My wife and I stayed at the Swisscare from May 25 to 28, 2008, during what is still low season. We identified the hotel through TripAdvisor and chose it for the combination of an excellent scuba diving shop on premises, beautiful beach and swimming pool, room spaciousness and cleanliness, friendly service, and good food – all at terrific value for the price. We found that the positive reviews were “bang on” and we had a lovely four days/three nights there.

We crossed into Egypt from Eilat at the Taba border crossing. From the time that the Arkia airplane pulled up to the gate in Eilat to the time that we were through immigration on the Egyptian side was just 45 minutes. Crossing the border was no problem at all. Not many people use the border crossing these days, but the officials on both sides were friendly. Private cars are not allowed to drive across and therefore, travellers must take a short walk from one side to the other with their bags in tow. On the Egyptian side, a small fee of US$10 or US$15 per person must be paid in Egyptian pounds to an office half a kilometre down the road from the crossing and no credit cards are accepted. Best bet is to change money at the bank in the Taba Hilton, which is immediately adjacent to the border crossing.

We booked our stay through Sarah and Daniel of African Divers and they arranged for a car to pick us up at the border for a drive that took less than an hour and a half.

Taba and Sharm el Shekh have become big tourist centres, with large numbers of charter flight visitors and most of the big hotel chains. Nuweiba lies in between and the hotel “strip” is isolated from both the town and the port themselves. There were obviously once great government plans for the hotel strip, which stretches over a mile and a half, from the Hilton to just past the Swisscare. However, construction was halted on some hotel facilities and never started on many of the tracts of land and the hotel adjacent to the Swisscare is now closed. Aside from the Hilton, the Swisscare and one or two other hotels, there was nothing else on the strip. So, guests should be prepared for being somewhat isolated. This is not a place to stay at for “action”. The upside is a fantastic bargain for divers and those just wanting to relax.

The Swisscare has two wings of 24 suites on either side of a big, clean swimming pool that has a gorgeous backdrop of the sea, beach and Saudi Arabian coastline on the other side of the Gulf on one side, and the rocky desert and mountains on the other. One wing had yet to open and therefore, only 24 suites were in operation when we were there. Each suite consists of two large adjoining rooms, each with its own bathroom and TV (though there was a problem with the satellite service the nights that we were there). The rooms were clean and the large bed very comfortable.

I have been diving for 28 years and I did a total of six dives with African Divers. In fact, I was lucky enough to be the only person diving on all three days that I dove.

The owners of African Divers, Sarah (from England) and Daniel are very nice and helpful, professional, and have excellent equipment. I can also honestly say that one of the nicest dives – maybe even the nicest dive, that I have ever done anywhere in the world (and I have gone diving before in the Red Sea, in the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, Hawaii, and many other places) was right off the beach close to the Swisscare hotel. The combination of large numbers and variety of beautiful fish and coral, excellent and comfortable equipment, easy beach access, depths up to 100 feet (30 meters) and beyond, and being with such a nice divemaster, was superb. The other three dives off the beach near the hotel were also very nice, but one was spectacular.

My wife and I also did an excursion to the marine park at Abu Galum, a two and half hour drive south, which is mostly off-road through the gorgeous mountainous desert terrain. I went there to do a wall dive on the prior recommendation of an Israeli friend and diver. Frankly, however, nice as the two dives were that I did there, the best were right near the hotel. But the drive was worth the trip!

I also decided on the spur of the moment at African Divers to take the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver certification course, just to do something a bit different. The course is not difficult, but gave me the chance to learn more about underwater photography, navigation, eco-systems and fish identification. Without even asking, Daniel color-corrected my photos (taken with their digital camera) and put them on a CD (and what a difference that made). For amateur photographers, I recommend asking about taking photography lessons over multiple dives, because one dive isn’t enough to get the hang of it.

My wife does not dive, like everyone else who was staying at the hotel while we were there. However, she had a nice time relaxing on the beach and by the pool and also had a massage. There is also nice snorkelling right off the beach. Because most of the diving that I did was right off the beach close to the hotel, it was also very convenient that I was not gone for nearly as long as would have been the case, had the dives involved a boat trip.

A last word about African Divers is that one should be prepared to pay Egyptian pounds in cash, because a premium is charged for use of a credit card. There is a bank in the Hilton down the road, so obtaining cash is not a problem, subject to daily withdrawal limits.

Getting back to the hotel, as others have said in their reviews on this web site, the service at Swisscare is friendly and excellent.The food was fine, if not scrumptious. We had no complaints. We were pre-assigned the same table in the dining room for each meal and the tables were not very close to each other, making it difficult to have conversations with those at other tables (which most guests may, in fact, prefer).

We did not have children with us, but there were some families there with children from six or seven to eleven or so and they seemed to be having a good time in the pool, on the beach and snorkelling. But there were not enough guests at this time of year to provide organized activities for kids.

Bottom line for the Swisscare: Phenomenal value for relaxation, great facility and service, and excellent diving!

The Swisscare really was something else. i had stayed in Basata the previous night and was now looking forward to being cooked for and being waited on. The service at Swisscare is phenomenal, they cater to your every desire, and Alvin (the owner) is incredible, anything you want, he'l get it done for you. Iv stayed in first class hotels all over the world but this level of service was great, far more personal. There is a real ambient feeling to this place, very quiet. As a young couple it was fine for two nights as there is absolutely nothing to do but relax, however any longer and it may have been too much.

The rooms were to a very good standard, were very big and had two bathrooms, which meant there were no arguments between me and the missus!

The sea and pool areas are great and overall the stay here was very good which makes it very difficult to complain but i do have one. The food was below the standard i expected, i have read reviews where people say the food has improved since last year or that it was very nice but i very much disagree. The food was very bland and overstacked. My appetite was more than satisfied but my taste buds werent. i feel really bad about having a negative point to say because everything else was so lovely. Prices on food and beverages are not as great as stated in terms of Egyptian economy, soft drinks charged slightly more than they cost in UK. stick to bottled watter and definately try the Nuweiba Sunrise.

Thanks Alvin!

We went in the Easter holidays as a party of ten including six teenagers and children. The hotel is extremely well run. Alvin the manager ensures that the service is efficient and attentive without being overbearing and the rooms while not luxurious are huge, extremely clean and supplied with all the necessary comforts. The pool area is spectacular and pristine although if the hotel were full there could be a shortage of sun beds. The beach is beautiful and well maintained in front of the hotel but litter strewn beyond its boundaries. It is extremely quiet and restful and not for those looking to be entertained. The bar area provides pool/snooker darts and board games but the chairs are rather hard and it is a little uncomfortable to sit and chat in. The set menu dinners were quite tasty but we did feel the portions were over large and much of it was wasted. The staff was very helpful about substituting dishes for the children. Prices for drinks and lunches were very reasonable. Without exception all the staff were incredibly pleasant to deal with but a special mention must go to Waleed (Little Willie) who made it his business to ensure we had a great holiday. The Swisscare calls itself “a little home by the sea” and it certainly has the special feel of a catered villa as opposed to a resort. We loved it and would certainly return.


The children did diving courses with African Divers next to the hotel, even our 9 year old did a “Bubblemaker” pool based session. Daniel and Sarah were extremely professional and good with them all.

Second time going and we were welcomed like family, had a great time and have come home rested and relaxed. The food has improved 100% since last year the chef is doing a good job keep it up. Do not know what Harebellers are on about there was fresh bread every morning made on the premises. The staff as always were happy to do anything to keep their guests happy which included having a football match with sinbadjo's sons, as you can imagine a real hardship for those hardworking boys Ha Ha. The service excellent and nothing is too much trouble we will be going again. If you want peace and quite, sun, beach, pool, snookering/diving and like minded people this is the place to go. However if you want Blackpool go to Sharm