We've been to that area 4 times now, Dahab, Taba, Sharm el Sheik and Marsa Alam.

My advice is to stay in the best hotel you can get (in the case of Sharm, that would be the Hyatt Regency) as the area outside the hotel is practically third-world. The hotels however are beyond anything I have ever seen, they are out of this world.

If you like snorkelling/diving, do the trip to Tiran Island. It's magnificent.

We found the hotel staff among the friendliest people we have ever met, but have never approached anyone beyond the hotels.