Visiting Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt
Sharm El-Sheikh is a luxury resort town along the Red Sea on the Sinai Peninsula. While the Sinai Peninsula is considered dangerous, Sharm El-Sheikh and sleepy Dahab are perfectly safe tourist destinations. Consider ending your Egypt trip in Sharm El-Sheikh if you want to enjoy some relaxation after a mainland Egypt tour.
Where to Eat in Sharm El-Sheikh
Farsha Mountain Lounge
Farsha Mountain Lounge is one of the most popular places to grab food in Sharm El-Sheikh. Despite its popularity, it is still well worth the visit. The mountain lounge sits on a cliff along the Red Sea and offers sweeping views of the water. Arrive to watch the sunset and watch the entire mountain light up with their decorative lanterns. The lounge is enormous, and you are seated on beautiful pillows and blankets rather than tables. You’ll likely be sharing a space with other guests, but don’t let that turn you off from visiting. The lounge is extremely comfortable, welcoming, and has a great ambiance. They serve light snacks as well as alcoholic drinks and pizzas.
El Masrien Restaurant
For a traditional Egyptian meal visit El Masrien in the Old Town of Sharm El-Sheikh. They offer huge portions for an extremely cheap price. This was my favorite comfort meal of the entire trip.
What to Do in Sham El-Sheikh
Sahaba Mosque
The Sahaba Mosque in Old Town is beautiful. I enjoyed seeing it lit up at night. It’s centrally located near a popular tourist market (and El Masrien Restaurant). The mosque is relatively new as its foundation was only laid in 2011. It is free to visit. Please dress modestly when visiting this mosque as well as any other religious sites.
Snorkel or Scuba Dive
The Red Sea is home to beautiful coral reefs and Ras Mohammed National Park. Many travelers make Sharm El-Sheikh and Dahab a bucket list trip for diving. I’ve never scuba-dived, but I thoroughly enjoyed snorkeling. The reef was colorful, and the sea life was stunning! We hired a cruise via Get Your Guide to pick us up at our hotel and take us to the boat.
Climb Mt. Sinai
You can walk the steps as Moses when you take an overnight excursion to Mt. Sinai. You’ll want to hire a guide because there are multiple military checkpoints to make this trip. You’ll be picked up at 9:00 PM and begin your hike around 2:00 AM to make sunrise. This experience was a highlight of my two weeks in Egypt. Read more about this hike here.
Where to Stay in Sharm El-Sheikh
Old Town
Looking back, we should have booked a hotel closer to Old Town. This is where most of the restaurants and tourist attractions were. Instead, we stayed just outside SoHo Square at the Hilton Sharks Bay Resort. We had a great experience, but we wish we had been closer to the main drag. If you’re looking to get a lot of bang for your buck, we rented the most extensive suite the Hilton had to offer, and it was less than $150 per person for the week.
