Mount Sinai, Mountain in South Sinai Governorate, Egypt
The summit reaches 7,497 feet (2,285 meters) above sea level with rugged granite cliffs and two ascending paths through the arid desert landscape of the southern Sinai Peninsula, leading to an exposed plateau where two small prayer spaces stand.
Two monks announced around 300 AD that they had found Moses' burning bush near Jabal Musa, fixing the biblical mountain's location at this peak; the belief has held for 1,700 years. In the 6th century Emperor Justinian built Saint Catherine's Monastery at the foot, and a mosque later rose on the summit beside the Orthodox chapel.
For Jews, Christians and Muslims, the peak marks the site of divine revelation and draws pilgrims from all continents who seek spiritual experiences and connections to Abrahamic traditions that have shaped billions of lives across millennia.
Two routes ascend: a three-hour camel path or the steeper Steps of Repentance featuring 3,750 stone stairs, with many visitors departing overnight to witness sunrise from the top, though temperatures swing dramatically between day and night requiring layered clothing.
The chapel at the summit was built in 1934 on the ruins of a 16th-century church and encloses the rock held to be the source of the biblical Tablets of Stone; it is not open to the public. A mosque used by Muslims stands on the same summit.
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