St. Catherine monastery
Pick up form your hotel
Pick up from your hotel in Sharm-el-Sheikh in the morning and drive towards Nuweiba city
Drive through Sinai desert
During the drive you will enjoy with Sinai desert landscape, different altitudes of the granite mountains. We will drive through the old caravan road which was used by Nabatians in the ancient times, the views there are amazing.
St. Catherine monastery visit
The monastery is situated 1571 m above sea level and dates back to Roman times 542 A.D. We will visit the church of St. Catherine which considered one of the most famous churches all over the world. There is a magnificent mosaic depicting the transfiguration of Jesus in the apse inside the church. It is the earliest and one the most beautiful mosaics of the eastern church and has remained in its entirety to our days. In artistic style it is similar to the Italian school of this period, especially the mosaics in the church of S. Vitalius, as well as in the Higia Sofia in Constantinople. Tthe Library which is considered the second in importance only to the Vatican, in both number and value of the manuscripts it contains 3000 items. Tthe Charnel house is a repository of the bones of the monks who died at St. Catherine over the centuries. The dead are first buried in a small cemetery, then disinterred and their bones deposited in the charnel house. The burning bush which flourishes several yards farther from the chapel where it was transplanted in order to build the holy Alter upon its roots. It is the only bush of its kind growing in the entire Sinai peninsula. Moses well, the Icon gallery of the monastery you will visit as well.
walk through the Canyon
Continue drive for approx. 1.20 hours into the desert. Enjoy an hour's walk through the Canyon, taking in the extraordinary colors and shapes of the rocks.
Lunch
Then have lunch in a local restaurant in St. Catherine city.
Dahab city visit
After lunch we will drive back to Dahab city where we will end our program with a free tour in Dahab city and its bazaars.
Drive back to Sharm el Sheikh & drop off to your hotel
At the end of the tour we will drive back to Sharm el Sheikh, the desert landscape & forms of mountains on the way to to Sharm el Sheikh are amazing and deserve to be seen.
The program includes:
- Pick up & drop off to your hotel
- entrance fees of Saint Catherine protected area
- lunch in a hotel in the city
- soft drinks in the bus
- professional English speaking tour guide
The program excludes:
- Tipping
- any extra activities which are not in the program
What to take with you?
- Passport
- breakfast box form your hotel (it is free of charge in all hotels)
- What to dress?
- Comfortable dress & shoes
- shoulders and knees are required to be covered.
Availability
- Sunday and Thursday
Pickup & Return
- pick up : 6:45 am
- Return: 06:00 pm
Trip Price:
- Adult: (30 GBP).
- Child: (15 GBP).
*Child is till 12 years old.
