7 Night Cruise sailing from Sharm el Sheikh roundtrip aboard Costa Voyager.

The second you step on board you'll feel right at home. Costa Voyager is the ship of welcoming: modern, people-oriented, and inspiring familiarity. It's easy to find your way around on board and find the common areas to share the thrill of every excursion, with longer and more pleasant port stays thanks to the exceptional cruising speed. Sipping an intimate cocktail in one of the elegant jacuzzis overlooking the stern will become a high point of every day.

What sight will you find the most inspiring? The white trail of the ship standing out above the deep, while the horizon glows pink... or the shows that light up the Theatre each night? Jump on board to find out.

Highlights of this cruise:

Sharm el Sheikh
Until about twenty years ago Sharm el Sheikh was a fishing village inhabited by about 100 people. Now it is the best-known Egyptian Red Sea resort. It is situated at the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula and in recent years has become an important centre for political summits dealing with the thorny Middle East question. It was the Israelis, during their occupation of Egypt following the Six Day War (1967), who first exploited the town's enormous potential for attracting tourists and especially divers from all over the world: the first diving centres and hotels grew up during the early 1970s, but the main thrust came a decade or so later when Israel withdrew from the whole of Sinai.
The town developed rapidly and the nearby Naama and Sheikh Coast bays have also been colonised by tourists. Today Sharm el Sheikh is undoubtedly the most international centre on the Red Sea (together with Hurghada), a meeting place for tourists seeking relaxation and fans of scuba diving.
The Red Sea is in fact known as "Allah's aquarium": Sharm el Sheikh's main attractions are its blue water, brightly coloured fish and multicoloured coral reefs. The town offers over 60 kilometres of coastline including some of the finest in the region: there are some 30 diving sites including Tiran, Gordon, Thomas, Woodhouse and Jackson Reef. Opposite Tiran lies Ras Nasrani, a submerged promontory with very interesting madreporic formations. Snorkelling fans can enjoy the Near, Middle and Far Gardens, where the coral reef offers an amazing spectacle. Near the lighthouse is Ras Um Sid, whose waters are worth investigating.
However, for those who prefer history to the marine and underwater delights, Sharm el Sheikh is the ideal starting point for important destinations, first and foremost Mount Sinai, where Moses received the tablets with the Ten Commandments from God. From the mountain there is a splendid view of the whole region. It is about a two-and-a half-hour walk to the summit from St Catherine's Monastery. This monastery was built inside a citadel fortified by the Emperor Justinian in the 6th century and is a masterpiece of Byzantine architecture. It is named after Saint Catherine of Alexandria.
According to legend, in AD 325 Catherine accused the emperor of paganism and managed to convert the 50 wise men chosen to restore her to reason. Catherine was brutally tortured and decapitated, but her body disappeared; it was said that it was carried away by angels. It then miraculously reappeared in the 9th century by the monastery on Mount Sinai, which has borne her name since. The extensive library houses the world's second largest collection of ancient manuscripts (after that in the Vatican, of course). You then ought to see the Burning Bush (in which form God spoke to Moses) and also the many ancient works of art: priceless icons, marvellously carved doors, frescoes and other religious decorations of unequalled value.
On the summit of Sinai is a chapel dedicated to the Holy Trinity, built in 1934 on the remains of a much older chapel dating from AD 363. On your way down from the summit, you can take the steeper path, consisting of the so-called "3750 steps of penitence", built by a monk seeking expiation. Another wonderful excursion in Sinai that can be taken from Sharm el Sheikh is to the Coloured Canyon, a long corridor of rock in shades of ochre and pink that is one of the peninsula's natural wonders. The gorge is accessible only by foot, and is enlivened by strange figures carved in the rocks and shaped by the wind over the centuries. The canyon walls are almost 40 metres high in certain spots.
Other destinations are Ain Hodra oasis and Wadi Ghazala, a particularly evocative desert area with curiously shaped rock formations. Nabq National Park is another natural paradise with wadi systems, sand dunes, alluvial plains and saltwater marshes.

Eilat
Sited in the Old Testament, in the book of Exodus, under the name of Ezion Geber, this town was of great importance during the reign of Israel and especially during the reign of Salomon (970 - 928 BC) when it was used as a port for business towards the Arabian peninsula and Africa, and also thanks to the close copper mines in Timna.
It was an important miliatry centre in Roman times by the name of Aelana.
During Roman times, a route was constructed to link this region to the Nabatian town of Petra (today, Jordan). The rest which were a fusion of copper and big trade communities, created in the Omayade period (700 - 900 BC) were refound and have now become an industrial zone near to Eilat, Eilot Kibbutz. The Darb el-Hajj or the "Route of the pilgrims" of Africa - which crossed Egypt - turned towards Mecca and passed by the Sinai to the west of Eilat.
Headquaters of an important Isralien port, Eilat is currently a very high level tourist attraction, thanks to its subtopical characteristics of the Red Sea and a very dry climate because of the forelying Negev desert.
With a rich geology and a varied countryside: the highlights go to 892m above sea level, of igneous, grey and limestone rocks, of great valleys like that of Arava with spectacular backgrounds in the Eilat Golf.
With a population of 50,000, the town is part of the southern desert of Negev. The town is just adjacent to the Egyptian village of Taba, in the south and the little port town of Aqaba in Jordan in the East.

Aqaba
Aqaba is Jordan's main port, 325 km from the capital Amman, and the country's only access to the Red Sea. The Gulf of Aqaba, also known as the Gulf of Eilat, lies between the Sinai Peninsula and the Arabian Peninsula. Four countries have a stretch of coastline on the gulf: Jordan, Israel, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. The Gulf of Aqaba is one of two gulfs created where the northern Red Sea is divided by the Sinai Peninsula: the Gulf of Aqaba to the east and the Gulf of Suez to the west. The Gulf of Aqaba is just 24 km across at its widest point and stretches for 160 km, from the straits of Tiran to the northern end of where the coastline is divided between Egypt, Israel and Jordan. Each country has a major town in this area: Taba in Egypt, Eilat in Israel and, of course, Aqaba in Jordan. They are not only strategically important commercial centres and ports for their respective countries, but also popular destinations for tourists from across the world seeking a climate that is warm and pleasant almost all year round.
Aqaba's ancient name was Ayla and was founded in the first millennium BC by King Solomon. Given the strategic importance of its coastal position, Aqaba has always been a landing place for goods, which were subsequently sent on to Petra or Damascus. In 106 BC it was conquered by the Romans and in the 4th century AD passed into the hands of the Byzantines. They were followed in turn by the Arabs and Crusaders who built a fort 7 km from the city during the 12th century. With the arrival of the Osmans, Aqaba was transformed in the following centuries into a peaceful fishing village. Two small towns called Ayla and Fort-Aqaba are historic testimony of the medieval and Islamic city. They were built by the Mameluke sultan Qansawh Al-Ghawri at the beginning of the 16th century. The fort was built in the 14th century by the Arabs, while the museum near the fort displays finds from recent history. Not far away, but in Egyptian territory, is Pharaoh's Island (Jezirat Faraun), a small island outside the port with a crusader castle that was ruled by the Christians from across the Jordan.
Aqaba returned to the limelight during the First World War, when the famous colonel Lawrence of Arabia conquered it with a military raid, riding through the night by camel across the Wadi Rum desert. Today, however, people come to Aqaba to relax and enjoy the beauty of the sea. The waters are ideal even for amateur divers and in the shallows around 140 species of amazing coral can be admired (40 of which exist only in this area), as well as countless exotic fish. Naturally the clear, transparent waters allow you to admire the spectacle without any special equipment, but it is better to have at least a mask, snorkel and flippers.
The entire Gulf of Aqaba area is not only particularly rich in coral, but displays great biodiversity and its waters also contain many wrecks, some sunk as a result of accidents, others deliberately scuttled to provide a habitat for marine life, thereby specifically helping underwater tourism. Geologically, the Gulf of Aqaba forms part of the northern section of the Rift Valley, which extends from the valley containing the Dead Sea southwards down through the Red Sea to the Afar Triangle, on the coast of East Africa. The gulf is very narrow and deep, and the four states bordering it have experienced considerable political problems over the centuries.
Next to Aqaba is the Israeli city of Eilat: the two centres are so close that they may seem almost indistinguishable to tourists arriving for the first time. It is said that even the airports are indistinguishable, so that occasionally planes land on the wrong runway.

Safaga
Safaga is approximately 60 km south of Hurghada. It is a favourite Red Sea resort for sports fans, especially windsurfers since the World Championships were held here in 1993. However, it is mainly known to scuba diving experts and enthusiasts. Like all the other Red Sea resorts, for many years it was just a commercial port, developing only recently thanks to tourism. It is now a fine little town and attracts tourists from all over the world with its wide bay with splendid turquoise waters and long beaches.
The recommended dive sites include the Tobia Arbaa chain of coral reefs (also called "seven pillars" for its seven pinnacles rising from the sandy seafloor), the impressive sheer cliffs of the Panorama diving site (its size enables three different dives to be made along the same reef: the southern plateau and the east and west drop offs) and the towering coral formations of Abu Qifan, famous for sightings of hammerhead sharks in spring and manta rays in winter.
Adventure lovers will be attracted to the dramatic wreck of the Salem Express, in which around about 500 people died in one of the worst marine tragedies in the area. In December 1991 the 100-metre-long ferry was returning to Safaga from the traditional Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca when it hit the coral reef and sank immediately. The crew and passengers did not have time to board the lifeboats and there were no survivors. The wreck, one of the biggest in the Red Sea, is now home to an incredible variety of underwater life, and is the home and favourite refuge of all kinds of fish.
However, your visit to Safaga can also concentrate on relaxation and wellness. The town's distinctive black sandy beaches and its waters, with their high saline content and beneficial properties for skin, make it a famous spot for health treatments. The Karlovy Vary Health Centre at the Menaville Hotel is one of the international centres specialising in climate therapy treatments recommended for a wide range of illnesses from rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis to obesity and stress.
Safaga is also a good starting point for excursions into the desert, such as that to the Mons Claudianus granite quarries. This Roman site is the largest and best preserved in the eastern desert and was once inhabited by around 1000 people, including quarry workers and soldiers. Today you can still see the remains of a fort, some houses, workshops, stables and baths, as well as columns of broken granite and large slabs. One of the columns is most impressive at 16 metres long and 2.4 metres wide, and weighing 209 tons.
From Safaga it is also possible to reach the famous historical sites at Luxor, 200 km away, the site of ancient Thebes and Egypt's capital during the Middle Kingdom. The building of the colossal temple of Luxor began during the reign of Amenhotep III in the 14th century BC. Haremhab and the great Tutankhamon then added columns and statues, but the greatest expansion occurred under Ramses II, about 100 years after work commenced. The Temple of Luxor is peculiar in that it is the only major Egyptian temple complex to have the marks of only two pharaohs on its architectural structures.
In 1989 26 statues from the New Kingdom were discovered beneath the floor of the inner area of the temple, and can now be admired in nearby Luxor Museum. The Valley of the Kings, whose entrance is situated less than 3 km from the west bank of the Nile, is of enormous historical and archaeological importance. The rulers of ancient Egypt were buried here for almost 500 years, from the 18th to the 20th dynasties (1552-1069 BC).

Sokhna
Ain Sukhna, the Arabic for "hot spring", was named after the nearby sulfur springs.
The springs originate at Gebel Ataka, the northern most mountain in the Eastern Desert. Sokhna town is close enough to Cairo, Giza and Suez for a day-trip, this popular Egyptian weekend town has spectacular beaches on the Gulf of Suez. It is located about 55 km south of Suez, and is the nearest bathing resort to Cairo. Some hotels in Ain Sukhna are the best on the Red Sea.
It is a region in Suez Governorate that stretches from just south of Suez city down the coast for about 60 km. The town has a 22.3km2 harbor, along with a series of resort complexes, with independent restaurants, gas stations and other facilities scattered along the coastal road. It seems only natural for this region to be so developed, considering that it represents the closest beach to Cairo, one of the largest cities in the world. And, the Mediterranean's, Africa's and North Africa' largest metropole.
Ain Sokhna city has a lot of natural gas and petroleum reservation quantities. In adittion, to sugar industries and other heavy industrial factories.
The Suez Canal is just to the north, while a 90 minute drive takes one to the Eastern Desert monasteries. Additionally, St. Anthony's in the Eastern Desert is significant as the world's oldest functioning monastery founded in honor of the Saint given credit for founding monasticism. Much of this monastery has recently been restored, and nearby is also the ancient monastery of St. Paul. In fact, at least for now, in comparison to Sharm el-Sheikh, most of the costs at Ain Soukhna have equal facilities (such as four or five star hotels).