Holidays in Egypt - One World Tours

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Tailor made 3 Day Tour - Sinai Visit ( from Cairo ) includes internal flights (Ref : TM3SINFRMCAIFLTS) DAY SUGGESTED ITIN ACCOMMODATION 1 Evening flight to Sharm followed by transfer to Dahab Hotel - Dahab 2 Transfer to Lagoon Beach for swimming or snorkelling. Late at night we drive to Moses Mountain and climb up it. We reach the top at sunrise overlooking the most amazing view of South Sinai Mountains Overnight on Mountain 3 On the way down, you will stop to visit Saint Catherine Monastery Free afternoon before transfer to Sharm for flight to Cairo Pricing and Details (Prices quoted based on 2 persons sharing a double room. Prices in UK sterling) TOTAL TOUR PRICE...... 1 & 2 Star 3 & 4 Star 5 Star £ 399 per person £ 418 per person £ 459 per person Click here for Currency Conversion Tour Includes :- Transportation (to and from all sites and destinations). English Speaking Guide. Internal Flights (Cairo - Sharm - Cairo) Items not included :- International Flights (See the flights section of this site or contact us for advice on obtaining flights). Entrance fees to sites (most sites are around £2-3. A full list is available on the "What to See" section of this site). Egyptian Visa (Download a visa application in the visa section of this site or contact us for information on obtaining your visa). Tour Notes Dates : All of our tours are run to fit clients exact date / time requirements. Just let us know what you require and the tour will be scheduled to fit it with you. Single Supplement: For clients travelling alone, tours will be subject to a single supplement - please contact us for further details

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Mount Sinai / St Catherines Monastery

John Lloyd Stephens said that "Among all the stupendous works of Nature, not a place can be selected more fitting for the exhibition of Almighty power. Mount Sinai is both the name of a collection of peaks, sometimes referred to as the Holy Mountains, and the biblical name of the peek on which Moses received the Ten Commandments. Mount Mousa (or Musa), also referred to as Jebel Musa, Gebel Mousa, Mount Moses or the Mountain of Moses (all of which basically means the same thing) is considered to be that biblical peak. This peak has religious significance to Islam as the place where Mohammed's horse, Boraq, ascended to heaven. The 7,497 foot mountain has 3,750 steps hewn out of stone by monks of St. Catherine's Monastery, which is located just to the North. The peak is accessible by the steps, or by a gentler path east of the monastery. Both lead to an amphitheater known as the "Seven Elders of Israel". From there, one must ascend the remaining 750 steps to reach the summit where the Chapel of the Holy Trinity was built in 1934 (on the location of the original chapel built in 363 and rebuilt by Justinian in 530) and affords a truly breathtaking view. It is recommended that you take the steps down, as they will lead you past the fountain of Moses, a small chapel of the Virgin, and two arches, the Gate of St. Stephen and the Gate of the Law.

There are other peaks in this range, some of which have also been contested as the true Mount Sinai. Jebel Serbal is also a candidate. Other peaks in this range include Jebel Megafa and Jebel Moneiga.

St. Catherine's Monastery

Located at the foot of Mount Moses, St. Catherine's Monastery, was constructed by order of the Emperor Justinian between 527 and 565. It is built around what is thought to be Moses' Burning Bush, which has a chapel built atop it. It is a spectacular natural setting for priceless works of art, including Arab mosaics, Greek and Russian icons, Western oil paintings, paintings on wax, fine sacerdotal ornaments, marbles, enamels, chalices, reliquaries, including one donated by Czar Alexander II in the 19th century, and another by Empress Catherine of Russia in the 17th century. But of perhaps even greater significance is that it is one of the largest and most important collection of illuminated manuscripts in the world (The Vatican has the largest). The collection consists of some 4,500 volumes in Greek, Coptic, Arabic, Armenian, Hebrew, Slavic, Syriac, Georgian and other languages.

St. Catherine's has a rich history indeed. So rich that it is a sparkling example of an undiscovered jewel of travel. It has been called the oldest working Christian monastery and the smallest diocese in the world. The Chapel of the Burning Bush was originally ordered built by Empress Helen, the mother of Constantine the Great, but the monastery itself was actually built by Emperor Justinian to protect the monks in the region and to honor the site of the Burning Bush. St. Catherine, whose body was reportedly carried away by angels, was discovered five hundred years later at the top of the peak that now bears her name. Her relics are stored in a marble reliquary in the Basilica. We have additional pictures of this church, and of its interior.

St. Catherine's is also a formidable fortification, with granite walls measuring 8 to 35 meters tall, surrounded by gardens and cypresses. Prior to probably the twentieth century, the only entrance to St. Catherine's was a small door 30 feet high, where provisions and people were lifted with a system of pulleys, and where food was often lowered to nomads. It has withstood numerous attacks over its 14 hundred year existence, thus protecting a rich store of art. Today, while it is one of the oldest monasteries in the world, its original, preserved state is unmatched.

Though patronized during much of its history by the Russian Orthodox Church, it is now under the auspices of the Greek Orthodox Church. Most of its monks are also of Greek origin, though their ranks include an international flavor.