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Ain
Soukhna (Ain Sukhna, Ein Soukhna, Ein Sukhna,
Ain Sokhna, el-Soukhna) on the Egyptian Red Sea Coast
(actually on the Gulf of Suez) has often been referred
to as a town, but is really not. Ain Soukhna can be
translated as "hot spring" and the name originates from
sulfur springs in Gebal Ataqa, a nearby Eastern Desert
mountain. It is a region that stretches from just south
of Suez down the coast for about sixty kilometers, and
mostly consists of a port along with a series of resort
complexes, with a few independent restaurants, gas
stations and other facilities scattered along the
coastal road. It seems only natural for this region to
be so developed, considering that it represents the
closest beaches to Cairo, one of the largest cities in
the world.
Traditionally, Ain
Soukhna is a purely Egyptian retreat, only recently
becoming an international destination. In fact, most of
the the resort complexes consist mainly of vacation
villas owned by Upper and Upper Middle Class Egyptians.
However, many though certainly not all of the complexes
also provide hotel accommodations. These range from
rather quaint facilities for Middle Class Egyptians and
probably some Europeans to International Five Star
Hotels, which we may expect to see more of for a number
of reasons. As an international tourist destination, Ain
Soukhna makes considerable sense.
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