Hurghada

Is a city in the Red Sea Governorate of Egypt. It is a tourist center located on the Red Sea coast.

The city was founded in the early 20th century, and since the 1980s has been continually enlarged by Egyptian and foreign investors to become the leading seashore resort on the Red Sea. Holiday villages and hotels provide aquatic sport facilities for sailboarders, yachtsmen, scuba divers and snorkelers.

Hurghada stretches for about 36 kilometres (22 mi) along the seashore, and it does not reach far into the surrounding desert. The resort is a destination for Egyptian tourists from Cairo, the Delta and Upper Egypt, as well as package holiday tourists from Europe, notably Italians, Russians, Czechs and Germans. Until a few years ago it was a small fishing village. Today Hurghada counts 248,000 inhabitants and is divided into three parts: Downtown (El Dahar) is the old part; Sekalla is the city center, and El Memsha (Village road) is the modern part. Sakkala is the relatively modest hotel quarter. Dahar is where the town's largest bazaar, the post office and the long-distance bus station are situated.

The city is served by the Hurghada International Airport with scheduled passenger traffic to and fromCairo and direct connections with several cities in Europe. The airport has undergone massive renovations to accommodate rising traffic. Hurghada is known for its watersports activities, nightlife and warm weather. Daily temperature hovers round 30 degrees Celsius most of the year. Numerous Europeans spend their Christmas and New Year holidays in Hurghada, primarily Germans and Italians.

Climate

Aquatic Sports

Hurghada has become an international center for aquatic sports like windsurfing, kiting, sailing, deep-sea fishing, swimming, and above all snorkeling and diving. The underwater gardens offshore are considered some of the finest in the world. The warm waters here are ideal for many varieties of fish and coral, which may also be observed from a glass bottom boat.

The city provides a gateway to diving sites throughout the Red Sea, owing to its central location. In addition, Hurghada is known for providing access to many uninhabited offshore reefs and islands.

Projects under construction

Gamsha Bay

Gamsha Bay will be the region’s largest township, located north of Hurghada; Gamsha Bay will offer its residents a wide array of housing options, entertainment, and recreational amenities, including an extreme sports adventure theme park.

Gamsha Bay will be divided into 9 distinct zones – Gamsha Marina, Marina Park, Coral Golf Course, Sea View Crescent, Creek Retreat, Gamsha Bay, Peninsula Luxury Villas, Downtown Gamsha and Extreme Sports World Theme Park. It will be built in five phases over 10 years, with the initial components of the first phase completed within the next five years.

UPDATE : due to unclear financial issues the whole Gamsha Bay project seems to have been abandoned.

Serrenia

Created by British architects Foster and Partners, Serrenia will be a secure, luxurious, sustainable community. It will feature palace-like residences, private villas, as well as apartments. At its heart will be an artificial spa: water in the desert. There will also be a Children’s Club and a Beach Club, as well as a 7-star hotel. There will be an 18-hole championship golf course, featuring an iconic clubhouse and a Golf Academy. The Marina Hub will contain exclusive shops, as well as a private marina. Serrenia will have its own private beach at Sahl Hasheesh.

UPdate: given recent touristic developments it appears that the Serrenia project was dropped this year.

Resorts near Hurghada

Al Quseir

Al Quseir is one of the Egyptian gateways, and one of the oldest cities on the western coast of the Red Sea. In the past it was known by various names, such as Thagho in the pharonic period, Licos Limen (the white port) in the Ptolemaic period, and Portus Albus in the Roman period. In the Islamic period it was given the name Al Quseir, which means "a small palace or fortress".

Located between Hurghada and Marsa Alam, Quseir used to be an important port. Many people traveled from there to the land of Punt to buy ivory, leather and incense. During the Ottoman and the Islamic periods, Egyptians and Muslims from North Africa traveled from Quesir as pilgrims to Mecca. It was also the only port importing coffee from Yemen. During the French occupation of Egypt, Quseir was the arrival point for Arabs and Muslims from Hegaz coming to fight beside the Mamalic against the French army. The most important sites in Quseir are the fort and the water reservoir. The water reservoir was Quseir's only source of drinking water 100 years ago.

Al Quseir Al Kadima is another important site as well. It was the old Roman port where hundreds ofamphora and old pottery artifacts were found. Even the police station is located at a historical site. There are now many bazaars here, as well as cafes, coffee shops and restaurants offering sea food. There are several 300-year-old buildings here: the Ottoman fort and the old mosques Al Farran, Al Qenawi and Al Senousi.

Al Quseir is known for diving, with many miles of unspoiled coral reef. Most hotels have dive centres, and there are some downtown, as well. Safaris are popular here, either by quad bike or jeep, including trips into the desert and visits to a Bedouin village, as is camel-riding.

Sharm El Naga

A village, around 40 km (25 mi) south of Hurghada. Its beach contains a beautiful reef cliff.

El Gouna

A privately-owned luxury hotel town, about 25 km north of Hurghada. Quiet and clean, the town consists of several islands separated by channels and connected by bridges. Besides 14 hotels and 2 marinas, there are also 300 private villas and apartments, and some 500 more are under construction. It is promoted by some as Egypt's Venice. It is built on 10 km of beachfront and has unique and diverse architecture.

El Gouna provides diving and watersports centres, horse stables, gokarting, shopping arcades, bazaars, a wide selection of restaurants and bars, night clubs, an internet cafe, an automated teller machine (ATM), a pharmacy, the El Gouna international school, a nursery, a private hospital, a marina, an airport, the only casino on the Red Sea coast, a private radio station, a post office, a real estate office and an 18-hole golf course designed by Gene Bates with a unique aqua driving range.

Al-Mahmya

A tourist beachfront camp on the protected Giftun island, 45 minutes by boat from Hurghada. Thanks.

Soma Bay

A tourist resort situated 45 km (28 mi) south of Hurghada, with various hotels including La Residence des Cascades, Inter-Continental, Robinson Club, Sheraton (Kempinski - opening August 2008) & Caribbean World Resort Soma Bay ( opened December 07). The place is amazing for diving and snorkeling.

Sahl Hasheesh

Sahl Hasheesh is a community resort developed seaside by The Egyptian Resorts Company (ERC). It is a long-term project under development, designed to meet social and environmental objectives.

Makadi Bay

A beachside resort 35 km (22 mi) south of Hurghada. Makadi Bay provides scuba diving and snorkeling. Features one of the world's most impressive swimming pools at Le Meridien Hurghada: Makadi Bay, Egypt.