What's on in Hurghada (Red Sea), Egypt through the year

Peak crowds — European winter season, Mid-year holiday in Egypt

• Holiday

  Ramadan

  19 Feb – 19 MarClosures

  The hotel strip runs unchanged; the town behind it keeps the fast, so the shops in El Dahar work evening hours and the traffic peaks in the hour before sunset. Source ↗

Still on: European winter season (15 Dec – 15 Mar (usually))

Peak crowds — Ramadan, European winter season

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Ramadan (19 Feb – 19 Mar), European winter season (15 Dec – 15 Mar (usually))

Peak crowds — Ramadan, Eid al-Fitr

• Holiday

  Eid al-Fitr

  20–23 MarRamadan & EidCrowded

  Egyptian families take the whole coast for four or five days and the day-boat trips sell out. Rates jump for the holiday and settle again the week after. Source ↗

• Season

  The kite and windsurf season

  15 Mar – 15 Oct · usuallyWind season

  The northerly runs down the coast most afternoons from spring to autumn and the flat water south of town is the reason half the visitors are here. Dive boats go out early instead.

Still on: Ramadan (19 Feb – 19 Mar), European winter season (15 Dec – 15 Mar (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Eid al-Fitr (20–23 Mar), The kite and windsurf season (15 Mar – 15 Oct (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Season

  Sea warm enough to swim

  1 May – 30 Nov · usually

  Warm enough for a shorty or nothing from May into November. January to March still dives well but a proper wetsuit stops being optional.

Still on: The kite and windsurf season (15 Mar – 15 Oct (usually))

Busy — Summer holidays in Egypt, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  The desert summer

  15 Jun – 10 Sep · usuallyExtreme heat

  A hot wind and nothing to shade it, and the excursions inland to Luxor become a genuinely bad idea. The sea is the only comfortable place to be between eleven and four.

Still on: The kite and windsurf season (15 Mar – 15 Oct (usually)), Sea warm enough to swim (1 May – 30 Nov (usually))

Busy — Summer holidays in Egypt, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: The kite and windsurf season (15 Mar – 15 Oct (usually)), Sea warm enough to swim (1 May – 30 Nov (usually)), The desert summer (15 Jun – 10 Sep (usually))

Busy — Summer holidays in Egypt, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: The kite and windsurf season (15 Mar – 15 Oct (usually)), Sea warm enough to swim (1 May – 30 Nov (usually)), The desert summer (15 Jun – 10 Sep (usually))

Busy — Summer holidays in Egypt, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: The kite and windsurf season (15 Mar – 15 Oct (usually)), Sea warm enough to swim (1 May – 30 Nov (usually)), The desert summer (15 Jun – 10 Sep (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: The kite and windsurf season (15 Mar – 15 Oct (usually)), Sea warm enough to swim (1 May – 30 Nov (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in November.

Still on: Sea warm enough to swim (1 May – 30 Nov (usually))

Busy — European winter season, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  European winter season

  15 Dec – 15 Mar · usuallySchool holidaysCrowdedBook early

  Charter flights from northern Europe fill the strip through the Christmas fortnight and the February half-terms. The hotels are at their busiest when the water is at its coolest.