Diving around Hurghada
The Red Sea around Hurghada is
rich in coral reefs and marine life and there are plenty of dive sites to chose
from. From the hors shoe shaped reef system Shaab El Erg with the famous
"Dolphin Hose" via sheer walls of Um Gammar and Shaab Ruhr, the semi tame moray
eels on Carless, the spectacular coral gardens around Abu Nugar and Abu Galawa,
the frogfishes on El Fanadeer, the walls and pinnacles of marine park Giftun
Islands and Abu Ramada, the nice and shallow reefs around Magawish Islands all
the way down to El Desha and Abu Hashish. The variation is unbeatable and
suitable to any level of experience.
Click here to see:
Hurghada
Dive Site Maps
And for non divers?
But what to do if you don't dive?
Have no fear; bring the non-diving spouse, sibling or granny. There is plenty to
do on land as well.
Getting around in Hurghada
Hurghada is almost 45km long but only a fraction of that wide so to move around
can be time consuming. As long as you chose one part per day, like El Dahar,
Segalla or the new touristy area in the south around Esplanada Mall you
can pretty much walk around but to get from one part to another you need to use
some sort of transportation. Basically there are three ways to do this. Bus,
taxi or limo. Your hotel will have its own limo-service which is easy to use but
way more expensive than anything else (unless you get a Harrier Jump Jet)
Taxi
Cheaper
then to walk outside the hotel area (taxis from outside are normally not allowed
in) and get one of the plentiful taxis. These are orange and dark blue and a
fairly new addition (2006) to the public transportation system in Hurghada. They
are supposed to drive on taximeter but it's worth to remember that the
government decided the fair one day and the next raised the price on fuel with
140%... It's a good thing to ad some on what the metre says to be fair to the
driver. Normally you'd pay LE5 within a zoon and LE10 from one to another. This
is per car... Not per person!
Yalla busses
If you
want to get around even cheaper you can get into a "Yalla-bus" and travel around
the Good old Egyptian way. Here you pay 25 piaster/head for short distances,
like a few blocks, 50 piaster/head within a zoon and LE1 to LE1:50 from one
zoon to another. These travel a preset rout but you can hire the whole vehicle
for about the same price as a taxi and then of course you decide how you'll go.
This is called mahsous (special).
Note:
These busses are not allowed into the new area from Old Vic to Princes Palace
hotel so if you want to go to the duty free shop, Esplanada Mall, Dutch Bar or
Hard Rock Cafe you'll have to walk the last bit. For bus
prices look
here.
Public transportation
There
are also two official bus lines. The El Gouna transport and The City Bus Hotel
Shuttle. If you get on to one of those they have a "ticket man" that will tell
you how much you should pay.
All
three photos above was taken within 2 minutes and that's about the same time you
would have to wait for transportation in Hurghada... Maximum... There is no
shortage...
 Dress properly!
I see
some people walking around in the streets in less they wear when they go to bed!
You are a guest in a Muslim country. Respect that!
As a rule women should cover
either shoulders or knees. Preferably both but you get away with one out of the
two.
There is no exact rule for men but
follow common sense. At least put a shirt on.
Other ways than diving to kill a day or a night in Hurghada might include:
Off Road Motor Bike
For the more adventures there is a
thrilling experience to be had with Kimmo Hagman in the dessert on a KTM. Check
out Bike Egypt's website
www.bike-egypt.com for more details.
Bowling
There
are two bowling alleys in Hurghada, one behind to Sindbad Resort and one behind
the AKA pyramid (the latter temporary closed at the moment).
You can have a game and a beer
except during Ramadan.
 
Cinema
There are two cinema theatres in
Hurghada. One in Farouk Centre (right picture) and one in Sea Gull Mall (left picture). It's not every week there is a "foreign" movie but now and
then.
Go-cart
There
are two go-cart tracks in Hurghada, one on the airport road just before Magawish
Resort and one in El Gouna. If you're a group it might be a good idea to call
ahead and book the track.
tel:
012 21 77 418
Reversed
bungee
In the
new marina you can do more than dine and wine and dance the night away. You can
also be shot halfway into space with the reversed bungee-thingy.
Kite Surfing
For the
water addicted diver who can't see himself out in the dessert miles away from
the sea there are always kite surfing. There are plenty of schools around and
probably you can get instructions from the beach of your hotel.
Desert Safari
Almost
every tour operator arrange Jeep Safaris into the desert where you get to see a
"beduine village", ride a camel and watch the spectacular dessert-sunset.
Quad
Bike
Drive a
quad bike in the desert and get sand everywhere.
Fun and refreshingly
unsafe.
Horse back riding
There
are plenty of stables in Hurghada where you can either get lessons or take a
horse out for a spin in the dessert or on the beach. You'd never felt more like
movie star...
www.badeya.com
and
www.yallahorses.ch.vu
Reversed bungee in the new marina.
Souvenir Shopping
 If you
want to bring a memorabilia from Egypt the water pipe or shisha is a classic
choice. Depending on the size and model you'll get one for around 50-150LE.
There are about one million shops that sell them so if you have time and
patience you'll make a good deal.
Another popular item to buy and
bring home is a collection of spices. There are pre-packed assortments in every
souvenir shop but you can also find stands, like the one to the right, with
baskets where you botanize and chose your own favourites.
Wining, Dining and misbehaving in Hurghada
Restaurants, bars and pubs in Hurghada
(in
alphabetical order)
The
aziab star-gazers (a secret group of a secret number of secret test pilots) will grade all of the establishments
with one to five divers as shown below.
They will all be
judged
purely on what you get for your money. Every time the star-gazers visit any of
the establishments the grading will also be subject for review.
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