The Red Sea is a paradise for all lovers of underwater beauty; no snorkeller could fail to marvel at the size and colourfulness of the fish, and the profusion of different corals. Several countries offer access to the Red Sea, but the most popular ones are Israel (Eilat) and Egypt (several resorts). In Egypt Sharm El Sheikh offers good hotels in Na'ama bay and an easily accessible reef. The culture is quite different from the more familiar Spanish and Greek Mediterranean resorts, and visas are required for Egypt. You will notice that there are more undersea pictures than on the other pages!

 Several people have contacted me with queries about the accessibility of the reef and quality of snorkelling available at Eilat and Sharm; a brief resumé is found below.

EILAT
Coral beach is next to the reef while north beach is in town where the action is - some decent sand but no coral.
  There's little entertainment at coral beach, certainly, and what there is will be in the north beach area. The walk from north beach to coral beach is 4-5 miles maybe, but it takes over an hour and, along a busy road in the sun, can be uncomfortable.
Travelling between the two can be by local bus (not too bad, bus station is near Mercure hotel in town) but taxis are plentiful and reasonable (about 20 shekels each journey - agree a price first!).
Incidentally, watch out for prices in shops and restaurants because they sometimes show US Dollars, mostly shekels. Eilat itself is less exotic than you might expect, being a resort that Israelis use a lot for their holidays. Hotels are generally of high quality. We have stayed in the Mercure Mirage (April 1998) which was slightly 'businessy' but of good standard, in the town away from the beach, and also in the Moon Valley (April 2000) which is set out in modules and basic in standard, although clean and with decent food. Hotels along north beach look excellent and are probably pricey. Restaurant prices are on the high side for a tourist area. Security is tight in places - you'll need to open any bags for inspection if you go into the shopping precinct near north beach. Be prepared for a baggage search and interrogation on the way home from Ovda airport too. All photographic equipment etc. is available if more expensive than in the UK. Incidentally, avoid Passover as alcohol is difficult to obtain and some restaurants and shops shut. We found the sea temperature bearable in mid-April but probably May-Oct would be the best season - rather monopolised by Israelis! Some hardier folk swim in the Red Sea all year round. Places to visit from Eilat include Petra in Jordan (a longish trip with queues at the border but worth it if you like magnificent ancient rock carvings as featured on Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade). Jerusalem is also accessible, best but priciest from Eilat airport right in the middle of town. 

Finally, underwater. The only place to be is coral beach. The north beach has little to offer. There is a nature conservancy area on coral beach which is clean and reasonably uncluttered, with walkways over the reef to allow access to the deep water just over the edge of the coral. (Walking over the reef is not permitted, as is touching the coral. Neither is advisable anyway because it can be sharp and there is some fire coral which leaves nasty weals. Ouch!) Entrance to the conservancy is about 8-10 shekels, (2005 price), not too bad. If you prefer the public beach near the reef, towards the town end, it is free but can get crowded, and the locals have no compunction about plonking themselves practically on top of your clothes while you're in the sea. You also have to swim a small distance along the shore to get to the reef itself, but there's plenty of underwater life to distract you on the way. There is a tide in the Red Sea, and it can sometimes get choppy, which occasionally makes photography very difficult. Divers don't have to worry about that though! You can get from try dives up to full PADI courses all over Eilat, the ones near coral beach can go in off the sand or go by boat to other reefs. Incidentally a boat trip to Coral Island, in Egyptian waters, makes a good day out. The marine observatory is also well worth a visit. 

All the pictures below were taken either at Coral beach or Coral Island.