• Yachts moored at the marina

    Hurghada Marina

    Our favourite

    The harbour promenade: yachts on one side, terraces on the other, and the whole town out after dark.

    HurghadaMarina, Hurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeSea view
  • Orange Bay — Giftun Island

    Unmissable

    The turquoise water over white sand that earned the place its nickname: the Egyptian Maldives.

    HurghadaGiftun Island, off Hurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeSea view
  • A parrotfish over a dense coral reef in clear blue water.

    Eden Island

    An island beach where the reef starts a few metres out — the snorkelling is better than the setting.

    HurghadaOff Hurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeSea view
  • Egyptboats — Private Boat Tours

    A boat to yourselves, a route that adapts, and dolphins when the sea agrees.

    HurghadaMarina, Hurghada

    €€€ High endSea view
  • A scuba diver descends below the surface amid bubbles and shafts of sunlight.

    Sea Secrets Hurghada

    A centre that gets a beginner into the water without frightening them — rarer than it sounds.

    HurghadaHurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeDiving / snorkelling
  • A scuba diver above a coral head, two clownfish in the anemone.

    Diving Planet

    A dive centre that is serious without being solemn: small groups, maintained gear, club atmosphere.

    HurghadaHurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeDiving / snorkelling
  • Mini Egypt Park

    All of Egypt in scale models: the pyramids, Abu Simbel and Karnak in an hour's walk.

    HurghadaHurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeFamily-friendly
  • A monumental sand sculpture, a bearded face standing out against the sky.

    Sand City

    Monumental sand sculptures, signed by carvers from all over the world.

    HurghadaNear Senzo Mall, Hurghada

    BudgetFamily-friendly
  • One of the aquarium tanks

    Hurghada Grand Aquarium

    The Red Sea without getting wet: an indoor circuit that fills a morning with children.

    HurghadaAirport road, Hurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeFamily-friendly
  • Buggy Desert Safari

    Quad bikes in the desert, a stop in a Bedouin village, mint tea and sunset.

    HurghadaDesert west of Hurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeFamily-friendly
  • The camel waits, saddled, between two legs of the ride.

    Safari Sahara Hurghada

    The full desert day: quad, buggy, 4×4 and camel, from morning to sunset.

    HurghadaDesert west of Hurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeFamily-friendly
  • Hot stones lined up along a back, rolled towels in the background.

    Venus Hammam & Spa

    Hammam and massage at a price with nothing in common with hotel spas.

    HurghadaHurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeBooking advised
  • Multicoloured slides above a pool, under the palms

    Makadi Water World

    Our favourite

    The biggest water park on the coast, with food and drinks included in the ticket.

    HurghadaMakadi Bay, south of Hurghada

    €€€ High endFamily-friendly
  • The top of a water slide, with the pool and the sea below.

    Sindbad Aqua Park

    Hurghada's own family water park — no need to leave town.

    HurghadaHotel area, Hurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeFamily-friendly
  • Aqua Park — Jaz Resort

    Two parks on one ticket, and above all: almost no queue for the slides.

    HurghadaMakadi Bay, south of Hurghada

    €€€ High endFamily-friendly
  • The Thistlegorm wreck

    Unmissable

    A British freighter sunk in 1941, its motorcycles and lorries still in the hold.

    HurghadaStrait of Gubal, Red Sea

    €€€ High endDiving / snorkelling
  • Whole fish laid out in rows on a fishmonger's stall, pink shrimp in the middle.

    Hurghada's fishing port

    Off the beaten track

    The morning auction, two streets from the hotels and a world from their mood.

    HurghadaSekalla, Hurghada

    BudgetWhere locals go
  • Safaga

    A windsurfing port and a black-sand beach reputed to be therapeutic.

    HurghadaSafaga

    €€ Mid-rangeSea view
  • Flat water and steady wind: the two reasons to come here.

    Kitesurfing in El Gouna

    A flat lagoon and thermal wind every afternoon, April to October.

    HurghadaEl Gouna

    €€€ High endSea view
  • Sergeant-major fish above fire coral, in front of a shoal of small silver fish.

    Royal Seascope

    Hurghada's boat with portholes: see the coral without getting wet, or knowing how to swim.

    HurghadaHurghada Marina, town centre

    €€ Mid-rangeFamily-friendly
  • The promenade's wooden footbridge, its lamp posts, and the resort's arcades beyond.

    Old Town Sahl Hasheesh

    A piazza, paved lanes and a pier: the one place in Sahl Hasheesh where you walk.

    HurghadaSahl Hasheesh, some twenty kilometres south of Hurghada

    €€ Mid-rangeFamily-friendly
  • Four coloured slides running down to a pool, under thatched roofs.

    Jungle Aqua Park — Neverland

    Forty-five pools and eighty slides — but it is a hotel's park, and the day ticket takes some finding.

    HurghadaSafaga Road (Village Road), south of Hurghada

    €€€ High endFamily-friendly
  • Three dolphins in mid-leap above the blue pool.

    Dolphin World

    Dolphins, sea lions and a walrus, an hour of show — and captive animals, whether or not that sits well with you.

    HurghadaMakadi Bay, some thirty kilometres south of Hurghada

    €€€ High endFamily-friendly
  • A striped inflatable ring on the clear water of a pool.

    Sliders Cable Park

    An inflatable course floating on the lagoon, and a cable tow for beginners — from age six and 110 cm.

    HurghadaEl Gouna, Sabina area

    €€€ High endFamily-friendly