What is Sharm el Sheik like.?

Travel Info
I have booked up for two weeks in September. Rennaissance Golden View Beach Hotel. All comments welcome.

Travel Tips

Hubby and I went to Sharm a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it. The restaurants are plentiful and good. There are the usual burger and chicken bars and they do try to get you to go into their own restaurants but if you politely say no then you won't get hassled too much.

The swimming is great cos you see so many fish up close and personal.

Don't know your hotel but most of them are of a high quality.

Enjoy!!
Others

Very nice.

Can still be very hot in September, averaging about 45 degrees centigrade, so make sure you keep out of the mid day sun and drink plenty of water or else you will succumb to dehydration sickness like many other Europeans.

I have spent the past 3 christmas periods in Sharm (when the temperature averages about 26 degrees centigrade).

Wonderful place, very friendly people and what ever you do make sure you go snorkelling in the Red Sea. It is the closest tropical ocean to Europe and has coral reefs, wonderful fish and dolphins galore.
I went last summer with my girlfriend.... and enjoyed it. You MUST go scuba diving!!! Wasn't keen on the locals I have to admit. Once you get off the airplane you've got people trying to carry your bags for 拢2. Even the coach driver wanted payment for lifting bags onto the coach!!! You cant walk past their shop without them pretty much physically trying to pull you in. And the men will ogle girls to the point of needing a slap!!! Everything is very cheap, our head barman was getting paid about 拢10 (english) a week... take some anti bacterial hand gel, coz you dont want to eat after handling their paper money. Would definately go back if only to scuba dive again.
Hotel seems to have some great reviews on the holiday sites. Sharm el Sheik is a bit touristy for me but the diving and water sports make up for that.

Hope you have a great time!
Personally I didn't like it there, I think it's great if you are going for diving or for a singles holiday, but we went on honeymoon and our hotel was like an 18-30 resort. Naama Bay is OK, but you do get hassled by every single shop owner, we found once we went into a shop it was very hard to leave without buying anything, they even physically tried to stop us leaving, and manhandled us to get us in to shops, very annoying and spoilt our shopping trip!!! Be careful when you eat out, I got really bad food poisoning after eating out in Naama bay, I was seriously ill and had to have many injections and medication for the last four days of our holiday.

Maybe we just had bad luck, I know people who have been and had a brilliant time there, but personally I would never go back. A word of warning, don't buy a British newspaper from one of the sellers on the street or Beach they are second hand and you will find the crossword already done!!! They collect them from the beaches and sell them for an extortionate price (about 5 British pounds) We were also ripped off quite badly in the restaurant where I got food poisoning, not only did they overcharge us by a great deal AND refuse to take the food back when I told them the meat was rotten (one mouthful was enough to make me really ill) they then decided they couldn't speak English at all (after speaking to us in English to get us in off the street) The restaurant was called Moussaka I think, we only went there becasue my husband is Greek!!!
i hope i was you LOL

it is veeeeeery nice
I did not like Sharm either. I was supposed to stay for two weeks. But I was so bored after only one day that I woke up early the next morning and went to the bus to go back to Cairo. I was staying at Delta Sharm. It was ok, but it took them forever to come and fix a clogged drain in the shower. I was to a point where i was looking for a bottle of liquid plumber. I was just going to fix it myself. There was some restaurants and a cafe within walking distance, but for everything else you had to take a taxi.

I found the place to be very desolate. Once you get outside of the Old Market area, there is really nothing. And even there all there is to do is shop or eat. I did not have any problem being pulled into shops. That happened more in Cairo. But I will say, that being in Sharm I felt more like I was back in the states. There is a very "commercial" feel to Sharm. 90% of the restaurants are chains (Hard Rock, TGI Friday's, McDonalds, KFC...) And the stores, honestly, I felt as if I were at a strip mall in Florida. I used to live in Florida.

If you are seriously into scuba diving, then I would say you will have a great time. Otherwise, if you want to experience the real Egypt you should go to Cairo.

Sorry to make this comparison but anyone who has ever driven on Interstate 95, which runs along the east cost of the US (New York to Florida) will understand what I am talking about. South of the Border. Once you hit New Jersey, you start seeing signs, and not just one or two signs, but thousands of signs every few miles, advertising "South of the Border". You get so excited thinking this is going to be some great fancy place with lots of things to do. After all, they are spending all this money of advertising along the highway. But then when you get there (South Carolina I think) it is nothing but a souvineer shop and truck stop. A tourist trap.

The best thing about Sharm was leaving. The bus ride through the desert along the Red Sea was beautiful.

Your trip is already booked so just go and make the most of it. But next time go to Alexandria.