Best Things to do in Hurghada with Kids

Last Updated: February 9, 2024

When we went to Hurghada we knew all about the stunning beaches, crystal clear waters and flamboyant water parks. As this is the main lure for families to head to this Egyptian Red Sea Resort area. And it’s what the tourist industry there tends to shout about.

And whilst these things are all great reasons to head to Hurghada, you might be thinking “is that all there is?”

Well, there is a bit more than immediately meets the eye in Hurghada.

If you look past the high-rise hotels and long stretches of beaches, you will discover a wide variety of family activities for kids to enjoy.

We spent quite a bit of time exploring Hurghada during our trip to Egypt and we hunted out as many things as we could to do with our two kids.

We’ve come up with our favourites below, that we hope other families will find useful when they visit Hurghada.

Knock Down some Pins at Hurghada-Bowling Center

10 Pin Bowling is always an enjoyable activity for families. And Hurghada Bowling Center offers up a few lanes to get the ball rolling (I’m waisted here!).

It has all the usual mod-cons you will be used to at other bowling alleys. With digital screens for you scoring and bumpers for the kids (and adults if you like!).

The staff will set all this up for you when you arrive as well as providing your bowling shoes (make sure to wear socks!).

If you have smaller kids, the one thing it didn’t have were the little ramps to push the ball down that you often find in some bowling alleys. So only kids that can hold the ball will be able to play here. But with a little help from mum or dad, this can still be a fun trip for everyone.

It’s around 100 EGP per person per game (same price for kids).

There are also a few arcade games that you can have a play on. It uses a token system and you need to pay 20 EGP per token at the token machine.

Dive to the Depths in a Submarine

This is definitely the coolest thing to do in Hurghada with kids. There’s only a handful of places in the world where you can dive down in the sea in a real submarine. And Hurghada is one of them!

With Sindbad Submarines you’ll dive 25 metres down and explore the ocean. With plenty of fish and even some buried treasure to witness!

The experience is so much fun and one of our favourite things we did in Egypt.

If you want some further details on this you can read our post on our submarine trip we did whilst in Hurghada.

Let the Kids Run Wild at Fun City

Public playgrounds don’t seem to be in vast supply in Egypt. So if you are looking for some sort of play area for the kids to blow off steam, the best place to head is to a soft-play area.

Soft-play areas are often found in malls. And Hurghada City Center Mall is no different with it housing ‘Fun City’.

Fun City has a small soft play and a trampoline park as well as numerous arcade games.

It uses a top up card system so you pay for a card at 30 EGP, then top it up as much as you like. Each arcade game then costs around 10-50 EGP per turn, the soft play is around 80 EGP for half hour and the same for the trampoline park.

This top up system is a good way to allow kids a bit of freedom to go off and spend their card how they want.

Some of the arcade games are also ticket dispensers. So kids can win tickets and then claim a prize once they reach a certain amount. Be sure to check the prize desk first to see what you need before you get going, as some of the prizes require quite a lot of tickets!

But the good news is the card also acts as a ticket store. So once you have your tickets head to the ticket machine and slot your card in and then the tickets. The machine will then count the tickets and save the number on your card. If you don’t have enough for a prize, you can come back another day and add more tickets to the card, so don’t lose it!

Next door to the Fun City is also a cinema that shows some films in English. And also a dry ice rink. Anyone who’s been on a dry ice rink before will know they can be challenging, compared to a real ice rink, but still a fun activity if you’re looking for something extra.

Take a Stroll around the Marina and Mosque

The New Marina is a nice place to head for a walk with the kids. A pedestrianised zone, so no cars to worry about, as you walk along the dock admiring the boats and turquois sea.

You can head into one of the many restaurants for some sea food if you fancy a splurge (as they’re not the cheapest!).

Once you’ve finished on the Marina, the Al Mina Mosque is just around the corner.

It is sometimes closed at prayer time and for other events, but when open you can head in and take a look around. Or just admire from the outside if preferred.

Swim and Snorkel in Paradise at the Giftun Islands

If you want to get off the mainland then you can head over to the beautiful Giftun Islands. Made up of two islands next to each other. It’s a popular day trip for families to get out and enjoy a boat ride, swimming and snorkelling and even some water sports.

You can easily sort this out by tour via your accommodation or online through one of the usual agencies such as Viator. Or even just head down to the Marina to book it. Costs will vary depending on what your itinerary entails.

Most trips include a few stops for swimming and snorkelling as well as a some water sports like banana boat rides.

Meals and drinks are often included in the tours. So it’s a chance to sit back and relax and enjoy the sea and sand.

Get a feel for the Country at Mini Egypt

Mini Egypt is as a fun little place to visit for an hour or two with the kids. As you might have guessed from the name, it is made up of lots of miniature models of the famous landmarks across Egypt.

Each area of the park represents each area of Egypt and displays their particular sites (ironically there is nothing representing Hurghada!).

Our kids found it great fun walking around pretending to be giants!

This is a great way to get a taste of what you intend to visit in Egypt whilst there. Or maybe reminisce about where you have already been.

Our kids found it quite fun when they recognised things, such as the Mosque of Muhamed Ali.

Kid’s Quote: “Look Daddy, that’s the bit that I was running around in Cairo!”

Aden, Age 5

It’s a little overpriced for what it is at around 500 EGP ($15) per person. If you have done the Visa Extension you can get a discount for being a ‘resident’ so be sure to take your card with you.

It’s outside the city so you can get a taxi and pay at the gate or book a pick up on the Mini Egypt Park website.

Admire the Sand Sculptures at Sand City

Sand City is a small but interesting little outing. With lots of sand sculptures that you can wonder round and admire.

There’s two sections with a special “kids section” which will have some of their favourite film and cartoon characters on display.

But the adult section is just as interesting for the kids. With some ancient Egyptian sand sculptures as well as some other impressive structures.

We even got to see one of the artists creating a model when we were there. So this was a nice bonus to see how they actually did it.

It’s same sort of pricing as Mini Egypt at around 500 EGP ($15) per person. So again a little steep for what it is. But it’s quite a quirky and interesting place to go and our kids enjoyed it. Again bring your resident card if you have one for the discount.

Sand City is only about 15 minutes drive from Mini Egypt. So as they’re both outside the city and only an hour or two a visit for each, then it can be done as a pair to save some time and money on transport, depending on where you are.

Break out (or don’t!) from Escape Room Hurghada!

Escape rooms are such a fun family and friends activity and are popping up all over the world now.

If you don’t know what one is, you are put in a room and then have a time limit (usually an hour) to solve clues and puzzles and unlock drawers and doors, which will hopefully lead to getting our of the room before time is up!

They’re super fun and especially good for adults and kids who like puzzles.

Escape Room Hurghada have a range to choose from with different difficulty levels. It’s around 300 EGP per head with younger kids getting a discount. To check prices and book then best to email them directly.

We did the ‘Time Machine’ room and although we didn’t escape on this occasion 🙁 we thought the puzzles and theme were excellent and as good as we’ve come across anywhere else when we’ve done them.