El Gouna on The Red Sea

Gouna has a nice golf course, beautiful quiet beaches, and some of the best SCUBA in the world. Because Gouna is not well known, a lot of the dive and snorkel sites are uncrowded and unspoiled. Gouna is also the closest resort to the famed S.S. Thistlegorm, and the Abu Nuhas ship graveyard. Gouna is surrounded by picturesque mountains and it is possible to take many excursions to them whether on horse, camel, or ATV. Gouna also has good nightlife with bars, discos as well as quiet places to smoke shisha and chat. Gouna is a resort town so don't expect any real cultural stuff, although there is a museum and aquarium, but Gouna is a great place to kick back and relax on the beach.

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The rooms are a little small, but they have nice little balconies, air conditioning, and a TV. However, my room had no phone. The Arena also has a very nice pool, and to make up for its lack of being on a beach, the Arena has a deal with Zeytuna Beach allowing you to get free towels, beach chairs, and discounted drinks. The Arena offers breakfast, but has no real restaurant.

If you are looking for a more luxurious resort, go to the Mövenpick, but if you just want a relatively cheap room, and don't care about frills, the Arena is a good spot. With that said, if I had to go again, I'd choose the previous.

The menu offers a range of Italian appetizers, pizzas, pastas, salads, and a few main dishes, as well as burgers. The pizzas are of good quality, and the burgers (often served in a pita) are fairly good. The pastas and other dishes are standard fare and will leave you satisfied.

What makes the Club House fun is the atmosphere. A friendly wait staff (featuring people like "Crazy Neil from Ireland) and a bunch of swimsuit-wearing beach revelers make the Club House a wondeful place to have a filling meal after a long day of diving, snorkeling, or lying on the beach.

The beach is nice and sandy and there are plenty of beach chairs with umbrellas that will give you shade and privacy. There is a great volleyball court with an omnipresent camel next to it. You can rent the camel for a negotiatable price if you want, 15 Pounds for a half an hour is fair. There are also a few horses you can rent if you want.

The bar features a good selection of cocktails and has standard beach food, sandwiches and pizza. There are also a few shops where you can buy cheesy tourist fodder or get a chic henna tattoo.

The water at Zeytuna is lovely, crystal clear and a beautiful blue/green. There is a dock that extends way out into the water, and for good reason. About 10 feet out it is deep enough to swim, but past that it is shallow and rocky, so you have to go to the end of the dock if you want to do more than just float in the water. At the end of the dock is a nice diving platform too.

Zeytuna Beach is also the home to a number of nice late night beach parties with authentic Turkish food, a DJ and a bonfire, definitely worth checking out.

In terms of music, the standard DJ spins a selection of R&B, hip-hop, house, as well as local favorites, but the Palladium is also host to many rave-type house parties. The dancefloor is a little small and for some reason is flanked by stripper-style dance cages that look like they belong more at a Mötley Crüe concert than a dance club.

While the music is usually fairly good, Palladium's problem is lack of clientele. The place is rarely near full, with about 10 people on the dancefloor at a time, and the amphitheater style architecture only adds to the feeling of emptiness.

Palladium can be a lot of fun if you are with a good group of friends and just want to dance the night away together, but it's not so great for smaller groups, or for a singles scene.

So try it if you like, but I don't recommend going on the 50 Pound cover nights, it most likely won't be worth it.