km north; BSA motorcycles and Bedford trucks in the holds) is the world’s most famous wreck dive. Morning light enters the forward hold between 9 and 11am.
Mount Sinai (2,285m; the mountain of the Ten Commandments) requires a 2–3 hour night hike to the summit for sunrise. St. Catherine’s Monastery at the base (565 AD; the oldest continuously inhabited Christian monastery in the world) has a library of 6,000 manuscripts, the Burning Bush, and a 565 AD mosaic of the Transfiguration.
💡 Mount Sinai night hike: depart Sharm at 11pm (90 min taxi to the base), 2–3 hours up the camel path, summit for sunrise. Bring 5 layers (0–5°C at the summit in winter).
Naama Bay is the resort centre of Sharm el-Sheikh — the 2km crescent of dive shops, restaurants, and beach clubs is the operational hub for all Red Sea dive and snorkel excursions. The Sinai Desert hinterland (quad bikes or jeep tours from Naama Bay) has Bedouin desert camps and the finest stargazing in Egypt.
💡 Shark Bay house reef at 6am (walk-in; free) has sea turtles feeding on the seagrass and garden eels at 8m — the finest snorkelling without a boat in Sharm el-Sheikh.
Sharm el-Sheikh is not a food destination — the cuisine is international resort food calibrated for the European and Russian tourist market rather than authentic Egyptian cooking. The all-inclusive hotel packages (the standard for most visitors) remove the food decision entirely. For those eating outside the hotel: the El Masrien restaurant in the Old Market (the best local Egyptian food in Sharm; the kofta and the ful; EGP 50–150 for a full meal; the most affordable and most authentic eating in the city), the Thai and Chinese restaurants in the Naama Bay commercial strip (EGP 150–400 for the international options), the seafood restaurants on the beachfront (the freshly grilled Red Sea fish — the sultan fish, the emperor fish, the parrotfish; EGP 200–400 pp for a full fish dinner; the beachside grill at the Aqua Restaurant is the most atmospheric), and the rooftop bar at the Ritz-Carlton Sharm (the most spectacular view of the Gulf of Aqaba and the Saudi Arabian mountains beyond; EGP 150–400 for cocktails; non-guests welcome) round out the Sharm food and drink landscape.
Sharm el-Sheikh has no public transport; all movement is by taxi (negotiate before boarding; EGP 50–200 for most resort zone journeys; the Naama Bay to Old Market run: EGP 30–50; the city hotel to the Ras Mohammed entrance: EGP 80–120), by hotel shuttle bus (most major hotels run hourly shuttles to Naama Bay), or by rental car (EGP 600–1,200/day; essential for self-driving to Ras Mohammed National Park, Dahab, and the Mt. Sinai trailhead; the Sinai roads are good). The dive day trip boat (included in the day dive price; departs 8:30am from the Naama Bay or Old Market harbour; returns 1–2pm; the correct transport for the reef sites).
Ras Mohammed National Park (LE 80 entry; 30km south by boat; most dive operators depart at 8am) has the finest wall diving in the world &mdash.
The SS Thistlegorm wreck (30m depth; 60km north of Sharm; PADI Open Water minimum) is the finest wreck dive in the world &mdash.
The Mount Sinai night hike departs Sharm at 11pm (taxi to St.
St.
The Shark Bay house reef (walk-in from the beach; 3–18m depth; free if staying in the area) is the finest snorkelling in Sharm without a boat &mdash.
The Blue Hole (Dahab; 100km north; 1h by taxi; the 130m vertical shaft in the reef; the world’s most famous and most dangerous freediving site) is the finest day trip from Sharm &mdash.
Year-round destination: the water is warm and clear every month. Sep–Nov is the finest (26–28°C water; best visibility; fewer tourists). Dec–Feb is the European peak (Christmas, New Year, Russian market). Jul–Aug is the hottest and most crowded.
Three days: Ras Mohammed reef diving, the Thistlegorm wreck, a night hike to Mount Sinai at sunrise, and the Sinai desert at dusk.
Ras Mohammed boat dive (8am departure; Shark and Jolanda wall; 2 dives; LE 80 park entry + dive operator fees). Sunset from the Ras Mohammed headland viewpoint.
💡 The finest Sharm itinerary: Ras Mohammed on day 1 (the wall diving), the Thistlegorm on day 2 (the wreck), and Mount Sinai on day 3 night into day 4 morning.
Mount Sinai night hike (depart 11pm; 2–3h up; summit sunrise). St. Catherine’s Monastery (9am–noon; the library; the Burning Bush; the 565 AD mosaic). Return to Sharm by 2pm.
💡 DAN (Divers Alert Network) travel insurance is essential for diving in Sharm — the Sharm recompression chamber at the Hyperbaric Medical Centre is the finest in the Middle East but DAN insurance should precede any diving.
Thistlegorm wreck (day boat from Sharm; 60km north; 2 dives on the wreck; the motorcycle hold and the ammunition hold).
💡 The Blue Hole in Dahab (100km north; 1h by taxi; LE 200 one-way) is the finest day trip from Sharm — snorkelling over the rim of the 130m shaft is dramatic, and the Dahab seafront restaurants are the finest lunch stop between Sharm and the Sinai interior.
Sharm is mid-to-high range for Egypt. The all-inclusive hotel package (the most efficient approach) is usually cheaper per day than independent accommodation + food. Diving adds EGP 600–1,500/day on top. Per person per day.
The house reef snorkelling (EGP 50–80 mask and fins rental; accessible from the beach of most Naama Bay hotels; the parrotfish and the butterflyfish at 2–5m depth in the clearest water in the world) is the finest EGP 80 aquatic.
The Thistlegorm wreck dive (EGP 800–1,500; the 3h liveaboard each way; the 2 dives at 30m; the WWII supply ship in perfect condition; the motorcycles and the railway engines visible through the hold hatches; the finest accessible)
The liveaboard diving cruise (the 3–7 night cruise on a live-aboard boat; the Brothers Islands (Big Brother and Little Brother) — the most remote and most shark-dense reef sites in the Red Sea; the grey reef, the thresher, the)
PADI dive shop locator — use to find Sharm’s 50+ registered PADI dive centres and check instructor qualifications.
Free
DAN Divers Alert Network app — emergency diving medicine consultation and recompression chamber locator.
Free
Windfinder for Red Sea wind and visibility forecasting — essential for Ras Mohammed and Thistlegorm boat departures.
Free
Sharm el-Sheikh resort and dive hotel booking with Naama Bay and Sharks Bay location filtering.
Free
EgyptAir and Nile Air for Sharm–Cairo and Sharm–Luxor flight connections.
Free
Download the Sharm and Ras Mohammed offline map before arrival — the national park has no mobile signal.
Free
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