The Red Sea

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Fact File for The Red Sea

While a relative newcomer to luxury charter yacht destinations, with its sandy beaches, stunning vistas, chic seaside resorts and world-class dive sites it's no wonder that the Red Sea has been capturing the imagination of holidaymakers for generations.

COORDINATES: Suez Canal in the north: 29.888281,32.506318 | Straits of Bab-el-Mandeb in the south: 12.642482,43.311656

LANGUAGES: Arabic, English (widely spoken in tourist areas)

CAPITALS: The Red Sea encompasses nine countries. Egypt: Cairo, Saudi Arabia: Jeddah

WEATHER: The Red Sea gets warm sunshine all year round. In summer the days are extremely hot with July temperatures from 30 to 40°C. Sea breezes should stop you getting too hot though. Spring, autumn and even their mild winters are great times to visit with plenty of sunshine and warm seas. BEST TIME TO CHARTER: October - April

AIRPORTS: The man airport for access to the key cruising area in the north of the Red Sea including the Sinai / Gulf of Aqaba is Hurghada (HRG). Alternatively fly into Cairo (CAI)  

TIME: GMT+2

CURRENCY: Egyptian pound (LE) or Saudi Riyal (SAR). Euros (EUR), US Dollars (USD) and Pound Sterling (GBP) can be used in some places or exchanged into local currency. ATMs are common. American Express, Diners Club, MasterCard and Visa are accepted, however there are still small shops, restaurants and hotels where they are not acceptable. It is recommended to carry some local and foreign cash.

ELECTRICITY: 220 V, 50 Hz

PUBLIC HOLIDAYS (EGYPT):

7 Jan – Coptic Christmas Day
25 Jan – Revolution Day
25 April – Sinai Liberation Day
April – May: Sham El Nessim (Spring Festival)
1 May – Labour Day
June 30 – 30 June Day
June – July – 3 days to celebrate the end of Ramazan, Eid-ul Fithr
July 23 – Revolution Day
September – Islamic New Year
September - Eid-ul Al'h'aa
September – October - Prophet Mohamed's Birthday
October 6: Armed Forces Day

MAIN PORTS AND MARINAS: El Gouna, Hurghada, Port Ghalib, Suez Canal, Taba Heights, Safaga, Sharm el Sheik, Wadi-El-Dome Marina

RECOMMENDED BEACHES: All beaches in Corsica are worth seeing, and some of them are: Roccapina, Capo di Feno, Ostriconi, Girolata, Santa Manza, Rondinara, Palombaggia, Plage du Lido, Cupabia

CULTURAL: Egypt is a majority Muslim country and the dress code here is conservative and public displays of affection are frowned upon. There are no specific dress codes and particularly in tourist areas you will see people in brief, modern clothing. English is spoken in the tourist areas but less elsewhere.