Paradise in El Quseir

A new trip to the Red Sea; we choose the Utopia Royal Hotel, 16 km south of El Quseir. The opinions on the internet read before departure are very conflicting and often negative. Instead the hotel presents very well, perfectly integrated into the surroundings, with ample space available and a wonderful, wide beach, with a gently sloping sea, perfectly swimmable right from the shore. The coral reef, stunning, is right in front of us; in the morning at low tide the fish even come to the shore and you can photograph them just standing with your feet in the water. Swimming a little way out you find yourself in an aquarium. I recommend the boat trips offered by the beach guys (trust Amedeo too!), we went to Abu Dabbab, the dugong bay, and were among the few lucky ones to have seen it, while with the turtles there's no problem, they're always there.

Again with Amedeo we went to the Mangrove bay, for a snorkelling outing. A trip organised by the tour operator instead to Sharm el Loli, a beautiful white-sand beach, and then a stop at Baraka Bay, another almost deserted beach. To see the dolphins you just need patience; the first week they came every day into the hotel's bay, and swimming beside them was a lovely experience, otherwise you can go to the Dolphinhouse, a sort of protected area, but seeing them isn't entirely guaranteed. The Red Sea climate always amazes me, it was 40° and you could sit comfortably in the sun even at midday. You need to be a bit careful with the food; if need arose, the resort's medical centre was perfectly up to the job (even though the prices they then charged the insurance were exorbitant). Excellent value for money; we set off with Todomondo and spent €2,200 for 2 for 15 days of all inclusive.

The only downside was the somewhat troublesome return home, due to problems with Todomondo's Egyptian counterpart; this caused a one-day delay and a forced stay in a hotel in Hurghada, with arrival then in Bergamo instead of Verona.