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Sharm el-Sheikh
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A hunk of sterile buildings on a plateau commanding docks and other installations,
SHARM EL-SHEIKH
was developed by the Israelis after their capture of it in the 1967 war. Their main purpose was to thwart Egypt's blockade of the Tiran Strait and to control overland communications between the Aqaba and Suez coasts. Tourism was an afterthought - though an important one, helping to finance the Israeli occupation and settlements, which Egypt inherited between 1979 and 1982. Since then, Sharm's infrastructure seems to have expanded in fits and starts, without enhancing its appeal much. Despite some plush hotels and reams of propaganda about it being a slick resort, Sharm is basically a dormitory town for the Egyptian workers who service Na'ama Bay. Aside from package tourists conned by brochures, the only foreigners here are divers - drawn by the proximity of Ras Umm Sidd and other
reefs
- and a few backpackers who take advantage of its lowish-budget accommodation, and commute into Na'ama Bay. Sharm has no beach to speak of and its small bay is slicked with oil from the nearby marina. The (illegal) daily burning of garbage also detracts from the hotels' "luxury" pretensions. But in its defence the downtown area does have some excellent restaurants, a good bakery and other shops.
The wealthier residents occupy the cliff above the bay of Sharm el-Maya, in an area called Hadaba . Towards the end of this cliff is a lighthouse and restaurant, marking the dive site of Ras Umm Sidd , whose name now also applies to the string of hotels and villas that have sprouted along the coast as far north as the Tower . While the swankiest resorts are perched close to the edge of the cliff, cheaper hotels favoured by British tour operators fill up the land behind. This is a rather bleak area, where guests have to rely on shuttle buses to take them to the beach or Na'ama Bay.
The only "sight" is
Ras Kennedy
, a rock formation that resembles the face of the slain US president, visible on the left as you head out towards Na'ama. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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Egypt,
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