Egypt vacation in Hurghada: best holiday plans

Egypt vacation in Hurghada: best holiday plans

Egypt vacation in Hurghada: best holiday plans

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Edera Slipenschi

An Egypt vacation is about four hours' flight from Bucharest, and in the middle of winter you can be swimming in the sea. We've sent a lot of Romanians to Hurghada over the years, and they've told us what worked and what didn't. What follows is roughly what we'd tell a friend over coffee: when to go, how to avoid the wrong hotel, which trips are worth the early alarm and where to look for good Egypt holiday packages.

How Hurghada Red Sea Egypt went from fishing nets to nightlife

Some of our older clients still remember Hurghada as a few fishing boats and a handful of low hotels by the water. Today the town runs for kilometres along the coast, and first timers usually ask us why they waited so long to come. Honeymooners vanish into the quiet bays. Friends spend their nights around the Marina and their days on boats. Parents tend to go for Hurghada holidays all inclusive, and after one week of buffets and a kids' club, few of them want to go back to paying for every meal. So what makes a good Egypt vacation here? Sunshine you can count on, fresh fish at lunch and a waiter who knows how you take your coffee by day three.

Red Sea Egypt Hurghada in January

This is the part that sells Hurghada to most of our clients. In January you get around 22 to 25 degrees during the day, which is why our winter Egypt vacation packages fill up so fast. Evenings get cool, so bring a light jacket. Our own favourite months are April and October: warm but not scorching, with the sea at its best. July and August go past 35 degrees. The breeze off the water helps, and with Egypt all inclusive holidays you can simply hide by the pool at noon.

Why stars can lie at Egypt all inclusive resorts

We've seen five star hotels with peeling paint and four star ones where guests didn't want to leave on the last day. Stars matter less than you'd think. Red Sea Egypt Hurghada has a bit of everything: giant resorts with water slides and a dozen pools, small boutique places, and cheap hotels where you get a clean room and a short walk to the sand. We choose ours by reading recent reviews and, above all, by listening to clients who came back. People often ask about big local names like Sunrise Hurghada, and we'll tell you straight how they compare with the other hotels in Egypt we work with.

What you really get at Hurghada all inclusive resorts

You pay once, when you book, and then you stop thinking about money. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks between meals, local beer and wine, soft drinks: all in. If you're planning an all inclusive Egypt vacation with kids, this is the obvious choice, trust us. A few things usually cost extra: imported spirits, a proper espresso and the à la carte restaurant, the one where you order from a menu instead of going to the buffet. For all all inclusive resorts in Hurghada Egypt we offer, we spell out what's covered before you pay.

Is ultra worth it on Egypt all inclusive packages?

Ultra usually adds imported drinks, room service, a minibar refilled every day and a couple of free dinners at the themed restaurants. If you like a cocktail by the pool at four in the afternoon, it pays for itself. If you'll be out on boats and in the desert most days, you'll barely notice it. Plenty of people browsing Egypt all inclusive holidays panic when they see ultra prices. Don't. At most Egypt all inclusive resorts the standard plan is more than enough, and we'll happily show you both prices side by side.

Town & bay: best spots on the Hurghada Egypt Red Sea coast

Hurghada isn't one place, and that's usually the first thing we explain on the phone. Want to walk out of the hotel and sit down at a café two minutes later? Stay downtown, near Sakkala or the Marina. Rather hear the waves than the traffic? Head 30 km south to Makadi Bay, where most of the Egypt Red Sea resorts Hurghada parents ask us about are. Sahl Hasheesh is the newest part, with a seafront promenade that's lovely at sunset. Tell us your perfect day, and we'll find the right beach for your Egypt vacation. Before anyone books, we go through this short checklist together:

  • How far the beach really is, and whether there's a pontoon, a wooden jetty that takes you over the reef into deeper water.
  • What your Egypt travel packages actually include, especially drinks and restaurants.
  • Kids' club, a pool heated in winter, water slides: if you're travelling with children, ask about all three.
  • Reviews from this year, not from 2019.
  • The airport transfer, included with every Egypt tour package with flight in our offers section.

Egypt travel tours for when the sunbed gets boring

Lying by the sea is great for about three days. After that, most people start looking for something else, and Hurghada is a good base for it: you're a day trip away from temples that are thousands of years old. On a week long Egypt vacation you can fit in two or three trips and still come home rested. We only book with licensed guides and local agencies we've checked ourselves, because a cheap tour isn't worth it if the jeep has bald tyres. These are the trips our guests keep talking about when they get back from their hotels in Hurghada Egypt:

  • Giftun Island and Orange Bay: white sand, very clear water and snorkelling, meaning swimming with a mask and breathing tube over the corals. It's in most of our Egypt holiday packages for a reason.
  • A desert safari by quad bike or jeep, ending with the sunset and dinner in a Bedouin camp.
  • A semi submarine or glass bottom boat, perfect if the kids aren't strong swimmers yet.
  • An afternoon in El Dahar, the old town: the bazaar, the smell of spices, a glass of cold hibiscus tea.
  • A first dive with an instructor. Plenty of our clients say it was the best hour of their all inclusive Egypt vacation.

Day trips that complete your Egypt tour holidays

If you want more than the sea, Egypt offers experiences you will not find anywhere else. Organised trips leave Hurghada every day for Luxor, Cairo or El Gouna, the lagoon resort nicknamed the Venice of the Red Sea. Our advice for any stay of at least seven nights is to choose at least one cultural trip, which is why our all inclusive Egypt tour packages can include them. We book them for you in advance, so you don't waste time haggling on the spot, at the same fair prices listed in our Egypt tour packages.

Luxor is the day your Egypt vacation becomes a history lesson

Luxor is, practically, an open air museum. Here you see the Valley of the Kings, where the pharaohs were buried, Karnak Temple with its giant columns and the temple of Queen Hatshepsut, set against a wall of rock. The drive takes about four hours each way, so you leave early, but every minute is worth it. Even clients who thought Egypt tour holidays meant only the beach come back from Luxor amazed. For us, this day is what separates ordinary trips from the best Egypt travel packages.

Egypt offers: when to book so you pay less

Prices vary a lot depending on when you book and when you travel. School holidays, Christmas and Easter are the most expensive, while shoulder months such as May or early December, meaning the quieter periods between high and low season, are kinder to your budget. If you know your dates early, choose early booking, meaning a reservation made months ahead with solid discounts. We monitor hotel rates and charter flights daily, charter flights being direct flights hired especially for tourists, to offer you Egypt vacation packages at the right price. Even five star Hurghada all inclusive resorts can become surprisingly affordable.

Cheap all inclusive holidays to Egypt for spontaneous travellers

Last minute means seats and rooms still free a few days or weeks before departure, which hotels and airlines prefer to sell cheaper rather than leave empty. If your schedule is flexible and your bag is always half packed, you can catch an Egypt vacation at a very good price. The only compromise: the choice is smaller, and the most popular rooms go first. Keep an eye on the offers section on sejuregipt.ro, where we publish every discounted deal at hotels in Hurghada Egypt as soon as it appears.

Your Egypt vacation without surprises: documents, money and practical tips

Good news: preparing for Egypt is simple. You need a passport valid for at least six months from the date you enter the country, as your national ID card is not enough. The tourist visa can be obtained at Hurghada airport on arrival, or online before departure, and costs around 25 dollars, according to the rules in force at the time of writing. If you book any of our Egypt travel packages, we send you a guide with every step before departure. That way, your Hurghada Red Sea Egypt trip starts relaxed from the moment you board, with no surprises at the counter.

Tips, haggling and dress code on Egypt travel tours

Egypt runs on the Egyptian pound, but in the resort areas euros and dollars work almost everywhere. Keep a stash of small notes anyway. Baksheesh, the small tip you leave for the cleaner, the waiter or the guy who carries your bags, is simply part of life here, even on Egypt all inclusive holidays. At the bazaar, the first price is an opening line, so smile and make a counteroffer. Outside the resort, cover your shoulders, especially near mosques. Do that, and the staff at our Hurghada all inclusive resorts will treat you like family.

Why clients come back to us for Egypt travel packages

We didn't pick Egypt out of a catalogue. We've been there ourselves: eaten in the restaurants, walked the beaches, haggled with taxi drivers. So when we recommend something, it's because we'd book it for our own holiday. Our list of the best hotels in Egypt is short on purpose: if a place starts collecting bad reviews, it's out. The price you see is the price you pay, with no fees popping up at checkout, and someone who speaks Romanian is always on the other end of the phone, before you fly and while you're there. Honeymoon, a loud week with friends or a quiet one with the kids? Browse the Egypt offers on sejuregipt.ro or just give us a call. You pack, we handle the rest.

FAQ

  1. When should I plan my Egypt vacation in Hurghada?
    April, May, October and November, if you ask us: warm, not scorching, with a sea that's perfect for swimming. In winter, Egypt all inclusive holidays still bring you 22 to 25 degrees during the day.
  2. Do I need a visa for Egypt travel tours from Hurghada?
    Yes. Romanians need a tourist visa, available at the airport on arrival or online beforehand. For any Egypt tour package with flight, your passport must be valid for at least six more months.
  3. Are all inclusive resorts in Hurghada Egypt a good idea with kids?
    Honestly, yes. You pay once and stop counting every ice cream and juice. Many hotels in Hurghada Egypt have kids' clubs, water slides and children's menus, so the parents actually get some rest too.
  4. How do I find good last minute Egypt offers?
    Check the offers section on sejuregipt.ro regularly and stay flexible with your departure date. Cheap all inclusive holidays to Egypt sell quickly, so a good discounted room rarely waits for long.
  5. How many days are ideal for Egypt vacation packages in Hurghada?
    We recommend at least seven nights, enough for the beach, snorkelling and one or two trips. To see Luxor or Cairo without rushing, all inclusive Egypt tour packages of ten nights are the ideal choice.

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