Alexander The Great rode three days through the Egyptian desert to consult the oracle of Amun at Siwa Oasis to seek confirmation that he was the son of Zeus.  While I don’t expect you’ll discover you have the divine right to rule the free world, you can experience sandboarding down 200 foot dunes, find 50 million year old marine fossils imbedded in the sand and rock from the Tethys Sea, ruins walked upon by ancient legends and Cleopatra’s Bath in one of the most remote luxury resorts on the planet.

I do have to forewarn you that if you don’t have a private plane that can land at the small local jetway, consider vacationing at a more accessible spot.  If you fly commercial into Cairo, be prepared for a nine hour chauffeured drive on 3rd world roads. 

Equal parts desert palace and eco-resort, the remote Adrère Amellal lodge is built with indigenous materials in the Casbah style, much like it would have been 10,000 years ago.  With no electricity, glowing lanterns and candlelight illuminate the evenings, dinner at the resort is a romantic moveable feast taking place in a different space. 

The ecolodge overlooks ancient olive and palm groves, Siwa’s largest salt lake, and the dunes of the Great Sand Sea.  The lake is completely without water traffic and is the perfect spot for floating (due to the high salt content, paddling not necessary) blissfully underneath the Saharan sun.  We hear skinny dipping is culturally inappropriate and although MI4M doesn’t have a budget to bail you out of a foreign jail, we urge you to let your naked freak flag fly. Really, we do.

With only about 10,000 tourists a year, and about 100 miles from the Libyan border, this exotic vacation may indeed confirm your world dominance. 

Adrère Amellal
Standard Rooms and Suites are available (but we know you wouldn’t go for anything “standard”):
Starting From  $ 400 (Full Board)

This post is tagged Casbah, desert, eco-friendly, Egypt, green, luxury, palace, sandboarding, Travel