Dahab Paradise

Dahab, Red Sea & Sinai, Egypt
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Dahab Paradise

Dahab, Red Sea & Sinai, Egypt

A cute hotel bang on the water with great prices, a happy vibe and some of the best diving in the Red Sea on your doorstep

A cute hotel bang on the water with great prices, a happy vibe and some of the best diving in the Red Sea on your doorstep

Dahab Paradise offers what a lot of people want: an easy style, a cool pool, guaranteed sun and excellent value for money. It’s a friendly place which stands 10 paces from the sea with views across the Gulf of Aqaba to the mountains of Saudi Arabia. It’s slightly out of town, which keeps it quiet, and, there’s a great little restaurant and bar where you can stop for a pizza or a beer. Camels lope past on the small beach across the road several times a day. The hotel comes with a dive school attached, so arrange a trip to Blue Hole or pick up some flippers and head out to snorkel in the big, blue sea.

Rooms come over 2 floors and all have terraces or balconies. They’re fairly simple, but have everything you need: comfy beds, warm colours, air-conditioning, compact shower rooms. Back downstairs a circular pool sits in the middle of a well-tended lawn. You’ll find sun loungers, deck chairs and pool towels piled high. It’s a quietly sociable place with evening barbecues and music nights - Bedouin laments in front of the fire one evening, an acoustic Bob Dylan session the next. The hotel is floodlit at night and the palm trees are wrapped in fairy lights at Christmas.

Highs

  • The price: it’s hard to fault what you get for the money
  • The attitude: this is a very friendly place with owners who care and excellent service
  • The vibe: it’s relaxed, the sun shines, the pool shimmers, the staff smile - we have had many fantastic stays here
  • The bar: a good spot for lunch and supper, with a beer to keep you cool
  • Dahab itself: for the time being, at least, it retains the laid-back charm which Sharm so conspicuously lacks
  • The diving and snorkelling: world-class on both counts, and the hotel can arrange it all

Lows

  • Strong winds can blow in off the sea, but they put up wind breaks to protect you from it
  • You're advised not to swim or snorkel from the beach across the road unless conditions are calm; the hotel can advise alternative sites and arrange transport
  • Bathrooms occasionally smell of drains, and the shower cubicles are small, so prepare to practise your silkiest moves
  • Dahab town has quite a high population of stray cats, some are quite confident so you may have company during meals out
  • We recommend you check the latest FCO Travel Advice before booking

Best time to go

Dahab can get quite busy in peak season, though the hotel is out of town so it's relatively protected from the crowds. Avoid the European summer, when the Egyptian sun is at its hottest.

You’re better off avoiding Ramadan, when some businesses in Egypt will close for the whole month, although in Dahab all local businesses are open as usual. It is advised to be respectful during this time of fasting by not smoking, eating or drinking directly in front of the locals. And if you are travelling over holidays - Eid al-Adha, Ras an-Sana - expect the rest of Egypt to be competing for your seat. The dates for these holidays change every year, so check before planning your trip.

Our top tips

If you’ve never been snorkelling before, then you won’t know how easy it is to get sunburnt. You’re going to spend a lot of time with your back exposed to the sun while in water, so wear a t-shirt.

Great for...

Beach
Cheap & Chic
Eco
Family
Great Outdoors
  • Boutique Hotel
  • 35 rooms
  • Restaurant and bar (open daily)
  • All ages welcome
  • Open all year
  • Outdoor Pool
  • Spa Treatments
  • Beach Nearby
  • Pet Friendly
  • Disabled Access
  • Car not necessary
  • Parking
  • Restaurants Nearby
  • WiFi
  • Air Conditioning
  • Guest Lounge
  • Terrace
  • Garden
  • Gym
  • Concierge Service
  • Safety deposit facilities
  • Volleyball
Room:

Rooms

The hotel's U-shaped structure echoes the mountain behind, and faces the Red Sea. Rooms keep you happy. They’re not overly elaborate, but what you get fits the price and during our stay other guests seemed very content. Best of all, the hotel is designed so that every room has a terrace or balcony.

The terraces are quite sociable as they open onto the lawn and you can stroll over to the bar and pick up a beer. So if you want to hide away, go for first-floor rooms as the balconies are more private. Both come with deckchairs and long views that shoot across the Red Sea and end up in the mountains of Saudi Arabia, 21km away.

Rooms all come in the same colour and style. You get warm yellows, wooden beds, air-conditioning and flatscreen TVs. There are high ceilings, small fridges, terracotta tiles, handcrafted reclaimed furniture, double curtains to keep out the early sun rays.

Beds come wrapped in crisp white linen (singles, doubles, twins and triples are available) and housekeeping will service your room every day. Bathrooms are fine: pretty tiles, big mirrors, and a constant supply of hot water in small shower cubicles.

Features include:

  • In-room treatments available
  • Minibar
  • Mosquito net
  • Safe box
  • WiFi

Eating

The restaurant and bar comes in Koh Samui-style: no walls, a shady roof. It is built from old telegraph poles (as is the entrance), and smart tables and cushioned chairs are scattered about. It’s the hub of the hotel, a place to linger, so stop for a drink, sit with a book or, chat to staff and guests.

A buffet breakfast is served from 7am-10am and mixes western food with Egyptian dishes. You’ll get bread rolls and jam, fruit salad and yoghurt, scrambled eggs and cornflakes, plates of cucumber and tomato.

Lunch and dinner share the same menu, mostly western dishes. You can eat anything from a bowl of fries to seafood platters piled high with Red Sea shrimps and calamari. In between you’ll find excellent salads, tasty pizzas, a club sandwich, a cheese burger, grilled chicken, ravioli, and even a steak. So don’t expect to go hungry.

Barbecues are held once a week, sometimes at lunch, sometimes in the evening. If you stay for a week, there’ll also be an Egyptian buffet dinner one night, too: green vegetable soup, oven-baked chicken, rice with noodles and lots of oriental salads.

You’ll probably want to eat in town at some point while you’re here. There are loads of restaurants on the seafront and it can be pretty hit-or-miss working out where to go, so ask the staff who are happy to advise.

Features include:

  • Bar
  • Breakfast
  • Restaurant
  • Restaurants nearby
  • Room service
Eating:
Activity:

Activities

  • Diving is the Number One draw in Dahab and dive companies line the main promenade competing for your business. Boat trips can be arranged on request and may be expensive so do then in a group; bear in mind most diving in Dahab is from the shore. The hotel works in conjunction with one of the schools, which has an office here, but if you book elsewhere they’ll come to pick you up, so feel free to shop around. If you want to take a PADI, it’ll take 3-4 days with 5 dives included

  • Snorkelling - nearly as popular as diving and it costs a lot less. If you want to take a dip, hire equipment at attractive prices from the hotel, then disappear into the sea for the afternoon. Calm conditions are best if you're snorkelling locally, the hotel can recommend alternative places if it is windy

  • Windsurfing is good in the ‘Laguna’ (a sandy beach with shallow waters) which has several local operators for kite- and windsurfing tuition and equipment hire. Dahab Paradise can arrange a taxi for you

  • Mount Sinai and St Catherine’s Monastery are both popular excursions. According to Egyptian law, everyone should have a local guide when going into the desert or mountains (Mt. Sinai, Ras Abu Galom etc). If you want to see the sunrise from Mount Sinai, buses leave at 10pm. It’s a 2-hour drive up to the monastery, then a 4-hour night climb to the summit by torch- or moonlight

  • The desert for trekking, camel safaris and 4WD trips. You can even camp overnight in tents on the beach at Ras Abu Galom, riding in on camels

  • Day trips to Petra in Jordan are possible, an ancient city cut from red stone. It’s a long day, involving buses and ferries, and is a little pricey; better to plan a night or 2 there

  • Chill in town. Collapse on cushions in one of the seaside cafés - you'll find plenty of people to socialise with, and swop or plan excursions together if you want

  • A massage can be arranged in your room; if you're bent on getting your yoga fix, there are drop in-classes at 2 different hotels in the Eelgarden area (5 minutes by car, 20 minutes walk), as well as private classes in the on-site Bedouin tent (on request)

Activities on site or nearby include:

  • Boat trips
  • Hiking
  • Historical sites
  • Nightlife
  • Scuba diving
  • Scuba diving courses
  • Snorkelling
  • Swimming
  • Yoga

Kids

Children are welcome, and will enjoy the sociable garden and pool area (although they must be supervised in this area).

Best for:

Children (4-12 years)

Family friendly accommodation:

Families may prefer to take one of the triple rooms (either 1 double and 1 single bed, or 3 single beds). The triple, double and twin rooms all have space for 1 baby cot. While there are no interconnecting rooms, Dahab Paradise can ensure families are booked into adjacent rooms, and with easy access through the entrance door and balcony door, this works wells. Most families prefer to stay on the ground floor.

Cots Available

Baby equipment:

Baby cots are available on request.

Remember  baby and child equipment may be limited or need pre-booking

Kid Friendly:

Location

Dahab Paradise is in the small town of Dahab, 100km north of Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. The hotel is on the coast 2km north of town.

By Air:
Fly into Sharm El Sheikh. Click on the links below for a list of airlines serving this airport.

From the Airport
It is about an hour's drive to Dahab from Sharm El Sheikh. The hotel can arrange a transfer from the airport, hotels in Sharm or from Taba Airport, Taba Border, Nuweiba port and Cairo International Airport - and anywhere between.

By Car:
Some guests arrive by car, and there are parking spaces at the entrance/back of the hotel (free of charge) - see our car rental recommendations.

Detailed directions will be sent when you book through i-escape.com.

More on getting to Egypt and getting around

Airports:

  • Sharm El Sheikh 90.0 km SSH

Other:

  • Beach 4.0 km
  • Shops 1.0 km
  • Restaurant 1.0 km

Our guests' ratings...

Based on 4 independent reviews from i-escape guests

9/10
Room
10/10
Food
10/10
Service
10/10
Value
10/10
Overall

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Rates for Dahab Paradise

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