Some days at sea are a checklist; this one asks you to unwind. From Sahl Hasheesh you set a long, easy course for Dolphin House — the Sha'ab El Erg reef, where wild spinner dolphins gather the year round and surface on roughly nine trips in ten, often near enough to follow from the rail.

The morning begins with an air-conditioned pickup at your Sahl Hasheesh hotel and a short run to the marina. Out on the water the skipper reads the surface for fins, then eases back the moment a pod appears so no one crowds it. Slip in with mask and fins, stay still, and let the dolphins choose — on a good day they will spin and circle through water clear enough to watch them from above.

From there the boat settles over two of the coast's finest reefs. You will drift above brain and fan coral while parrotfish and clownfish dart below and, now and then, a sea turtle glides through. Everything you need — mask, fins, life jacket and a full briefing — is handed out before you go in, so a first snorkel here is nothing to be nervous about.

Midday brings a buffet spread on deck: a hot main, salads, fresh fruit, and water, soft drinks and tea flowing all day. The rest of the afternoon is yours — sun on the top deck, shade in the lounge, a rinse under the freshwater shower — before the gentle cruise back sets you down at your Sahl Hasheesh hotel by mid-afternoon. It suits families, couples and solo travellers alike, and the best summer dates book up early, so plan ahead.