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Flat turquoise lagoon water beside a sandbank at Tawila Island in the Red Sea

Strait of Gubal, Red Sea

Tawila Island

Mirror-flat sandbank lagoons north of Hurghada, reachable by boat. The freestyle spot of the northern Red Sea.
Water
Flat, shallow lagoon in the lee of sandbanks
Wind direction
N to NNW, funnelled through the Strait of Gubal
Level
Intermediate
From our base
Reached by liveaboard from Hurghada

About this spot

Tawila sits in the Strait of Gubal, north of Hurghada, and is the reason kite safaris exist in this region. It is a low sand island ringed by shallow banks, and in the lee of the sand the water goes completely flat — waist deep, turquoise, and glassy even when it is blowing hard outside.

There is no infrastructure. You get there by boat, which is precisely what keeps it empty. For riders working on freestyle, transitions or their first jumps, flat water this consistent is hard to find anywhere.

Tawila is a stop on the Northern Red Sea Kite Safari rather than a day trip from the beach.

When it works

Highlighted months are the strongest, most consistent stretch at Tawila Island. The rest of the year still delivers sessions — it is simply less predictable.

  • JanJanuary: variable conditions
  • FebFebruary: variable conditions
  • MarMarch: variable conditions
  • AprApril: best conditions
  • MayMay: best conditions
  • JunJune: best conditions
  • JulJuly: best conditions
  • AugAugust: best conditions
  • SepSeptember: best conditions
  • OctOctober: best conditions
  • NovNovember: variable conditions
  • DecDecember: variable conditions

Best monthsRideable, more variable

Getting there

Boat access only. Visited on the Northern Red Sea Kite Safari, where tenders shuttle riders from the yacht to the lagoon.

Hazards to know about

No facilities, no shade and no shore support. You are dependent on the boat, so riding upwind and self-launching are not optional here.

Questions about Tawila Island

Can I get to Tawila for a day?
Not practically. Tawila is boat access only and far enough north that it works as part of a multi-day safari rather than a day trip. It is a scheduled anchorage on the Northern Red Sea Kite Safari.
What level do I need for Tawila?
You should ride upwind and self-launch confidently. The water itself is forgiving — shallow and flat — but there is no beach, no shade and no walk of shame back upwind. Everything depends on the tender.

Other spots nearby