In all the places in the world I have visited "and there have been a few" Sharm theoretically is one of the easiest to get about. One thing for sure you will never be short of a taxi, until you need one.

 Sharm covers some 35 miles as the crow fly's from Ras Mohamed to the tip of Nabq with Sharm itself in the centre. Your options for travel are taxi, limousine, micro buses and rental cars, which ever one you choose you will experience the wonderful colours of Egyptian driving.

Which ever of the below methods you choose I would recommend getting a local phone SIM card so that contact can be made between yourself and any drivers to arrange pickups from any of the sites you wish to visit. There is only one thing worse than being stuck at a site in the heat waiting for your car and no birds about and that's having your timed pickup arriving just as the next group of eagles soar in.

  

Taxi's in Sharm had a shake up in 2007 when all the old 8 seat Peugeot cars were forced into retirement and more modern hyundai's and toyota's painted blue and white were bought in as replacement. This you would think could only be a good thing as all cars had to have aircon and a meter, but to date I am yet to find one that has either of them working. Tariffs are also government set but again nobody takes any notice of them and so the bartering begins. As a rule always pre arrange the price before you enter the vehicle and carry the correct change where possible. I know it all sounds a bit scary but in truth it is all part of the game.

 

 

Limousines, now where do I start? The word limousine springs to mind in spacious stretched out cars drinking champagne and it couldn't be further from the truth. Limousines in Sharm are pretty much the same as Taxi's apart from the paintwork and they don't have the non working meters. Most hotels have a limousine service which can be booked from the front desk, this has the advantage of being able to book a return and if you take the drivers number it allows more flexibility in return times.

 

Micro buses, now here is an experience for you. This form of transport is by far the cheapest being only about 3 le from Nabq to Naama compared to the 50 le to 100 le a taxi would want. It all sounds great on paper but the driving tends to leave something to be desired and being jammed in a micro bus with all the local workers with your tripod and bins is something I am happy to put behind me. These buses tend to run on a fixed route collecting passengers on the way so this may not be too useful unless you know your way around. To get one of these just stand on a main road and if you see a small bus passing by just wave it down.

 

Car Hire, unlike most countries where you leave the airport to find car rental places everywhere in Sharm it is a relatively new thing. I can't really give too much info at this point on car rental as I have my burden of a jeep and when I do hire it tends to be a private rental. I will post info as I find it.

 

 Eurocar is one company that does advertise locally and the rates are available online. If you really want the freedom of stopping and starting and going where you want this is the best option. The only thing I would say is check out the max miles per rental. www.europcar.com .

 

 Budget car rental can be contacted on (0020)069 3601610 , they quoted me for a Peugeot 407 $150 per day upto 100km + $1/2 per 1 km over.

 

Avis is located in central Naama Bay and can be contacted on, private mobile (Mohamed) (0020)0127894063 or office (0020)069 03602400 or (0020)069 3600979 during 8am-1:30pm and 530pm -10:00pm.They have quoted ……..

$125 per day for a Nissan Xtrail 4WD with upto 100km per day 60cents per km over

$70 per day for Nissan Sunny with upto 100km per day 30cents per km over.

 

All prices seem negotiable and are cheaper the longer you rent for. Liabilty will also needs to be left for damage, this is model dependent.

 

Personal Taxi driver

One person that I have used on numerous occasions is Hussain, He knows Sharm very well as he is Bedouin and grew up in the surrounding area. Hussain used to run desert trips before the Egyptians restricted desert movement and so speaks extremely good English, on top of this although he is no expert he does have a great deal of local knowledge and a great respect for the local wildlife which extends beyond just the birdlife. Now as an owner of a Taxi he will run you around in a hassle free way and all prices can be pre negotiated. Using Hussain or one of his guys is also a good way to do further a field trips at your own convenience such as St Catherines.

As a guide line to prices…

Around the Naama area, Pools etc half day will be around 250le.

Half day to Nabq national park will be about 300le plus $5 per person entrance fee.

Half day to Ras Mohamed (visa stamp required to enter) will be about 300le plus $5 per person entrance fee.

Early morning trip to St Catherine's 600le plus entrance fee to national park.

Hussain can be contacted on (0020) 0101062312.

 

All information is relevant at time of writing and we do not take responsibility for problems with any of the above companies or individuals that you take services from. All information is just as a guide to available transportation options.

 

To phone from abroad drop the first 0 after (0020).