United kingdom Daily news: Sharm el Sheikh holidays: Now is the time to grab a bargain break on Egypt's dazzling Red Sea

Sharm el Sheikh holidays: Now is the time to grab a bargain break on Egypt's dazzling Red Sea

By Mark Hughes-morgan

PUBLISHED: 09:03 EST, 30 May 2012 | UPDATED: 09:39 EST, 30 May 2012

From the balcony of my hotel room, I can see the Red Sea shimmering invitingly between tall palms.

It is more than 30 degrees outside, and both the sea and the large, elaborate central pool at the Grand Rotana seem particularly alluring.

With its multiple restaurants, private stretch of coast, and amphitheatre entertainments, this five-star resort has pretty much everything you would expect in abundance.

Red Sea recharge: With guaranteed sunshine and tailor-made resorts, Sharm el Sheikh has much to offer

There is just one thing lacking: people. They are here, just a lot fewer than you might expect. Because this is Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, and one of the other things it has in abundance is issues.

The Arab Spring may be potentially good for democracy, but it is a downer for tourism. Egypt, afterÂ the first round of its first ever open elections, is on tenterhooks, and the image of chaos andÂ uncertainty has travelled.

Add the kidnap in February of two U.S. tourists by disgruntled bedouin (it was a local dispute lastingÂ a few hours before they were freed) and the short series of shark attacks in 2010 â€" and you have a tourism directorâ€™s nightmare.

But for those who can look beyond the headlines, this also means there are great deals to be had.

Crystal waters: Tourism in Sharm has been hit by Egypt's political upheavals

Itâ€™s not that I have the Grand Rotana and Sharm to myself â€" this is May in term-time, not peak season â€" but local businesses estimate that numbers are down around 50 per cent from pre-revolutionary days.

Whether enjoying late-night cocktails in the hotelâ€™s Sky Lounge or snorkelling in the Ras Mohammed National Park, I am continually conscious of the extra attention, service and space, above and below the water.

And I love it. After a late-night arrival, I succumb to a restorative Balinese massage, then retire to the Palm Bar and Grill for a chicken skewer and a beer. The 35-degree heat is absolute bliss.

The next pleasant surprise is the price: Â£3.20 for a half-litre of beer strikes me as reasonable forÂ five-star living, as does Â£8.50 for a seafood risotto and Â£2 for coffee.

Under the sea: Diving or snorkelling are two of the top activities to enjoy in Sharm, thanks to the wildlife

In the afternoon itâ€™s quad-biking in the desert â€" not something I recommend, since the desertâ€™s silence is a great deal of its appeal. A quite extraordinary groaning multi-cultural buffet in the Silk Road Thai restaurant in the evening and itâ€™s off to bed.

The next morning at breakfast I bump into Phil and Joanna, a couple from Yorkshire who have come to Egypt six times in eight years and declare the Rotana the best hotel so far.

â€˜We were put off a bit,â€™ says Phil, a keen snorkeller, by the current uncertainties, â€˜and we will be watching the future situation carefully. But we love the place and the people.â€™

They also love the discount they got on their package â€" around 25 per cent, they reckon. Scott, a lawyer based in Dubai, is here with his wife, Emma, and their toddler son, Cooper.

â€˜I asked a Saudi friend, who told me Sharm is far from any problems,â€™ says Scott. â€˜I wouldnâ€™t take the family to Cairo, though I would be happy to go myself.â€™

Hidden history: The 6th century St Catherine's Monastery is located at the foot of Mount Sinai, where Moses is said to have received the Ten Commandments

A hotel bus ride takes me to the dusty local Old Market area, and in the Stella jewellery shop theÂ owner, Mino, confirms that there have been relatively few tourists around except for Russians.

He sells me a silver bracelet for Â£15 that he says would have been Â£30 pre-revolution (I believed him anyway).

Sharm built its reputation 25 years or so ago on snorkelling and diving. The Camel Dive Club and Hotel in the main tourist hub of Naama Bay, ten minutes away, was a pioneer.

I join a group on a boat to Ras Mohammed, an hour away. Do you see sharks, asks one of the group?

â€˜If only,â€™ replies Beth, our expat instructor, rather naughtily. What we do see in the clear waters is an abundance of beautiful specimens.

Ancient ruins: Luxor is where the Valley of the Kings and Queens offers a wealth of temples and tombs

My favourites are impossibly multicoloured parrot fish and the grumpy puffer. While others scuba-dive, because of an ear problem I have to snorkle, but donâ€™t feel short-changed.

You can keep your safaris: under the sea is an ever-changing wildlife soap opera that is, frankly, addictive. Back at the hotel, my new addiction can be fed on the hotelâ€™s reef, where you are even closer to the action.

Many use Sharm as a rest stop on a cultural tour of Egypt. You can also base yourself here to headÂ for the tombs at Luxor (start at 5am, get back at 10pm, Â£223 from the hotel) or the renowned St Catherineâ€™s Monastery up in the hills (7am-2pm, Â£80).

I would not necessarily recommend going out at night to the main strip at Naama Bay. Not for any security reasons â€" I just donâ€™t enjoy seeing and hearing football on 100 outside flatscreen TVs while having dinner.

Far more enjoyable is supper at the hotel and a long chat with Nashwa, from Cairo. Like her, I hope for a future Egypt based on its long-standing liberal traditions.

Shukran (thank you), Sharm.

Travel Facts

Thomas Cook Signature (0844 871 6652, www.thomascooksignature.com) offers seven nights at theÂ five-star Grand Rotana Resort Spa from Â£699 pp, bb, return economy flights with Egypt Air and transfers. Grand Rotana (www.rotana.com).