Located just 10 minutes from Naama Bay, on the quiet outskirts of Sharm el Sheikh, Om El Sid Hill is the perfect base for exploring the Red Sea area. Popular with families and couples, Om El Sid Hill is becoming more and more popular as a honeymoon destination. Located on a plateau above the coast,

Om El Sid Hill

 the resort offers amazing views across the Red Sea and sunsets which other resorts just can’t compete with.

The beaches here are some of the best in the region, especially the stunning Diamond Beach. Red Sea holidays are popular with divers looking for perfect conditions and crystal clear water. There is a wide choice of dive schools in the area offering divers of all standards the chance to experience the many sites and marine life. There are shallow dives for beginners and amazing reef dives for the more experienced. Non divers can also enjoy the fascinating marine life by snorkelling from the shore where there jetties going out to sea, enabling snorkellers direct access to the

Diving

unspoilt coral reef. You will be absolutely amazed by the colourful marine life and stunning underwater scenery. Apart from providing excellent diving opportunities, Om El Sid Hill offers some great watersports including windsurfing, water-skiing and fishing.

When you want a break from the beach there are plenty of day trips to choose from. Sharm el-Maya is the original old town area of Sharm el Sheikh and offers a traditonal Egyptian market, restaurants, cafes and shops. Trips to St Catherine’s Monastery, Ras Mohammed Marine Park and the Coloured Canyon are all a great day out for the whole family. Be amazed

Coloured Canyon

 at Egypt’s ancient attractions at Luxor, Cairo and Aswan or if you are looking for something a bit livelier visit Naama Bay, Sharks Bay, Nabq Bay and Al Pasha Bay. A holiday in Egypt would not be complete without a trip into the Sinai Desert either by camel, horse, jeep or quad bike. You will be blown away by the amazing sunrise and sunset out in the desert.

Om El Sid Hill enjoys amazing sunny weather which means that there are always great late deals to the resort at any time of the year.

With luxury hotels and bargain hotels there is accommodation to suit everyone here. Most hotels are set in landscaped gardens with high standard rooms, top quality restaurants, multiple swimming pools, spas and evening entertainment including shows and dancing. Family holidays to Om El Sid Hill offer excellent value for money with many of the hotels providing children’s clubs and entertainment for the everyone.

Naama Bay is a resort area of Sharm el Sheikh on the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, with Shark’s Bay to it’s north and Hadaba to it’s south. The beach resort of Sharm el Sheikh stretches for 25 miles along Egypt’s Mediterranean coast, with Naama Bay situated right in it’s heart.

Naama Bay

Visitors come to Naama Bay mainly for the scuba diving and snorkelling. The resort offers some of the most diverse dive sites in the world. There are lots of wreck dives along this stretch of the Red Sea, with the Ras Mohammed Marine Park which is home to Shark Reef and Yolanda Reef within easy reach of Naama Bay. Dive centres and dive schools are plentiful in the area, along with boat dives and dive jetties which enable divers easy access to the coral reefs and underwater sea life.
Other watersports on offer here include catamarans, canoeing, windsurfing, parasailing, water skiing, banana boats and pedaloes. There are also snorkelling trips available for non-divers. For visitors who wish to see the wonderful marine life but stay dry there are glass bottom boat rides on offer.

Ras Mohammed Marine Park

In Naama Bay you will find dive centres, a lovely pedestrian promenade which runs along the sandy beachfront, hotels (both large and small), restaurants, bars, casinos, discos and shops.

At night some of the larger hotels offer themed nights with belly dancing and local folk music. Most of the hotels in Naama Bay have their own private stretch of the mile long beach here.

Naama Bay offers lots of excursions, including Nile cruises, trips to the Sinai Desert, camel trekking, jeep excursions, horseback excursions, and visits to Luxor, Cairo, Nuweiba, Memphis, Alexandria, The Valley of the Kings and

The Valley of the Kings

the Temples of Abu Simbel. More local places to visit are St Catherines Monastery, Mount Moses, Wadi Ghazala and the Blue Desert.

With temperatures of 23-27C and 10 hours of sunshine a day during November and December, this is the ideal opportunity to grab one of the many winter late deals to Egypt that are on offer.

Enjoy some winter sunshine by booking one of the bargain holidays to this fascinating country which are on offer throughout the internet.

Dahab, which means gold in Arabic, was originally a Bedouin fishing village and is located on the southeast coast of the Sinai Peninsula, about 50 miles from Sharm el Sheikh.

Dahab Bay

Originally a fishing village Dahab is now a thriving resort with hotels, campsites, restaurants, cafes, bars and of course its wonderful beaches.

Dahab consists of two distinct parts. In the north is the old Bedouin Village of Assalah which caters mainly for backpackers, with cheap accommodation. In the south is Laguna (also known as Dahab City/Medina) where you will find the more upmarket hotels.
 

Things to Do

The main attractions of Dahab are its white sandy beaches where you can relax in the sun and take a dip in the wonderful, crystal clear waters of the Red Sea.
When you want a change from soaking up the sun you can take a dessert safari, enjoy a quad bike ride in the desert, go mountain climbing, horse riding and camel riding or you can enjoy when of the many tours that are on offer. These tours include visits to The Old Port of Dahab, Ein Khudra (a Bedouin oasis), Wadi Gnay (a Bedouin oasis), Mount Sinai and St Catherines, Jerusalem (Israel), Petra (Jordan) and many more. 
There are excellent diving sites in the Dahab area, including Sinai’s best site, Blue Hole. There are more than 50 dive centres located in the Dahab area. Dahab is also great for windsurfing, kitesurfing, kayaking and snorkelling.
To the south of Dahab are Qnai el-Rayan and Qnai el-Atschan which are wadis (dry valleys) where there is some great rock climbing on offer. 

Dining

As Dahab is surrounded by water, there is lots of fresh fish and seafood served in its many restaurants. The restaurants located further inland tend to much less expensive than those nearer the beach.

With lots of cheap holidays on offer, Dahab is an excellent choice for your holidays, especially as the weather here is pleasant all year round and it has an abundance of cheap accommodation.

Watch out for the last minute holidays deals as Dahab is the place to visit anytime of the year, even in the winter when there is very little rain.

Egypts first ever Salt Cave is due to open later this month in the Red Sea resort of Taba Heights.

The Salt Cave will be located in the uptown area of Taba Heights.

The cave will be made entirely of salt from the Dead Sea which has a high concentration of minerals and the Siwa Oasis which aids health and beauty. The air inside the cave will be benificial to health as it is charged with calcium, iron, magnesium, bromine, iodine, potassium and selium. The lighting in the cave will promote positive feelings, along with the colour therapy that will create calm and soften the mood. The floor of the cave will be covered in a thick layer of salt crystals while the ceiling will have salt stalactites, so creating a unique microclimate.

A 45 minute stay in the cave will have a beneficial influence on mood and wellbeing, and will also revitalise strength and good health. A session in the cave can also aid the treatment of nervous system disorders, digestive tract problems, heart disease, repiratory problems, dermatological diseases, metabolic problems and underproduction of hyperthyroidism.

Why not treat yourself to a visit to the new Salt Cave when on your next holidays to Taba Heights, you know you deserve it!

Sofitel Taba Heights

From its unique position in the mountain ranges of the Sinai Peninsula, Taba Heights overlooks four countries, Egypt, Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. With 5kms of beautiful, natural beaches, some of the worlds best dive sites, first class hotels and an 18 hole championship golf course, Taba Heights won’t disappoint you.

For more information on Egypt and to view my latest articles please visit my Egypt Blog.

Bordered by the Red Sea, on the east coast of Egypt, Hurghada is the perfect destination for family holidays.

The resort has everything, including glorious golden sands and crystal clear waters, a wide range of watersports, first class diving facilities, restaurants, bars, markets, bazaars, waterparks and plenty more for all the family.

I have just come across this interesting and informative destination guide to Hurghada which will give you an insight into this perfect holiday destination.

Hurghada is situated close to the Equator which means that the temperature is constantly hovering around the thirty degree mark, just perfect for lazing on the beach and topping up your tan.

Trevor Butler set up his first ‘travel’ related business in 2004 and has written many other destination articles with tips and information. I have found these articles both interesting and helpful, hope you do too.

The following review has been supplied to us by our reader David Rolfe

“We were very lucky that the ash saga didn’t affect our outward or inward bound journey earlier this year. We have always spent our summer holidays in Sharm but decided we needed a change and an earlier holiday this year. We read lots of good reviews on the Makadi Palace so decided to give it a go.
As we drove through the gates to the hotel we realised that this hotel was going to be special, and it was.
The hotel and staff had a really warm feel and the hotel itself was spotless.
Swimming pools were great (free pool towels) – we used these more than the beach as my wife didn’t like the sea very much because of the coral (wimp)!
Plenty of good food at meal times and the restaurants were clean and airy.
The majority of holiday makers here were German, don’t know why, but this wasn’t a problem and we made some good friends who we will be keeping in touch with.
Excellent holiday and hotel which we would recommend and will be returning to.”

MAKADI PALACE

With beautiful Moorish decor and palatial ambience, the Makadi Palace offers an impeccable service with views across the Red Sea.

Location

Next to sister hotel Grand Makadi at Makadi Bay, the hotel faces the striking Red Sea and secluded unspoilt beach (beach shoes are recommended due to the Coral).

Accommodation

All rooms have a bathroom and wc, hairdryer, air conditioning, satellite tv, telephone, minibar, safety deposit box and a balcony or terrace.

Dining and Bars

6 restaurants, snack bar, lobby bar, nightclub and piano bar.

Facilities, Sport and Activities

4 outdoor swimming pools, children’s section of the pool, sun loungers, parasols, Private beach, 6 tennis courts with clubhouse, football court, table tennis, beach volleyball, aerobics, aqua aerobics, water polo, playground, Arabic language course, massage, 24 hour reception with money exchange, children’s menu.

Entertainment

Daily entertainment program including sporting activities, games and competitions and evening entertainment program with live music and shows, Hotel run kid’s club at Grand Makadi, StarKids movies, mini disco.