After working in the middle east for the summer, i plan to travel for about a month in egypt. The last week I would like to spend it in a beach town in the sinai peninsula (i have thought about Dahab) just chilling out, reading, scuba diving and drinking at night. I would be going there at the end of august - beginning of september.
I have heard that Dahab could be comparable (in the party atmposhpere and kind of people that go) to ko phan gan, utila, etc... I have enjoyed these places in the past, but my only question would be: Will there be a lot of israeli backpackers during this time of the year in dahab? if yes, are there other alternative places in the sinai peninsula that would also have similar characterstics than Dahab?
thanks a lot in advance....
Jump on the ferry dude....Hurghada and Sigala on the other bank are good for diving, drinking and general misbehaviour if thats what youre after...especially Hurghada which for some reason is practically a Russian town
The only "worth it" place for chiiling out while diving in Egypt is Dahab. Hurghada is an ugly, artificial city made for mass tourism, do not set foot there.
As for Israeli backpackers... they leave close to Sinai so if they go to Dahab, it probably means it's the best place in the whole of Sinai. Expatriates from Cairo who keep going to Dahab and nowhere else have probably good reasons as well.
And they Israeli backpackers generally quite hot and good-looking. But if you prefer to be crowded with old Western tourists in Sharm or Hurghada...
(as for terrorism, since I suppose that's why you don't want to go next to Israeli, I must tell you that your average Islamist terrorist is absoluetly unable to distinguish between an Israeli and an American or even a Russian. Some Egyptians living in the countryside even believe all white people are jew sometimes. And a few years ago, terrorists killed Greek tourists thinking they were Israeli.)
thanks for your suggestions... and about not liking to be around groups of young israeli backpackers, it has nothing to do with terrorism. It's more about past experiences i've had around them (not pleasant), so i know that my level of satisfaction and comfort will be better if there aren't many around.... nothing against them, it's just personal preferences.
And yes, i don't like huge touristy places, so i reckon dahab will be the place to which i will go at the end... thanks again.
I personally met far more Americans in Dahab than Israelis (none, actually), although it might be because I'm American...we probably just gravitated toward each other. Dahab is lots of fun even if you don't meet anyone, the snorkeling is just out of this world and the food is far better than mainland Egypt. Don't miss Sea Bride for amazingly fresh seafood, cheap!
How disappointing to here that there are so many Israeli backpackers in Egypt. I was hoping they would stear clear of backpacking in the region. What a pity they are able to get visas. We had been planning a trip in August but must now rethink if we hope to enjoy ourselves. Thanks catw for letting us know.
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