Egypten

If you’re in a hurry to reach the treasures and pleasures of the south, it is easy to dismiss the places between Cairo and Luxor. But these less touristed parts of the country almost always repay what can be the considerable effort of a visit.

Cairo is magnificent, where you’ll hear an array of sounds from donkey carts rattling down lanes to the muezzins' call to prayer from duelling minarets.

If you want to dig a little deeper into Egyptian culture and history, the area surrounding the capital is home to several intriguing and important sites rarely included on typical Egypt itineraries. Although few can honestly be put in the 'must-see' category – except of course for the majestic ancient site of Saqqara, which lies on the city’s southern edge – those with time up their sleeve will enjoy delving into this lesser-seen region.

In its late-19th-century raffish heyday, Port Said was Egypt’s city of vice and sin. The boozing seafarers and packed brothels may have long since been scrubbed away, but this louche period is evoked still in the waterfront’s muddle of once-grand architecture slowly going to seed.

For a brief period following the Egypt–Israel peace treaty of 1979, a thriving Israeli tourism trade meant Tarabin (Nuweiba's waterfront beach-camp area) could claim rivalry to Dahab as Sinai’s hippy beach paradise. However, the vagaries of the regional politics over recent decades have meant Israeli travellers, for the most part, shun Sinai. So while Sharm boomed and Dahab grew steadily into a low-key resort, Nuweiba which stretches over 15km, was left to function primarily as a port for the Aqaba-bound ferry to Jordan. It's a shame because it could easily be the mellow beach-camp paradise that Dahab was a decade ago.

The southern coast of the Gulf of Aqaba, between Tiran Island and Ras Mohammed National Park, features some of the world’s most amazing underwater scenery. The crystal-clear waters and incredible variety of exotic fish darting in and out of the colourful coral reefs have made this a scuba-diving paradise. Purpose-built Sharm El Sheikh occupies a prime position here, devoting itself solely to sun-and-sea holidays offering a family-friendly vibe and resort comforts, with world-class diving thrown in.

Less than two hours from Cairo, the vast salty Lake Qarun comes into view and the arid monotonous plains are replaced with a lush patchwork of farming plots, sunflowers swaying in the breeze, and tall date palms with water buffalo lounging in the shade beside them.

Anyone interested in seeing the colossal rock-cut temples without the crowds, visiting Lake Nasser, or listening to Nubian music should hang around in this small Nubian town.

The ‘Red Sea Riviera’ is a place of many different attractions. On the one hand, it is famous (or infamous, depending on your view) for cheap package holidays – overdevelopment has pockmarked the coastline deeply, leaving a trail of megaresorts and half-finished hotels in its wake. Alongside these are some exceptional exclusive resorts secluded from the hustle of the packages. Dig deeper and you will find other, more surprising sides to the region.

Plucked from obscurity during the early days of the Red Sea’s tourism drive, the fishing village of Hurghada has long since morphed into today’s dense band of concrete that marches along the coastline for more than 20km. Still, it's a convenient destination for combining a diving holiday with the Nile Valley sites. Further offshore there is still superb diving aplenty; local NGOs are helping the town clean up its act, and the southern resort area and Sigala's sparklingly modern marina have brought back some of Hurghada's sheen.