El Gouna

El Gouna (الجونة) is a self-sufficient, fully integrated resort town of 24,000 on the Egyptian Red Sea Coast just north of Hurghada. The town offers a large variety of activities and entertainment and is a popular destination around the year.

Understand
Resorts in Egypt, both on the Mediterranean and Red Sea, are usually a bunch of hotels on a previously uninhabited piece of coastline. El Gouna was built with a different mindset; a real town with inhabitants and "free standing" restaurants, bars, night clubs and shops as well as a marina for yachts. The same concept was used for Marina el-Alamein on the Mediterranean, Taba Heights on the Sinai east coast and Port Ghalib.

The construction of El Gouna (the name translates to "the bay" or "the lagoon") on the site of the village of Kafr el-Gūna began in 1989 with work on the Tamr Henna Palace. The town stretches for about 5 km along the coast and 2 km inland. It's set up like a Mediterranean lagoon landscape with several islands connected to each other by bridges. The buildings are a mix of both modern and traditional architecture and in addition to hotels, there are also holiday homes and housing for the around 10,000 employees of the resorts. Also Italian, French and American architects and engineers have been involved in the project.

Today 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.

There are three main areas with shops, bars and restaurants: also including El Balad and Kafr el-Gouna,  just north of the former, across a bridge and the  much further north. The largest public beaches are Mangroovy Beach, Marina Beach, Buzzha Beach and Zeytouna Beach.

Climate
Temperatures are mild or warm throughout the year. Autumn and spring are the best times to visit; summer is scorchingly hot and during the winter there strong winds are common.

By plane
El Gouna is 35 km north of which handles flights from many destinations in Europe, and some destinations in the former CIS and Middle East. If your nationality entitles you to get a visa on arrival, there's a counter before the passport control to get it; you buy it yourself to save the commission that travel agents charge for the service. From the airport it takes about 25 minutes by car (rental car or taxi) to El Gouna. Shuttle buses to El Gouna depart the airport every half hour.

The smaller is open to private aviation.

By bus
A bus ride from Cairo takes about six hours, from Hurghada about 30 minutes. Buses and share taxis between Cairo and Hurghada stop at a west of town. There are about a dozen of these in each direction per day. For buses, you need to book tickets beforehand. GoBus has up to nine daily departures between Cairo and El Gouna.

By car
From Cairo, drive to Ain Sokhna and south along the coast. The distance is 440 km. You need to show your driver's permit and have your vehicle examined at the entry checkpoint. Vehicles entering and leaving will need to scan their QR code.

By boat
El Gouna has three marinas ( extended in 2009, and the  ). Abu Tig has 224 berths for yachts with a maximum length of 45 m and depth of 12 m. In the extension part there's space for yachts with a length of up to 60 m. Facilities include electricity and water supply, phone, cable tv, Wi-Fi and emptying of toilets.

To arrive by your own craft you will need, in addition to passport and visa, a departure document from the former port, a valid VHF radio license, a crew list (name, birth date, passport number) and registration and insurance documents for the vessel.

Get around
There are various transport options available within the resort.

By bus
Regular shuttle buses run around the town, until as late as 2:00 in the night. Check the local bus timetables for buses that stop in front of your hotel. Tickets (day and week) are sold at hotel reception desks or you can buy them from the driver.

By tuktuk
These can be flagged down on the street and often have a flat fare for up to three passengers to any destination in El Gouna. Sometimes they accept payment in euros.

By taxi or car
You can request to reserve a taxi from your hotel. Cars can be rented with (effectively a long-term taxi, El Gouna Limousine Service is one company offering this option) or without a driver. There are also so-called water taxis plying the canals.

By foot
The roads are very quiet and have pavements for pedestrians to walk along safely.

See
El Gouna does have a few things to see, eventhough the vast majority of what the town has to offer falls in the Do category.



Do
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.



Beaches
There are five beaches not part of a resort hotel, these are listed below from north to south. In addition Labranda Club Paradisio El Gouna and El Gouna Mövenpick Resort & Spa have their own beaches.



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.

Many beaches are lagoons separated from the sea with steeply falling reefs. Just outside the reefs there are good areas for diving, and this is where many diving tours will head. These reefs alone have about 50 diving areas. The waters around Tawila Island, 16 km to the north has a couple of wrecks, a large number of different corals and rich sea fauna. One of the wrecks is the British freight ship Rosalie Moller, sunk in 1941 by German bomber planes. It's at a depth of 50 meters, and is not suitable for beginners.

All diving operators have diving courses for different experience levels: for beginners and for experienced divers who want to learn more (wreck diving, diving with a rebreather etc.). The courses follow the programs of international organizations like PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors).

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.

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. In addition 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.

Windsurfing, kitesurfing and wakeboarding


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.

The Sports and Fun Aqua Centres offer windsurfing and other aqua sport activities. The centres operate from Mangroovy Beach, the Steigenberger, and Rihana resorts.







Land sports
The resort’s 18-hole championship golf course at the Steigenberger Golf Resort 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.


 * In addition to the tennis club, several hotels have their own tennis and squash courts.

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.





Safaris and land tours
If you prefer to see the town by tour, there are many operators, check at your hotel. Some options include touring the coast and canals by boat, the streets by Segway or seeing the town from the air. You can also 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. Operators include:





Boat tours

 * 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.
 * 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.
 * 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.



Festivals
There are three dance and live music festivals taking place weekly or even twice a week, meaning almost every day there's such an event. The Marina Street Festival takes place in Abu Tig Marina each Friday at 20:00. On Thursdays and Sundays at 21:30, there's the Tamr Henna Square Event, and on Thursdays and Saturdays at 20:00 the Kafr El Gouna Party.

The El Gouna Film Festival has apparently been on hold because of the corona pandemic; the next event is scheduled for 13-20 October 2023.

Wellness
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.

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. There are also two shopping centres: and.

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. Shops are usually open from 9:00 to 18:00, and prices are mostly not posted.

Food
Grocery stores for self-catering:



Souvenirs
Some of the many shops:



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.

Restaurants


The restaurants listed above usually also have cheaper alternatives on the menu like sandwiches, salads, soups and pasta.



Drink
Music and dance events on Wednesday and Sunday nights on Mangroovy Beach. On Friday nights in Moods (Marina Beach) or in DuPort (TTC Ocean View).

Some resort hotels have bars and restaurants often serve alcohol (in addition to non-alcoholic drinks).

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. As a resort for package tourism, it's easiest to book your lodging beforehand through a tour operator or on the hotel's website rather than walking in when you're in El Gouna. Often lodging is offered as a package with activities.

Budget
Truly barebones hotels, hostels and the like don't exist here, the cheapest correspond to three-star, ie. mid-range hotels when it comes to amenities in the rooms and overall in the hotel.



Mid-range




Splurge




Holiday homes
There are also holiday homes for rent, bookable through travel agencies or dedicated websites.

Post
There's a post office on Tamr Henna square, open daily except Friday from 9:00 to 14:00.

Phone and Internet
There's both a landline and mobile network; Vodafone and Etisalat offers 4G coverage, Orange 4G coverage inland but 3G in the resort. Calls within the city are free of charge when calling through the landline network - these are the five digit numbers in the listings above marked "ext".

Hotels usually have Wi-Fi, it tends to be free in public areas but payable in the rooms.

Banking
Many hotels have banks or ATMs. Banks are usually open on forenoon and midday every day except Friday.



Stay safe


A purpose-built resort, inhabited only by tourists and resort staff and patrolled by private security, El Gouna is a safe destination even for lone female voyagers. You can dress like you would in a Western country, and even Egyptian tourists do that.

Police and tourist police are based in Hurghada.

Stay healthy
The town has an international standard hospital providing 24-hour emergency care. Moreover, many hotels have either a resident doctor or a contract with a doctor that will come there when needed.

Go next

 * The nearest destination to head next is the larger resort of, about 30 minutes southeast by road.
 * , a ghost city, formerly a center for phosphate mining, 20 km south of Safāgā.
 * , famous for its citadel, built by the orders of Ottoman sultan Selim I.
 * and, old Roman quarries.
 * The desert monasteries of and.

Tour operators offer trips to these and also to for instance Cairo or Luxor.