Hi there,

Having done the Greek islands to death over the past few years my girlfriend and I are looking for something different this summer and both fancy Egypt.

Can anyone recommend anywhere? We'd like somewhere with a beach and a decent selection of places to eat and drink.

What are the hotels like? The people? The food?

Is it expensive once you get there?

Thanks in advance.

Sounds like you're after somewhere on the Red Sea - like Sharm el-Sheikh or Dahab. Loads of sun, direct flights from the UK & elsewhere, all kinds of hotels from five-star luxury to basic beach-hut style. The sand is golden, the diving & snorkelling are excellent. It's hard to give you a guide budget, but you'll find Egypt MUCH cheaper than anywhere in Europe.
Official tourist office: www.egypttreasures.gov.eg

Don't rule out Aqaba in Jordan, just up the coast from here: same Red Sea, same sun, same sand, same range of hotel options, a lot less touristy than Sharm. Voyages Jules Verne vjv.co.uk is one tour operator doing 7 nights for £250-300, including direct flights Gatwick-Aqaba, plus the option to visit the amazing ancient city of Petra nearby.
Check out www.see-jordan.com - call the Jordan Tourism Board in the UK for brochures 0870 770 6933.

Both are totally safe, by the way.

And the food - a wide range of everything, from really nice waterfront fish restaurants to Arabic-style places for falafel & kebabs, to posh upscale European restaurants.

People? You'll find Aqaba easier to handle than Sharm - less hard-sell, gentler sort of place altogether. As for tourists, Sharm is packed with Europeans (Italian, German, Dutch, British, etc etc), while Aqaba (as well as British) has Hungarians, Russians and tourists from Arab countries.

Hi Matthew,

That's great...many thanks for that.

The Jordanian option sounds very interesting.

To be honest it sounds more like our kind of place.

I take it you've been?

If anything else springs to mind I'd really appreciate you dropping me a line.

All the best.

er, yes, I've been - I wrote the 'Rough Guide to Jordan'. Let me know your questions and I'll do my best to answer them here. (Or, of course, buy the book!)

Matthew - As Rough Guide to Jordan main man, can you give me the latest on the plan I've heard of which involves the Jordanians building a visitors' centre, cafe, turnstyles etc at Petra? Sounds hideous!

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