Sharm el-Sheikh

Currency

The pound was floated in 2024 and lost half its value, which makes Egypt very cheap for visitors and makes old price guidance useless. Change at a bank or an ATM rather than at the hotel desk, pay in pounds rather than the euros the resorts will happily quote, and keep small notes for tips, which are constant and expected.

ATMs & cards

Bank machines at the malls in Naama Bay and Soho Square — Banque Misr, CIB, NBE. They cap withdrawals low and charge a fee, so expect several trips. Decline conversion. Cards work at hotels and dive centres; the taxis, the bazaar and the tips are cash.

Withdrawal limits are low and fees are per transaction, so expect several trips. Keep small notes: tipping here is constant.

Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.

Safety

The Sinai resorts are heavily secured and separated from the interior, and visitors have been coming through years in which the wider region was in the news. Roadblocks between towns are routine; carry your passport. In the water, respect the depth limits — the Blue Hole at Dahab has a memorial wall for divers who ignored them — and never touch the coral. Sun at 39°C in July is the risk that actually spoils holidays here.

Our own assessment, not a sourced index.

Entry & visa

Health & emergencies

Required to enter

• Yellow fever certificate, but only if you are arriving from a country where yellow fever is present

Worth having

• Hepatitis A
• Typhoid
• Tetanus up to date
• Rabies for longer stays
• Hepatitis B for extended stays

Getting treated

Private hospitals in Cairo are decent and cheap by European standards, and the international ones have English-speaking staff. Public hospitals are basic and overcrowded. Insurance is worth having; private facilities want payment up front.

Do not drink the tap water and avoid ice outside good hotels — stomach illness affects a large share of visitors. Summer heat at the pyramids is a genuine medical risk. Rabies is present in street dogs.

Orientation, not medical advice. Entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history and where you have been — check with a travel clinic or your national health service four to six weeks before you go.

Food tip

Resort buffets are what most visitors eat and they are fine and forgettable. The better meal is in the Old Market: grilled fish by weight, koshary, and fresh mango juice for the price of a bottle of water in the hotel. Egyptian breakfast — ful, taameya, eggs — is the one to seek out.

Getting around

• Taxi — no meters, so agree the fare first, and it will start at three times the going rate
• Hotel shuttles — most resorts run buses to Naama Bay and Soho Square, which covers most of what visitors do
• Dive boats — the reason to be here; they leave from the marina at 8am and come back at 4
• Walking — inside a resort compound and along Naama Bay, and not much else; the town is spread out and hot
• Airport: Sharm el-Sheikh international is 15 minutes out, with charters from across Europe

Internet speed

Broadband here runs at 76% of the global median of 128 Mbps. Mobile runs at 47% of the global median of 110 Mbps.

Source: Ookla Speedtest Global Index · measured May 2026

Must-see

Things to do

• Dive or snorkel Ras Mohammed, where the reef wall drops away
• Dive the Thistlegorm, a WWII wreck that is among the best in the world
• Go up Mount Sinai for sunrise and visit St Catherine’s on the way down
• Take the day trip to Dahab, which is what Sharm was before the resorts
• Swim from a boat rather than from the shore, where the reef is shallow
• Eat in the Old Market rather than in the hotel, at least once

Nearby day trips

Say a few words

Arabic

• Helloمرحبا — MarhabaMAR-ha-ba
• Pleaseمن فضلك — Min fadlakmin FAD-lak
• Thank youشكرا — ShukranSHOOK-ran
• Yes / Noنعم / لا — Na’am / LaNA-am / la
• Excuse meعفوا — AfwanAF-wan
• How much is it?بكم — Bikam?bi-KAM
• The bill, pleaseالحساب — Al-hisabal-hi-SAB
• Welcomeأهلا وسهلا — Ahlan wa sahlanAH-lan wa SAH-lan

Inshallah, meaning God willing, follows nearly any statement about the future and is conversational rather than religious.

Religion

Sunni Muslim, with a Coptic Christian minority

Around 90% Muslim and 10% Coptic Christian, one of the oldest Christian communities on earth. Cover shoulders and knees at mosques and churches alike; women cover their heads at mosques.

Do's and don'ts

Do

• Use your right hand for eating, greeting and handing anything over
• Dress modestly away from resorts — shoulders and knees covered, and a scarf for women entering mosques
• Agree a price before accepting any service, including a photograph with a camel
• Carry small notes for baksheesh; it is expected constantly and is part of how the economy works

Don't

• Do not photograph military or police installations, bridges or airports — this is taken seriously
• Do not show the sole of your foot to anyone, or point with your feet
• Do not show public affection beyond hand-holding; it is illegal in some readings and always poorly received
• Do not accept an unsolicited guide at the pyramids who then demands a fee — say la, shukran, firmly and keep walking