Sharm el Sheik Snorkling

My own quote for you “ If you travel, whether near or far, leave some of the best part of you”.   Of course since we are cruising we are in a coastal town. Our cruise director and port expert Jeremy tells us it’s a warm vibrant town.  We were scheduled to arrive at 11 am.  Here the Egyptian pound is 20-$1.  Our port expert also shared that we may face some challenges with political issues and paper work.  It seems a huge task to figure out docking space, immigration

and all the paperwork to allow things to run smoothly. Often times we are on loading fuel and water along with some foods.  We understand that many of these arrangements can be put in place up to a year in advance. To get to Egypt we transit 930 miles through the Suez Canal.  The area of Sharm El  Sheik is known for Snorkeling and diving. Most of this takes place at the southern end of the peninsula.  Over 9000 visitors come here everyday with a city population of 75,000 people. There is a UNESCO protected site for marine life here.  You can see the western influence in places like the Hard Rock Cafe. They say the best time to

visit here is April and mid October to mid November.  If you’re looking for the Old Market it is close to the cruise port.   The ship was able to arrange for a free shuttle for us. Again you would think these things would have been in place weeks ago but maybe it’s their government or Holland’s feeling to worry about it later.  One thing the government doesn’t like is a free shuttle takes away from taxi drivers making sone money but lots of them take private tourists from the ship so you have to weigh the odds.   Is it better for ship folks to get into town and spend money in shops or see if they will fork out the money for a taxi.  The old market is about 1.2 miles from the ship so it’s quite a walk when it’s hot and humid. Jeremy talked about the Heavenly Cathedral with its very intricate painted frescoes Also the Egyptian Mosque looks more like a palace!  It was completed in 2008 at a cost of 31 million pounds. It can accommodate 3000 worshippers.   The outside of the building boasts of  a 250 ft minaret. 

Going to the market is an authentic experience.  You will embrace the sights, sounds and culture.  Saffron, cinnamon and leather are some of the local specialties. If you go to buy you must haggle!!  If the ask $50 you go to $20.  Be prepared to walk away if the price doesn’t suit you.  Sometimes they will chase after you and give you the item for your price.  You never know till you try and as my son in law Aaron has taught me it’s a skill!! Another must see experience is King Tuts Museum. There is also a nature reserve there the Rad Mohamed jewel in the crown of the Red Sea. If you are lucky you might see whale sharks, turtles, manta rays and beautiful reefs.  There is also a very unique and sacred St Catherine’s Monastery here in the country but it is 136 miles away.  No ship tours go here. It is a 6 hour round trip and if you really came here for this you would need to plan far in advance.   It is believed to be where the Ten Commandments were made available to mankind. Another thing to know about this port: there is no wifi at the port or any tourist information. Our all aboard time was 4:30.  If you hire a taxi use the official white and blue ones.  The challenge maybe to negotiate your rate.  Be sure you understand if it is one way or both ways. Because safety feels different for everyone be wary of pickpocketing and keep your valuables in front of you.  Don’t take anything you don’t absolutely need.  We back up everything we have digitally like credit cards, front and back, health cards, passports and all our COVID information.  We always take  our drivers license digitally too.  

Our tour seems very disorganized.  There is lots of security for us to go through and we are jammed into vans.  Getting our life jackets was a disaster with no one helping us as we scramble intro a small room searching for the right sizes.  Both our guides in the van smoke so when they join the packed van it was difficult for me.   Immediately I start coughing and you know what people think!  They think you have COVID when really it is the tobacco that triggers my throat. Our guides gave us no information. We felt at their mercy really and wondered if we did the right thing.  We were probably checked five times for who we were and they went through all our bags several times. 

Our boat was worth the tough time getting here.  Very nice with shade and comfy seats 



As you can see the boats are waiting for tourists.   Many want to snorkel, dive and swim 

The water looks like the Caribbean 

The rock is lime stone.  There is lots of coral but it is bleached and ruined.  So sad.  

A photo of what the old market entrance is like 


A photo from the tour presentation of St Catherine’s Monastery.

This is the name of our boat.  When we get there there are so many boats we have to remember ours. 

The country flag flying.  Getting into the water is easy because we have a sturdy good ladder. 

First they let us snorkel over to a sand bar .  Chuck decides to go check it out but the rest of us stay.  Betsy feels a little sea sick even with her patches :(

We had a good day.  Not many photos.  The fish were ok but I wouldn’t come back here to snorkel.  The crew were fine but the area is overused in my opinion.  We had a lunch of rice, chicken, some fruit like banana, pineapples and some kind of melon.  We had drinks but they were served from big bottles into our cups.  It was minimal but ok. 

heading back to the ship.  Good thing they use English along with their language.  We wish Holland would have provided some information about their language.  Sometimes they have done that and it’s helpful.  


A photo of the town from the port.  Very dry and deserty.

We passed these small markets as we were heading back to the port  you can see the mountains in the background. 

A place kids would like .  Micky is famous everywhere. 


Maybe there is more action on weekends and evenings but it seemed empty. 

It’s always great to get back onboard and have a hot shower, good meal, some visiting with friends and then a comfy bed to crawl into as we head out again.