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Kitesurfing at El GounaMaarten Visser, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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Egypt

Egypt's 16 spots split along the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez.

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South Sinai carries Dahab, a scruffy backpacker-diver town built around the Blue Lagoon, and Ras Sudr, the Cairo weekend fix riding a strip of independent beach camps outside an unglamorous service town.

The mainland Red Sea coast runs from El Gouna's manicured lagoon system through low-cost, sprawling Hurghada to gated, five-star Soma Bay, quieter Safaga, and finally Wadi Lahami near Marsa Alam, a rider-capped camp 180km south with near-guaranteed wind and nothing else around.

Season runs roughly March through November; pick the town by budget and polish, not by wind.

Seasonevery monthsomewhere in the country
How we count
Beginners
where a spot record says a beginner can ride; the Beginners page also asks for a school there, so it lists fewer
Best forBeginners7Flat water4Foiling4Waves3

When to go

month by month, from the towns' own wind series

  1. Jan71
  2. Feb82
  3. Mar63
  4. Apr65
  5. May82
  6. Jun92
  7. Jul73
  8. Aug84
  9. Sep95
  10. Oct85
  11. Nov80
  12. Dec61

The windiest town in season each month: its share of windy days

Windiest single town in any month: Marsa Alam, 95% of days in September, from the Marsa Alam North Channel series.

How this is modelled

A weather model's cell over this place, not a station on it. Good for comparing places, weaker for one beach.

Which place is yours

Grouped by region, the most spots first

How this list is ordered

The places are in the order of how many spots each place holds. None of them carries a wind score: the atlas scores wind reliability one spot at a time, against a named weather station and the distance to it, and a place that groups several spots has no single station to stand behind one number.For wind by month, see When to go above.

Red Sea

Hurghada Established4 spots · 11 schools · March to Octoberlagoon flat water choppy waves beginner-friendly buzzing scene car needed gear rental budget to mid El Gouna Established3 spots · 4 schools · March to November 35 min from the airportlagoon flat water choppy beginner-friendly buzzing scene car helps gear rental mid to high Soma Bay Established2 spots · 8 schools · April to October 45 min from the airportflat water beginner-friendly buzzing scene no car needed gear rental expensive Marsa Alam Local favourite2 spots · 3 schools · every monthchoppy waves beginner-friendly quiet no car needed gear rental mid-range Safaga Established1 spot · 3 schools · March to Novemberbeginner-friendly quiet car needed gear rental budget

South Sinai

Dahab Established3 spots · 6 schools · March to November 75 min from the airportlagoon flat water beginner-friendly buzzing scene no car needed gear rental budget Ras Sudr Established1 spot · 7 schools · March to November 5 hours from the airportbeginner-friendly buzzing scene car needed gear rental budget

By region

The country's regions, the most spots first

Red Sea12 spots · 5 placesSouth Sinai4 spots · 2 places

Best for

Pages that pick the places in Egypt for one kind of riding

Beginners in Egypt7 placesFlat water in Egypt4 placesFoiling in Egypt4 placesWaves in Egypt3 places

Destinations

All 7 places, by name

Every place in the lists above, by name only, in the order the country guide keeps them.

DahabEl GounaHurghadaMarsa AlamRas SudrSafagaSoma Bay

Visa & entry

EU passportE-visa $30 single-entry / $65 multi-entry, or visa-on-arrival $30 single-entry cash-only at approved airports; since 1 August 2026 a digital visa-on-arrival at Cairo airport costs $36 including a $6 digital service fee (2026 prices, raised 1 March 2026).
US passportSame as EU: e-visa $30/$65, or visa-on-arrival $30 cash-only; since 1 August 2026 a digital visa-on-arrival at Cairo airport costs $36 including a $6 digital service fee, 2026 prices.
UK passportSame as EU: e-visa $30/$65, or visa-on-arrival $30 cash-only; since 1 August 2026 a digital visa-on-arrival at Cairo airport costs $36 including a $6 digital service fee, 2026 prices.
NotesE-visa only via the official portal visa2egypt.gov.eg; third-party sites charge markups. Visa on arrival at Cairo, Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh and other international airports for citizens of 45+ countries including the US, UK and EU.A Sinai-only stamp (free, ~15 days, covers Sharm, Dahab and Ras Sudr but not Hurghada or the Red Sea mainland) exists via some land and air entry points, unconfirmed for 2026.

Money

CurrencyEgyptian Pound (EGP/LE)
Card acceptanceUneven; Visa/Mastercard widely accepted at upscale hotels, resorts, fine dining and tour bookings. Amex acceptance patchy. Cash (EGP) required for souks, street food, small shops, taxis, and all tipping. Kite camps/centers vary - many take cards, some cash-only.
ATMs and feesMost Egyptian ATMs charge a local withdrawal fee of roughly 50-100 EGP per transaction (2026), on top of the traveller's home-bank foreign transaction fee. Per-network limits are unconfirmed.
Paying by phoneInstaPay - domestic bank-to-bank transfer app using phone number/QR, run by the Central Bank of Egypt's national payment scheme. Requires an Egyptian bank account and Egyptian mobile number to register, so not usable by short-term foreign tourists in practice.
Scams
  • Currency exchange shortchanging: counterfeit bills, short counts (200-500 EGP), or bait-and-switch exchange rates - use only banks or licensed 'sarraf' offices with visible signage and receipts
  • Unofficial 'tour guides' and camel/taxi touts inflating prices at tourist sites
  • Overcharging tourists at unmetered taxis - agree fare or use ride-hailing apps
TippingExpected everywhere (called 'baksheesh') - restaurants, drivers, hotel staff, kite instructors, dive/kite center support staff. Not optional in practice; often the main income component for service workers.
Cash tipsAlways tip in EGP cash, not foreign currency.

SIM & internet

Operators, best coast coverage first
  • Vodafone Egypt (best overall/rural coverage per multiple guides)
  • Orange Egypt (strong in cities)
  • Etisalat Egypt (WE, cheapest tourist packages)
eSIM options
  • Commercial eSIM resellers (Holafly, Saily, Airalo-type) $9.50-$25.50 for data-only plans, 2026 pricing
  • Local carrier eSIMs from Vodafone/Orange/Etisalat also available
ID needed for a SIMYes - passport required to register a physical tourist SIM at any carrier shop/airport kiosk.
NotesPhysical tourist SIM prices 2026: Vodafone ~100 EGP for the SIM plus ~500 EGP for a 30GB tourist bundle; Orange Holidays 20GB+120min for 200 EGP, Orange Holidays Super 47GB for 450 EGP. Buy at airport arrivals or official stores.

Insurance

Is kiting covered?Kitesurfing is commonly classed as an 'extreme or adventure sport' excluded by default on standard travel policies; unconfirmed for Egypt specifically. Confirm a kite-specific rider before travel.
Healthcare and evacuationPrivate hospitals and clinics are recommended over public ones for tourists (better standard of care); nothing is published on medevac availability from the Red Sea kite spots (El Gouna, Hurghada, Marsa Alam, Ras Sudr, Safaga, Soma Bay, Dahab).

Health

VaccinesRoutine (MMR, Tdap) up to date; Hepatitis A and Typhoid recommended for most travelers; Hepatitis B, rabies, and yellow fever (only if arriving from a yellow-fever country) recommended per risk profile.
Tap waterNot safe to drink - use bottled/boiled water even at high-end Red Sea resorts (Hurghada/Sharm); avoid ice; avoid all contact with Nile/canal fresh water due to schistosomiasis risk (not relevant to Red Sea coast kite spots which are seawater).
Emergency numbers123 (ambulance/emergency medical)
Hospital standardPrivate clinics/hospitals recommended for tourists over public facilities; ask hotel/kite center for referral.

Regulation

Drone rulesEffectively banned for tourists/civilians without Ministry of Defense authorization - no practical permit pathway for visitors. Fines up to 50,000 EGP and possible imprisonment (1-7 years) for unauthorized possession/flight; drones are routinely confiscated by customs at Cairo, Hurghada and other airports via X-ray screening. Recommendation from multiple 2026 sources: do not bring a drone to Egypt.

Calendar & costs

CurrencyEGPSee Money
Year2026

Kite bag rules for your airline

Flying into Egypt

Type the carrier you are flying: what it charges for a kite bag, and the year of the policy that says so.

Checked so far for Egypt:EgyptAir

Every carrier, with limits and what riders report at the counter →

Where records disagree

  • Egypt visa-on-arrival vs e-visa fee both reported at $30 single-entry for 2026, but multiple aggregator sites (iVisa, tour operator blogs) disagree slightly on the exact date of the fee increase (some say 1 March 2026, others just 'April 2026') and whether $30 is inclusive of all service fees - treat $30 as the government fee baseline.

Still being checked

We have not verified these yet — tell us if you know.

Show the 5 open questions
  • Is a free Sinai-only entry stamp (covering Dahab/Ras Sudr but not mainland Red Sea kite spots) still issued in 2026, and at which ports?
  • Egypt digital nomad visa - does one exist as of 2026, and tax residency day threshold?
  • Medevac/evacuation logistics from Red Sea kite spots (nearest trauma-capable hospital for each of El Gouna/Hurghada/Marsa Alam/Ras Sudr/Safaga/Soma Bay/Dahab)
  • Mosquito-borne disease season (dengue/malaria risk windows) for the Red Sea coast
  • What do a beer, a meal, a coffee and a month's rent cost in Egypt?

Not written yet

Nothing has been written about Driving for Egypt yet, so there is no section for it above. That is a gap in what we hold, not a sign that there is nothing to know.

Last updated September 2026