Marsa Alam Travel Guide
Undiscovered Red Sea Gem
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Until 2001 and the construction of a new airport Marsa Alam was a small fishing village south of Al Quseir on Egypt’s southern Red Sea coast. With new airport brings additional development and the village is slowly becoming a major draw for more divers keen to test their mettle. The area around Marsa Alam is rated as one of the best diving area in the world and as one of the few diving areas in the Red Sea that's not overcrowded and still totally unspoiled.
The Marsa Alam area has an ancient history with the inland emerald mines and Temple of Seti 1 at Khanais. Located not far north of the Tropic of Cancer Marsa Alam has tropical atmosphere brought about by its mangroves and palm trees.
The region has long beaches and many coral reefs whilst further south is the amazing Wadi el Gemal National Park, a protected area covering almost 100km of coast along with a beautiful 60km-deep wadi. The area has been declared a national park to protect its wonderful biodiversity, which includes gazelles.
Of course it’s the diving that people visit for in the main and there are some great reefs to discover. These tend to be best suited to more experienced divers as the area is subject to strong winds and currents.
Activities in Marsa Alam
As you would expect the main attractions are diving trips and safaris into the Eastern Desert.
Relaxing
All the hotels have pools, restaurants and bars however there is no in-town entertainment. One particular place, The Oasis, is highly recommended being a blend of traditional architecture, high quality accommodation and an excellent dive centre.
Getting Around
Marsa Alam airport has flights to a variety of European cities including Prague, Munich, Amsterdam, Dusseldorf, Milan and Rome. The town lies 206km south of Hurghada to where there are additional flights. It is recommended that to get to Marsa Alam you contact a local dive school to arrange your travel arrangements.
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