Sinai camel safari
| country: | Egypt |
| location: | Sinai Desert |
| departures: | Available throughout the year on a tailor made basis. Contact us for group departure dates |
| price: | From £690 (8 days) excluding flights, based on 2 sharing. We can arrange flights from the UK |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Our 'Sinai Coast to Coast' trip focuses on the fascinating culture and history of the Sinai desert, which goes back thousands of years. Three major religious traditions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, know the Sinai as a holy land, traversed by prophets, saints, pilgrims and warriors. The Sinai is most familiar to many as the "great and terrible wilderness" through which the Israelites wandered for forty years. It was also the path by which Amr swept down into Egypt bringing Islam. Many of the great conquerors have passed through the Sinai, amongst others Alexander the Great, Ramses II, and Napoleon Bonaparte. The more recent Arab-Israeli conflicts also took place here, still evident in the ghostly wreckage that marks certain parts of the Suez coast.
This jeep & camel safari reveals some of this story to the interested traveller, beginning on the shores of the Gulf of Aqaba. You will visit St. Catherine's Monastery with the legendary burning bush, the Mount Sinai area where Moses received the Ten Commandments, Wadi Feiran where he struck a rock with his staff - bringing forth a spring so his people could drink and the famous turquoise mine at Serabit - to name just a few. This trip bursts with historical and cultural interest to give you a true insight into this 'great and terrible wilderness'.
This jeep & camel safari reveals some of this story to the interested traveller, beginning on the shores of the Gulf of Aqaba. You will visit St. Catherine's Monastery with the legendary burning bush, the Mount Sinai area where Moses received the Ten Commandments, Wadi Feiran where he struck a rock with his staff - bringing forth a spring so his people could drink and the famous turquoise mine at Serabit - to name just a few. This trip bursts with historical and cultural interest to give you a true insight into this 'great and terrible wilderness'.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Arrival at Sharm El-Sheikh (or Taba) airport and transfer to Dahab, situated approximately 100km north of Sharm. Here, you will check into your hotel, on the northern side of Dahab’s seafront. this is a new hotel designed with a Bedouin ambience, offering clean rooms with en suite bathrooms, balcony and fantastic sea-views. The hotel is Bedouin owned and employs a nearly all Bedouin and Egyptian staff. |
| Day 2: | On your second day, you will be introduced to our unique safari team, who have almost 20 yrs of safari experience within the Sinai area. The Coast to Coast safari commences with a one-day camel trek along the shoreline of the Gulf of Aqaba. You will have the opportunity to explore the fantastic coral reef environment snorkelling and spend the day in the company of local Bedouin and their camels. |
| Day 3: | A jeep will take you inland into the Sinai desert to explore the White and Narrow Canyons. These rocky canyons provide wonderful walks - and occasional scrambles – before emerging back into the open desert. At every turn the landscape changes as white sands become bright red and rocks reveal yellow and purples hues. Your path will lead to an oasis where you will enjoy lunch with local Bedouin people. Despite the heat of the desert it is surprising how refreshing a glass of traditional tea can be. Meanwhile, your Bedouin guides will erect the Bedouin tents - with carpets and sleeping mats on the ground. They will do this each night for you while on safari– in perfectly chosen locations and prepare wholesome meals. Camping underneath the stars in the clear desert skies can be an even more fulfilling experience. Star constellations and the Milky Way emerge as the sky darkens and the bright streaks of shooting stars are often glimpsed by the patient stargazer. |
| Day 4-5: | The jeep safari will transfer you to St. Catherine’s Monastery, set beneath Mount Sinai - where Moses is said to have received the Ten Commandments and the site of the biblical Burning Bush. You will spend some time exploring St Catherine’s Protectorate, set in the middle of the desert but offering a surprising ecosystem with many freshwater pools and even some streams! We avoid the overused paths up Mount Sinai and therefore take you to up a more challenging trail with superior views across the Sinai, e.g. Gebel Katherine. Night of day 5 you will stay in Hotel Danielle |
| Day 6-7: | On day 6 the trail moves further to the west through Wadi Feiran. Visit Seven Siters and Wadi Mukattab before continuing to the region of Serabit el-Khadem. Once again the local Bedouin provide excellent hosts before setting out on a three hour walk into the ‘grand canyon like’ sandstone mountains, which reveal evidence of the Sinai’s earliest inhabitants. For two thousand years the Pharaohs sent miners to carve the turquoise from these hills. The beautiful blue green stone, which adorns so much of the jewellery and building work of the early Egyptian empire, can still be found in these hills. At the summit stand the ruins of a temple dedicated to the God Hathor. The walk is easy and probably the most rewarding of the whole Sinai experience. At the end of day 7 you will return to Dahab. |
| Day 8: | After a good night’s rest, this last day can be spent in whatever fashion you like. Whether it is just relaxing in one of Dahab’s many Bedouin style restaurants, shopping in its bazaar or walking along the beach, one thing is for sure, the Sinai and its people will leave an everlasting impression. Transfer and return to Sharm airport. |
how this holiday makes a difference
|
The company who organises the safari component of this trip and has almost 20 yrs of safari experience within the Sinai area. They combine a complete understanding of Western needs with Eastern knowledge and culture. An integral part of their safaris are the traditions of the Bedouin lifestyle with regards to tented camps, camel handling, food preparation & bread making, herbal medicine, healing and star gazing. Over the years, they have built up special relationships with many local Bedouin families and helped them with issues such as medical care, building of animal water troughs, construction of an eco-lodge run by local Bedouins and employment.
Many Bedouin families choose to live a traditional desert dwelling life-style. However, in the present day they also need an income, which can be provided through tourism. All Sinai trips help local Bedouins by giving them regular work, either as jeep driver or camel guide, and paying them a fair daily wage. While based in the desert, special care and attention will be given to issues such as fresh water usage and waste disposal. Water is a scarce resource in the desert but a necessity for cooking, drinking and washing. Sufficient fresh water will be available at all times, but we ask all people to take great care to avoid wastage. Any waste decays extremely slowly in desert environments and will therefore be burned on a daily basis rather than buried. The hotel in Dahab is small-scale and Bedouin owned, so local Bedouin benefit directly through hotel earnings and employment. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |