El Gouna is a self-sufficient, fully integrated resort town of 24,000 on the Red Sea coast just north of Hurghada.
El Gouna’s facilities include a landing strip, 3 international standard marinas, universities and schools, an 18-hole championship golf course, 17 hotels, 2 spas, and a state-of-the-art gym. The town has over a hundred restaurants and bars, scuba diving, yachting, fishing, and fully-equipped water sports centers, tennis, squash, padel and horse-back-riding.
Tourist office
- Marketing Office, El Gouna, Tamr Henna, H9 Building, ☏ 20 65 3549 702, fax: 20 65 3549 065, ✉[email protected].
Get in
Located 35 km north of Hurghada International Airport which handles flight from Cairo, Istanbul, and many European cities.
Get around
There are various transport options available within the resort from regular shuttle buses and taxi boats to limousines and tok tok services. The roads are very quiet and have pavements for pedestrians to walk along safely.
You can request to reserve a taxi from your hotel or check the local bus timetables for buses that stop in front of your hotel.
See
El Gouna has a wide variety of sports and recreation facilities. These include leisure pursuits such as horse-riding, camel-riding, go-kart racing, scuba diving, snorkelling and windsurfing.
- Scuba Diving: Almost every hotel has its own scuba dive facility from which you can explore the northern part of the Red Sea. Top attractions are the wrecks of Abu Nuhas or the wrecks of Rosalie Moller behind Tawila Island.
- Tawila Island: A real 'escape to nature' from the resort bustle, this quiet island offers sparkling white sandy beaches and serenity. Located over an hour from El Gouna, travellers might get the chance to watch dolphins jumping in and out of the surf along the way to Tawila Island.
- Galatea Boat: to Gobal Island. Private day trips for diving or fish barbecues are available too.
- Quad Runner: Discover the secrets of the desert with an exhilarating drive through the sand dunes. Early morning and sunset trips are available. Quads are available for a desert safari, a full moon trip, or a visit to the Bedouin camps.
- Lagoon Trip: Tour El Gouna by boat every Wednesday and Saturday morning. Bookings can be made through the Information Centre in Tamr Henna, or at your hotel's reception.
- Zeytouna Beach: Zeytouna Beach is located on its own island surrounded by sea and lagoons. At Zeytouna Beach you can enjoy beach volleyball, snorkelling, football, and dancing lessons. Beach services include towels, drinks and food, bathrooms, and fresh-water showers.
- Mangroovy Beach: Located just north of the Abu Tig Marina, Mangroovy Beach is the Red Sea's best spot for kitesurfing. Windsurfing, snorkelling, beach volleyball or football are also available.
- Flying Dutchman Hydrofoil Submarine: The Flying Dutchman will take you from Abydos Marina to the coral reefs in only 10-15 minutes. Along the way there is a very good chance you will pass dolphins swimming quickly to try and keep up with your boat! The glass bottom of the boat shoes you the underwater world.
- Abu Tig Marina: The first purpose built yacht marina in the Red Sea, Abu Tig houses El Gouna’s most exclusive shopping and dining outlets, hotels and real estate properties. Abu Tig has been the harbour of choice for several international yacht rallies such as the Med-Red, Vasco de Gama, and Blue Water rallies.
Do
- Golf: The resort’s 18-hole championship course offers year-round golfing for players from novices to professionals. The club offers a full range of retail products, rental equipment, driving range facilities, and PGA tuition for players looking to improve their game. Designed by Gene Bates and Fred Couples the course features three different men’s and ladies’ tees, bunkers, lagoons, an aqua driving range and desert rough to challenge players. The aqua driving range can accommodate up to 30 players.
- Kitesurfing: The resort’s five kite centres provide facilities, equipment and training staff with courses for beginners and advanced surfers. El Gouna’s beaches, excellent winds, and all-year sunny weather attract droves of kite surfers regularly, while its shallow waters are suited to beginners learning moves.
- Diving: El Gouna’s nine certified diving centres and easy access to the finest reefs and wrecks in the Red Sea make it a diver’s paradise. Each centre offers a complete range of diving education, including PADI diving certification, from beginner through to professional level. El Gouna’s The Dive Tribe is also a certified National Geographic Diving Centre. The heated pools and calm reefs of El Gouna are ideal for beginners wanting to perfect their skills.
- Junior Diving: Some dive centres offer diving programs and courses tailored for kids, which include PADI Bubble Maker, Discover Scuba Diving, Junior Scuba Diving, and a Junior Open Water Diving and Snorkelling course. Special discounts are available for young children.
- Handicapped Diving: El Gouna offers diving programmes to guests with reduced mobility. Guests are able to complete a standard scuba diver course, with minor adjustments as necessary, depending on the type of disability. All divers must complete a medical questionnaire, and those with a handicap are required to produce a medical certificate stating that they are fit to dive. It is advisable to get in touch with the dive centre and discuss individual needs in advance. Dive schools with facilities tailored specifically for divers with physical disabilities can be found in Sheraton Miramar, TTC Rihana, and Mövenpick Resort & Spa.
- Spa: Angsana Spa offers two spa locations in El Gouna: at the Mövenpick Resort & Spa and the El Gouna Golf Club. Both have a wide selection of beauty massages, sauna and steam bath treatments for singles and couples. A spa session can be booked in any spa in El Gouna regardless of your hotel of residence. Contact the El Gouna Spa Concierge at your hotel for more information.
- Windsurfing: The Sports and Fun Aqua Centres offer windsurfing and other aqua sport activities. The centres operate from Mangroovy Beach, the Steigenberger, and Rihana resorts.
- Go-Karts: Burn rubber on the popular go-kart circuit, which is located on the road between the Downtown area and the Marina.
- Horseback riding: Ride horses and camels at the Mövenpick Hotel and Zeytouna Beach or go for full service with Arabian cross horses and ponies for children at Yalla Horse Stables.
- Tennis: Enjoy the open air 6 clay courts at the El Gouna Tennis Club. Coach, changing room, racquet rentals, floodlights for summer evening play available.
Buy
Outlets offer a range of goods from practical to ethnic to high fashion. The resort’s many shops are grouped around two distinctive centres: the Downtown area and Abu Tig Marina.
Built in a traditional Egyptian style complete with bustling inner courtyards, winding alleys and a series of brick domes, El Gouna’s Downtown offers a variety of interesting and exotic shopping arcades, bazaars, boutiques and arts and crafts galleries. Courtyard cafes, bars and restaurants are interspersed throughout the vicinity to provide visitors with refreshments during their authentic Egyptian shopping experience.
The Abu Tig Marina has fashionable boutiques at a range of prices. With restaurants, cafes and bars, Abu Tig is a good spot for all-day shopping.
Eat
The resort is home to a variety of excellent cuisine, with over 100 different dining outlets to choose from that offer fine dining options through to casual cuisine, and include a variety of cafes and coffee shops.
The Dine Around Program gives hotel guests opportunity to taste as wide a variety of the resort’s food as possible.
Sleep
El Gouna is host to 17 hotels and resorts. Accommodation options include the convenience of a marina inn, the charm of a downtown boutique hotel and the luxury of a five-star beach resort.
- Movenpick Resort & Spa El Gouna, Main Street, ☏ 20 65 3544501, ✉[email protected]. The Mövenpick Resort & Spa El Gouna is nestled on a peninsula, with its own beachfront. It offers spectacular views of the Red Sea, the tranquil lagoons and the lush gardens. The charming center of El Gouna with its picturesque architecture and numerous attractions is a few minutes away and Hurghada International Airport can be reached in 30 minutes. Doubles from LE 1400.
- Ancient Sands Golf Resort & Residences, Kite Centre Road, ☏ 20 2 24616132, ✉[email protected]. Ancient Sands Resort has over 80 apartment suites and 56 Deluxe hotel rooms. The properties are located atop a hill with views over the Red Sea, golf course and jagged mountains. The apartment suites have kitchens, and private living areas with en suite bathrooms and terraces. The suites range from one to three bedrooms. Daily housekeeping, dedicated reception, wireless internet, and pool service. Doubles from LE 890.
- Arena Inn Hotel, Kafr El Gouna, ☏ 20 2 24616131. Arena Inn Hotel is a mid-sized hotel offering the amenities expected of a Red Sea holiday resort. Built along the saltwater lagoon that separates the island of Kafr El Gouna from the Downtown mainland area, the hotel offers a waterfront setting close to the facilities and services of El Gouna. Cafés, restaurants, supermarkets, shopping galleries, and evening entertainment venues with live music and shows are within walking distance. The hotel's infinity pool overlooks a swimming lagoon bordered by a small sandy beach. Arena Inn guests also have access to the hotel's sea beach on nearby Zeytouna Island, reached by shuttle boat or bus, where snorkeling is available. 144 hotel rooms in three main buildings facing the lagoon on one side and the golf course on the other. Entertainment, a kids playground, and connecting rooms for families. Doubles from LE 440.
Connect
Be safe
- The town has an international standard hospital providing 24-hour emergency care.