Sharm el-Sheikh Visa: the Free Sinai Stamp and Day Trips to Cairo

If you fly straight into Sharm el-Sheikh and spend your holiday in South Sinai, you may not need an Egyptian visa at all: a free entry stamp covers the resorts. The catch is the day trips. A day in Cairo or Luxor from Sharm el-Sheikh takes you out of the area the stamp covers, so it needs the full tourist visa. Below is what the stamp covers, what it does not, and how to plan the visa around your day trips. Rules checked on 5 November 2026.

What the Sinai stamp is

If you travel directly to Sharm el-Sheikh, Nuweiba or Taba and stay up to 15 days, you get a free entry permit stamp on arrival that covers the South Sinai resorts, including Dahab, according to Egypt's tourism ministry.

The UK government says that if you arrive by air at Sharm el-Sheikh and stay less than 15 days at the resorts of Sharm el-Sheikh, Dahab, Nuweiba or Taba, you need no visa: you get the free stamp at Sharm el-Sheikh airport. The Egyptian consulate in London names UK, EU and US citizens for the stamp, for a maximum of 15 days. It names only those three, so if you hold another passport, ask an Egyptian consulate before you count on the stamp.

14 days or 15?

The official sources do not agree on how long the stamp lasts. Canada's government and the US Embassy in Cairo give a 14-day stamp, while the UK government and Egypt's tourism ministry give up to 15 days. If your stay in Sinai is close to two weeks, get the full visa and the question goes away.

What the stamp does not cover

Travel outside the resorts, or a stay of more than 15 days, needs a visa. That includes a day trip, even when you fly back to Sharm el-Sheikh the same evening. On the stamp alone you cannot take:

• our Cairo day by plane from Sharm el-Sheikh: the Grand Egyptian Museum, the Giza pyramids, the Sphinx and Khan el-Khalili;
• our Luxor day by plane from Sharm el-Sheikh: Karnak, Luxor Temple and the Valley of the Kings;
• our Cairo day by plane from Dahab.

The flights stay inside Egypt, but you land at Cairo or Luxor airport, outside the area of the stamp. The flights are not included in the tour price. Hurghada is not in Sinai either: it is on the other side of the Red Sea, and arrivals there need a visa.

Day trips that stay in South Sinai

Most day trips from Sharm el-Sheikh and Dahab stay inside South Sinai: boat days to the reefs of Ras Mohammed, snorkeling at the Blue Hole in Dahab, desert rides, and the night climb of Mount Sinai with St Catherine's Monastery. Egypt's tourism ministry says the stamp is valid across South Sinai destinations, including Dahab. Ras Mohammed and St Catherine are both in South Sinai, but the UK government and the London consulate name only the resorts, and no official page we found mentions either of them. If you want no doubt on the day, a full visa covers every trip.

If a Cairo or Luxor day is in your plans

Get the visa before you land, so you do not arrive on the stamp alone.

• The official e-Visa portal, visa2egypt.gov.eg, charges USD 30 for a single entry.
• Apply at least 7 days before your departure.
• If it is too late for the e-Visa, the UK government says approved airports sell a paper visa on arrival for USD 30, cash only. The UK government does not list which airports these are.

No official page we found explains how to change the free stamp into a full visa after you have landed, so do not plan on doing it at the last minute. Our Egypt visa guide has the full rules: who can get a visa on arrival, the fees, the digital visa at Cairo airport, and overstays.

Arriving overland at Taba

The UK government says that since early March 2026, border charges at the Taba crossing have risen at short notice, and all payments there are in cash. The UK government and the US Embassy give different figures, so read both pages close to your travel date.

Before your Cairo day from Sharm el-Sheikh

• Your visa: the e-Visa printout with your passport, or a visa bought on arrival.
• Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months from your arrival date and have one blank page.
• The domestic flights, booked for the same day. Our guide to day trips by plane explains how the flights, the airport drives and the day on the ground fit together.

Sinai stamp questions

Do I need a visa for Sharm el-Sheikh?

Not if you fly straight in and stay in the South Sinai resorts for a short holiday: the free stamp covers you. You need a full visa to leave the area or to stay longer.

Can I visit Cairo from Sharm el-Sheikh on the Sinai stamp?

No. A trip to Cairo, even for one day by plane, takes you outside the area of the stamp, so you need a full tourist visa.

Does the Sinai stamp cover Hurghada?

No. Hurghada is on the mainland coast of the Red Sea, not in Sinai, so arrivals there need a visa.

Is Dahab covered by the Sinai stamp?

Yes. Egypt's tourism ministry names Dahab among the South Sinai destinations the stamp covers.

Does the Sinai stamp cost anything?

No. It is free, given on arrival.

See all our private day trips from Sharm el-Sheikh and from Dahab.