Hurghada Holidays 2026/2027

El Gouna: About 25 km north of the airport, this purpose-built resort town is laced with saltwater lagoons and centred on Abu Tig Marina — smart, walkable and well stocked with bars, restaurants and an 18-hole golf course designed by Gene Bates. It is the natural pick for couples and for anyone after the more polished end of Hurghada Egypt holidays.

Sahl Hasheesh: Around 18 km south of Hurghada, this is a long curve of five-star resorts set around a calm, swimmable bay, with a sunken "old city" snorkel trail just offshore. Quiet, spacious and good for families and couples who want resort comfort rather than street life.

Makadi Bay: Further south again, Makadi is made up almost entirely of self-contained all-inclusive resorts, anchored by Makadi Water World and its fifty-odd slides. Some of the better-value cheap holidays to Hurghada turn up here, since the bay is built for families rather than independent exploring.

Central Hurghada & El Mamsha: The original resort strip, running along the El Mamsha promenade, is the liveliest and most walkable part of the coast, with the marina, shops, beach bars and the widest spread of budget and mid-range hotels.

El Dahar (Old Town): North of the main hotel strip, El Dahar is the traditional quarter — a working souk selling spices, leather and copper, plus the twin-minaret Al Mina Mosque on the seafront. It is the one corner that still feels like a real Egyptian town rather than a resort backdrop, and an easy first taste of an Egypt holiday beyond the resort gates.

Giftun Islands & Orange Bay: The reefs around Giftun, protected as Egypt's first marine national park back in 1986, are the classic day out — a 45-minute boat ride to white-sand beaches at Mahmya and Orange Bay, with snorkel and dive stops on reefs holding more than a thousand fish species. Boats leave Hurghada Marina each morning and typically include lunch, snorkel gear and a couple of hours of free time on the beach before the return crossing.

Diving the Red Sea: Hurghada has more than 40 dive sites within reach, from shallow coral gardens that suit complete beginners to the wrecks and walls of the Straits of Gubal, including the well-known Abu Nuhas wreck graveyard. PADI centres in nearly every resort run taster dives and full certification courses, often within the week, and visibility regularly exceeds 20 metres outside the winter months.

Desert safari: Quad bikes, jeeps and dune buggies head into the Eastern Desert most afternoons, weaving through acacia-studded wadis and red-tinged mountains before ending at a Bedouin camp for tea, a barbecue and some of the clearest stargazing you will find anywhere on a beach holiday.

Grand Aquarium & the Old Town: The 2015-built Hurghada Grand Aquarium is the largest in Egypt, home to over a thousand sea creatures from sharks to turtles, and a half-day there pairs neatly with the El Dahar souk and the seafront Al Mina Mosque for a change of pace away from the sand.

Day trips to Luxor and Cairo: Luxor's Valley of the Kings and Karnak Temple are a three-and-a-half-hour drive south, while a long day to Cairo brings the Giza pyramids within reach — an easy and tempting alternative to the usual European city breaks.