In the Na’ama center, a dive shop called Beyond limits, offers great diving accessories. The Souk in the Hyatt hotel is a sensuous Arab marketplace (though it is strangely located in a western hotel.) It presents local arts and crafts, clothes and jewelry, great for gifts. In addition, in the evening, tourists can enjoy al fresco dinner from one of the local food vendors.
SHOPPING:- This link may be of interest: http://allaboutsinai.com/leisure-time... for info about La Strada, Na’ama Bay & Il Mercato, as well as Il Mercato’s site: http://www.ilmercatosharm.com/For tips on how to handle the shopkeepers, please see Entrapment Ploys Inside Pages: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g29... & http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-...
There are countless shops selling similar things; some people will class much of it as tourist tat but that could be said of many resorts in the world. There are countless statues of the ancient Gods, papyrus (with pictures on or with signs of the zodiac & a space to have a name written in hieroglyphs) jewellery that depicts the Gods & amulets, perfume bottles, oils, decorated glass wear, crockery, ceramics, mugs, (often with the ancient Gods theme) leather goods, T-Shirts, spices, linen, pashminas (altho not real silk) shisha pipes & flavoured baccy, belly dancers’ scarves, Bedouin scarves suitable for quad biking.
Old Sharm is sometimes a bit cheaper than Na’ama. Apparently, Alexandria is a great city in which to shop! Dahab is about an hour away & may be a bit cheaper. Sharm is noted to be expensive in comparison to other parts of Egypt as it has a "captive audience."
Nabq is an up & coming area with shopping centres, Jasmine, Al Khan & La Strada; there is entertainment in La Strada in the eves. More shops / activity centres / developments are ongoing, including a new 18 hole golf course.
Expect to encounter greater hassle by going down the side streets or in the souks; stick to the larger streets. If anyone feels threatened or intimidated, say that you will call the tourist police / report it to the rep / hotel….& MEAN it! They & the government are well aware that Egypt relies on tourism heavily, so please report anything untoward to them.
WARNING!!! The pavements have quite high kerbs in Na’ama &, both in Na’ama & Old Sharm, they can be uneven in places. The pavements in Old Sharm are also pretty covered in merchandise, so it can be difficult for wheelchair users, & parents with buggies, in some instances.
FAKE DESIGNER WEAR /SUNGLASSES / BAGS: - Plenty of shops in Na’ama & Old Sharm.
FIXED PRICE SHOPS:- There are 3, all called Aladdin’s Cave & all on the main street, where the Camel Bar is, which is His Majesty, the King of Bahrain Street. Stick to these & the supermarkets of you are intimidated by the hassle from vendors. Shops in Il Mercato are also fixed price. They sell international brands but won’t be as cheap as Na’ama & Old Sharm.
SUPERMARKETS: - These are also fixed price & sell a wide variety of souvenirs. The largest one in Na’ama is on Abdullah’s Street & is called Abdullah’s Supermarket. Stand with your back to Hard Rock Café, look right & see the fork in the road. Take the left hand fork, past a perfume shop & Pioneer Property & go a little way up there; it’s on the right. It’s not fixed price upstairs, but it’s less hassle then some shops.
Supermarkets do sell nappies & baby food but they won’t be the same brands as back home. Please note that suntan lotion & toiletries may be surprisingly expensive in Sharm.
JEWELLERY:- Some people will say not to buy as one can’t be too sure of what’s being purchasing & the hallmark system is “unknown territory”! Some people have definitely been the subject of a scam when buying an item with supposed real stones in it. There are countless jewellery shops in Na’ama & Old Sharm. Cairo will be cheaper. Many of the shops sell similar items so, once again, you can afford to haggle hard as you will be able to find the same thing a little further along the street. Ask for advice from the regulars on the Sharm forum.
