Wait, nobody has told you that you can visit Mt.Sinai from Israel? The sunrise at the mountain of Moses is incredible!
The thing is, the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula is actually closer to Israel than Cairo! From Eilat, the southern city of Israel, it takes only 2.5 hours to the most beautiful secret resort at the real Red Sea. And you can watch the legendary sunrise at Mt.Sinai the next day! So many backpackers and travelers have done this… and even I have revisited the place after …. a long time! (Didn’t have a nice camera back then)
Don’t miss this one out!
The Glance: Mt. Sinai
Maybe add a little touch of “Egypt” for your trip to the Middle East?
This is one of the hikes I did in my early 20s, as a girl traveling solo in Egypt. I didn’t know how hard the hike was (there weren’t that many blogs and certainly not vlogs 8 years ago)
Let me show you the amazing sunrise first! (And what the trip looks like)
The easiest way to get there from Israel is to go with Abraham Tours. All the details are there and pretty accurate. If you want to be really precise… all you need is 29 hours!!
Total Costs
1. The 2D1N Package $ 159
2. Border Fees: Israeli Exit Tax 102 + 5NIS from Israel exit (approximately $ 31) and Egyptain Entry Stamp 400EGP (approximately $ 26)
3. Lunch: Bring your lunch, I bought coke for 25EGP (about $ 2)
4. Camel fee: 250EGP (or $ 20)
5. Blanket rental fee: 50EGP (about $ 3)
= about USD$ 238 per person
History? Some history about Sinai
The Sinai Peninsula briefly under Israeli control between 1967 and 1982 (after the Six-Day War). But the peninsula is 3 times bigger than the size of Israel! Israel found it difficult to defend the border, so Israel gave up the control and returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt after the peace agreement made with Egypt. But the point is, basically from then until now, relations between Egypt and Egypt have been very good. I even met a guide from Dahab who loves Bamba!! (An Israeli snack! And he said he never liked Bisli, which is another Israeli snack. I found the conversation interesting :P)
If you want to go back the history, watch “The Prince of Egypt” or just read Exodus. Moses led the people of Israel from Egypt, and here he received the Ten Commandments. The people of Israel made a covenant with God, He would be their God, and they would be His people. And we see the rebirth of Israel, we know that God’s promise hasn’t failed! This love has lasted for at least 4000 years! What a romantic place!
After Constantine legalized Christianity in the 4th century AD, his mother Helena, designated this mountain in the Sinai Peninsula as Mount Sinai. The monastery was built here and named after Catherine, a devout female believer who didn’t give up her faith under persecution. The St. Catherine’s Church in Bethlehem is also named after this lady.
Get Ready! Things to Pack
1. Energy: 🥾🥾🥾🥾🥾
2. Equipment: Hiking boots/sneakers, headlight (you need this! Don’t attempt to rely on your phone), water bottle (I brought a thermos), hand warmer (if in January), a very warm jacket (I went with my Superdry wind-cheater and lots of layers)
It’s VERY COLD up there!! If there’s only one piece of advice that I can give you… please dress warmly!
The 2D1N Itinerary
With Abraham tours, you meet at Eilat at 11AM (the tour leaves only on Monday I think). You’ll cross the border with your group, and the van will take you to the resort around 13:30. Dinner is at 19:00. Then you meet again at midnight.
Mount Sinai and Red Sea 2 Day Tour
Level of Energy Required：🥾🥾🥾🥾🥾
Departs：Every Monday
Fee：USD$159
1.Departure
The security in Sinai is strict. Though for sure you should still try to get as much sleep as possible along the way, you’d still be interrupted by 3-5 checkpoints. Make sure to bring your passport!
2. About 2:30 AM: Arrive at the foot of the mountain and climb the mountain
We met our guide at the parking. After a short walk (15-30 minutes walk), we saw so many camels! From here you can take a camel (should be 7 kilometers), or walk about 1.5 ~ 2 hours. It’s FLAT but LONG!! And …. just not easy to walk when it’s so dark. I prefer taking the camel taxi 😛 (More details later)
3. At About 4 AM: Hike up to the Top from Upper Camel Stop
At some point, the camel cannot go further. Then you need to climb 750 steps by yourself, which is the hardest part. It takes about 40 minutes to 1.5 hours …
If you are a girl, there will be a Bedouin who enthusiastically asks you to hold his hand, the friendly gesture is to “help you”. But coming from Asian background.. well I’d rather not take advantage of this.
There are toilets and tea stops, the fee is 1 US dollar or 20 EGP. (I heard it’s super dirty) A cup is tea is the same price. So… I was glad that I had my thermos.
4. Wait for the Sunrise
It’s better to go up and wait for the sun first, because we can wait for the sunrise but the sunrise can’t wait for us … so that’s why we started the climb an hour early! My sunrise was at 06:22, and I arrived before 5AM… so I had to find a place to sleep. It cost 50EGP (about USD$3) to rent a blanket.
In the beginning, I hesitated because who knows how clean the blankets were (it’s so dark, you can’t see…. ) I asked the vendor: “Is it clean?” He replied, “It’s for tourists!”
Well, I suppose the blankets were never washed. But it turned out to be okay.
The best place to sleep…. er, I meant, to watch the sunrise, is to your left. I found this by accident because I was sleeping against a wall, and woke up seeing people talking towards me. And the sunrise was exactly behind me…. lucky me :O
The spot… if you see from this picture, you will hike up from the stairs. And pass the chapel (on your right on the way up), and then you’ll see a small observation deck. The sunrise will be on your left if the chapel is behind you.
Taking a photo for my Chinese blog… www.israelmega.com
5.Downhill: 2 to 3 Hours
The sad news… It will not be any easier to walk downhill! The main reason is that your body will be exhausted after not having enough sleep. It will take at least 2 hours to go down.
I made a short video to show you the way down the mountain from the beginning to the end. You can see the camel station at 02:00. From there it’s still a flat but LONG walk to the monastery at the foothill. That’s why I’d recommend taking the camel at least one-day.
6.About 9AM: Breakfast Time
Our breakfast is included in the package.
Another tip!
If you want to use the toilet, it costs 5EGP per person at the Catherine Monastery, so it is important to have Egyptian change with you! And it’s amazingly clean compared to the toilet in the mountain, which costs 20EGP per visit!
7. St.Catherine Monastery
It’s free to visit this 1500-year-old monastery. I liked it. Not so different from churches you see in Israel at around the same era, but it’s still nice. (I liked how our Muslim Bedouin guide was inside the church, talking to a greek priest)
You cannot take pictures inside the church, but you can take pictures in the compound. This is the burning bush (of course not).
And this is Moses’ well. (Questionable, but the well has water !!)
Going Back To Israel
The van will take you back to the resort. From noon to 3pm you can take a nap or spend time on the beach. The van will take you to Taba border at 3pm (takes about 30 minutes). You’ll cross the border on your own. And the public bus stop(15/30) is right at the exit of border control in Eilat. If all things go well, you can take the 5pm bus (444) back to Jerusalem.
Please book your bus in advance! 444 is extremely popular and impossible to get a last-minute free seat!
How hard is the hike?
Well, the definition of “hard” is because the total of this hike takes 3 hours one way, and instead of sleeping in a bed, you are telling your body to walk. If you are not used to staying up the whole night (which I’m not), it’s very difficult and drains out a lot of energy.
So, my strategy is to take the camel up. It’s not expensive, but don’t talk to the camel man directly, always let your guide do the communication. The normal price is 250EGP or $20 one way. I enjoyed the ride and watching the big sky dressed with thousands of stars! And then the 750 steps didn’t seem that hard afterward.
The Real Mt.Sinai
Not to spoil anything, but this Mt.Sinai is the traditional site. Recently some archaeologists found a chariot in the Red Sea from Pharoah’s time. And the Red Sea is actually “The Reed Sea” (mistranslation). Watch the video here for the real Mt.Sinai in … Saudi Arabia !!! With more archaeological findings.
Where did we stay? Aqua Sun Resort
We didn’t get much sleep but spent two afternoons here. Aqua Sun Resort is literally in the middle of nowhere and you cannot find it on Google Maps! The place is serene and amazing!
Just this resort, the Red Sea and us!
The lounge! The owner is an Israeli who has lived in Sinai for over 30 years.
Two restaurants. This is where we had dinner. (Included)
We stayed in one of these huts! So cute!
Inside is a double bed, a shelf, a rug, and a lamp, and you can charge your electronics too. It’s basic but cute!
Female toilet and shower room! (So clean! But no hot water… I wish this would improve) 
And the amazing beach! There’s no Wi-Fi here (well, it’s connected, but it didn’t work…), so bring a book or something. Or just relax.
The Dinner
At about 5 pm, you’d be asked what you’d like to have for dinner. Options were chicken, fish or pizza.
This is the lentil soup
Salad and hummus~
My main dish was fish 😀 Pita and french fries were included.
And Arabic dessert. Kanafe in mini ball form!
Going with Abraham Tours
The whole experience I had was with Abraham Tours. You could travel independently, but Egypt is not a place that I’d travel alone. If you are short on time, just leave everything to Abraham.
When you travel in a group, you are more secured. And once you get out from the border, a van is there to pick you up! And you go straight to the resort! You don’t lose any time!
We even made 2 photo-stops on the way!
How to visit Mt.Sinai independently?
The security in Sinai is pretty strict, it will be too naive to think you can just go in any taxi to take you to St.Catherine. You need to find a local travel agency, and you’d be put in a group with other travelers. A guide needs to be responsible for the group.
What you could do, is catch the bus at 3pm to Dahab(there’s only a bus a day), or spend 1000EGP for the taxi ($70). And you’ll arrive around 6pm. Find a hotel, and purchase the package there. But I can already imagine how tiring it is to do so many things in a day, and it won’t be a pleasant experience to hike up the mountain the next day. And if you are short on time and you don’t visit the Middle East often, with the time you saved, you could explore Jordan! Wadi Rum and Petra are not to be missed! I loved the jeep ride and sunset there!
Final Thoughts
This is the easiest option if you’d like to see this amazing sunrise in Mt.Sinai! And it’s a very quick trip from Eilat! You’ll see a sunrise that you won’t forget! The whole experience was smooth and saved a lot of time and confusion. If you have more time, the Petra&Wadi Rum tour is not to be missed, and more accessible.
Also you can stay longer in Taba if you wish (which I did! The Movenpick Hotel there is cheap and wonderful!)
