Soma Bay

Soma Bay occupies a peninsula on the coast between Hurghada and Safaga, developed from the 1990s as a small group of large resorts sharing one headland rather than a town. The beach is a long shallow sand shelf that runs a long way out before dropping, which suits families and beginners and also makes for good windsurfing, and the house reef at the point is genuinely good, with a wall and coral heads reachable from a jetty. A links-style golf course occupies the centre of the peninsula and a large thalassotherapy spa draws a separate clientele. Because the whole headland is a single development, it is quiet and contained, with no independent town, shops or restaurants outside the hotels.

What you actually see

• A long shallow sand shelf - wadeable water far offshore.
• The house reef at the point - wall diving reached from a jetty.
• A links golf course - laid out across the peninsula.
• Windsurfing conditions - steady wind over flat water.

When to go

October to May for temperature; wind is strongest in spring and summer for board sports. Three days to a week. It is quiet outside European holiday periods, which is when it fills.

Honest expectations

There is no town, so you are committed to hotel restaurants and prices for the whole stay. Getting out to anything else requires a taxi. The shallow shelf means a long walk to swimming depth on some beaches. It is expensive relative to Hurghada for a similar coast.

Nearby

Safaga is south; Hurghada and its airport lie north.