Dahab travel guide

Getting around

Dahab can be divided into two distinct areas: the Bedouin village, Assalah, and the administrative ‘city’ of Dahab about 3 km south. Assalah is further divided into three parts: the actual village where locals live and the adjacent tourist areas of Masbat and Mashraba where travellers hang out. There are also a few self-contained resorts on the water to the south of Dahab City in an area known as the Laguna. Walking is really the best way to get around, but there is no shortage of pickups and taxis. A taxi costs E£10 from one section of town to the other, pickups are a bit cheaper, depending on the number of passengers. You can always bargain or wait for another ride to come along.

Ins and outs

Getting there

Dahab is 98 km north of Sharm El-Sheikh, 82 km from Sharm El-Sheikh airport, 133 km from Taba and 570 km from Cairo. Daily buses run north from Sharm El-Sheikh (E£11-16) and south from Taba (E£22) and Nuweiba (E£11), or shared taxis can be hired from the main towns in Sinai. East Delta runs daily buses to Dahab from Cairo through Suez and Sharm (E£70-80). Buses arrive in the bus station in Dahab City in the south. To get to Assalah, a pickup taxi (which will be waiting) will transport you for E£3-5 depending on how many people are with you.

Dahab

Bus

The East Delta bus station, T069-364 0250, is on the northern side of Dahab City. There are 4 daily buses to Cairo at 0830, 1230, 1430 and 2200 (E£70-80, 8-9 hrs) via Sharm El-Sheikh (E£11-16, 1½ hrs), plus a further 8 buses go to Sharm the last one leaving at 2230. 3 buses go north to Nuweiba at 1030, 1600 and 1830 (E£11, 1 hr) of which the 1030 carries on to Taba (E£22, 3 hrs).There should be one bus east to St Catherine’s at 0930 (E£16, 1½ hrs), but it often does not run. There’s a gruelling bus to Luxor every day at 1600 (E£115, 13-14 hrs) which also stops at Hurghada. Bus schedules are posted around most camps. Overnight buses tend to be more expensive.

Car hire

Lotus Transport, based in the Dahab Hilton, T069-364 0301, www.lotustourism transport.com, rent cars by the day for US$50-70, or US$300 per week. Add 10% tax, then 25c per km if you go beyond 100 km a day. To have a driver is an extra US$12. They can deliver a car to your hotel.

Taxi

Service taxis

Faster than the bus, another way to get around from city to city is to hire a service (pronounced servees) taxi. If you are travelling en masse or can team up with some other wanderers, you can bargain with a driver to take you almost anywhere.

Taxis

A necessary expense for getting between Dahab town and the beaches. Tourists are usually charged more than Egyptians. To and from the bus station costs E£5. If you join others or take a pickups, it’s cheaper. To the Blue Hole, E£50 – the driver will wait and bring you back.

Banks

Bank of Egypt in Dahab town accepts traveller’s cheques and ATM cards. In the northern part of the Masbat, there is a National Bank of Egypt that accepts traveller’s checks, exchanges money and has an ATM, 0900-2200. Gazala supermarket has a handy ATM outside, or there is bank opposite, open from 0930-2130. There’s a Western Union near Nesima Hotel in Mashraba, which keeps irregular hours.

Internet

is widely available, try Penguin on the main road in Mashraba or Planet Café in Masbat, which has a fast connection, new computers and is cheap. The going rate is E£5-6 per hour.

Post office

In Dahab town centre, Sat-Thu 0830-1500. In Masbat, you will also find a phone and post shop, clearly signed, near the bridge that sells stamps and will deliver your mail.

Telephone

Office in Dahab City. In Assalah, there is an office that will facilitate international faxes and phone calls across the street from the supermarket.