The Red Sea in €100s-€160s rtn

Raise your hand if you know what a dugong is

Part of the Sirenian animal order, these (un)gracious mammals are believed to be the basis for the Greek myth of mermaids. Rather a manatee than a mermaid, you say? I agree to disagree!

The gentle sea cows can be spotted in a couple of places around the world, but Marsa Alam — with around seven known dugongs residing along its coastline — is one of the best locations for sightings. A hotspot is Abu Dabbab, a sandy-bottomed lagoon about 30 km from the city, thanks to its rich beds of seagrass — aka the ultimate dugong buffet.

You can find plenty of diving expeditions to help you spot them, if you don't wanna DIY the search. But don't worry if you're still working on your PADI papers, dugongs can only hold their breath for two to four minutes, so you might get a chance to spot them even just snorkelling.

FYI, you won't find any sea cows there, but we've spotted some last-minute trips to Giza from Copenhagen if the pyramids are on your bucket-list instead :-)