Insider Edge: Insider Escapes
Take a plane to….Mersa Matrouh, stay over at the Hotel Beau Site if you like (.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) tel 046 493 2066; 493 5966/66) and then drive across the desert towards Libya, to Siwa, to visit the fabulous eco-hotel created by Mounir Neamatallah in Siwa Oasis.
• Take a cruise down the Nile to Luxor and Aswan (Swan Tours are great for organising this)
• Go diving at the Red Sea, in Sharm el Sheikh or the Hurgada resorts. About 5-6h by car from Cairo, or shorter by plane….there are also buses. Sharm is totally foreign in ambience – not at all Egyptian. (Think Marbella vs Spain, in the European context.) But, great sea, a lively night life, and can be fun. Hurgada is still Egyptian in character, and has a pleasant old town, a few five star hotels and of course the beach, but the best attraction is probably the beautiful city of El Gourna, built by Sawiris (the Coptic millionaire). This is a full city – with hospitals, a harbour, an airport (think Soto Grande near Marbella – again!), villas and beaches. All tastefully done, in individual styles. It has a distinct identity, and a nice range of hotels (small as well as large), too, with some little (manmade) islands etc. It takes about 5h to Gourna, and 6h to Hurgada, from Cairo, by car. There are direct flights into Hurgada from Europe, and private planes are available (check out the website).
• For a day out in winter, go to the Red Sea at Ain Soukna, where it is considerably warmer than Cairo, and only about one and a half hour’s drive away, with a long strip of beach, and clean water.
• Drive up to Alexandria, for a taste of the Mediterranean’s beaches – particularly nice in summer. Visit the famous Palestine Hotel, in the grounds of the old Montaza Palace, and the Selamlik, inside the Montaza Palace is amazing! The Cecil Hotel too is a must-see, redolent of Durrell, Cavafy, and pre-war Egypt. There are also the usual Sheraton-Hiltons etc to stay in, as well as a lot of good small hotels. The fish restaurants are particularly good in Alex – look out for the Fish Market restaurant (have the sea bass when there is an “r” in the month), and a must-visit is the Zephirion, in Max (the name of the fishing village/locality), on the sea, which is fabulous for fish.
Alexandria
egyptianchronicles.blogspot.comwww.sis.gov.eg
• Drive about one and a half hours out of Cairo to Fayyoum (and check out the lovely local pottery from there too), and eat in one of the excellent fish restaurants there, after visiting the old monuments and buildings in the town.
