Orange Bay, Paradise Island, Mahmya or Giftun: which island trip from Hurghada?

No. Orange Bay, Mahmya and Paradise are beach areas on the Giftun islands, the island group just off Hurghada. Giftun is two islands: Giftun Kebir (Big Giftun), the western one and closer to Hurghada, and Giftun Soraya (Small Giftun), further east. Tour sellers often call each beach an "island", which is why the names get confusing.

• Orange Bay is on the south-western tip of Giftun.
• Mahmya is a private, ticketed beach on Big Giftun, at the southern end of the island.
• Paradise Island is the name day cruises use for another Giftun beach. We have not found a reliable source that pins down exactly where it is, so we don't guess.
• Giftun's reefs are where the snorkeling and diving happens. HEPCA, Hurghada's environmental association, says at least 40% of Hurghada's dive sites lie off Giftun's shores, among them Giftun Soraya, Erg Sabina and El Aruk Giftun.

For the islands themselves, see our Giftun and Orange Bay snorkeling guide.

Orange Bay and Paradise are beach days on a shared tour boat. Mahmya is a managed private beach that you reach on its own boats. A reef snorkeling trip skips the beach and gives you more time in the water.

Mahmya prices are from its own website on 2 November 2026; it charges in Egyptian pounds and prices can change. Boat times differ between sources, from about 40 minutes to an hour.

An Orange Bay day is a boat trip from Hurghada with a reef snorkeling stop or two and a few hours on a white beach with shallow, turquoise water. Group tours usually give you around two to three hours on the beach.

On shore there is a restaurant and a bar, pontoons, hanging hammocks, a shade dome and kayak hire. Travel writers warn that drinks at the beach bar are expensive and that the beach gets busy. The water is very shallow, which is good for small children and for paddling. Swimmers and snorkelers get more from the reef stops.

Our Orange Bay trip costs €40 per person. That includes hotel pickup and drop-off from Hurghada, El Gouna, Makadi Bay, Sahl Hasheesh, Soma Bay and Safaga, the boat to Giftun, two snorkeling stops with mask and fins, free time on Orange Bay, lunch and soft drinks on board, and the Orange Bay entrance fee. You pay in cash on the day, and cancellation is free up to 24 hours before.

Comparing prices? Check what each one includes: hotel transfer from your area, the entrance fee, lunch, the number of snorkel stops and your time on the beach.

Mahmya is a private beach on Big Giftun. You book it directly and travel on its own boats from Mahmya Beach Marina in Hurghada. Its website lists three programmes per adult:

• Day use, €38: boat to and from the island, beach use and a towel.
• Day use with lunch, €60: adds a buffet lunch on the island, with water and soft drinks at mealtime.
• Full programme, €85: adds a boat trip to Sabina reef (on our map: Shaab Sabina) with 45 minutes of snorkeling and the equipment.

Children aged 3 to 6 pay half; children from 7 pay the adult price; under-3s are free. The day boats leave at 08:30 and come back at 16:00, and there is also a later sunset schedule. Mahmya's website lists these points:

• No hotel transfer: you get to the marina yourself, at least 30 minutes before departure.
• Bring your passport or ID, or a clear photo of it.
• You can't bring your own food or drinks.
• Each booking gets a shaded seating area, and there is music on the beach.
• Swimming is allowed only inside the buoyed area.
• Drinks and à la carte food are paid extra.
• Only paid bookings are confirmed.

We don't sell Mahmya trips.

Paradise Island is a beach on the Giftun islands that day cruises from Hurghada visit. It is not a separate island. Travel writers describe fine sand, turquoise water and umbrellas for shade.

Descriptions of the beach's facilities, music and crowds differ a lot from one seller to the next. What you get depends on the boat you book, so we leave those details out. Ask your operator what the price includes (transfer, entrance fee, lunch, snorkel stops) and how long you'll have on the beach. We don't sell Paradise Island trips.

Giftun is a protected area, and every beach on it is for day visits only. In 2010 Egypt Independent reported that there are no hotels or overnight facilities on Giftun, and that by law the beaches must be empty by sundown.

Sources give different dates for the protection. Most travel guides say 1986; a few give other years. Egypt's official list of protectorates includes a Red Sea Northern Islands protected area, declared in 2006 by Prime Minister's Decree 1618. We haven't found an official text that names Giftun in it. In 2004, after a public campaign against a large resort project, a decree kept the Giftun protectorate as it was and stopped new tourism building on the Red Sea's 36 major islands until environmental studies were done.

Egypt's protected-areas law (Law 102 of 1983) forbids:

• disturbing wildlife;
• damaging or removing shells, corals, rocks or soil;
• polluting the water or the beach.

The 1983 text sets fines of LE 500 to 5,000 and/or up to a year in prison. In practice:

• Don't touch, stand on or take coral or shells.
• Don't feed the fish.
• Keep your fins off the reef, and use a rash vest or reef-safe sunscreen.

Fees: in 2019 Egypt announced a US$5 daytime fee for foreign visitors to natural sites on the Red Sea and in Sinai, without naming the sites. The fees quoted for Giftun beaches still differ from one seller to the next. Ask whether the entrance fee is in your price. On our Orange Bay trip it is.

Choose by what you want from the day: easy shallow water, a quiet organised beach or the most time on the reef.

• Small children, non-swimmers, a lazy beach day: Orange Bay. Our €40 trip includes hotel pickup, two snorkel stops, lunch and the entrance fee.
• Your own shaded spot and a buffet on the beach, with your own way to the marina: Mahmya, booked directly with Mahmya.
• Beach time on a day cruise: Paradise Island, through a cruise operator.
• Most time looking at coral and fish: our snorkeling trip, €35. It has two reef stops around Giftun, Abu Ramada or Gota Abu Ramada, runs from 08:00 pickup to about 16:30, and includes lunch, mask and fins. A Giftun beach visit is an optional €5 extra.
• A diver in your group: the 2-dive day is €50 (normally €60), with max 4 divers per guide. Non-divers on the same boat pay €35 for snorkeling, with mask and fins included. Never dived? A try dive is €45, one-to-one with an instructor.

All our trips are paid in cash on the day, with nothing in advance and free cancellation up to 24 hours before. See all boat trips or the price list.