Tourism is a human phenomenon and an economic-social activity that plays a significant role in the lives of societies. It has become an essential aspect of both individual and national life. Like any other economic and human activity, tourism has positive and negative effects.
Tourism development aims to achieve sustainable development in South Sinai and improve services and infrastructure. It serves as a main reason for urbanization, attracting activities, population, and creating job opportunities. The researcher aims to achieve the study's objectives by exploring the general characteristics of urban settlements in South Sinai and their relationship with tourism development. The study also examines the factors influencing this relationship to gain a better understanding of the interaction between different activities and places, leading to appropriate guidance. To achieve comprehensive tourism development, it is necessary to determine the capacity of tourist sites and promote and establish projects that provide income for the local population. It is also important to collaborate with all sectors related to tourism in order to ensure the success of tourism projects. A policy of distributing urban settlements aims to utilize existing urban settlement regardless of their type, making them the nucleus of comprehensive tourism and urban development. Additionally, strategic coastal locations can be exploited to establish communities that integrate tourism, urban development, agriculture, and industry, thereby achieving both developmental and security objectives.  The idea of distributing settlements relies on regional integration with comprehensive development, considering the size and location of central or main settlement and their connection to proposed development road networks and development axes. Based on these criteria, urban settlements have been selected and classified. One of the most important results that were reached is the unique of the geographic location of South Sinai which represents a functional significance in affirming its tourism and heritage role. The relationship between tourism and urban elements is a direct relationship which has a significant impact on most tourist sites in South Sinai.
 
Special Issue of AEIC 2024 (Sustainable Architecture and Urban Design Session)