Desert Highlights

Trip Highlights

Desert Highlights, offers a great insight into the beauty and heritage of Sinai. Starting with a camel trek throughout the gentle rolling sand dunes and amazing eroded rock formations, the Desert Highlights program also involves a climb to the summit of the world famous Mt Sinai. The location where Moses is said to have received the Ten Commandments, the summit presents fabulous views over the Sinai Penninsula, in the glow of sunrise.

Price Details

Price

From: EUR250 per person (7 Days)

Price Includes

• Meet & assist
• Airport transfers
• 3 days camel trek FB
• 1 night trip St Catherines & Mt Sinai
• 4 x nights Hotel BB

Price Excludes

• meals while not on safari and lunch on day 5. Tipping & souvenirs while in the desert. entrance fees into the Museum of Icons at St Cath.

Itinerary

Day 1

Meet & Assist at Sharm airport. Transfer to Dahab,app 90km. Check in to Hotel in Dahab.
Welcome briefing from your Desert Guide and orientation walk along Dahab's corniche..!

Day 2

Depart Dahab approx 8am, by taxi 70km, where we will be met by the Bedouin Tribe of the area, and equipment loaded on to camels. We trek 45mins by camel into the desert which takes us to the entrance of the white canyon, a splendid example of a powder desert. It’s a narrow winding canyon which opens up to the plateaus of the desert & then narrow again, taking approx. one hour to walk all the way through towards the oasis of Ein Hudra.

Ein Hudra is an oasis surrounded by a range of sandstone mountains, soft sand & date palms.
The local Bedouin of the area, cultivate the land growing a range of plants and herbs, palm dates, & grazing goats, as they were hundreds of years before. The oasis is a natural water source supplying the surrounding land with fertile life forming soil. The oasis of Ein Hudra also gives you an insight into the Bedouin Desert way of life by visiting their base-camp there.

After lunch at the oasis, we have time to relax before moving on to the Narrow canyon and the sand-dunes in Wadi Hudra. It takes approx. 1.5 hrs trek to Wadi Hudra by camel in order to explore the one of the narrowest canyons in Sinai, the Canyon of Humidatt. Reaching the highest point of this area, enables us to look down on the vast wadi of Gazella laid out before us. These locations are concentrated sandstone & limestone plateaus, fabricated throughout hundreds and thousands of years. Narrow canyon is surrounded by high sandstone mountains so close together that they seem to almost meet. Then the trek continues on towards Wadi Rum- a most colourful cup—shaped valley with steps leading in to the canyon. Dinner is prepared on location over the open fire with plenty of time to relax afterwards and watch the sun go down with tales from the elder Bedouins, music and singing. Sleeping under the stars in our open Bedouin tent or private dome tents.

Day 3
Rising with the sun is always a good start to the day, after breakfast we load the equipment onto
the camels and set off on the trek. All aspects of Desert Survival can be absorbed from day to day from food, preparation, camel handling, weather anticipation and general desert orientation. We move towards the south of Wadi Rum and trek for two hours by camel and climb the stairs of Wadi Rum which leads us into the vast valley of sand-dunes and canyons.

Lunch is then prepared on location in the middle of the valley with plenty of time afterwards to relax before we start to trek towards the Rock of Inscriptions. The Rock of Inscriptions dates back to 2ooBC and shows how visitors from thousands of years ago recorded their passage in stone; these people are believed to be from the Nabatean Age.

We also take you back to the Bronze Age at Nawamis; these tombs date back to around 5,500 and lie lost in the uninhabitable desert. They were believed to have been built for the protection against a plague of mosquito according to biblical legend but are in fact tombs that functioned at the end of the Timna period.

These are the oldest standing buildings with their own roofs intact, recorded in the world. The tombs all face west with the sunset, symbolizing the end of the sun with the end of life.
Dinner is prepared on location and camp is set up at the tombs of Nawamis or the Gebel of Matamir.

Day 4
After breakfast, we trek south towards the colourful limestone area of Gebel Matamir- this mountain of pillars has a very solid foundation and is approx. 900m above sea-level. After trekking for two hours we arrive at the mountain of Abuegaba where we have lunch and rest and relaxation occurs before reaching the most sought after Frozen Dinosaur mountain. This mountain is shaped like a pre-historic dinosaur; this occurred due to the wind erosion which in turn shaped the mountain. This can be seen in all the sandstone mountains throughout the Sinai desert.

The area in which the frozen dinosaur sits is called Laurence of Arabian Desert. It is a large, amazing expanse of open land of varying formations introducing dunes, rock sculptures and a great stillness and panoramic view. The desert floor is sprinkled with crystallized rock, desert herbs and the footprints of the local wildlife. The surrounding sculpted mountains of limestone have been created through thousands of years of wind erosion and also contain many hidden caves.

We take the route in the direction of Mount Barqa. The view from the summit of Gebel Barqa, approx 1167m above sea level, offers one of most spectacular views in Sinai. Then, we head into the Desert of Sinai, to the spectacular area of the Dunes of Hadoudah, the largest & highest dunes in the Sinai. Camp is set up on location and dinner served, with time to relax before making our way to the asphalt road where we meet the transportated to St Catherine’s.

Upon reaching St Catherine’s we will start the 2 – 3 hrs climb up Mt Sinai, in time to watch the Sunrise from the summit.

Day 5
We descend the mountain after breakfast and enter the monastery of St Catherine’s, where we have the at least 2 hrs to have a look around. Return to Dahab app 2pm. Check back into you Hotel. Enjoy the afternoon at leisure. Arrange to meet for dinner.

Day 6
Free Day in Dahab to have a wander along the Main bay area, do some snorkelling or just chill out at the Hotel.
Optional Activtities can be arranged locally, including scuba diving, yoga classes, massage, windsurfing, kayaking.

Day 7
Free Day in Dahab - optional activities or relax and enjoy the surroundings.

Day 8
Freetime till departure to the airport.

Other Info

Accommodation Details

All Hotel in Dahab used by Embah are locally owned, comfortable and characteristic.

Our choice Hotel for this Desert Highlights Program, is Coral Coast Hotel, although alternative maybe used, depending in availability. Coral Coast Hotel is situated on the shores of the renowned dive site Eel Garden, the location is idyllic for it’s views, weather and sheer natural beauty. Coral Coast accommodates 30 en suite rooms with all necessary facilities, providing guest with a comfortable and authentic lodging for their trip. All rooms boast amazing sea views and each with a private balcony, allowing guests to enjoying and absorb the surroundings in privacy.

Our Restaurant serves an assortment of Local and European cuisine, providing you with the chance to taste & indulge in traditional meals, while more familiar European dishes are also served at Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner. For relaxation and chill out, the Bedouin Tent with it’s open fire focal point is the perfect space for recollecting thoughts of the day and thinking over plan for the day ahead.
Baring in mind the new wave of tourism, our Roof Top studio has been designed to accommodate workshops, conferences, talks and slide shows and also to hold yoga sessions for visiting instructors and their groups.

Telecommunications are available from Reception, including international telephone, faxing and internet secretary services.
A Baby sitting service is also available on request, with a kids club within walking distance from the Hotel.