HurghadaHurghada (arabic .: Al Ghardaqah, الغردقة) is an Egyptian city and a tourist center on the Red Sea. 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 snorklers. Hurghada stretches for about 40 km along the seashore, and it does not reach far into the surrounding desert . Hurghada is known for its water sports activities, nightlife and warm weather. Daily high temperature hovers round 30 degrees Celsius most of the year . 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. The city is served by the Hurghada International Airport with scheduled passenger traffic to and from Cairo and direct connections with several cities in Europe
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.
Soma BayA tourist resort situated 45 km (28 mi) south of Hurghada, with various hotels including La Residence des Cascades, Inter-Continental, Robinson Club and Sheraton (Kempinski - opening August 2008.
Sahl HasheeshSahl Hasheesh is a community resort developed seaside by The Egyptian Resorts Company . It is a long-term project under development, designed to meet social and environmental objectives.
Makadi BayA 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. |
