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Hike Mount Sinai by night with a Bedouin guide and reach the summit in time for sunrise, then visit St. Catherine's Monastery. Most tours include hotel pickup from Sharm El Sheikh, with options starting at $27.
Free Cancellation 16-hour overnight bus tour from Sharm El Sheikh: climb Mount Sinai for sunrise, then visit St Catherine's Monastery.
Free Cancellation Late-night coach ride from Sharm El Sheikh, guided climb of Mount Sinai for sunrise, then a 2-hour stop at St. Catherine's Monastery.
Free Cancellation Night climb of Mount Sinai with a Bedouin guide, then a 30-minute visit to St Catherine's Monastery.
Free Cancellation Night hike up Mount Sinai for sunrise, then a 2-hour visit to St Catherine's Monastery, with hotel pickup in Sharm El Sheikh.
Free Cancellation Two-day guided trip from Sharm El Sheikh: overnight Mount Sinai hike for sunrise, then a tour of St. Catherine's Monastery.
Free Cancellation Night hike up Mount Sinai for sunrise, St Catherine's Monastery, then Dahab, with 8:15 PM pickup in Sharm El Sheikh. Full loop in 24 hours.
Free Cancellation Overnight Mount Sinai sunrise hike with Bedouin guide, then St Catherine's Monastery, from Sharm El Sheikh, 8h.
Free Cancellation Overnight hike up Mount Sinai for sunrise, then a guided visit to St Catherine's Monastery, from Sharm El Sheikh.
Free Cancellation Overnight-style excursion from Sharm El Sheikh: sunrise hike up Mount Sinai, St Catherine's Monastery, and a Dahab city stop.
Free Cancellation Overnight coach tour from Sharm El-Sheikh with a 2 AM Bedouin-guided hike up Mount Sinai and a monastery visit.
Read what travelers share about their experience visiting Mount Sinai — from practical tips to personal highlights.
You climb Mount Sinai at night, by headlamp, behind a Bedouin guide from the Jabaliya tribe. Tours from Sharm el-Sheikh pick up around 8 PM, drive three hours inland, and start walking between 1 and 2 AM so you're standing at 2,285 m when dawn breaks near 6 AM over the granite ridges of the Sinai. After the descent, nearly every tour calls at Saint Catherine's Monastery before the drive back.
The summit holds a small chapel and a 12th-century mosque, and pilgrims have climbed here for some 1,700 years. At first light Mount Catherine (2,629 m, Egypt's highest peak) and the whole massif turn gold. Plan on 30-60 minutes at the top — it's cold, and that's part of it.
The Camel Path is unlit, so you walk its switchbacks under stars with no light pollution anywhere near. Walking keeps you warm; the cold bites the moment you stop. Bring your own headlamp — tours like the holy mount sinai climb hand out flashlights, but don't count on it.
Camels stop at Elijah's Basin, a sandy hollow where you rest before the steep stone stairway clamped between granite walls. You pass the Gate of Stephen and the Gate of the Law, two old arches on the Path of Moses, then pop out onto the open summit plateau. This stretch takes 30-45 minutes on foot.
Built by Emperor Justinian I between 548 and 565 CE, this fortress monastery has run continuously for over 1,400 years. Shoes come off at the basilica and the Burning Bush enclosure. Most tours give you around 30 minutes here — enough for the courtyard and basilica, not the manuscript collection of 3,500 texts.
Warm-lit huts line the route, run by the Jabaliya tribe who have guarded the mountain for centuries. They sell mint tea, coffee, chocolate and instant noodles, and rent blankets for the cold summit wait. Bring small Egyptian notes — mountain prices run high and it's cash only.
A camel can carry you or your bag up the long lower stretch of the Camel Path for about EGP 250 (some operators quote €20 each way). That still leaves the final 750 steps on your own two feet. Cash only, and agree the price before you mount up.
Every Mount Sinai tour is guided — the Bedouin guide isn't an upsell, it's the law. Beyond that, the differences between tours come down to price, what's bundled, and how much of the 14-16 hour day you spend on a minibus.
There is no self-guided or audio option: unguided hiking is prohibited and a licensed Jabaliya guide is assigned at the visitor centre. Group minibus tours from Sharm el-Sheikh run €24-78 ($27-78) per person with hotel pickup, and depart several days a week (some operators run Sun/Mon/Wed/Fri). Private tours cost more but let you set your own pace — worth it for families with kids or slower hikers.
Book 2-4 weeks ahead in peak months (March-May and October-November). Sharm-based excursions run 14-16 hours total, from an 8:00-8:30 PM pickup to roughly 8 AM return, so you'll want a hotel night before you fly anywhere the next day.
Check the fine print: the $27 sunrise hike from Sharm excludes St. Catherine National Park fees, while the $78 climb-and-monastery tour bundles them in. Monastery entry is reported free by most recent visitors, though some tours collect about €10 per person and a 2026 Egyptian fee list prices it at EGP 200 (US$4). Budget up to €10 to be safe.
The monastery opens Monday-Thursday and Saturday only, 9:00 AM to about noon, and closes on Fridays, Sundays and Greek Orthodox feast days. Pick a tour date that matches — a Saturday-night climb walks you down by 8-9 AM, straight to the gate. It can also shut at short notice amid the ongoing land dispute, so treat it as a bonus.
Sunrise is the classic — start walking 1-2 AM, summit 4-5 AM, dawn near 6 AM. Sunset climbs exist and skip the 2 AM wake-up, but you miss the night-sky walk and arrive at a shut monastery. Go sunrise unless you genuinely can't.
Standard operators list the excursion as not wheelchair accessible, and the final 750 steps must be climbed on foot. Fit seniors regularly manage the Camel Path (2.5-3 hours at a relaxed pace), and a camel covers everything but the last steps. Kids around 8-10 can handle the night climb; under that, book private and go daytime.
Most operators require at least moderate fitness for an 11.5 km round trip with 700 m of elevation gain. Several tours flag against pregnancy, spinal injuries and poor cardiovascular health. Over 65? Get a doctor's sign-off first — people in their 70s and 80s have done it.
Every operator listed here runs the same policy: full refund if you cancel at least 24 hours before departure. That's generous given the weather dependency, but note tours operate in all conditions — rain on the steps is your problem, not theirs.
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| Budget group sunrise hike | Classic climb & monastery | Climb with Dahab breakfast | 48-hour overnight pair | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price from | $27 per person | $78 per person | $38.47 per person | $41.78 per person |
| Duration | 17 hours from Sharm el-Sheikh | 16 hours from Sharm el-Sheikh | 24 hours, 8:15 PM pickup | 48 hours |
| Best for | First-timers and tight budgets — the highest-rated option on the page | Travelers who want every fee bundled and an Egyptologist guide on board | Those who want a hot meal after the descent before the drive back | Anyone who'd rather sleep in Saint Catherine than drive straight back — five languages offered |
| Includes | Bedouin guide to the summit, hotel pickup/drop-off, air-conditioning, bottled water. National park fee excluded. | Transport, hotel pickup, St. Catherine National Park fees, Bedouin climb guide and Egyptologist guide. Gratuities excluded. | Hotel pickup, air-conditioned vehicle, water and soft drinks, breakfast in Dahab. Monastery visit included but brief. | Air-conditioned transfers, water, Egyptologist guide, Bedouin trekking guide, and a full guided monastery visit the next morning. |
| Rating | 4.8 (59 reviews) | 3.9 (76 reviews) | 3.3 (3 reviews) | 4.5 (4 reviews) |
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The mountain itself is open around the clock for guided climbs. Standard sunrise ascents start hiking between 1:00 and 2:00 AM to reach the summit by 4-5 AM, with sunrise around 6:00 AM. Sunset climbs are also offered.
Saint Catherine's Monastery keeps short hours: Monday-Thursday and Saturday, roughly 9:00 AM to 12:00 noon (some sources say 9:00-11:30 AM). It closes on Fridays, Sundays and major Greek Orthodox feast days, and can shut at short notice — check before you travel.
Excursions from Sharm el-Sheikh typically run from 8:00-8:30 PM pickup to around 8:00 AM return, a 14-16 hour door-to-door day. From Dahab, minibuses leave around 11 PM. Budget 3-4 hours for the round-trip hike itself, plus 30-60 minutes on the summit.
From Sharm el-Sheikh (230 km, ~3h drive): the most popular option. Tour minibuses pick up at your hotel from 8:00-8:30 PM and bundle transport, Bedouin guide and monastery visit from €24 per person.
From Dahab (130 km, ~2h drive): the shortest transfer. Shared taxis run €15-20 per person, tours €35-60, with minibuses typically leaving around 11 PM.
From Cairo (440 km): East Delta/Go Bus services from Cairo Gateway (Turgoman) and Abbasseya stations take 7-9 hours (Cairo-Sharm 480 EGP, Cairo-Dahab 570 EGP), and overnight timings can line up with a night climb. Flying to Sharm El Sheikh International (SSH) cuts it to about 4-5 hours total.
Self-driving: free parking with 24-hour security at the visitor centre. Expect multiple military checkpoints en route — one visitor counted twelve — and keep your physical passport accessible at all of them.
March-May and October-November are the sweet spots: daytime temperatures of roughly 22-35°C falling to 10-20°C at night, minimal rainfall and clear skies for sunrise.
December-February also works — crisp days of 15-25°C and the year's clearest skies — but summit temperatures sit at 0-5°C on night climbs, with occasional snow on the high peaks. Manageable with proper layers. Miserable without.
Skip June-August if you can: 37-45°C at the base with essentially zero rainfall, forcing 10 PM starts and making monastery visits uncomfortable.
The summit trails are not wheelchair accessible — both routes are steep stone paths, and the final 750 steps must be climbed on foot. Standard tour operators list the excursion as not wheelchair accessible.
At the monastery, the car park lies more than a quarter mile from the church along an uneven, centuries-old cobbled road. Security staff will permit wheelchair-accessible vehicles to drive directly alongside the monastery if the situation is explained to them.
Seniors: fit older hikers regularly complete the climb via the gentle, well-graded Camel Path (2.5-3 hours at a relaxed pace). A camel covers most of the way to Elijah's Hollow, leaving only the final 750 steps. Travellers 65+ should consult a doctor and consider a private tour to set their own pace.
Children: kids around 8-10 can manage the night climb; as young as 6 for daytime ascents with frequent breaks. Families with young children should book private tours to avoid the crowded group departures.
Bedouin tea huts line the route, serving mint tea, coffee, chocolate and instant noodles at mountain prices, with blankets for rent on cold nights. Camels are available along the Camel Path as far as Elijah's Basin for about EGP 250 (some operators quote €20 each way) — cash only.
At the visitor centre, guides are assigned and verified, and backpacks are inspected at the trailhead checkpoint. Free parking with 24-hour security is available for self-drivers.
A locally licensed Bedouin guide from the Jabaliya tribe is compulsory — guides are checked at the visitor centre and unguided hiking is not permitted. Carry your physical passport on the hike; it's checked at multiple military checkpoints on the road and at the trailhead, and a photo copy will not do.
Dress code at the monastery: shoulders and knees covered for everyone, long trousers or a below-knee skirt and sleeved tops. Shoes come off before entering the basilica and at the Burning Bush. Guards enforce the rules and can refuse entry.
Photography: no photos or video inside the basilica or the Icon Gallery; the courtyard is generally fine but ask the attending monk first. Never photograph monks or worshippers without permission. Stay discreet on the summit during sunrise prayers.
Yes — a locally licensed Bedouin guide from the Jabaliya tribe is compulsory, and guides are verified at the visitor centre before you start. Unguided hiking is not permitted. On organized tours the Bedouin guide is included, along with a separate tour escort; if you show up independently, the guide costs around EGP 800 (about US$16) as a flat fee per group.
Tours from Sharm el-Sheikh start at about $27 (€24) for a group sunrise hike with hotel pickup and Bedouin guide, and run up to $78 for versions that bundle St. Catherine National Park fees and an Egyptologist guide. Watch the exclusions on cheaper options — several list national park fees separately. Camel rides, food and gratuities are extra on nearly everything.
Sunrise tours from Sharm el-Sheikh pick up between 7:30 and 8:30 PM, drive about three hours inland, and start the climb around 2 AM so you reach the 2,285 m summit by 4-5 AM for sunrise near 6 AM. From Dahab, minibuses leave around 11 PM. Most operators confirm your exact pickup time via WhatsApp the day before.
It varies by operator. The $78 climb-and-monastery tour includes St. Catherine National Park fees, while the $27 sunrise hike excludes them. Monastery entry is reported free by most recent visitors, though some tours collect about €10 per person and a 2026 Egyptian fee list prices admission at EGP 200 (US$4) — carry up to €10 per person to be safe.
Mount Sinai (Jabal Musa) is in Egypt, in the south-central Sinai Peninsula about 3 km from Saint Catherine town. It has been the traditional site since the 4th century CE. A minority theory places the biblical mountain at Jabal al-Lawz in Saudi Arabia, but mainstream scholars and all major Christian traditions accept the Egyptian location.
Yes, for this trip. The free 15-day entry stamp at Sharm el-Sheikh airport covers only Sharm, Dahab, Nuweiba and Taba — Saint Catherine lies outside that zone. You need a full Egyptian visa: US$30 in cash on arrival, or the digital system at US$36 in Cairo from 1 August 2026. Buy it at the kiosk before immigration or you may be turned back at checkpoints.
In December-February the summit sits at 0-5°C on night climbs, even when the base is a pleasant 15-20°C by day, and wind makes it worse the moment you stop moving. Summer nights are milder at roughly 20-25°C. Pack layers, hat and gloves year-round, and rent a blanket from the Bedouin vendors at the summit if you underpacked.
Partly. Camels carry riders (or your bag) along the Camel Path as far as Elijah's Basin for about EGP 250, with some operators quoting €20 each way — cash only. The final 750 stone steps to the summit must be climbed on foot, which takes roughly 30-45 minutes.
The ascent runs 1.5-3 hours — the gentle Camel Path takes 2.5-3 hours, the steep 3,750-step Steps of Repentance about 2 hours for the fit. The round trip covers 11.5 km with 700 m of elevation gain in about 3-4 hours, plus 30-60 minutes on the summit for sunrise. Add the monastery visit afterwards and you're looking at a 14-16 hour excursion from Sharm.
Southern Sinai sites including Saint Catherine and Mount Sinai sit outside the do-not-travel zone covering North Sinai, and the US State Department confirms its embassy staff are cleared to visit the mountain and monastery. Expect routine military checkpoints — one visitor counted twelve — with mandatory passport checks. Travel with a licensed tour rather than independently.
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This is a 16-hour bus trip built around a night climb. Pickup from your Sharm El Sheikh hotel happens in the late evening, and you're transferred to Mount Sinai to start the ascent at 02:00 am. The climb takes about three hours to reach the 2,285 m summit, with a guide, timed for sunrise from one of Egypt's highest points. There are two routes up: a long path or the 700 steps that finish the climb. After descending, your guide meets you at the monastery gate for a visit to St Catherine's. Stops include the Transfiguration Church, the Burning Bush, and the Well of Moses. Guides work in English or Russian. Round-trip hotel or port transport, the St. Catherine National Park fees, the climbing guide, and a qualified Egyptologist guide are all included. Gratuities are not. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Russian, English
The day starts late: a coach picks you up from your Sharm El Sheikh hotel in the evening and drives you out to Mount Sinai for a nighttime climb with a Bedouin guide. The ascent runs roughly 750 steps to the 2,285-meter summit, timed so you're at the top for sunrise. After coming down, you get two hours at St. Catherine's Monastery, including the Holy Valley, before the drive back — you're at your hotel around 1:00 PM. Pickup and drop-off are included from any hotel or location in Sharm El Sheikh; send your hotel name and you'll get the exact pickup time. The coach is air-conditioned, and each person gets a bottle of water. Guides work in Arabic, English, Russian, and Italian. The entrance fee to St. Catherine National Park is not included in the price, so bring cash for that. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Arabic, Russian, English, Italian
Roughly eight hours of round-trip transfer get you to the foot of the mountain, with a 30-minute rest stop in Dahab on the way. A Bedouin guide accompanies you on the climb itself, which runs at night — flashlights for the night lighting are included. Wear comfortable shoes. After descending, the group visits St Catherine's Monastery for 30 minutes, with a stop to buy icons nearby. Air-conditioned vehicle and a guide for the whole trip are included; guides speak Russian, English, or Italian. Wait for the guide in front of your hotel's main gate. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Russian, English, Italian
This tour runs overnight from Sharm El Sheikh. An air-conditioned minibus picks you up at your hotel around 8:30 pm for the roughly 3-hour drive to St Catherine's National Park. You then hike Mount Sinai in the dark — about 6 hours on the mountain in total — to reach the summit for sunrise over the Eastern Desert. If you'd rather not walk the whole way, a camel ride up is available as an option. After the descent, the minibus takes you to St Catherine's Monastery for a 2-hour visit covering the church, mosque, frescoes, icons, manuscripts and the burning bush, then back to your hotel in Sharm (about 3 hours). A Bedouin guide leads the hike and a certified guide covers the monastery, in Arabic, English or Italian. Included are hotel transfers both ways, park and monastery entrance fees, all taxes, a bottle of water and a soft drink. Pickup details are sent by WhatsApp the day before the tour. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Arabic, English, Italian
This 48-hour tour pairs an overnight hike up Mount Sinai with a guided visit to St. Catherine's Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage site, the next morning. You climb through the night with a Bedouin trekking guide and reach the summit in time for sunrise, then descend and continue to the monastery with an Egyptologist guide. Pickup is from any hotel in Sharm El Sheikh — your guide meets you at reception holding a sign. Transport is by air-conditioned vehicle, and bottled water and snacks are provided on the hike, with optional Bedouin scarves. Guides work in English, German, Italian, French, or Spanish. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
German, English, Italian, French, Spanish
Pickup is at 8:15 PM from your hotel in Sharm El Sheikh, and the whole thing runs about 24 hours. It's an overnight schedule: roughly four hours in an air-conditioned vehicle to Mount Sinai, then the climb in the dark so you're at the summit for sunrise. After descending you visit St Catherine's Monastery, where you can look through the manuscript collection, before a city tour of Dahab. Included are hotel pickup and drop-off, all transfers, water and soft drinks on the vehicle, and breakfast in Dahab. Note the meal stop is breakfast, not lunch, despite the tour title — bring cash for anything else you want to eat. Guides run the tour in German, English, Italian, French, or Spanish. Cancellation is standard: full refund if you cancel at least 24 hours before departure. Expect cold temperatures at the summit before dawn, even after a warm evening in Sharm — pack a layer.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
German, English, Italian, French, Spanish
This 8-hour tour starts with a late-evening pickup from your hotel in Sharm El Sheikh, followed by an air-conditioned drive to Mount Sinai. The hike itself takes about 360 minutes: you climb overnight with a Bedouin guide and reach the summit in time for sunrise over the Sinai mountains. After descending, you spend around 120 minutes at St Catherine's Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the oldest functioning Christian monastery in the world, viewing its icons and grounds. Pickup is available from any hotel in Sharm El Sheikh; your guide waits outside reception holding a Viator sign. The price covers the Bedouin hiking guide, a licensed Egyptologist guide, hotel pickup and drop-off, and transport. Guides speak Russian, English, or Italian. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Russian, English, Italian
Hotel pickup starts around 7:30 PM in Sharm El Sheikh, followed by a drive through the Sinai desert to the base of Mount Sinai. The climb begins in the predawn hours, with a Bedouin guide leading the way up to the 2,285-meter summit in time for sunrise. At the top you can see the chapel and mosque before heading back down. The whole tour runs about 16 hours. After the descent, the tour continues to the 6th-century St Catherine's Monastery, built at the site where Moses is believed to have seen the Burning Bush. A qualified guide accompanies the monastery visit. Guides run the tour in Russian, English, or Italian, and there's an option to ride a camel for part of the mountain climb. Included are round-trip hotel transfers by air-conditioned vehicle, both guides, and the Mount Sinai and St Catherine's Monastery stops. National park fees are not included — budget for those separately. The operator contacts you by WhatsApp the day before the tour to confirm your room number and exact pickup time, so wait in the lobby or outside the main entrance at the confirmed time. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Russian, English, Italian
This tour leaves from your hotel in Sharm El Sheikh and drives inland through the night in an air-conditioned vehicle so you reach the Mount Sinai trailhead before dawn. You hike to the summit in the dark and watch sunrise from the top. After the descent, the group visits St Catherine's Monastery, where you can look through the manuscript collections. From there the route continues to Dahab for a city tour, with lunch included if you pick that option. The listing shows a 14-hour duration, though the operator's own inclusions state 16–17 hours — plan for the longer figure and expect a late return. Hotel pickup and drop-off anywhere in Sharm El Sheikh are covered, along with water and soft drinks on the vehicle. Guides work in English, German, Italian, French, or Spanish. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
German, English, Italian, French, Spanish
This is a roughly 20-hour trip from Sharm El-Sheikh, running on Sundays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, with a group capped at 30 people. Pickup is from your hotel's main gate in the late night, followed by about three hours of driving to the Mount Sinai and St. Catherine's area. The ascent starts around 2:00 AM, and a Bedouin guide leads the 2-3 hour climb up the mountain path in the cool night air so you're at the top for sunrise. After descending, you get about two hours at St. Catherine's Monastery with a guide, including the Church of the Transfiguration and the Chapel of the Burning Bush. The return drive to Sharm El-Sheikh takes another three hours, with arrival back at your hotel in the afternoon. Included are hotel pickup and drop-off, an air-conditioned vehicle, the Bedouin guide for the climb, and the St. Catherine's Monastery entry. The tour is guided in English. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English