El-Gouna
Encyclopedia
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
in the Red Sea Governorate of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, 22 km north of Hurghada
Hurghada
Hurghada is a city in the Red Sea Governorate of Egypt. It is a main tourist center and second largest city in Egypt located on the Red Sea coast.- Overview :...
International Airport
Hurghada International Airport
Hurghada International Airport is an international airport located in Hurghada, Egypt.The airport is located inland, southwest of El Dahar .In 2009 the airport handled 6,730,087 passengers .-Terminal:...
.
El Gouna specializes in watersports, including scuba diving, windsurfing
Windsurfing
Windsurfing or sailboarding is a surface water sport that combines elements of surfing and sailing. It consists of a board usually two to four metres long, powered by the orthogonal effect of the wind on a sail. The rig is connected to the board by a free-rotating universal joint and comprises a...
, kitesurfing
Kitesurfing
Kitesurfing or Kiteboarding is an adventure surface water sport that has been described as combining wakeboarding, windsurfing, surfing, paragliding, and gymnastics into one extreme sport. Kitesurfing harnesses the power of the wind to propel a rider across the water on a small surfboard or a...
, waterskiing, parasailing
Parasailing
Parasailing, also known as parascending, or "parakiting" is a recreational kiting activity where a person is towed behind a vehicle while attached to a specially designed canopy wing that reminds one of a parachute, known as a parasail wing...
and snorkelling. There are two main beaches, Zeytuna Beach located on its own island and Mangroovy Beach. A network of canals allow many houses to have their own strip of beach, even hundreds of metres inland. Most of these canals are crossed by small stone bridges.
There are three centralized areas in El Gouna, housing shops, bars and restaurants: Downtown, Tamr Henna square and the Abu Tig Marina.
There are 18 hotels (some of which were designed by the American architect Michael Graves
Michael Graves
Michael Graves is an American architect. Identified as one of The New York Five, Graves has become a household name with his designs for domestic products sold at Target stores in the United States....
) with 2,895 rooms rated from one star to five stars; a six-star hotel is currently under development next to the Abu Tig Marina Extension.
El Gouna hosts a golf course designed by Gene Bates and Fred Couples
Fred Couples
Frederick Steven Couples is an American professional golfer who competes on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. A former World No. 1, he has won numerous events, most notably the 1992 Masters Tournament. In August 2011 he won his maiden senior major at the Senior Players Championship...
. A second golf course real estate project, Ancient Sands Golf Resort, designed by acclaimed golf course architect Karl Litten, is due to open in 2012.
El Gouna has a fully equipped hospital that can handle many medical treatments including dentistry, plastic surgery, pediatrics, ophthalmology and general surgery. It also features an intensive care unit and a decompression chamber in case of diving accidents. The town hosts the El Gouna International School, an Environmental Geographic Information System and a small private airport for charter aircraft. There are also three marinas: Abydos marina, the Abu Tig Marina and the Abu Tig Marina Extension, currently in its last phase of construction, which can receive super yachts.
The town also houses a small museum with some 90 exhibits (including statue replicas and an exhibition hall of contemporary Egyptian paintings by Hussein Bikar
Hussein Bikar
Hussein Amin Bikar , is one of the most famous Egyptian portrait painters. His career, however, spanned a number of disciplines, notably caricature, teaching, journalism and art criticism....
) which opened in 1996.
Other attractions/activities around town include a small aquarium, a go-kart track, a paintball arena, tennis courts, horse stables and a football stadium. The local football team El Gouna FC
El Gouna FC
El Gouna FC is an Egyptian football club based in El-Gouna, Egypt. The club currently plays in the Egyptian Premier League after having been promoted from the Second Division in 2008/09....
currently (as of 2010) plays in the Egyptian Premier League
Egyptian Premier League
The Egyptian Premier League is an Egyptian professional league for football clubs and represents the top flight of Egyptian football. The championship consists of nineteen competing teams in a home and away league system. It is currently known as the Etisalat Egyptian Premier League, after the...
. It also has a Coptic Church, the Church of St. Mary and the Archangels.