The scuba diving in Marsa Alam is fantastic, but we both know that the fastest way to ruin a dive trip isn’t currents, sharks, or even the 6am wake-ups—it’s picking the wrong place to stay. And yes, I say this as someone who has rolled the dice on one too many “this looks fine” accommodations and lived to regret it. So if you’re looking for answers about where to stay in Marsa Alam, you’re in the right place!

My honest Wadi Sabarah Lodge review (where to stay in Marsa Alam)

Marsa Alam has several PADI dive resorts to choose from, but I stayed at Wadi Sabarah Lodge, a quiet eco-resort perched between the Red Sea and the desert dunes. The entire place is built from repurposed fossilized coral limestone, and it’s peaceful, low-key, and the kind of place where your biggest decision of the day is whether to nap before or after your second dive.

There’s a lot to love about Wadi Sabarah, especially if you’re a nature nut like me! The resort is fully solar powered and even has a cool desalination system that provides filtered water in refillable bottles (no plastic water bottles on property!). But looks aren’t everything, and with so many options for where to stay in Marsa Alam, I have a responsibility with this platform to share my 100% honest experience, whether positive or negative!

Price: Wadi Sabarah Lodge review

First things first- the numbers! If you book Wadi Sabarah Lodge on Booking.com (not as part of a PADI combo package with dives, meals, etc), you can expect to pay around $180/night for a Deluxe King room.

Of course this can vary seasonally, and speaking of seasonality—be sure to read this blog next for all the details about the best time to visit Marsa Alam to see the COOLEST wildlife (like oceanic white tips!) and learn about the dive sites and other helpful info!

The price doesn’t include 15% in taxes, so be sure to factor that into your budget! It also doesn’t include full board, which you’ll need because of Marsa Alam’s remoteness (I didn’t see a single store or restaurant within an hour of the resort, and there isn’t much for public transportation!).

Highlights: Wadi Sabarah Lodge review

• Incredible house reef for diving and snorkeling (seriously, my jaw dropped when I saw it!)
• Emperor Diver’s shop on site
• Private beach
• Infinity pool
• Sun terrace for lounging
• Sparklingly clean
• Ocean views everywhere
• Botanical garden on property
• Drying racks for gear on each balcony
• Fresh bread made daily, and the rest of the food was surprisingly good! Shout out to the omelette station at breakfast 🙂
• Booklets in each room with robust information on the marine life you’ll find in the Red Sea- such a great touch and I loved flipping through this after dives!
• Daily ecology talks: I LOVED these and went every night! For about 30 minutes in the hotel library, a naturalist gives a presentation to guests about a new topic every night, from dugongs to Red Sea anemone fish to Bedouin culture
• The Red Sea Project, a marine conservation organization and non profit, is housed on site next to Emperor Divers! If you have an extra day or two and want learn about conservation in the Red Sea or volunteer with sea turtle citizen science projects, it’s cool place to get involved or just stop by to learn about what they do
• Offers add ons of desert excursions, like archaeological tours, Bedouin trails, stargazing, and geological exploration

Lowlights: Wadi Sabarah Lodge review

• Lunches are all 100% vegetarian. It’s tasty, but may be important to note if you typically expect a heartier lunch
• No TV in the room. This didn’t matter to me, but it could to someone else!
• Some people we met didn’t love that they don’t provide water in the room, but they do provide 2 large glass refillable water bottles. You can refill them as many times as you like for free at the lodge restaurant (it has taps for both still and sparkling water!)
• Unfortunately the biggest lowlight for my stay was at check in, which was a sour start to an otherwise wonderful stay

Put lightly, Egyptian hospitality isn’t as warm as many other places in the world. I don’t want to make a sweeping generalization about any country, but again, I have a responsibility to share my unfiltered experiences (soon, I’ll publish a full blog on my non-diving experiences in Egypt with scams, safety, and female solo travel).

We booked a premium PADI travel package: a stay at Wadi Sabarah Lodge, full board, and two dives per day with Emperor Divers. About a week before the trip, we added one extra night to the reservation.

At check-in, I was abruptly told the resort hadn’t received payment from PADI for the added night and I would be “removed” on the original departure date. Despite this being an issue between the resort and PADI—and despite showing proof of payment from both my credit card and PADI to them—they demanded I contact PADI immediately. It was needlessly confrontational and I called PADI in a panic!

They confirmed that the payment was already sent and provided proof again, and the issue was ultimately resolved days later. While the rest of the stay was truly wonderful, this experience reflected a broader pattern of my experiences in Egypt—which made me feel like I was nothing but a walking wallet. While I love connecting and making friends with people around the world rather than being simply another transaction, I don’t expect it and understand that tourism is a capitalistic endeavor. But if you’re paying a premium at a resort, I hope that includes behavior that’s a little more courteous or collaborative, or at a minimum not shockingly aggressive over their own misunderstanding.

Sadly, this was illustrated to me 10 times over as I was harassed by taxi drivers, tour guides, restaurant staff, and people on the street in Cairo. Even if it was a legitimate payment delay from PADI, the lack of professionalism was disappointing—particularly as a solo female traveler (my partner joined me later in the day traveling from another city). I’m sharing this not to discourage travel to Egypt, but to be transparent my experience. I hope others had a different experience!

If you’re still deciding where to go scuba diving in Egypt, be sure to check out my blog about how to decide between scuba diving in Marsa Alam, Sharm el Sheik, Dahab, and Hurghada!

And to learn more about scuba diving in Marsa Alam, you’ll also want to read my Marsa Alam travel guide for divers, with information about planning your trip, how to get there, flight and ground transportation difficulties, why Marsa Alam is SO special, and what the dives are like:

I went scuba diving in Marsa Alam, Egypt: An HONEST overview for divers

Looking for more scuba diving blogs for trip inspiration?

I hope this helped you with where to stay in Marsa Alam! If you’re looking for more scuba diving or outdoor adventure travel ideas, be sure to check out some of my related content!

• Where to go scuba diving in Egypt (no liveaboard!): FULL GUIDE to choosing between Marsa Alam, Sharm el-Sheikh, Dahab, & HurghadaMy guide to diving with thresher sharks in Malapascua (cost breakdown, best dive shops, what to bring, etc!)
• My guide to scuba diving the Lanai Cathedrals in Maui, Hawaii
• I helped manta ray conservation efforts while scuba diving in Komodo, Indonesia. Here’s how any diver can do it, step by step!
• I went scuba diving with dugongs in Coron, Philippines. Here’s why I regret it.
• First timer’s guide: What to pack for a liveaboard dive trip (DON’T FORGET THESE!)