Our Dahab Guide

Dahab is inspirational, like a tapestry woven from different colours, textures and cultures it is truly a unique place. Nestled between the Sinai mountains and the Red Sea with palm fringed beaches and golden sands, Dahab is a beautiful place. Dahab (Arabic name for gold) has retained its rustic charm and Bedouin culture. This has attracted nomads and travellers for many years. In recent years roads have been laid and modern amenities have arrived, thankfully this has not changed the relaxed atmosphere, nor the landscape (high rise buildings are not permitted). So gorgeous mountain and sea views can be seen from most parts of town.

Dahab draws people from everywhere, a fondness of the place grows and most people decide to come back for more holidays or stay long term. This creates a fusion of cultures that is similar to that of big cities and with this diversity comes open mindedness and new creations. The people of Dahab are an open minded lot and its this and more that makes Dahab a work of art. See bedouin culture for an overview of Bedouin lives in Dahab.

Whilst Dahab has grown up from being a sleepy little fishing village, it is still small enough to get around by foot. The town itself is about 6kms by 3 kms and is centered around four main areas. Two new areas slightly further out are starting to become more developed which could lead to possible doubling of Dahab's existing size over the next 10 years. An overview of all these areas is below.

The Lagoona is a beautiful spot, a long stretch of golden sand forming the lagoon. This is a must for a visit, even if only to sit and relax a while to admire the view. This is a great place for a picnic on the beach s there are no cafes on the lagoona point itself. This is the best spot in Dahab for windsurfing and kite surfing - being one of Dahabs most windy spots. This is the area where all wind surfing and kite surfing schools are based.

Surrounding the Lagoona is the home to most of Dahabs 5 star resorts, and just inwards of the coast is the main administrative center for dahab. This is known as Dahab City and it is where the hospital, bus station and council offices are based. Also located here are Dahab's new and modern Decompression Chambers, serving Dahabs diving community. There are several dive sites in the area, the most popular is the Islands, which is just north of the Lagoona. When the sun sets this part of town winds down as the entertainment is contained within the resorts. So after dark head for Mashraba, Masbat, Lighthouse to Eel Garden. The walk from Lagoona along the beach to Mashraba is lovely and lots of great cafes, shops, bars and hotels line the promenade.

The Mashraba (South of the Bridge) and Masbat (North of the Bridge) areas form the main town centre, and are the busiest areas in Dahab. This is where most of the shops, bars and restaurants are located. Daytime this area is for relaxing, eating and shopping. By night its transformed into a festival of colour, where people come to eat a good dinner and maybe move on to one of the bars in the area. This is Dahabs nightlife centre with several bars and clubs providing live DJs to get you dancing on most nights of the week.

We will be providing more detailed information on shopping, eating out and nightlife so come back soon to check this out, or contact us for more information.

The Light House area is home to Dahab's busiest Dive Site - the lighthouse reef is used by all levels of divers and the easy entrance here makes it a great place for learners. There is also now a floating pontoon to make the access even easier.

Snorkelling here can sometimes get crowded so keep your eyes wide open at all times. Turtles and other interesting marine life can be spotted here so its worth the effort taking the plunge into the blue at the lighthouse.

 

  The area is surrounded by restaurants, hotels, camps and dive centres and this is a great and popular spot to relax, admire the views and get to know the locals.

Assalah is the area of the original Bedouin village and for the most part it still remains. The area stretches along the coast north from the Lighthouse up to the Bedouin Moon Hotel, and in land up to the Mubarak residential development.

Along the coast is a great walk if you fancy a little exploration and you want to see some of the real dahab. The coast line contains small hotels, guest houses, restaurants and as you go further north you find private homes and unspoilt beach. The Eel Garden dive site is along this stretch and at the end of the beach walkway is where Sheikh Salem House is situated and Dai Pescatori Italian Restaurant.

The spot where our cafe is situated is one of the nicest views in Dahab, where two beautiful palm trees grace the beautiful mountains in the distance behind the canyon dive site

Beyond this go inland from the beach into the Bedouin village which has started to become more developed. This is the part of town where you still see goats and camels roaming freely, traditional style houses, children playing and typical Bedouin lifestyles. This is part of Dahab's tapestry, set against a striking mountain back drop.

After the northern check point the coastal road takes you to the famous Canyon and Blue Hole Dive Sites. These are both famous Dahab dive sites due to the depth, with cave and arch diving possibilities. However to enjoy these dive sites to the full, divers should hold an Advanced PADI diving qualification, or to go to the great depths here a Technical Diving Qualification. These dive sites are not for inexperienced divers, you must ask for information and have a professional dive guide take you diving at these dive sites. Several smaller and less frequented dive sites along the route offer the opportunity to dive away from the crowds.

There are big hotel and holiday resort developments being planned in this area, many are now complete. We expect this area to become another small centre outside of town soon, so this the area (still fairly quiet) will become much busier.

The Blue Hole Dive Site marks the end of the coastal road. A drift dive (or snorkel) from El Bells (just north of blue hole) to Blue Hole is excellent (currents permitting). This impressive dive site is popular with snorkelers too and has a number of cafes. This area can get quite busy during the day time but winds down towards the evening. There is overnight accommodation available at El Bells few minutes walk from the blue hole, although not many people stay decide to stay in the area after dark.

The blue hole gets especially busy between the hours of 11am - 3pm, we always recommend to our guests to get the best out of this area to arrive early morning or late afternoon to enjoy a peaceful snorkel or diving experience.

 

 

Ras Abu Gallum

From the Blue Hole starts a foot path that leads to the Ras Abu Gallum National Park (see Safaris) for more details. Here you will see many camels being prepared here for safaris to Ras Abu Gallum. The route can also be walked from the Blue Hole in about one hour. The scenery on route is beautiful where the mountains and desert meet the reef and the varying colours of the sea. This ia a must do for any visit to Dahab. This is a national park of outstanding beauty, with lovely reefs for diving or snorkeling, it is a perfect place to go to really get away from it all.

 

After Dahab City the road south takes you to the wadi gnay region, one of Dahabs most beautiful spots. This less developed area just south of Dahab is great for diving, snorkeling, and for day or overnight trips. There are a few beach cafes and some lovely places to stay for a relaxing escape. Whilst this area is busy during the day time, once the sunsets the place is a quiet desert and sea haven with relaxation being the main pass time.

A walking trail from behind the beach leads to a fertile oasis and after rain in spring, a waterfall. So spend some time exploring this area, as it may also become more developed in the coming years.

From the 3 pools another footpath provides an excellent coastal walk eventually arriving at Gab El Bint (2 hours). A camel can be taken from three pools, or it can be reached by boat from the lagoona pier. Offering some remote diving (turtles and rays are mostly spotted here) its also good for snorkellers. There is a small beach cafe that closes at sunset. No overnight options are available for Gab El Bint.

 

That's the end of our little overview of dahab, we will be adding a lot more information on this web site over the coming months. Send us your comments and ideas as we are extending this section in the coming months.

Alternatives - a detailed guide to alternative Dahab including yoga, massage and more

Eating Out - Coming soon a detailed guide of Dahabs best cafes and restaurants.

Bars and Nightlife - Coming soon a detailed guide of Dahab at Night. Bars become like clubs and have live DJs most nights of the week playing a variety of music. Above pictured is Rush Village one of Dahabs famous party spots with great Friday night parties.

Other bars that have parties currently include The Furry Cup Bar@ Blue Beach, Churchills Bar @ Red Sea Relax, Nesima Roof Bar and The Tree.

Shopping - Coming soon a detailed guide of Dahabs best shops

Listen - Dahab is proud to be the host town for the brand new internet music radio station http://www.radiosharmlive.com Radio Sharm Live provides good music 24/7, local information from Sharm El Sheikh and Dahab, chat rooms, games and more. 

We have aimed to make our web site a useful resource for information about Dahab. If there is anything you think we have missed and you still need to know please ask or tell us. Or try below for some more information pages.

Check out ILOVEDAHAB.COM - Dahabs online community

Wiki Travel has an excellent Dahab guide travel section http://wikitravel.org/en/Dahab

Weather - Sunshine everyday (well at least 95% of the time!)

Getting here - See our guide on getting here from all over the world

Travel Advice & What to bring, see the getting here page for more information.