Marsa Alam

Marsa Alam (Arabic :مرسى علم, Marsā ʿAlam) is a resort town on the Red Sea Coast of Egypt.

Understand
The development of Marsa Alam began in 1995. Due to its crystal clear waters and its white sandy beaches, it is known as the "Egyptian Maldives". In 2021, 9,000 residents lived in the town.

Get in
Marsā ʿAlam is on the Egyptian or African coast of the Red Sea, about 275 km south of Hurghada and 215 km south of Safāgā. The town sits at the intersection of Coastal Highway 24 and the road to Edfu.

By car
The trunk road 24 runs directly through the city. The hotels are also close to this road. North of Marsā ʿAlam, the river branches off to the west Highway 212 to Edfu, the Edfu–Marsa Alam Road (Arabic :طريق إدفو مرسى علم, Ṭarīq Idfū Marsā ʿAlam).

By bus
The bus station is in the northwest of town. Buses run five times a day between Cairo via El Quseir and Hurghada, twice in the morning to Edfu, and twice a day to Shalateen.
 * The connection from Cairo from Orabco starts and ends in the main street. The bus departs from Marsā ʿAlam at 18:00. Tickets are available from High Bus Transport Co. ,هاي باص, Tel. +20 106 930 8125, +20 121 212 9949.
 * The connection from Cairo from Orabco starts and ends in the main street. The bus departs from Marsā ʿAlam at 18:00. Tickets are available from High Bus Transport Co. ,هاي باص, Tel. +20 106 930 8125, +20 121 212 9949.

Service taxis also run to Hurghada, Edfu and Esh-Shalātīn. The stop is next to the bus station.

By plane
is serviced seasonally by Condor Airlines from Germany, by many charter airlines. It is 60 km northwest of Marsa Alam near Port Ghālib.

Get around
Due to the town's small size, almost everything can be reached on foot.

See
Apart from the mosques and the local market, there are no sights in the town.

Water sports
As in other Red Sea resorts, the main activities are of course swimming, diving, snorkeling and kiting. Other water sports activities such as banana boat rides are also available.

Swimming
Almost everywhere there are reefs off the coast of the Red Sea that have to be overcome before you can swim. In many cases, footbridges have been created for this purpose. Avoid entering the coral reefs to protect them. In any case, you need suitable footwear to avoid injury. Many hotels are located near bays. At the western end of these bays there are sandy beaches without offshore reefs. These bays slope slowly and can ultimately reach a depth of 20 meters.

Diving and snorkeling
There are some reefs where dolphins can be found, or bays where turtles, manatees and dugongs can be observed. Coral reefs that are still largely intact can be found along the entire coast. Yachts are not allowed to enter bays with manatees so as not to injure these manatees with the ship's propeller.

Kite surfing
The Wadi Lahami Lagoon (near Ḥamāṭa), 140 km south of Marsa Alam, is suitable for kite surfing in addition to diving.

Go next

 * Port Ghalib
 * Hurghada