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Egyptian Beach Vacations
Despite Egypt's ancient allure, today the country probably attracts more beach vacationers than any other type of tourists. This is because, for many Europeans, the warm Egyptian beaches are both inexpensive and well appointed. Many European countries specifically lack warm beaches and the alternatives to Egypt are somewhat expensive. Therefore, not only do people come to Egypt's beaches independently, but many arrive by way of chartered airlines that specialize in such vacations from Europe.
Depending on how one looks at it, Egypt can be said to have as many as seven beach zones. These consist of the Mediterranean beaches along the mainline coast from the
Suez Canal over to Libya, the Mediterranean beaches along the northern
Sinai, the Sinai coast along the gulf of Aqaba, the Sinai coast along the Gulf of Suez, the southern Sinai region which opens onto the Red Sea, the Mainland coast along the Gulf of Suez and the Mainland coast south of that along the
Red Sea. Each of these areas vary either somewhat, or extensively from the
others. Obviously the biggest differences are between the Mediterranean coast and all of the other
regions that connect with the Red Sea. Some of these regions attract extensive tourism, while
others are almost void of tourists. Some attract very specific tourists, while others are more generalized.
The North Coast from Libya East though
the Sinai
In reality, the various regions are looked upon somewhat differently. For example, on the Egyptian mainland coast along the Mediterranean, there is a vast difference between the area from
Alexandria over to
Port Said
from the region west of Alexandria. East of Alexandria is very populous along much of the Delta
and not suitable for beaches until one reaches the northern Sinai.
The beaches at Alexandria cater almost exclusively to Egyptians,
with the exception of some specific resorts, who either have their own villas or apartments, or who stay in hotel facilities.
In fact, probably most Egyptians come to Alexandria not for a beach vacation as such, but to escape the heat of
Cairo. West of
Alexandria along the coast, thinning out as one proceeds further west, but extending almost to the Libyan border, are resorts that differ from the beach hotels and facilities to the east. These are frequently compounds, as opposed to real villages, some of which are very
exclusive and have only recently been built. The main point is that, while indeed some foreign tourists can be found in this region, they are very few in number, other than tourists visiting Alexandria for more classical reasons. This, of course, may change over
time. The regions west of Alexandria has been called
"underdeveloped". That too is rapidly changing, as
new resorts are popping up all along the shoreline,
particularly just west of Alexandria.
One of the intriguing aspects of the Mediterranean
coast beach resorts is that there is a certain amount of
experimentation with various types of Beaches. For example,
around Marina,
one of 
Egypt's
most exclusive northern beach resort areas, specific beaches
have been set aside for women, who wish to enjoy the beach
without interference from male eyes, and youth, where the
atmosphere is a little more lively and geared to their
pleasures.
Along the north Sinai
coast there is today actually very little tourism. In fact, about the only well known tourist location is
Al-Arish, which has tried to make a go of tourism but has not been too
successful, even though there are some fairly nice hotels in
the village.
The Gulf of Suez
What is not surprising is that the mainland beach along the Gulf of Suez is ever more popular among Egyptians, and may very well become more important to foreign tourists as well.
Though perhaps not quite as warm as beaches further south, resort complexes such as
Stella Di
Mari, which already receives a large number of Italian tourists in particular, are very
nice, relatively inexpensive,
and an easy visit from Cairo. We have often praised this location, along an area known as
Ain Sukhna, for its convenience to Cairo as a quick
Red Sea jaunt (though it is actually
on the Gulf of Suez), which also allows tourists close access to visit the
Suez Canal, and fairly close access to the famous
Eastern Desert Monasteries of
St. Anthony and
St.
Paul. Though
this area remains mostly a destination for Egyptians, we expect to see more and more foreign tourists in the future, for which it is well suited.
The Beach at Stella Di Mari
It is rather interesting that, along with the northern Mediterranean Sinai coast, the Sinai coast along the Gulf of Suez has not much been developed as a tourist destination, either for Egyptians or foreigners. This is not to say that no facilities exist, but they are very sparse.
The Mainland Coast Along the Red Sea
Where we begin to see the most foreign beach goers is as Egypt's mainland coast opens onto the
Red Sea. Specifically, the
and Hurghada region is one of the most popular beach areas in Egypt among foreign tourists. Hurghada has traditionally been known as one of the most
affordable beach resort communities, though there are certainly more luxurious facilities available in the city proper, while
El Gouna, just to the north, has strictly an upper class reputation. Just to the south of Hurghada is also the exclusive compound of Soma Bay, with several hotels and a fine golf course. As one travels further south along the mainland Egyptian coast, resorts areas become less dense, and many of the more southern tourist
destinations are more scuba diving camps than resorts though, for example
Marsa Alam is gaining in importance as a general tourist destination.
The Eastern Sinai along the Gulf of Aqaba
and its Southern region in the Red Sea
The eastern shore of the
Sinai along the Gulf of Aqaba has a number of beach
vacation resorts and towns, from the very northern tip of the Gulf all the way down to the southern end of the the Sinai. These areas really are frequented almost entirely by foreign tourists. However,
they vary considerably, from Taba, which probably receives most of its tourism from Israel, down to
Sharm el-Sheikh, which like
Hurghada, is one of the main
tourist destinations for beach goers to Egypt. In between Taba and Sharm el-Sheikh are
Nuweiba and
Dahab, which seem to cater to a mix of foreign tourists looking for perhaps a little less formal resorts and for that matter,
less crowded resorts.
Types
of Facilities
In Egypt, one of the nice things about its beach resorts is that just about every area seems to be interestingly different, and there are a wide range from the standpoint of expense. Facilities range from very rudimentary beach camps to the finest imaginable five star hotels, and include the possibility of villa rentals. In general, in the region south of
Hurghada, not including
Marsa Alam, beach camps and more rudimentary accommodations seem to be more dominant, but then so too are open beaches with little in the way of crowds. On the east, Aqaba side of the
Sinai, while Taba
and especially Sharm
el-Sheikh are built up areas with fine facilities to choose from, the area in between these two
destinations tend to be more camp-like, though there are certainly a few fine hotels here and there. These areas, south of Hurghada (and south of Soma Bay, and not including Marsa Alam), tend to be very laid back areas of beach with less formal entertainment facilities than the main tourist areas of
El Gouna, Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh, Taba and more and more, Marsa Alam.
However, even the grand tourist destinations can be very different. For example,
Hurghada is almost two cities in one. There is the downtown area with its less expensive hotels, some with beach front property, and then there are the individual resorts that are really somewhat segregated from the downtown area. The more segregated beach resorts at
Hurghada are not all
that different from those further north in the area of Ain Sukhna
and along the Northern mainland coast west of Alexandria. They are essentially self contained complexes that offer little availability to the main city of Hurghada. Tourists tend to not stray far from the compound where they are staying. On the other hand,
El Gouna, just to the north of Hurghada is set
up more to allow tourists in the various resorts to roam around in the small village.
Sharm el-Sheikh is probably the most open resort area, with a boardwalk that connects most of the beach front resorts and the town center, though there are a few more isolated resorts. What this means for the most part is that the entertainment possibilities in Sharm are much more varied.
It should be noted that in many more isolated compounds, such as
Stella Di
Mari in the north, there may be more than enough activities and entertainment for most people. Many of the individual compounds such as this have more than one hotel, and work hard to include various forms of entertainment and activities for the whole family.
Scuba Diving and other Water Activities
One of the main differences between the the
coastal regions that border the Red Sea and those in the Gulfs
and Mediterranean Zones is the availability of Scuba
Diving. There is some sparse scuba diving facilities in
just about every zone, but by far, most Scuba Diving
facilities are 
located
from El-Gouna south along the Red
Sea, and around Sharm
el-Sheikh on the Sinai.
In fact, perhaps as much as 80% of all Scuba Diving activities
originate from the immediate region of Hurghada
and Sharm el-Sheikh. This is not to say that activities such
as snorkeling cannot be found at almost all beach areas.
Furthermore, other activities such as windsurfing and skiing,
while available in many different locations, seems to be very
popular along the mainland Gulf of Suez Zone. At various
locations on just about all of the beaches there are other
water sports available, such as sail boat rentals and
parasailing.
See Also:
General Travel
Tour Specific
Specific Activities
