Sharm el-Sheikh holidays

Why go

• Coral reefs sit close to shore along the resort strip, with house-reef snorkelling and diving available directly from many hotels.
• Ras Mohammed National Park lies close to Sharm el-Sheikh at the southern tip of Sinai and is a protected marine area popular with divers and snorkellers. A visit is subject to access, operator and weather on the day, and nothing about what you will see there is guaranteed.
• Warm sea temperatures hold up through most of the year, keeping diving viable in months when Mediterranean resorts have closed for the season.
• A five-night rhythm: arrive and settle, two beach or pool days, one reef outing if conditions allow, one local outing, then depart. Seven nights suits a slower pace, with a rest day and room for a second outing if the weather and operator allow.

Worth knowing

• Most hotels sit in self-contained bays along the coast, so getting a sense of everyday Egyptian life usually means a deliberate trip into Old Market (Sharm el-Maya) rather than something you walk out into.
• Inland Sinai splits two ways. Low-desert excursions such as safaris and canyon drives are hardest in high summer, when local highs run into the high thirties and there is little shade in the middle of the day. St Katherine and Mount Sinai are a different proposition: at over 1,500m the nights and early mornings run far colder than the coast, and January lows there average close to freezing, so the pre-dawn climb wants proper cold-weather clothing in winter even when the resorts are mild.
• Hotels run almost continuously from Nabq Bay in the north down to Sharm el-Maya, so there is little undeveloped shoreline within the strip itself.
• Reef access differs by hotel: some have a jetty or steps into deeper water, others a sandy entry, and not every shoreline suits a first-time snorkeller. Before booking, ask which the hotel has, what board basis the price covers, whether the pool is heated in winter, and whether a festive meal on 24 or 31 December carries a supplement.
• On days the sea is rough or you would rather stay dry, a pool, spa or beach day works, and the Old Market (Sharm el-Maya) is the simplest local outing. Do not touch or feed marine life or stand on coral. Cairo is a separate trip with its own transport and cost, not a day add-on to a beach week.