It was last June when the Iranian-Israeli war broke out that we were just back from our dreamy trip to Taba on Egypt’s Red Sea.
It was a moment of shock and contemplation, and the first thing that jumped to my mind was the future of tourism in this coastal region. Would the conflict between Iran and Israel affect tourism in Taba? It soon turned out that the war, albeit causing turmoil in the tourist sector in general, ironically revived tourism in Taba and its sister the coastal city of Nuweiba, probably due to their strategic location overlooking the Gulf of Aqaba.
Unofficial figures suggest that there was a 300 per cent surge in the number of tourists and hotel occupancy rates during that time, often due to Israelis fleeing the Iranian strikes.
Such figures aside, there is almost a consensus that Taba is a tourist masterpiece that deserves to be put on the list of the world’s best travel destinations and on Egypt’s national development plans.
At least that is how I felt during my visit to this originally coastal village overlooking the azure waters of the Red Sea.
The minute our party arrived at this history-tinged destination, we were treated to the sight of sky-piercing mountains behind cotton-white sandy beaches washed by the gentle waves of the Red Sea. We were overwhelmed by the exceptional beauty of the place, and the natural colours of the sky were particularly breathtaking.
The sun’s rays reflected beautifully on the crystal-clear waters of the sea, revealing a hidden treasure, with a range of colourful marine life and coral reefs adding other marvels to an already coastal gem.
Taba is accessible by car, bus, or plane, as it now has an airport receiving international flights. For those seeking tranquility and calm, away from the hustle and bustle of other more popular resorts, Taba is a perfect destination. Its clean and safe location is only matched by its elegance. Its paved streets are lined by small hotels in uniform colours of orange, yellow, white and blue, all in perfect harmony with the natural colours of the mountains, sea, and sand.
Tranquility is a main feature of the place, which is also characterised by underwater activities like snorkeling and diving. One of the most wonderful excursions to experience snorkelling at is Pharaoh’s Island, which lies at a short distance from the coast and is famous for its white sand and clear turquoise waters.
The island is an excellent venue for practising water sports and exploring sea caves, and a haven for those opting for a relaxed atmosphere where they can enjoy the scenery and take photographs.
NATURAL WONDERS: One of the characteristic destinations that I found really inviting was the fort of the mediaeval Egyptian Sultan Salaheddin Al-Ayoubi (Saladin), which is located about 8 km south of Taba.
This was built in the 12th century with the aim of securing the Gulf of Aqaba from the invasions of the European Crusaders as well as to control local trade routes and pilgrims. It boasts a unique strategic location that allows a wide view of four countries to be had from it, namely Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Palestine, and it reveals the skill of the military engineering of Egyptian rule at the time.
It is accessible by boat and receives visitors from 9am to 5pm.
Taba also boasts a diversity of other tourist attractions, including water sports, safari trips, camel riding, mountain climbing, and historical landmarks that combine heritage with history.
We decided to venture into one of the world’s acclaimed natural reserves — the Abu Galoum Reserve, which extends across the Gulf of Aqaba on the road to Taba in Wadi Al-Rasasa. This receives hundreds of tourists daily owing to its breathtaking natural environment and appealing views of sandy beaches surrounded by high mountains.
The reserve is known for its diverse ecosystem, lagoons, and granite mountains and is a natural masterpiece that was declared a protected area by Prime Ministerial Decree 1511/1992 as amended by Decree 33/1996. It is named after one of the rare plant species found in the reserve. Called Al-Galoum, it was traditionally used by local Bedouins for healing wounds and is one of 170 rare plant species found in the region, 50 of which are found only in the reserve.
Taba enjoys an important strategic location at the northern end of the Gulf of Aqaba in the Sinai Peninsula at the point of convergence of Egypt’s borders with Jordan, Israel, and Saudi Arabia. It is also located near other tourist attractions like Nuweiba and Dahab and is about 240 km from Sharm El-Sheikh, meaning that tourists can enjoy a tour of these cities too during their visit to Taba.
The natural wonders of Taba have lent the city a special allure and helped tourism pick up in the coastal city after years of recession, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic some years ago that saw tourism almost limited to Israeli vacationers.
Tourism in Taba peaked last summer, and hotel occupancy rates were revived, as reported by hotel managers, with Egyptians making up 80 per cent of the vacationers, who also included Arab and foreign tourists.
One hotel manager speaking to Al-Ahram Weekly said that “the recent Iran-Israel war resulted in a 300 per cent rise in the occupancy rates in Taba hotels.”
“Even after the truce, Arab and Egyptian tourists continued to flow into the area,” he said. “Taba, originally a perfect winter destination because of its warm weather, has developed into a tourist hub in summer as well because it offers a serene atmosphere at economic prices.”
“Many European tourists fled Israel during the Iranian missile strikes om Tel Aviv, and they crossed to Europe via Taba. This caused a significant boom in the city, which has suffered a recession since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, when there was a sharp decline in the number of vacationers visiting the area,” he said.
Official statistics issued by the South Sinai governorate in July confirmed the increase in the number of tourists heading to Taba, Nuweiba, and Dahab. They indicated that there had been a 15 per cent rise in the number of tourists in 2024, compared to 2023, and that the total number of tourists in the first six months of 2025 had risen by 83 per cent, compared to the same period of 2023.
The report indicated that most tourists came from Russia, Italy, Britain, Germany, Ukraine, and the Gulf countries.
Since the end of the Israeli occupation of this area of Sinai in 1989, Taba has been known as a popular hub for Israeli tourists, probably due to its spectacular beauty and its proximity to the border between Egypt and Israel. Israeli tourists flock to Taba throughout the year, and sometimes they come for day trips as they can apply for non-visa entry for 14 days into the Sinai Peninsula. They pay a border crossing fee of 113 shekels, which is updated annually.
Tourism went into recession during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, when Israel closed the Taba border crossing with Egypt, dealing a serious blow to tourism in the two countries. This resulted in the closure of some hotels and saw heavy losses for the tourism sector, since tourism in Taba at that time depended on Israeli tourists.
On 19 August 2020, the Taba International Airport saw the arrival of the first flight to the city since the beginning of the pandemic, with this carrying about 138 Egyptian tourists. The trip was organised by African Queen Travel in cooperation with EgyptAir, and the aim was to revive domestic tourism in Taba and give domestic tourists an opportunity to explore the beauty of the Red Sea gem.
“Tourism in Taba picked up strongly after the arrival of Egyptians on successive tourist trips with the aim of reviving tourism in the area,” Nader, a worker in the tourism sector in South Sinai, told the Weekly.
“This helped attract tourists from foreign countries too and revived the spirit of the city, all thanks to the efforts of local tourist companies and the Egyptian government. Since then, Taba has become a destination for local and Arab tourists, who have fallen in love with its charm.”
NEW DEVELOPMENTS: But Taba still needs more attention on the part of the government since it lacks some services and facilities that would make it even more attractive to tourists.
Transportation is a big issue in Taba. It has no public transportation, and applications such as Uber and In-Driver do not work there. Visitors are thus not able to move outside their hotels unless they have their own cars or use expensive car-rental companies. Providing public transportation and allowing driving applications would thus help visitors enjoy their stay at an affordable rate, just as is the case in the neighbouring city of Dahab where public transportation is readily available at low prices.
There are also few popular restaurants in Taba, aside from those inside the resorts and hotels, while pharmacies are rare or do not exist, with the closest one being in the city of Nuweiba.
However, the recent tourist boom in Taba seems to have placed the coastal city in the government’s sights, and plans have been announced to upgrade the coastal gem and provide it with all the necessary services that already exist in the sister Red Sea resorts of Dahab and Sharm El-Sheikh.
Governor of South Sinai Khaled Mubarak recently reviewed the comprehensive development strategy for the governorate during a meeting with a delegation of MPs. He said that the governorate faces challenges due to its location near the border and that a strategy should be underway soon to achieve sustainability and development.
The governor said that a major development project was approved by President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi in 2021 that aims to transform the region into a global tourist attraction for religious, environmental, heritage, and historical tourism.
“It is our duty to enhance the international classification of the region by implementing a complete strategy,” Mubarak told the local press recently. “The governorate aims to make South Sinai an international model and a capital of sustainable development.”
He further explained that tourism is one of the most important elements of development in the governorate and that the recent rise in the number of tourists is encouraging investment in the area to provide more facilities and services.
Progress has already started to materialise with the opening of the Al-Fayrouz Medical Complex in Sinai at a cost of LE1.4 billion and the launch of a new connection to the electricity network at a cost of LE815 million. The development of schools is also underway, and a LE850 million investment plan to upgrade South Sinai is well advanced.
Figures and plans aside, as the long hot days of swimming, snorkelling, and diving in Taba come to an end, visitors can enter another haven with a different kind of charm. Enjoying the orange sunset as it reflects on the calm sea and steep mountains marks the beginning of another soul-enriching journey under the star-lit sky.
Meditating on the horizon during desert safaris, relishing barbecues tinged with Bedouin music in the nearby desert, and sipping special Bedouin tea all added a different flavour to the trip.
My short trip to Taba did not end there, as it extended to Nuweiba and Dahab, a must-sea location about 130 km away from Taba. My destination was the Blue Hole, where vacationers can enjoy a unique snorkelling and diving experience and watch coral reefs.
The Blue Hole is a world-famous diving site located north of Dahab, to which divers from all over the world come to experience a unique diving experience into a deep-sea crater formed in the Ice Age. It is considered one of the most challenging diving sites in the world due to its depth of up to 130 m and its labyrinth-like tunnel.
A memorial has been erected by divers to commemorate the names of those who have lost their lives in the Blue Hole, which demands a high level of professional expertise before it should be attempted. Watching visitors taking photographs there, we decided to go back to Taba to enjoy our last day of swimming in the Red Sea and the serene atmosphere at our hotel.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 2 October, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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