Sea Closed or Boat Trip Cancelled? What to Do Instead

Why the sea closes, and how long it lasts

The port authority closes the sea to excursion boats when the wind and the swell make the crossing unsafe. It happens most often between November and April, it is decided in the morning, and it is not negotiable - a captain who says the trip is off is not trying to sell you something else.

Most closures last one or two days. Some last three or four in a bad spell.

The practical consequence is that a few hundred people all lose their plan at 08:00 on the same morning, and by mid-morning everything indoors in Hurghada is busier than usual. Booking something before lunch rather than after it is the whole difference between a good afternoon and a queue.

A plan for the day, by how much time you have

One free hour: a 60-minute full-body massage, EUR 15. The lowest-effort good decision available to you today.

Two hours: the Turkish hammam, EUR 20. Steam, a scrub and foam, and you come out of it feeling like the day was not wasted. This is the closure-day booking guests are happiest with.

A whole afternoon: a hammam followed the next day by a facial, or a head spa and a manicure back to back in one visit. Do not stack a hammam and a facial on the same day - both exfoliate, and skin does not thank you for it.

The entire wet afternoon with a partner: two hammams in the same slot, EUR 20 each.

Getting there when the weather is bad

This is the part that matters on a windy day: pickup and drop-off from your hotel anywhere inside Hurghada is free, so you do not have to negotiate a taxi in the wind or walk anywhere.

From Makadi Bay, Sahl Hasheesh or El Gouna the return transfer is EUR 10 per person. Soma Bay and Safaga we arrange on request.

We are on the 2nd floor of Panorama Mall, so you are indoors from the car door onwards, and the mall itself gives you somewhere to be either side of the appointment.

We are open daily 09:00 to 22:00, booking is confirmed quickly, and you pay cash in euros when you arrive - which on a day when your excursion money has just been refunded is usually convenient.