Eco-tourism or greenwashing?
The Red Sea Coast’s booming tourism industry has prospered at serious cost to the environment. Rampant development, over-fishing, pollution, the degradation of coral reefs and increased pressure on water supplies are just a few of the problems. As the Hurghada Protection and Conservation Association warns: “Environmental deterioration is no longer a threat but a reality. Each day in the Red Sea we are witness to the depletion of the very resource base that attracts so many visitors here in the first place.” In recent years numerous “eco-lodges” have sprung up in the region. While some – such as those run by Red Sea Diving Safari – have genuine green credentials, many others are simply indulging in greenwashing. Similarly not all the dive centres and travel agencies are as conservation-minded as their promotional literature might suggest. The key thing for eco-minded travellers to do is to ask lots of questions – How is waste disposed of? What is recycled? How is power usage minimized? How does the local community benefit? What conservation efforts are being made? – before deciding who to stay and dive with.
El-Quseir
EL-QUSEIR, 85km from Safaga, is another phosphates extraction centre, though with fewer inhabitants and more appeal. In pharaonic times, boats sailed from here to the “Land of Punt” (thought to be Yemen or Somalia), as depicted in reliefs within Hatshepsut’s temple at Deir el-Bahri. The Romans knew it as Leukos Limen (“White Harbour”), while under Arab rule El-Quseir was the largest Red Sea port until the tenth century, remaining a major transit point for pilgrims until the 1840s, when Flaubert caught its last flickers of exoticism.
Today, El-Quseir is a sleepy place, mostly unaffected by tourism, despite the resorts on its outskirts. Life moves pretty slowly, except on Fridays, when Ma’aza and Ababda Bedouin flock in for the weekly market. The best dive sites nearby are the Brothers, east of El-Quseir, and the Elphinstone and Abu Dabbab reefs, down towards Marsa Alam, although the Quei and Wizr reefs are closer. All the resorts have their own dive centres although they may not allow outside divers to join their trips; it’s best to book a dive package deal from the outset.
The fortress
Smack in the town centre, just past the main traffic roundabout, sits El-Quseir’s most impressive landmark, the sixteenth-century crumbling walled fortress, which now houses a museum. Designed to protect trade routes used by the Ottomans, the fortress declined after trade was diverted around the Cape of Good Hope. Napoleon’s army raised the French flag here in 1799, only to attract the attention of British warships sailing off the coast. The French survived a brief assault, but abandoned the fort two years later. Its most recent occupant was the Egyptian army, stationed here until 1975. The cistern, watchtower (climb up for excellent views) and rooms built into the walls of the fortress each contain small exhibits on the history and traditions of the Red Sea coast.
The rest of the town
In addition to the fortress, El-Quseir has a few other sights that are worth a quick look, including a small harbour where you can see local boat-builders at work, and a beachside promenade, good for a stroll. A few blocks back from the waterfront, past a number of shuttered and balconied houses, are the thirteenth-century Faran Mosque and an imposing former quarantine hospital dating back to the nineteenth century.
Marsa Alam
The town of MARSA ALAM itself is undistinguished, consisting of a large army base, some government buildings and apartment blocks constructed for the expected influx of hotel staff to the area, grafted onto a fishing port where liveaboards now moor. The area around the town, however, has become a diving hub, and there are some excellent dive sites within striking distance. The best places to stay are outside Marsa Alam to the north and the south.
Port Safaga
PORT SAFAGA (Bur Safaga in Arabic) amounts to very little. Coming in from the north, you pass a slip road curving off to a series of holiday resorts on a headland, catering mainly to divers. The town, whose economy is driven by the nearby phosphate mines, begins 3km later and consists of a single windswept avenue running straight on past concrete boxes with bold signs proclaiming their function, until the bus station and a final mosque, 4km south. Silos and cranes identify the port, which runs alongside (but remains out of bounds) for most of this distance. Safaga’s only attractions are the reefs to the north, and there’s not much reason to hang around otherwise.