Renting a flat in Hurghada for the winter, what to check before you book
Wintering on the Red Sea is not the same as a week in a hotel. A flat that works beautifully for seven days can wear you down after two months. These are the things worth asking about before you send a deposit.
Hurghada has long attracted Europeans who leave the November cold behind and stay until March. The long term rental market here works differently from home. Listings carry less information, more is agreed in conversation, and two flats in the same building can differ far more than the photos suggest.
The area matters more than the floor space
The first question is not how many square metres the flat has, but what sits within a ten minute walk. On a longer stay you shop for vegetables, water and bread every day, rather than visiting a hotel buffet once.
- Whether there is a grocery shop open in the evening
- How far the beach is, and whether it is public or a hotel beach with a fee
- Whether there is a pharmacy and a clinic nearby
- What the district looks like off season, because some compounds empty out in winter
Districts have their own character. Sakkala is busy and full of restaurants, Dahar is a more local part of town with a market, and the compounds along the road towards Sahl Hasheesh can be quiet to a fault. There is no better option, only the one that matches how you live your day.
Bills, where most misunderstandings begin
On a short rental the price usually covers everything. On a longer one it varies, and this is exactly where misunderstandings appear. Ask plainly what the rate includes and what you pay separately.
- Electricity, which with air conditioning can be the largest single cost
- Water and the compound maintenance fee
- Internet, whether it exists, how fast it is and whether the line is yours or shared
- Cleaning and a change of bed linen, if they are meant to be included
See the flat before you pay
Photos in listings are often several years old and sometimes show a different unit in the same building. Ask for a video recorded live, with a walk onto the balcony, the view from the window and a look at the bathroom. If someone is on the ground, let them step inside and check the water pressure and whether the air conditioning actually runs.
Ask about the floor and the lift as well. The fourth floor without a lift, over a two month stay with daily shopping, is a different reality from the photo of the pool.
The contract and the deposit
Writing down even a simple agreement is in everyone's interest. It should cover the dates, the rate, what the extra charges are, the size of the deposit and how it is returned, and the terms if you leave early. If you pay a deposit, agree what happens to it when a flight is cancelled.
On longer stays the nightly rate usually drops, and over several months it is often negotiated case by case. It is not unusual for January and February to cost differently from November.
What you cannot check from abroad
Noise from a nearby building site, a smell from the drains, neighbours who party until three, water pressure on the upper floors. These only show up on site. That is why, for a longer stay, it helps to have someone who walks into the flat before you arrive and tells you how it really is.
If you are planning to winter here, write when you are coming and for how many people. It is then far easier to filter out the flats that only look good in photographs.