Makadi Bay quad biking and desert safari: tours, coast routes and prices

A Makadi Bay quad trip is short, cheap and easy to organise: the desert starts just behind the resort strip, the drive to the station is shorter than from Hurghada, and GetYourGuide has a separate Makadi Bay section with more resort-named desert trips than anywhere else on this coast. Many titles say "From Hurghada: Makadi Bay…" — that names the riding area, and Makadi hotels are collected too. The catch is the usual one: a 2-hour trip includes the transfer, so the riding part is short.

Makadi Bay quad: where the rides start

Makadi Bay sits on the coast road 18 km south of Sahl Hasheesh and 24 km north of Soma Bay. Makadi trips start in one of two places. Some use a station on the Makadi side of the Safaga road: Makadi Excursions, for example, collects guests for its activity centre in Makadi Bay, and BADU's camp lies in the Makadi Bay desert, 15–20 minutes from the resorts. Others drive you about 20 km north to the Safari Land stations past the airport, 25–30 minutes by shared minibus. The pick-up time tells you which.

The mountains you see on the horizon are the Red Sea Mountains; Gebel Shayeb el-Banat, mainland Egypt's highest peak at 2,187 m, is about 40 km west of Makadi in a straight line. No quad ride gets near it — it is a backdrop. For the full resort comparison and supplements, see quad trips from the resorts.

The 2-hour Makadi Bay ATV tour: price and riding time

The most-booked trip here is the 2-hour Makadi Bay ATV tour, rated 4.7 from more than 3,100 reviews — the best-rated of the big cheap quads. Its route matches Makadi Excursions' own Makadi Bay quad: over sandbanks along the mountains, a stop at a rock formation with a Bedouin area, tea and a short camel ride; GetYourGuide shows the operator's name on the listing page. Makadi Excursions lists its quad at €15 per adult on its own site, with pick-up from Hurghada, Sahl Hasheesh and Makadi included, El Gouna €10 extra, drivers from 16 and children riding with an adult.

Two hours door to door is not two hours on the quad. A review page of this listing puts the transfer at about 45 minutes each way from Hurghada; from a Makadi hotel it is shorter, but riding time is still under an hour. Reviews praise friendly guides and value, and mention a very short camel ride and quads that feel tight for tall riders. It is a good first taste, not a long ride. Ask how many minutes you spend on the quad, not how many hours the trip lasts.

If you want more riding, look at a quad-only tour that publishes its minutes, or the desert safari combos with a buggy leg as well.

Sea and desert: the Makadi coast routes

The standard station loops behind Hurghada run inland. Makadi is different: a few listings here really do use the coast. The sea and desert quad with hotel pick-up rides "through the desert and along the coast" in 2 hours. The desert and beach buggy tour does the same in a two-seat buggy, rated 4.9 (still few reviews) — check whether the price is per person or per buggy. Makadi Excursions' own spider-buggy tour, from €50 per buggy package on its own site, ends at a natural beach for a swim, so bring swimwear.

For the beach without an engine, the desert and beach camel ride and the Makadi Bay horse ride are the gentle versions; horses are the animals that actually go into the water. One rider per animal, always. See camel rides and horse riding.

Daytimefrom$17

GetYourGuide2 hMakadi Bay

From Hurghada: Makadi Bay ATV Tour

4.7 (3,168)

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Daytimefrom$10

GetYourGuide3 hMakadi Bay

From Hurghada: Makadi Bay Horse Riding Tour

4.4 (328)

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Morningfrom$24

GetYourGuide4 hMakadi Bay

Hurghada: Sunrise Quad Bike & Blue Lagoon with Breakfast

4.7 (129)

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Morningfrom$10

GetYourGuide3.5 hMakadi Bay

Hurghada: Morning Quad Bike & ATV Adventure Along a Red Sea

4.3 (146)

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Morningfrom$14

GetYourGuide3.5 hMakadi Bay

Makadi Bay: Sunrise Quad & Traditional Oriental Breakfast

4.1 (125)

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Eveningfrom$12

GetYourGuide3.5 hMakadi Bay

Makadi Bay: 2H Quad Bike, Camel Ride, Dinner & Live Show

4.1 (112)

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See everything on GetYourGuide →See everything on Headout →Prices checked on 20 October 2026

Evening and sunset quads from Makadi Bay

The cheap Makadi evening listings are option menus: one listing, several programmes (sunrise with breakfast, daytime, sunset with dinner, show and stargazing). Desert Fox Safari's Makadi Bay listing with sea view, camel, dinner and show starts from about $12, but that headline is its cheapest option — the evening with dinner costs more. Makadi Bay sunset quad and sea view uses the same option menu; GetYourGuide shows the operator's name on the listing page. "Stargazing" on these menus means looking up after dinner, not a telescope.

Two timing rules for evenings. Sunset moves from about 16:51 in early December to about 19:44 in early July, and Egypt's clocks change on the last Friday of April and the last Thursday of October, so evening pick-ups move by an hour. From May to September, the sunset slot is the one to book; the afternoon heat inland is fierce. For the sky, see sunset and stargazing.

Makadi Bay desert safari and jeep safari

For a longer day, the Makadi Bay mega tour combines a quad "for approximately 45 minutes" with a 4x4 jeep ride and a camel in 6 hours. The ATV, horse and camel ride adds a horse leg to the quad in 3.5 hours and is rated 4.9 (on a small number of reviews). The Makadi jeep, quad, Bedouin dinner and show listing rates 3.9 — the weakest here, so read its recent reviews before booking.

Makadi Excursions' own desert adventure with dinner and show (€35 on its own site, 6 hours) publishes its minutes: 30 on the quad, 30 in a spider buggy and 30 on a horse, plus camel, jeep to a Bedouin camp, sandboarding, dinner and a show. That is about as much driving as any combo offers. Elsewhere, expect the usual pattern: around an hour at the controls in a 5–7-hour day. The super and mega safari guide explains what each name really contains.

BADU Camp: the quiet Makadi evening

The alternative to the big show camps is next door. BADU Experiences (baduexperiences.com) runs a tented camp in the Makadi Bay desert, 15–20 minutes from the Makadi resorts, with live music, traditional dance and storytelling, a set Bedouin menu, and no belly dance, no fire show and no alcohol. Its Luxury Bedouin Dinner & Stargazing is listed on GetYourGuide under its own name (€45 on BADU's own site), and its sunrise camel ride with Bedouin breakfast gives a 30-minute ride at walking pace. BADU is closed on Saturdays. More in the BADU Camp review.

Private quad tour from Makadi Bay

A private tour means your own transfer, guide and start time; the station, route and camp are usually the same as the group trip. That is worth paying for with young children, nervous riders or a group of friends who want to set the pace. Prices may be per person or per group, so check before comparing. Do not rent a quad to ride into the desert on your own: UK government advice for any off-road trip is to use a qualified guide and get a Ministry of Interior permit. Options in the private quad guide.

Makadi Bay quad and safari: questions