Healthcare in Hurghada

Healthcare in Hurghada

Egypt has no free care for visitors, and your EHIC or GHIC is not valid here. You or your insurer pay every bill, and your embassy cannot. Hospitals may refuse treatment unless your insurance covers it or you pay a large deposit.

El Salam Hospital on the Corniche and Nile Hospital are the main private options in town, and Hurghada General Hospital is the public one. El Gouna Hospital, about 25 km north, has MRI and a decompression chamber. HyperMed runs a second dive chamber next to the airport.

National lab chains publish per-test prices far below what hotel clinics charge. Check that a chain has a Hurghada branch before you set off.

Getting seen as a foreigner in Hurghada

Call your insurer's assistance line before reception calls the hotel doctor. One Hurghada hotel clinic billed a German tourist EUR 3,850 for gastritis treated with drips. Ask for a written quote, an itemised bill and the doctor's name.

Refuse any medical help offered to you in a hotel lobby. A Baltic insurer warns that fake doctors offer free treatment or vitamins, take your passport and policy, then bill for care that never happened. Insurers treat those invoices as fraud and do not pay.

Expect a hospital to hold your passport while you are an inpatient. Ask for it back before you leave. Give the admin desk your insurer's details so the hospital can bill the insurer directly.

What healthcare costs in Hurghada

Egypt has no regulated fee schedule for private care, so each provider sets its own price. A Hurghada GP on a booking app charges about $5, while hotel-doctor bills reach four figures. A bill in euros or dollars instead of Egyptian pounds is a warning sign.

Lab and scan rows are national prices; Hurghada's MRI is mainly at El Gouna Hospital, so ask its price.

Pharmacies

Antibiotics and many prescription drugs are sold over the counter in practice. In a 2024 survey, 94% of Egyptian community pharmacists called dispensing antibiotics without a prescription common. Treat that as a hazard, because nobody checks the dose or what else you take. Pharmacies in town often sell the same medicine more cheaply than hotel pharmacies. Some prescription and over-the-counter medicines are controlled in Egypt and may need Health Ministry permission before you arrive. Carry a doctor's letter stating your condition, the quantity and that it is for personal use.

Health tips

Common visitor health risks in Hurghada

Emergency

Emergency number: 123

Dial 123, not 112, for the public ambulance. It goes to a government hospital; private ambulances charge.

Arabic first, English with most doctors

Doctors are well trained, but some nurses and hospital staff speak no English. No source confirms the languages the 123 line answers in.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. [1] UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Egypt travel advice, Health
2. [2] UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Information for British nationals hospitalised in Egypt
3. [3] UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Egypt doctors and medical facilities
4. [4] German Embassy Cairo, Medizinische Versorgung Hurghada
5. [5] El Gouna, Medical departments
6. [6] Emperor Divers, Recompression, DCS and diving safety
7. [7] ADAC, Teure Arztrechnung im Urlaub
8. [8] LSM, Baltic tourists warned about Egyptian medical expenses scam
9. [10] Youm7, Ambulance Authority on free emergency services
10. [11] El Balad, Ambulance Authority on free emergency and accident transport
11. [12] Egyptian Streets, Egypt announces its own 112 emergency hotline
12. [13] Egypt Independent, NIOF warns Hurghada beach-goers of venomous fishes
13. [14] Microbes and Infectious Diseases, Survey of antibiotic dispensing by Egyptian community pharmacists
14. [15] Vezeeta, General practice doctors in Egypt
15. [16] Egypt 24, Al Mokhtabar lab price guide 2026
16. [17] Priceslive, CBC test price 2026
17. [18] Al-Razy Group, X-ray prices in Egypt
18. [19] VuDoctor, MRI prices 2026
19. [20] Dr Mohamed Fahmy, Teeth cleaning cost in Egypt 2025
20. [22] WhatClinic, Zirconia crowns in Hurghada
21. [23] WhatClinic, PFM crowns in Hurghada
22. [24] Amwal Al Ghad, Egyptian pound at 54.32 to 54.42 against the dollar

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