El Gouna · North of Hurghada, Red Sea Coast, Egypt · Orascom Developments
El Gouna
A self-contained Red Sea town by Orascom Developments — not a compound, a town with its own marinas and downtown
What is El Gouna?
El Gouna is Orascom Developments' flagship Red Sea destination, launched in 1989 by businessman Samih Sawiris as a self-contained, year-round coastal town spanning 36.9 km² just north of Hurghada, and today counting more than 40 residential neighbourhoods split between active sales and full sell-outs. Orascom Developments Holding's own corporate history describes the origin in one line: 'a simple idea — to create an all-year-round coastal town near the Red Sea in Egypt.'
El Gouna's ownership structure sets it apart from most New Cairo or North Coast projects: every unit Orascom Developments currently sells here is offered on a lifetime, inheritable usufruct (right-to-use) basis rather than freehold title, stated across all thirteen primary-sale neighbourhood pages on the official elgouna.com. The town's shoreline itself is disputed even within Orascom's own web estate — a live 12 km counter on elgouna.com versus 10 km stated on Orascom Developments' corporate page orascomde.com, with outside sources leaning toward the smaller figure without either being officially retracted.
El Gouna photos
Where is El Gouna located?
El Gouna sits directly on the Red Sea coast immediately north of Hurghada, roughly 25 to 30 minutes by car from Hurghada International Airport, making it one of the more accessible Orascom Developments destinations for Cairo and European visitors on direct flights. The town holds three main marinas — Abu Tig, Fanadir and Abydos — plus a Downtown district, locally called Kafr El Gouna, built around independently run restaurants and shops.
- Roughly 25–30 minutes by car from Hurghada International Airport
- A shoreline of 10 km per Orascom Developments' corporate page, or 12 km per El Gouna's own live site counter — the two disagree
- Three marinas: Abu Tig (North and South Basin), Fanadir, and Abydos
- 40+ neighbourhoods claimed by the official site; roughly 30 identified independently in this research
- A Downtown district (locally Kafr El Gouna) of independently run restaurants and shops — not a for-sale product
- Two golf courses: the 18-hole Ancient Sands and the Karl Litten-designed 9-hole course at The Nines
What unit types and prices does El Gouna offer?
Unit types: Serviced apartments, Chalets, Standalone & twin villas, Townhouses
El Gouna's prices vary sharply by neighbourhood, and Orascom Developments publishes no single blended starting price for the whole town: two-bedroom Tuban 1 apartments (112.66–117.04 m²) sell for USD 540,000–558,000 on the official my.orascomdh.com sales portal as of August 2026, while North Bay villas range EGP 30–120 million across 29 live Bayut listings, also dated August 2026. Live inventory counts diverge by channel too — 26 units on the official portal versus 60 on the aggregator Nawy, both dated August 2026, reported separately rather than merged.
Orascom Developments does not publish one blended starting price for El Gouna as a whole; the figures above are documented examples from official and resale sources, dated August 2026, and should be confirmed directly per neighbourhood.
What amenities are inside El Gouna?
What is the El Gouna master plan?
No single architecture firm is credited with El Gouna's overall master plan; Orascom Developments has built out the town in successive phases since 1989 across 36.9 km² north of Hurghada, while only the Highland by North Bay neighbourhood is individually credited to architect Legorreta. El Gouna's defining planning feature is its network of internal lagoons and canals threading through 40+ neighbourhoods — a structure closer to a town's waterways than a walled compound's single perimeter.
Why invest in El Gouna?
El Gouna is worth attention because it is not a residential compound but a fully-functioning town run by Orascom Developments (EGX: ORHD) since 1989, complete with three marinas, a downtown district, a conference centre and shared workspace — backed by institutional credibility that included a USD 155 million loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in October 2024 to renovate and expand its hotels. In November 2024, Orascom Developments also sold a 110,000 m² parcel inside El Gouna to Hassan Allam Properties for roughly USD 37.4 million over five years — proof the town still draws other developers, though buyers should note that any project inside El Gouna's boundary carrying a different developer's name, such as Swan Lake or Bali El Gouna, is not an Orascom Developments product.
Frequently asked questions about El Gouna
Where exactly is El Gouna located?
Is El Gouna freehold or usufruct ownership?
How many neighbourhoods does El Gouna have?
Are Swan Lake and Bali El Gouna built by Orascom?
What's the difference between Downtown El Gouna and Kafr El Gouna?
Which El Gouna neighbourhood gets the most search interest?
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