• Hamata and its islands

    A fishing harbour south of Marsa Alam: mangrove on the shore, islands a few kilometres out.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaHamata, Marsa Alam

    €€ Mid-rangeDiving / snorkelling
  • Wadi el-Gemal National Park

    Mountains, gravel plains and acacias south of Marsa Alam. Not a place for an ordinary car.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaMarsa Alam

    €€€ High endPaid entry
  • Ain Sokhna

    The Gulf of Suez, about two hours from Cairo: freighters on the horizon and a day by the sea.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaAin Sokhna

    €€ Mid-rangeWhere locals go
  • Monastery of Saint Antony

    A fourth-century Coptic monastery under an Eastern Desert cliff, still lived in today.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaEastern Desert

    €€ Mid-rangeHistoric venue
  • Abu Dabbab Bay

    A shallow sandy bay north of Marsa Alam, known for its turtles and its seagrass meadows.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaMarsa Alam

    €€ Mid-rangeBest in the morning
  • The shops of Marsa Alam

    Few shops, plenty of dive gear: the bare necessities of the southern Red Sea.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaMarsa Alam

    €€ Mid-rangeHandmade
  • Sharm el-Luli

    A white sand beach and clear water, with not a hotel on the horizon.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaSouth of Marsa Alam

    €€ Mid-rangeSea view
  • A whole pod of spinner dolphins — what you come here for.

    Satayah reef

    A horseshoe reef where a colony of spinner dolphins comes to rest.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaHamata, southern Red Sea

    €€€ High endDiving / snorkelling
  • Elphinstone reef

    A 300-metre-long seamount, one of Egypt's best-known dive sites.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaOff Marsa Alam

    €€€ High endDiving / snorkelling
  • The Qulaan mangroves

    Mangroves standing in salt water, flamingos and a Bedouin village.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaWadi el-Gemal, southern Red Sea

    BudgetBest in the morning
  • Soft coral and its shoals of anthias — what you come here for.

    The southern dive camps

    Wooden huts by the reef, hours from the nearest hotel.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaMarsa Alam and Hamata

    €€ Mid-rangeDiving / snorkelling
  • Old Quseir

    Off the beaten track

    An Ottoman port left intact between Hurghada and Marsa Alam.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaQuseir

    BudgetHistoric venue
  • St Paul's Monastery

    A fortified monastery in the desert, around the cave of the first Christian hermit.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaEastern Desert, near the Red Sea

    BudgetHistoric venue
  • A desert road at the foot of a cliff, a lone car in the distance.

    El Galala

    A new city on a plateau at seven hundred metres, above the Gulf of Suez.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaAin Sokhna

    €€€ High endSea view
  • Two whole grilled fish on a pewter dish, with lemon wedges.

    The tables of Marsa Alam

    Few addresses, plenty of fish: the southern Red Sea's table.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaMarsa Alam

    €€ Mid-rangeWhere locals go
  • A whole fish grilling over charcoal embers.

    The tables of Quseir

    Off the beaten track

    Fish from a real port, served on a seafront with no resort.

    Marsa Alam & the Red SeaQuseir

    BudgetWhere locals go