Jordan to Egypt: The Sinai Peninsula & the Red Sea — Self-Launched

Fly or bus into Amman (Queen Alia Airport), then take an airport taxi (~12 JOD / £13, or the shared airport bus to Amman's Tabarbour station ~3.5 JOD then a local minibus to Madaba ~1 JOD). Check into a small Madaba guesthouse. Spend the afternoon in St George's Church to see the 6th-century Madaba Map — the oldest surviving map of the Holy Land — then walk the mosaic trail to the Archaeological Park. Dinner at a cheap local falafel/hummus spot on King Talal Street; alcohol is scarce and pricier in Madaba.

🚌Airport taxi or shared bus + local minibus (~£13)

🛏Madaba guesthouse or budget hotel, private or twin room (~£16)

• →St George's Church & Madaba Map
• →Madaba Archaeological Park mosaic trail
• →Evening wander of King Talal Street

Head south early: shared minibus or service taxi from Madaba/Amman to Aqaba (~8–10 JOD, 4–5 hrs, use the JETT bus if you prefer comfort at ~12 JOD). From Aqaba, arrange a Bedouin-run 4x4 transfer into the Wadi Araba desert — book directly through a small local camp or via your Aqaba hostel the day before (~35–45 JOD for a half-day vehicle, shared between 3–4 people). Bump through the dunes, stop for sweet tea with Bedouin hosts, hike to a desert pool for a float, and watch the sun drop from a ridge before sleeping at a simple Bedouin camp under the Milky Way.

🚌Minibus/coach Madaba–Aqaba (~£10) + shared 4x4 into Wadi Araba (~£9)

🛏Bedouin desert camp, shared bathroom (~£14 including dinner and breakfast)

• →Shared 4x4 desert drive
• →Bedouin tea stop and desert pool hike
• →Sunset from the wadi ridge
• →Desert camp overnight with dinner

Transfer back to Aqaba port for the morning ferry/hydrofoil across the Gulf of Aqaba to Nuweiba (~2 hrs; AB Maritime or the fast ferry, roughly $60–80 / £48–64 — book a day or two ahead, and note schedules shift constantly so build in slack). Clear Egyptian immigration at Nuweiba (visa on arrival if not pre-arranged, USD 25–36), then take a shared minibus or taxi down the coast to Dahab (~1 hr, 150–200 EGP / £2–3 shared). Settle into a beachfront guesthouse in Assalah, swim, and eat fresh fish and mezze at a seafront table for under £8.

🚌Aqaba–Nuweiba ferry (~£56) + shared minibus to Dahab (~£3)

🛏Dahab beachfront guesthouse/hostel, twin or double (~£13)

• →Gulf of Aqaba ferry crossing
• →Settle into Assalah beach strip
• →Red Sea sunset swim

Make it a slow day. Options: laze on the Lighthouse or Eel Garden reef edge with a snorkel and mask rented locally (~£4/day); take a local bus or shared taxi to the Ain Khudra palm oasis for a half-day Bedouin-culture wander (~£8 return with a guide at the oasis ~£5); or rent a windsurf board and lesson in Dahab's famously steady wind (~£25 for a taster session). Dinner at one of the cheap Egyptian-run grills away from the seafront — koshari or grilled chicken for £3–5.

🚌Local bus/shared taxi to Ain Khudra (~£8); otherwise on foot

🛏Dahab beachfront guesthouse/hostel (~£13)

• →Optional Ain Khudra palm oasis trip
• →Snorkel gear hire on the reef edge
• →Optional windsurf taster lesson

Book a Blue Hole snorkelling day directly with a local Dahab dive centre or Bedouin boat operator (roughly £22–30 including transport, boat, gear and lunch — far less than the operator's $105 add-on). The Blue Hole's reef wall starts metres offshore with minimal current, then cruise on to the Abu Galoum Nature Reserve for pristine coral and a beach lunch. Alternatively, do the classic walk-and-snorkel route along the coast. Back in Dahab, catch the sunset from the rocks and grab a cheap seafood dinner.

🚌Local pickup truck/boat transfer to Blue Hole & Abu Galoum (~£6 included in activity price)

🛏Dahab beachfront guesthouse/hostel (~£13)

• →Blue Hole snorkelling with local dive centre
• →Abu Galoum Nature Reserve boat trip and beach lunch
• →Sunset on the Dahab rocks

Say goodbye to the sea. Take a shared minibus or service taxi from Dahab to Saint Catherine (~2 hrs, roughly 300–400 EGP / £4–6 shared, more if you split a private taxi at ~£25 for the vehicle with 3–4 people). Visit Saint Catherine's Monastery — the world's oldest continuously inhabited Christian monastery, built around the Burning Bush and home to the Codex Sinaiticus legacy and a walled herb garden. Chat with Bedouin women selling handicrafts outside the walls. Book a simple monastery-area guesthouse for the night and go to bed early for the 2am start.

🚌Shared minibus or split taxi Dahab–Saint Catherine (~£6)

🛏Saint Catherine guesthouse or Bedouin camp near the monastery (~£14)

• →Saint Catherine's Monastery entry and herb garden
• →Bedouin handicrafts market outside the walls
• →Sunset viewpoint walk near the village

Wake around 1:30–2am and start the hike to the summit of Mount Sinai (2,285m) — either the 3,750-step 'Steps of Repentance' or the longer camel path; guide not strictly required but a local Bedouin guide costs ~£12 and adds a lot (torch and warm layers essential, it's freezing at the top). Catch sunrise over the Sinai range, descend, refuel with breakfast, then take a shared van or bus to Cairo via the Ahmed Hamza tunnel under the Suez Canal or the ferry crossing (~6–7 hrs, roughly £10–14 by bus, or a split taxi ~£30 each between 4). Arrive Cairo in the afternoon, check into a downtown hostel near Talaat Harb, and head out for a cheap, loud night of koshari and ahwa coffee.

🚌Shared van/bus Saint Catherine–Cairo (~£12)

🛏Cairo downtown hostel, dorm or private room (~£12)

• →Mount Sinai sunrise hike (optional Bedouin guide)
• →Suez Canal crossing
• →Downtown Cairo evening food crawl

Depart at any time. If your flight is later, squeeze in a dawn walk through Islamic Cairo or the Khan el-Khalili bazaar and an Egyptian breakfast of ful and ta'ameya for under £2. Take the metro to the airport-adjacent station plus a short taxi, or a flat-rate airport taxi (~£5).

🚌Metro + taxi to Cairo Airport (~£5)

🛏—

• →Optional Islamic Cairo or Khan el-Khalili wander