Dahab and Blue Hole Tour: 5 Days of Snorkeling and Desert in Sinai

This 5-day Dahab tour gives you four nights on the Gulf of Aqaba side of South Sinai. You snorkel at the Blue Lagoon and the Blue Hole, spend a day at Wadi Al-Weshwashy and Pharaoh’s Island, and finish with a desert evening of quad biking, a camel ride and a Bedouin dinner. The trip starts at Sharm El Sheikh airport, ends at Taba port, and costs from $815 per person.

What you will see and do

Dahab is a relaxed seaside town that divers and snorkelers have loved for decades. Its best-known site is the Blue Hole, a deep sinkhole in the reef just north of town. Snorkelers stay near the surface along the reef wall, where coral and reef fish are easy to see in clear water. The same day also takes you to the Blue Lagoon, so you get two very different kinds of water in one outing.

Day three moves inland and north. Wadi Al-Weshwashy is a canyon known for its natural rock pools. Pharaoh’s Island is a small island in the Gulf of Aqaba near Taba, crowned by an old fortress linked to Saladin. On day four you swap the sea for the sand: a quad bike ride, a camel ride and dinner in Bedouin style.

How the days work

Our representative meets you at Sharm El Sheikh airport on day one and drives you to your hotel in Dahab, and the rest of that day is yours. Days two, three and four each have one guided outing. On day five we drive you to Taba port, not back to Sharm, so plan your onward travel from Taba. Read our Red Sea Egypt travel guide if you are still choosing where to spend time on the coast.

Who this trip suits

It suits travelers who want an active beach break with a guide, rather than a week at one resort pool. You should be at ease in the water for the snorkeling days. If you want to combine Sinai with the Nile or Cairo, see our Egypt and Red Sea tours or browse all Sinai tours.

Practical details

• Departures: every day.
• Hotel: Jaz Dahabeya Hotel or similar, four nights with breakfast.
• Included: airport meet-and-greet, private air-conditioned transfers, a local English-speaking guide, entrance fees for the listed sites, the meals in the itinerary and bottled water on excursions.
• Not included: international flights, the Egypt visa, optional extras, personal spending and tips.
• What to bring: swimwear, a towel, sunglasses, reef-safe sunscreen and a warm layer for the desert evening. If you own a mask and snorkel, bring them; otherwise ask about equipment when you book.

Prices depend on the season and on room type: triple, double or single. Summer rates are lower than winter rates; our guide to the best season to visit Egypt explains what each time of year is like. The exact summer and winter dates are confirmed when you book.

Comparing options? See also our Mount Sinai Sunrise Climb and St. Catherine’s Monastery from Dahab.

Photos: The Blue Hole near Dahab seen from above. Photo: S. Ellermann / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Reef and mountains at the Blue Hole, Dahab. Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Nowic assumed (based on copyright / Wikimedia Commons, public domain · The seafront at Dahab. Photo: Dr. Ondřej Havelka (cestovatel) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Quad bikes on a desert safari near Hurghada. Photo: Mostafa Abdel Samie from Cairo, Egypt / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Taba on the Gulf of Aqaba. Photo: Faris El-Gwely / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Dive site entrance at the Blue Hole, Dahab. Photo: Grand Parc – Bordeaux, France from France / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0 · Camel in front of a Bedouin tent in the desert near Safaga. Photo: Joadl / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0