Last verified: September 27, 2026. The monastery’s legal status and hours, the tour prices, and the UK and US advisory wording were checked against source on the date above. The monastery’s situation can change at short notice, so I re-check this page monthly.
On a busy December night, about 2,000 people make the Mount Sinai hike in the dark to watch the sun come up (Arab News, via AFP, June 2025). Few of them know how cold the top will be, or that the monastery at the bottom is in a court case.
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The walk starts at the monastery car park at about 1,570 metres and climbs roughly 700 metres to the summit. It’s not a hard walk. The hard parts are the 1 am start, the cold, and knowing whether St Catherine’s Monastery will open its gate when you come down.
This guide settles all three, with the date on every number. It’s one of the experiences worth planning an Egypt trip around, and the only one you have to earn in the dark.
Key Takeaways
- The climb runs normally; the monastery is the uncertain part. Its ownership case has no final ruling. Confirm entry the week before.
- About 700 metres of climbing, 2.5 to 3.5 hours up. Everyone walks the last 750 steps.
- A Bedouin guide is compulsory. Most tours include one; alone, it was about 800 EGP a group in September 2026.
- Dawn is near freezing from December to February. St Catherine town averages a January low of 1.7°C.
- It’s inside normal UK advice. The US wording is stricter, so read both.
Table of Contents
Is St Catherine’s Monastery Open to Visitors Right Now?
As of September 27, 2026, St Catherine’s Monastery is keeping its normal visiting pattern, and I found no report of a closure this year. But its future is unresolved. In May 2025 an Egyptian appeal court ruled the monks may use the site while the state owns the land (France 24, via AFP, May 30, 2025). Both sides appealed, and no final ruling has come.
Here’s the dispute in six dates, because the reporting is scattered and often wrong about what closed and when.
| Date | What happened | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| May 2025 | Appeal court: monks keep use, state owns land | Gates stayed open |
| Aug to Sep 2025 | Leadership crisis, new abbot elected | Closed 10 to 16 days, then reopened |
| Oct 2025 | Greek PM announces a deal | Never signed |
| Jul 2026 | Cassation prosecutor backs the state | Ruling still pending |
| Aug 23, 2026 | Hearing date passes with no ruling | Nothing changes yet |
| Sep 8, 2026 | Greece and Egypt: “preliminary understanding” | No deal signed |
The only confirmed closure came from inside. In late August 2025, a fight over the monastery’s leadership sealed the gates for 10 to 16 days, depending on the source, before the old archbishop was deposed and left for Greece (Mada Masr, September 10, 2025). Reports of a protest closure after the May ruling were denied by the monastery the next day. A deal Greece’s prime minister announced in October 2025 had still not been signed a year later (The National Herald, October 17, 2025).
The court calendar is harder to follow. Coptic Solidarity, an advocacy group, reported that the August 23, 2026 hearing date passed with no ruling and no new date (Coptic Solidarity, August 26, 2026). The same report says the court’s own prosecution had advised in July 2026 against the monastery’s appeal. On September 8, 2026, two weeks after the missed hearing, Greece’s prime minister met Egypt’s president at El Alamein. Greece’s foreign minister spoke only of a “preliminary understanding” that the monks still have to accept (Orthodox Times, September 8, 2026).
So what do you do? Book the climb, and treat the monastery as a bonus you confirm the week before. The monastery’s own site gives visiting hours of 9:00 to 11:30, closed on Fridays, Sundays and major Greek Orthodox feast days (Sinai Monastery, general information, checked September 2026). Other sites print longer hours. I’d trust the monks.
Inside, the route is short: the courtyard, Moses’ Well, the sixth-century basilica and the Burning Bush. It’s the heart of the Saint Catherine Area, which UNESCO inscribed in 2002, and UNESCO calls it the oldest Christian monastery still used for its original purpose (UNESCO World Heritage Centre, 2026). The famous library is for researchers, not visitors, and photography isn’t allowed inside.
How Hard Is the Mount Sinai Hike, and Which Route Should You Take?
The summit of Mount Sinai (Jebel Musa) stands at 2,285 metres, and the walk from the monastery climbs about 700 metres (Sinai Monastery, Mount Horeb, checked September 2026). Most people take 2.5 to 3.5 hours up and 1.5 to 2 hours down. It’s moderate for anyone who walks regularly. The night, the cold and the altitude make it feel harder.
The Camel Path is the one almost everyone takes up: a wide 19th-century track that zig-zags at a gentle grade for about 7 km, with tea huts along the way. Camels work it as far as Elijah’s Basin.
The Steps of Repentance are the older route, about 3,750 steep, uneven steps cut by the monks in the sixth century (Sinai Monastery, Mount Horeb, checked September 2026). They’ve been reported closed, at least for the descent, since 2024, and two September 2026 trip reports disagree on whether checkpoints turn hikers back (We Seek Travel, September 5, 2026; Monkey’s Tale, September 11, 2026). Ask your guide on the night.
When I climbed, the thing I remember most is the line of head torches. From the first bend you can see it zig-zag above you, hundreds of small lights. Every 200 metres a camel man asked “camel?” in the dark. I said no all the way to Elijah’s Basin, and then the 750 steps taught me why people say yes.
At the top there’s a small 1934 chapel and a tiny mosque, both usually shut at dawn. The summit is a crowded rock shelf, so arrive early for a spot.
I’d laughed at the blanket sellers in the car park. Forty minutes into waiting for the sun, I paid one at the summit hut without haggling. Back at the bottom, I drank tea outside the monastery wall and waited for the gate to open at 9.
How Do You Get to Mount Sinai from Dahab, Sharm or Cairo?
Most people take an overnight tour from Dahab, the closest base, or from Sharm el-Sheikh. In September 2026, Memphis Tours gave the drive from Dahab as 1.5 hours (Memphis Tours, checked September 27, 2026). AdReisen put the ride from Sharm at around four (AdReisen, checked September 27, 2026). Cairo is a full day’s bus ride.
Dahab is the obvious base: leave around 11 pm and you’re at the trailhead by 1 am. Dahab, the closest base for the climb also has the diving and the cheap beds. From Sharm, pickup is around 8:30 pm and you’ll lose the next day to sleep, which matters when you’re deciding whether Sharm suits the rest of your trip.
From Cairo, East Delta buses take about seven to eight hours on a thin, changeable timetable, and a private car about six. However you come, carry your passport for the checkpoints and the entrance to the visitor complex.
One paperwork bonus: if your whole trip stays in South Sinai, you may not need a paid visa. The free Sinai-only entry stamp covers the St Katherine area as well as Sharm and Dahab.
What Does the Mount Sinai Hike Cost?
A group tour from Sharm cost 25 euros, about $29, with the guide and entrance fees included (AdReisen, checked September 27, 2026). A private tour from Dahab ran from $69 each for six people and $170 each for two, up to $325 alone (Memphis Tours, checked September 27, 2026).
I added up what one person actually pays for the Mount Sinai hike, on four common set-ups, at about 1.15 dollars to the euro and 50 EGP to the dollar on September 27, 2026.
A Jabaliya Bedouin guide is compulsory, and most tours include one. Hired at the entrance, the flat group rate was about 800 EGP, roughly $16, in September 2026 (We Seek Travel, September 5, 2026), though another traveller that month was quoted about $30 (Monkey’s Tale, September 11, 2026). Agree the price before you set off.
The camel is where prices wander most: about 20 euros each way in one September 2026 report (We Seek Travel, September 5, 2026), against 300 to 500 EGP in 2024 and 2025 reports. The chart uses the higher, newer figure. A blanket at the summit huts ran 200 EGP (Monkey’s Tale, September 11, 2026).
I couldn’t find an official fee for the monastery or the protectorate, so I won’t print one; tours that list “entrance fees” usually cover it. Bring small EGP notes for everything else. The whole trip, priced in EGP and USD shows where this night fits in a budget.
How Cold Is the Summit, and What Should You Wear?
St Catherine town, at 1,586 metres, averages a January low of 1.7°C, and its record low is minus 6°C in February, on NOAA’s 1961 to 1990 normals (Wikipedia, Saint Catherine, Egypt, checked September 2026). The summit is about 700 metres higher. At dawn from December to February, expect it to sit at or below freezing, with wind on top.
Nobody publishes summit readings, so I estimated them. Air usually cools about 6.5°C for every 1,000 metres you climb. Over 700 metres, that puts the summit roughly 4.5°C colder than the town. The dashed line below is that calculation, not a measurement.
The cold catches people because you sweat on the way up, then stand still for 30 to 60 minutes in the wind. Snow falls now and then from December to February, and in February 2014 four Egyptian hikers died of exposure in a snowstorm in these mountains (Al Arabiya, February 19, 2014).
Pack for the Mount Sinai hike as if for a winter walk, whatever the coast was like at dinner:
- A warm layer and a windproof jacket, even from May to September
- A hat and gloves from November to March
- A head torch with fresh batteries
- Shoes with grip for the loose steps coming down
- Water, a snack and small EGP notes
The layers a winter trip needs covers the rest of the bag. For timing, I’d pick October to November or March to April, when the summit dawn sits just above freezing. Month by month, coast and mountain has the full calendar.
Sunrise vs Sunset on Mount Sinai
Sunrise is the classic and draws the crowd, up to about 2,000 people on a peak December night (Arab News, via AFP, June 2025). A sunset Mount Sinai hike starts in the afternoon and shares the summit with far fewer people.
| Factor | Sunrise | Sunset |
|---|---|---|
| Start time | About 1 to 2 am | Mid-afternoon |
| Crowd | Hundreds on the summit | A handful |
| Cold | Worst of the day | Manageable |
| Descent | In daylight | By head torch |
| Monastery | Opens after you’re down | Already closed |
My verdict: sunrise for your first climb, because the monastery timing only works that way round. Pick sunset if you hate crowds, you’re staying in St Catherine, and you carry a good torch for the walk down.
Is It Safe to Climb Mount Sinai?
For a fit adult with a guide, the Mount Sinai hike is safe. The real hazards are cold and a twisted ankle on the way down. The UK’s FCDO, updated August 4, 2026, advises against all but essential travel to “the northern part of the South Sinai Governorate, beyond the St Catherine-Nuweibaa road, except for the coastal areas” (GOV.UK, checked September 27, 2026).
Read that carefully. The line is the road itself, and the mountain and the monastery sit where the road begins, on the permitted side. North Sinai, where the FCDO advises against all travel, is a separate governorate.
The US puts it differently. Its advisory rates Egypt at Level 2 overall and places the “Northern and Middle Sinai Peninsula” at Level 4, Do Not Travel (U.S. Embassy in Egypt, checked September 27, 2026). It doesn’t name St Catherine, which lies in South Sinai Governorate. It does warn that emergency help anywhere in Sinai may be delayed, because access is tightly controlled.
So check that your insurance covers the area under the advisory your insurer follows, and that it covers hiking at altitude. The advisory zones, explained goes deeper. The compulsory guide means you’re never on the mountain alone, which helps solo women too. Take the steps slowly on the way down; that’s where the injuries happen.
The Great Transfiguration Project and What It Changes
The Egyptian government’s Great Transfiguration project is rebuilding the area around the monastery for tourism, and it was reported 90% complete in January 2025 (Daily News Egypt, January 12, 2025). September 2026 trip reports describe the new visitor centre where guides are checked (We Seek Travel, September 5, 2026). The Jabaliya Bedouin cemetery was levelled for a car park, and homes were demolished with what residents called inadequate compensation (Al-Monitor, via AFP, December 3, 2025).
UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee asked Egypt in 2023 (decision 45 COM 7B.138) to halt further development until a heritage impact assessment was done (UNESCO World Heritage Centre, 2026). For hikers, overnight and multi-day treks beyond Mount Sinai, including the Sinai Trail, stopped in late 2024 when permits dried up (New Lines, June 17, 2025). As of September 2026 they still weren’t being issued, so check before planning anything longer than the night climb, including Mount Catherine, Egypt’s highest peak at 2,629 metres.
Mount Sinai Hike FAQs
How long does the Mount Sinai hike take?
The Mount Sinai hike takes most people 2.5 to 3.5 hours up the Camel Path and 1.5 to 2 hours down, climbing about 700 metres to the 2,285-metre summit. Add 30 to 60 minutes waiting for sunrise. From Dahab, the whole trip takes most of a night and a morning.
Can you still visit St Catherine’s Monastery?
Yes, as far as I can establish on September 27, 2026. The monastery opens 9:00 to 11:30 and closes on Fridays, Sundays and major Orthodox feasts. Its ownership case is still unresolved at Egypt’s Court of Cassation, and it closed for 10 to 16 days in 2025, so confirm the week before.
Do you need a guide to climb Mount Sinai?
Yes. Every Mount Sinai hike needs a Jabaliya Bedouin guide, checked at the visitor centre. Most tours include one. If you hire at the entrance, the flat group rate was about 800 EGP, roughly $16, in September 2026, though one traveller that month was quoted about $30.
How cold is Mount Sinai at sunrise?
In winter, likely below freezing. St Catherine town averages a January low of 1.7°C on NOAA’s 1961 to 1990 normals, and the summit sits about 700 metres higher, roughly 4.5°C colder by my estimate. Bring a hat, gloves and a windproof layer from November to March.
Is it safe to climb Mount Sinai?
For a fit adult with a guide, yes. The FCDO’s August 4, 2026 advice puts the South Sinai restricted zone beyond the St Catherine to Nuweibaa road, so the mountain sits inside normal advice. The US rates Northern and Middle Sinai at Level 4 but doesn’t name St Catherine. Cold and loose steps are the real hazards.
How do you get to Mount Sinai from Dahab?
Take an overnight tour. Pickup is around 11 pm, the drive is 1.5 to 2.5 hours with checkpoints, and you start walking about 1 am. In September 2026 a private Dahab tour cost $69 each for six people, with the guide and park fee included. Carry your passport.
The Bottom Line
The Mount Sinai hike is still one of the best nights in Egypt, and it doesn’t hang on the court case. The monastery does. Before you book the Mount Sinai hike, do three things:
- Confirm the monastery is admitting visitors that week.
- Carry cash for the camel and the blanket.
- Pack for freezing, whatever the month.
Base yourself in Dahab if you can. The drive is shortest, and the Red Sea diving that fills the rest of a Sinai week starts from the same town. If you’re still deciding whether Sinai belongs in the trip at all, see where Sinai fits in an Egypt trip.
I’m Marco Delgado, and I write every guide on Egypt Travel Vibe. The site carries advertising and partnerships, and discloses them, but I don’t sell Sinai tours. That’s why this page can say the Sharm group tour is the cheapest way up, and that the monastery’s future is unsettled. Where the record was unclear, as with the entry fee, I’ve said so rather than guess.
