Are there sharks in Hurghada? What swimmers, snorkelers and divers should know

Egypt's diving chamber (CDWS) hosts a species guide written by the Hurghada-based shark biologist Dr Elke Bojanowski of the Red Sea Sharks project (January 2019). It says around 30 shark species live in the Red Sea and describes where each one is usually found. It covers the whole Egyptian Red Sea; no public survey lists sharks reef by reef for Hurghada, so read the table as habitats, not a promise of what you will meet.

The same guide names the offshore walls of the Brothers and Daedalus among the best places in the world to meet sharks. That is liveaboard territory, covered in our guides to the Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone route and oceanic whitetip sharks.

Yes, but they are rare. These are the incidents near Hurghada that reliable news agencies and Egypt's Ministry of Environment reported in recent years:

Earlier cases happened elsewhere on Egypt's coast, including a series of attacks at Sharm el Sheikh in 2010 and incidents in 2018 and 2020. The National counted more than a dozen cases on Egypt's Red Sea coast in the 15 years to 2023. Reports differ on small details such as ages; we have used the wording the agencies agree on.

After each incident the authorities closed the sea nearby for a few days and opened an investigation.

• July 2022: the Red Sea governor closed beaches around Sahl Hasheesh for three days, and the Ministry of Environment set up a committee. On 9 July the governor kept the sea from north of Dasht al-Dabaa to Ras Abu Soma closed until 15 July: sandy beaches could be used only to one metre deep, snorkelling in closed reef lagoons was allowed only with a guide (one guide per 10 people), solo snorkelling was banned, diving was limited to licensed divers, fishing was banned along the coast, hotels had to employ enough qualified lifeguards and boats had to bring their waste back to port instead of dumping it at sea.
• The 2022 report: a contemporary news account attributed a seasonal reproductive explanation to a committee of Red Sea protectorate specialists and HEPCA, alongside overfishing, heavy water use and fish feeding. We have not located the committee's original report, so this is not a verified cause or a general shark-attack season. They recommended stopping recreational fishing and keeping snorkelling and diving supervised by licensed guides.
• June 2023: the ministry banned swimming, snorkelling and all water sports for two days on the coast from El Gouna to Soma Bay (AP gave the length as 46 miles, The National as 60 km). It then announced an 18-month, three-stage study of shark movement along about 1,500 km of coast.
• December 2024 (Marsa Alam): the jetties were closed for two days and swimming out from them was prohibited.

Very rare, worldwide and here. The International Shark Attack File (ISAF) at the Florida Museum investigated 105 alleged shark–human interactions in 2025 and confirmed 65 unprovoked bites around the world, nine of them fatal. It calls the number "extremely low" and in line with the 2020–2024 average of 61 a year. Egypt does not appear in its 2025 list of countries with unprovoked bites.

There is no official figure for the risk per visitor in Hurghada, so we don't give one. ISAF counts provoked bites separately; they include divers bitten after harassing or trying to touch a shark.

The steps below come from ISAF's safety tips, Egypt's own rules and the 2022 committee's findings. None of them makes the sea risk-free, but each one lowers the risk.

• Swim in the marked swimming area. The 2024 Marsa Alam attack happened in deep water outside the designated zone, the ministry said.
• Respect closures, flags and lifeguards. After every incident the authorities closed the water for a few days; stay out until it reopens.
• Never feed fish or sharks. Feeding and baiting sharks is illegal across the Egyptian Red Sea (HEPCA), and the 2022 committee named people feeding fish as one factor that draws animals into shallow water.
• Keep away from fishing. ISAF advises against swimming around schools of fish or where people are fishing.
• Choose your time. ISAF advises not swimming at dawn or dusk.
• Stay close and together. Swim with a buddy, stay close to shore, avoid excess splashing and leave jewellery on land (ISAF).
• Snorkel with a guide on the outer reefs. Guided snorkelling was one of the 2022 recommendations. Our snorkeling trip (€35, mask and fins included) has guides who speak English, Arabic and Czech; see also our snorkeling safety tips.

If a shark comes near you, ISAF says to keep it in sight, move away slowly and leave the water if you can.

Many divers hope to see one. The CDWS species guide notes that sharks bring diving tourists to Egypt, and its monitoring programme asks divers to send in their sightings and photos.

• Stay calm and watch. ISAF's advice to divers: most sharks are curious and will leave on their own, so hold your position quietly and enjoy it.
• Stay with your group. Sharks are less likely to approach a group of divers than a lone diver (ISAF). With us there are never more than 4 divers per guide on the 2-dive day trip (€50, normally €60).
• Never touch or chase one. ISAF's provoked bites include divers who harassed or tried to touch a shark.
• Leave smoothly if it keeps coming closer, keeping it in view and staying near your buddy (ISAF).

Whitetip reef sharks often rest in reef crevices and caves, so you may see one lying still under a ledge. We can't promise a sighting on a Hurghada day dive. If seeing big sharks is your goal, the offshore routes on our liveaboards give you the best chance; read our oceanic whitetip guide for how to behave around them. First time underwater? A try dive (€45) is one-to-one with an instructor.