Continuing the journey around Egypt that we started in part 1 of this episode, we pick up in Luxor and switch from ancient sites to fun things to do here. Then we head over to the Red Sea continuing on the same topic, then make our way over to the Sinai Peninsula to get into what there is to see and do there and who those things might interest.

Please feel welcome to reach out to me at John@EgyptElite.com for help planning your trip to Egypt and I’ll be personally happy to help you make it a reality with my company Egypt Elite.

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NEW: Episode Transcript

Welcome back again everybody. It’s only been a few weeks since I released the last ETP episode and I TOLD you all that I’d be back more frequently this year, didn’t I, and here I am again with part 2 of planning 2nd and 3rd trips to Egypt for those who have already been there once.

And even if you’ve never been to Egypt before, these episodes right now are still great for you too because basically what I’m covering is what you can skip on a first trip because of time constraints, unless you’re there for more than about 2-3 weeks, and what you can hit in the future when you come back to Egypt for a second or third time.

Several people who are currently planning first trips to Egypt reached out after the part 1 episode and told me they found it useful in deciding what to include and what to skip over in planing their first trip, so that made me really realise that these two or three episodes aren’t only useful for those who have been to Egypt already but really for everyone planning to go, even if it’s your first time.

So let’s dive back into it. Ok, where did we leave off? In part one of this episode set we talked about some stuff near Giza, Aswan, and Luxor that most visitors don’t usually have time to see on a first trip to Egypt because they’re already too busy spending time on the big things, primarily pyramids, tombs, and temples. You’ve gotta see that stuff on your first trip, of course.

But then there are more pyramids, more tombs, and more temples that you can make time to see on a second trip or third trip, and some of those secondary or out-of-the-way sites are really unique and special, especially for history buffs.

But ok, what about beyond the ancient historical sites? Egypt’s packed full of those, more so than any other country in the world, I think, but Egypt is also more than just ancient sites and extraordinary monuments, which is why vacationing there isn’t just educational and enriching but also a ton of fun too.

So I was thinking for this episode we can talk about some of the fun stuff to do in Egypt in and around Luxor, out in the Sahara Desert, and over on the Red Sea Coast. Then I want to talk a little about the Sinai Peninsula, which can be a little out of the way but it’s quite well known nevertheless, and get into what there is to see and do there and what’s worth it and what’s not.

Then, I think I might save the last few things I want to tell you about for a part 3, and that’ll be a first because I don’t think I’ve done a 3-parter before. I know I’ve done at least two different 2-part episodes, but this will be the first 3-parter, I think.

Ok, back to Luxor where we left off before when we were talking about lots of extra tomb sites on the western bank and some extra temples over there, then Abydos and Dendera a little north of there. Luxor is one of the most ruin-rich areas of the world because it was a fabulously wealthy and powerful capital for thousands of years of one of the greatest civilisations in history, Egypt of course, which means that tons of small and large monuments, temples, and ruin sites dot the desert landscape outside of Luxor.

Luxor is also lush and green for miles on either side of the Nile because the river’s waters irrigate lot so farmland up and down the Nile Valley, so from the air you see just hundreds of miles of deep lush green running north to south and then hundreds of miles more of beautiful tan desert spreading out on either side of the valley. And peeking out from between the stretches of palm groves are these marvelous temples every few miles around Luxor.

And I haven’t even mentioned the sunrises and sunsets here yet. Sunrises and sunsets over Luxor – and Aswan too for that matter – are simply stunning because of the desert backdrops over which the sun comes up and goes down, which creates some amazingly dramatic scenes. So where is the best place to see all of this from, you ask?

Well, I hinted at it a minute ago when I said that you can really see the expanses of color and landscape from the air. Luxor is one of the best places to take a hot air balloon ride and take in some dramatic scenery that you just can’t see in all its glory from ground level. So this is one of the first fun things to do in Egypt that I wanted to mention because you can do it from right there in Luxor.

And now that I’m thinking about it, this is something you can also do on a first trip too if you really want because hot air ballooning in Luxor is a super super early morning thing because everyone wants to make sure they also see the sunrise back across the river over the Eastern Desert while they’re up in the balloon. So depending on the time of year, we’re talking about a 4 or 5am departure, so you can still be back down on the ground and ready for a full day of touring before the sites even open up.

If you’re not afraid of heights or super early mornings and you want to do something really unique while your’e in Luxor, just know that this is a really great and really popular place for hot air ballooning, and they have a really advanced ballooning industry now in Luxor as a result of its popularity there. This isn’t a place with only one or two companies. There are dozens and dozens and they’re really experienced with it on a daily basis, so it’s very safe too.

Even if you don’t want to go up in a hot air balloon, it can also be worth it to wake up early one day and see all of the hot air balloons floating in the air over the western bank of the Nile at sunrise. That makes for a really beautiful site too even from the ground, if you don’t mind waking early up to catch it.

Ok, now let’s move on from Luxor and float on over to the Red Sea coast. This is an area of Egypt that’s not about ancient history really at all and more about modern luxuries and fun. The Red Sea has beautiful turquoise blue water that just makes for strikingly beautiful vistas, and now it has lots of options for resorts ranging from smaller and more eco-friendly to large luxurious compounds that have everything you could ever want to pamper you in one of the most gorgeous seaside environments.

Beware though – there are also lots of shoddy and overly touristy resorts too along the Red Sea. I did an entire episode a while back on the resorts along Egypt’s mainland Red Sea coast, and in that episode I talked about how many of the mass-tourism resorts in Hurghada that cater to the cheap Euro weekend package holiday tourists should be avoided by those who are coming over for longer and nicer vacations from North America and Western Europe and Australia and even East Asia.

For you, this is a big trip that you want to do up nice, not a cheap weekend holiday package that you picked up at the gas station, like you see coming out of places like Ukraine and Russia and Poland and even Italy and some other places that are a lot closer to Egypt and for whom Egypt is just a quick weekend trip to lay out in the sun all day and get skin cancer.

Anyway, those coming to Egypt on bigger trips to see the historic sites and soak up the culture want to have a nicer Red Sea experience, which you can do at many of the nicer resort areas I’ve mentioned along the coast like El Gonna and the new Soma Bay development and even further south at Marsa Alam.

Just keep in mind that Marsa Alam is really far south, so you have to fly there from Cairo if you’re going there. It’s not very practical to be driven there, although it can be arranged if you want. But it just take a whole long day and it’s just easier to fly, although that can take a whole day too if you’re coming from Luxor or Aswan because you have to connect back in Cairo.

El Gouna and especially Soma Bay, however, are easily drivable from Luxor. Soma Bay is only about 3 hours away, while Gouna is about 4 or maybe just a little under. And Hurghada does