wakeupstokedAfter a 4-hour-flight (if you are coming from Europe) to Marsa Alam and 2.5 hours of driving through what seems an endless desert, you will arrive in Hamata, which is a huge kitesurf playground with some scenic mangrove trees upwind of you, some islands with beautiful reefs if you kite out and lots of space to practice.
Being one of the spots with the highest wind chance in Egypt, this was a perfect getaway for me for a week. There is a huge standing area, a lot of space, sandy beaches (no sea urchins or shells like at other spots in Egypt), a super well organized kite station and enough sunbeds to chill out inbetween your sessions. The motto here is “eat-kite-sleep-repeat“ so for non-kiters (or non-divers) it might be a bit boring here, but otherwise you have everything you need to kitesurf your heart out! If you are kitesurfing AND diving, Hamata will be all you ever wished for: when the wind is up you can kite, and when there is no wind you have absolutely perfect conditions for diving.
Pros & Cons at a glance
+ most reliable wind in whole Egypt
+ huge standing area which makes it ideal for beginners or if you want to practice new tricks
+ uncrowded spot, lots of space
+ beautiful water color and surroundings (mangrove trees upwind)
+ 3 little islands with beautiful crystal clear water close to the spot in short kiting distance
+ well-organized spot (rescue service, lot of sunshade and sunbeds, beach boys who start and land your kite, kite storage, showers, massage options)
+ amazing options for diving and snorkeling
+ just a medium-haul flight from Europe
– the spot is in the middle of nowhere, so no restaurants, nightlife, supermarkets etc
– if there is no wind there is nothing to do besides diving or snorkeling
– you can’t stay directly at the spot (the closest accommodation is the kite-camp, which is a 5-min walk)
General Infos (Wind, Water Temperature and Water Condition)
Best Wind: January – June, October – December
Hamata is basically windy all year round. Depending on what you want you might consider going in specific months, though.
Mid-May – Jun, Sep – Mid-Oct: highest wind probability
Jan – Mar, Nov – De: stronger wind but less wind probability (but still the highest wind probability in Egypt)
Jul – Aug: insanely hot but the wind is super steady then as well
Usually the wind was a bit stronger in the mornings and got slightly lighter (really just a few knots) in the afternoon. We had quite strong wind when we were there in March, so I was mostly out on the 7 and 9, but we were told in general there are also some light-wind days in-between, so if you want to kite every single day bring the whole range (kiters there had up to 17-m-kites).
The wind forecast was way too weak in the time we were there, you could always add around 5 knots to what was predicted (probably since the wind in Hamata is thermal)
Water Temperature: depends on the season
Jan – Feb/Mar: Wetsuit
Mar – May: Shorty
Jun – Aug: Boardshorts
Sep – Oct: Shorty
Nov – Dec: Wetsuit
I was there in March and used my 4/3 wetsuit and was pretty happy about it, since the wind was quite strong and therefore it was quite “cold”. On the last day, when it had only around 16 knots, I could have gone in my shorty as well.
Water Condition: flat to slightly choppy
You never really have perfect flatwater like I experienced it e.g. in Venezuela but with the low tide it gets quite flat. When there is high tide or the wind is over 30 knots the water becomes a bit choppier. Just keep in mind that with low tide, the water is not even knee-deep.
Getting there
The closest option is flying to Marsa Alam airport (short code RMF) and have a transfer organized from your hotel which will pick you up. Around a 2.5 hour ride from the airport you will find Hamata.
Spot details
When entering the spot, you will notice immediately that you have tons of space and the water has a nice, bright color. There is a huge standing area at the spot, which makes it perfect for beginners.
If you head a little bit upwind, you can easily go over to the island you see when you look straight out. The water is incredibly beautiful and if you pass the first island upwind you will see 2 more islands, upwind and downwind. You’re not allowed to enter or walk around the island, just stay on your board. When you keep on riding past that first island, you will see that inbetween the other two islands there are small waves braking over a reef, go check it out, the water is crystal-clear, it’s as if you were watching an aquarium. Only go to the island with high to medium tide, otherwise you will be too close to the reef. Also, you should have a certain level of kiteboarding, since you pass a lot of reefs and should never ever step on those!
Upwind of the spot are some beautiful mangrove trees in the water, you’re not allowed to get too close though (keep a 100-meter-distance). At low tide you have to be a bit careful since the water is very shallow and it might be dangerous to try new jumps if you fail at landing or if you get too close to the reef.
Everything is perfectly organized at the kite station, you have storage options, rescue boats, showers, toilets etc. included, which has its price: around 80 Euros per person per week. You can’t share a locker, if you’re 2 kiters you pay for 2. It’s all super safe but my advice for the girls: don’t leave new clothes, lycras or wetsuits in the storage overnight, unfortunately new girls clothes sometimes disappear which happened to me and my mom on 2 separate days.
Where to stay
The closest accommodation to the spot currently is the Kite Camp, which is around a 5-minute-walk from the spot. It’s basically a camp out of caravans with wood paneling so you have a terrace and some seating options, a table and a seat. There is a dining room with long tables and the whole atmosphere is very comfy and chilled out, it’s a good place for solo travelers since you meet new people quite easily and the camp feels like a little family. The food, especially dinner, was always very tasty and well-seasoned. The caravans are tiny (well, as tiny as all the caravans usually are) but have everything you need, including air-conditioning for the hotter months, a proper shower, toilet and a small wardrobe.
Some of the other kiters stayed in the Wadi Lahmy Azur Resort, which we ruled out since we didn’t want to take a shuttle to the spot.
If you’re diving as well the hotel LahamiBay Beach Resort will probably be ideal for you, since it has its own house reef (!)
Staying in a hotel in the months of June until September is definitely recommendable since the temperatures rises up to 45 degrees (Celisus) and the kite camp is closed since it is way too hot to stay in a caravan.
Where to eat
There is not a lot of choices: in the kite camp you have a half board and the food was very good considering you’re in the middle of nowhere. Most of the people took something with them from breakfast as a lunch snack. I liked eating at the spot, where they have small restaurant with a few pasta, pizza, meat dishes, salads, soft drinks, decent coffee and tea. There is also a small “supermarket” which has some chips and snacks.
Water is sold in the restaurant or kite camp and costs 1 Euro for a 600ml bottle.
No-Wind-Activities
Pretty much like everywhere in Egypt, life evolves around the kite spot or hotel. When there is no wind (which luckily didn’t happen to us), you can dive or snorkel in stunning conditions, go for a wakeboard session (being pulled by a boat), go for a round of SUP or learn playing backgammon.
You already know when your next trip will be and are about to pack your bags?
Check out this article to get some great packing hacks on the best way to pack and travel with kite luggage.
Wondering why I have that much time to travel around and kite?
Trust me, it was a long way to get there, so if you’re interested you can either read the whole story on why I threw my whole life around to kitesurf more or the short version in the about me section 🙂
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