Sahl Hasheesh vs Makadi Bay: Best Investment 2027

For investors, Sahl Hasheesh is the stronger starting point if you want an established resort market, clearer beachfront demand and more ready resale stock. Makadi Bay is more interesting if you want newer master-planned development, longer payment structures and are comfortable taking more construction and future-supply risk. Neither is automatically the better investment. The price you pay, project stage and rental strategy matter more than the destination name.

This comparison focuses purely on investment.

If your main question is where you would personally prefer to live, read the broader Sahl Hasheesh vs Makadi Bay comparison instead.

Sahl Hasheesh vs Makadi Bay for Investors at a Glance

Investment Factor

Sahl Hasheesh

Makadi Bay

Market maturity

More established residential resale market

More development-led and project-specific

Current entry point

Red Sea Listings currently shows priced stock from roughly €70,830

Ready Makadi Heights resales can begin lower, while new Makadina and premium launches move much higher

Current portal median

€126,850 across priced Sahl Hasheesh listings

No sufficiently broad Red Sea Listings Makadi dataset yet for a defensible median

Holiday rental story

Strongest around Old Town and established beach compounds

Strong on the resort strip, different proposition inside Makadi Heights

Long-term living

More resort-oriented

Makadi Heights has a stronger planned residential-community angle

Ready resale choice

Stronger

Available, but newer supply is a major part of the market

Off-plan choice

Significant, including Cala, Il Bayou and newer phases

Significant, particularly Makadi Heights and Makadina

Main investment risk

Seasonality and continuing master-plan development

Delivery risk, future supply and differing Makadi submarkets

Best fit

Holiday rental, ready resale, beach-oriented ownership

New-build investors, families, longer-term development thesis

Current Red Sea Listings data shows 18 properties for sale in Sahl Hasheesh, with 15 priced listings mainly between €70,830 and €253,660, a median asking price of €126,850, and approximately €1,200 per m² across the portal’s current priced inventory.

Those figures are asking prices, not completed transaction prices or guarantees of future value.

Why These Two Markets Behave Differently

Sahl Hasheesh and Makadi Bay are often grouped together because both lie south of Hurghada.

From an investment perspective, that is where the similarity starts to break down.

Sahl Hasheesh already has a recognisable residential geography.

Old Town is the established centre, with restaurants, beach activity and residential buildings around the promenade. The official destination describes Old Town as the heart of the resort and the area where much of its dining, beach and entertainment activity is concentrated.

Beyond Old Town, buyers can choose between established compounds, elevated areas and newer developments including Veranda, Cala and Il Bayou.

Makadi is less useful as one investment label.

There are at least three distinct propositions:

Makadi Heights, an integrated residential town developed by Orascom Development.

Madinat Makadi and Makadina, a hospitality-led destination with newer residential development from Travco Properties.

The wider Makadi coastal strip, which contains hotel-led communities and older resort resale stock.

An investor who says “I am buying in Makadi” has not yet answered enough questions.

Sahl Hasheesh Investment Case

Sahl Hasheesh has one major advantage for investors: buyers and tenants already understand the destination as a residential resort market.

That reduces the amount of imagination required.

A completed apartment near Old Town can be inspected today.

You can walk the actual distance to the beach.

You can see which restaurants are open.

You can assess the communal areas and building maintenance.

You can compare competing rental properties.

That is valuable.

Current Sahl Hasheesh pricing

The current Red Sea Listings inventory gives a useful snapshot.

A Cala studio is currently advertised around €71,000.

A Cala one-bedroom is approximately €96,000.

A Cala two-bedroom is around €132,000.

Current Veranda units include examples around €82,200 and €104,300.

Il Bayou moves into another capital bracket, with a current two-bedroom at €126,850, a townhouse at €253,660, and a twin house at €318,000.

You can compare the live stock through properties for sale in Sahl Hasheesh.

The lesson is that Sahl Hasheesh itself contains several investment strategies.

Cala is not the same investment as Il Bayou.

A ready Old Town resale is not the same investment as either.

Where Sahl Hasheesh is strongest

For rental-oriented investors, Old Town and established beach-access communities have the clearest story.

Tourists generally understand walkability.

They understand beach access.

They understand being near cafés and restaurants.

That does not guarantee occupancy, but it makes the property proposition easier to communicate.

The official Sahl Hasheesh real-estate overview confirms that communities around the central area include established developments such as Tawaya, Bay Village, Azzurra and Veranda.

Where Sahl Hasheesh is weaker

Sahl Hasheesh remains heavily connected to tourism and seasonal use.

It is not Hurghada.

The year-round tenant pool is narrower.

Some developments also sit far enough from Old Town that tenants depend more heavily on internal transport or taxis.

And despite the established central areas, the wider Sahl Hasheesh master plan continues to evolve.

That means investors should distinguish between what exists today and what a future master plan suggests may eventually exist.

Makadi Bay Investment Case

Makadi Bay is more complicated, but that complexity can create opportunity.

The strongest argument for Makadi is not simply “it is cheaper”.

Some Makadi property is cheaper.

Some absolutely is not.

The stronger investment argument is that Makadi contains newer residential communities at different stages of development, giving buyers more exposure to future delivery, new infrastructure and payment-plan financing.

That creates upside potential, but also more execution risk.

Makadi Heights: The Residential Investment Story

Makadi Heights is the clearest residential proposition in Makadi.

Orascom Development describes it as a growing integrated community set 78 metres above sea level, with restaurants, sports facilities, medical services, a clubhouse, preschool and other community amenities. The developer says the town welcomed its first full-time residents in 2022.

That matters for an investor.

Makadi Heights is no longer purely a future rendering.

People already live there.

At the same time, the town continues expanding.

Current market evidence demonstrates the wide gap between resale and new-launch pricing.

A ready or resale one-bedroom of 82 m² is currently advertised around EGP 3.5 million.

A furnished 70 m² two-bedroom resale is around EGP 6.075 million.

A larger ready two-bedroom with roof is approximately EGP 7.3 million.

By contrast, newer premium launches can be far more expensive.

Current listings include three-bedroom apartments around EGP 13 million, penthouses around EGP 14 million to EGP 20 million, and villa stock well above that level.

That is why a statement such as “Makadi Heights costs X per square metre” is almost useless without specifying whether the buyer means resale or developer stock.

Makadina: A Different Makadi Investment

Makadina should not be confused with Makadi Heights.

Makadina is being developed by Travco Properties within the established Madinat Makadi environment.

The official project information describes Madinat Makadi as an established tourism destination with ten hotels, golf, Makadi Water World and a central souq.

Makadina adds new residential supply to that existing hospitality infrastructure.

Its current property mix includes apartments, townhouses, twin houses and villas. Official current unit information includes apartments from approximately 84 to 170 m², townhouses from approximately 115 to 144 m², and multiple larger villa formats.

Current market examples include a one-bedroom apartment around EGP 7.75 million and a two-bedroom around EGP 9.35 million.

The investment proposition is therefore very different from buying an inexpensive older Makadi resort resale.

You are paying for new-build stock inside a destination with substantial existing hospitality infrastructure.

Entry Price: Which Market Wins?

There is no universal winner.

If you compare the current lower end of ready/resale Makadi Heights with new Sahl Hasheesh projects, Makadi can offer a lower entry point.

If you compare new Makadina with Cala or Veranda, the gap narrows considerably.

If you compare premium Makadi Heights launches with ready Sahl Hasheesh apartments, Makadi may actually be more expensive.

That is why the investor should compare:

Question

Why It Matters

Ready or off-plan?

Off-plan price includes time and construction risk

Cash or installments?

Long plans can increase the headline purchase price

Furnished or unfurnished?

Furnishing changes total capital committed

Beachfront or inland?

Location materially changes rental positioning

Developer sale or resale?

Resales can trade below current launch pricing

Delivered infrastructure or future facilities?

Future amenities should not be valued as though they already exist

The investment decision should happen at the unit level, not the bay level.

Rental Income: Sahl Hasheesh Has the Clearer Holiday Model

For holiday rentals, Sahl Hasheesh has an advantage in simplicity.

A tenant searching for an apartment near Old Town understands what they are getting: beach, promenade, cafés, restaurants and an established resort environment.

Makadi rental demand is harder to generalise.

A coastal resort unit serves holidaymakers.

Makadi Heights is developing a more residential and community-based demand profile.

Makadina sits inside a hospitality-heavy destination.

Those are three different rental businesses.

There is no responsible single rental yield to apply across either bay.

Investors should calculate yield from an actual purchase price and realistic achieved rental evidence for the same development.

Do not use projected rental returns from another project.

Do not multiply a Christmas nightly rate by 365.

Do not assume that a property advertised at EGP 2,000 per night earns EGP 730,000 per year.

A property earns money only when somebody actually pays to occupy it.

Off-Plan Investment: Makadi Has More of the Growth-Stage Story

This is where Makadi becomes particularly interesting.

Makadi Heights continues adding phases.

Makadina is actively building its residential proposition.

Buyers can enter newer phases before the wider environment is fully mature.

That can work well if the project delivers, the destination improves and later buyers are willing to pay more.

It can also fail to produce the expected result.

An off-plan unit has no rental income until:

construction is complete, handover takes place, the unit is furnished, utilities work and somebody is prepared to rent it.

If a property takes four years to deliver, the investor should not pretend it produced a rental yield during those four years.

Sahl Hasheesh also has major off-plan opportunities through Cala, Il Bayou and newer Veranda phases.

For example, Cala’s current Red Sea Listings project information includes installment structures extending up to seven years, while Il Bayou also offers multi-year plans.

So the distinction is not that Sahl Hasheesh is ready and Makadi is off-plan.

It is that Sahl Hasheesh offers a broader established resale backdrop against which new launches can be judged.

Service Charges and Ownership Costs

Investment returns are not decided by purchase price alone.

A resort with pools, landscaping, security, beach services and extensive communal areas costs money to operate.

Sahl Hasheesh compounds use different maintenance structures.

Makadi developments use their own structures.

There is no responsible town-wide service-charge percentage that should be applied to all units.

Before comparing two investments, request the actual current maintenance structure for each property.

The key question is:

What does this property cost me every year when nobody is renting it?

That number is often more revealing than the advertised payment plan.

Resale Liquidity: Sahl Hasheesh Has More Evidence Today

Sahl Hasheesh currently has a clearer visible resale ecosystem.

There are old and new buildings, finished apartments, developer stock and resales at several price points.

That helps price discovery.

Current Red Sea Listings data alone shows priced Sahl Hasheesh property from roughly €70,830 through €318,000 across apartments, townhouses and twin houses.

Makadi Heights also has an active resale market, but newer development remains a large part of its investment story.

One issue for any off-plan investor is future resale competition.

If hundreds of owners receive similar apartments around the same handover date, multiple people may try to sell at once.

That can put pressure on resale pricing even if the developer’s latest official price list has increased.

A developer price increase is not the same thing as a completed resale transaction.

What Actually Drives Capital Appreciation?

Several factors can support value in either market.

A genuinely scarce location helps.

Direct beach access can help.

Completion of surrounding infrastructure can help.

A finished development with strong maintenance can help.

Buying well below comparable stock can help.

What does not prove appreciation is a sales representative saying:

“Next phase will be 20% more expensive.”

Future developer pricing may rise while resale buyers refuse to pay the same amount.

Investors should therefore track comparable resale asking prices, time on market and the difference between developer and secondary-market stock.

The broader Red Sea property investment guide is useful when comparing these destinations with Hurghada, El Gouna and Soma Bay.

The Honest Risks in Sahl Hasheesh

The first risk is seasonality.

Resort rental demand is not uniform all year.

The second is master-plan duration.

Sahl Hasheesh has established areas, but it also has long-running development zones. The official destination still describes parts of its wider plan as future areas, including continued marina-related development.

The third is project variation.

Old Town, Cala, Veranda, Azzurra and Il Bayou are not substitutes for one another.

Investors need project-specific due diligence.

The Honest Risks in Makadi Bay

The first risk is market fragmentation.

Makadi Heights, Makadina and an older beachfront resort are completely different investments.

The second is future supply.

Large master developments can continue releasing new units for years, creating competition for resale owners.

The third is delivery risk.

New phases do not generate rent while under construction.

The fourth is distance from the main Hurghada market.

This may not matter to holiday tenants, but it can reduce the pool of ordinary year-round renters who need daily access to the city.

Which One Fits Your Investment Strategy?

Investor Type

Better Starting Point

Reason

Investor wanting ready rental property

Sahl Hasheesh

More visible completed resort and resale stock

Investor prioritising Old Town walkability

Sahl Hasheesh

Established central tourism environment

Buyer seeking a lower-cost Makadi resale

Makadi Bay

Selected Makadi Heights resales can offer attractive entry pricing

Off-plan investor comfortable waiting

Makadi Bay

Large pipeline of newer residential phases

Investor wanting a beach-oriented holiday home

Sahl Hasheesh

Clearer resort rental proposition

Family-oriented long-term investor

Makadi Heights

More integrated residential-community positioning

Golf and hotel-infrastructure buyer

Madinat Makadi / Makadina

Existing golf and hospitality infrastructure

Investor prioritising visible resale comparables

Sahl Hasheesh

Easier to compare new stock with established secondary-market units

So, Sahl Hasheesh or Makadi Bay: Which Is the Best Investment?

For a conservative property investor, I would start with Sahl Hasheesh.

Not because prices are guaranteed to rise.

Not because rental income is guaranteed.

But because more of the investment case can already be inspected.

There is established residential stock.

There is a functioning Old Town.

There are completed compounds.

There are current resales to compare against new-build pricing.

That reduces some of the assumptions.

For a buyer willing to accept more development risk in exchange for exposure to newer master-planned growth, Makadi Bay deserves serious attention, particularly Makadi Heights and Makadina.

Makadi’s strongest argument is not that it is universally cheaper.

It is that the market is still evolving.

That creates opportunity and risk in the same box.

The best investment therefore depends on what you are buying:

Ready property and clearer rental positioning: Sahl Hasheesh.

Development-stage exposure and newer community growth: Makadi Bay.

Lowest asking price: compare individual resales rather than destinations.

Highest advertised return: ignore it until you have calculated the net return yourself.

FAQ

Is Sahl Hasheesh better than Makadi Bay for investment?

Sahl Hasheesh is the stronger starting point for investors wanting established resort infrastructure, completed resale stock and clearer holiday-rental positioning. Makadi Bay may suit investors who prefer newer development and are comfortable with more construction and future-supply risk.

Which is cheaper, Sahl Hasheesh or Makadi Bay?

Neither is always cheaper. Current Makadi Heights resales can sit below many newer Sahl Hasheesh projects, while premium new Makadi launches can cost more than Sahl Hasheesh alternatives. Compare equivalent unit type, condition and build stage.

What are current Sahl Hasheesh property prices?

Red Sea Listings currently shows 18 properties for sale in Sahl Hasheesh. Across the priced inventory, most asking prices fall between €70,830 and €253,660, with a median of €126,850.

Is Makadi Heights a good investment?

Makadi Heights has operating residential infrastructure and full-time residents, while new phases continue to develop. Whether a specific unit is a good investment depends on its purchase price, competing resale stock, holding costs and realistic rental demand.

Is Makadina the same as Makadi Heights?

No. Makadi Heights is an Orascom Development town. Makadina is a Travco Properties development within the broader Madinat Makadi environment.

Which is better for holiday rentals?

Sahl Hasheesh has the simpler holiday-rental story, particularly around Old Town and established beach-access compounds. Makadi also attracts tourists, but rental performance differs greatly between Makadi Heights, Madinat Makadi and the coastal resort strip.

Is off-plan property better in Makadi Bay?

Not automatically. New developments can offer long payment plans and exposure to future growth, but investors accept construction, delivery, oversupply and future-resale risk. Off-plan property earns no rent before handover.

Should I buy in Sahl Hasheesh Old Town?

Old Town can suit investors who value walkability and an established visitor environment. The official destination identifies it as the heart of Sahl Hasheesh, with restaurants, beach activity and entertainment concentrated there.

Compare the Properties, Not Just the Bays

The destination name is only the first filter.

After that, compare:

purchase price, price per square metre, ready versus off-plan status, service charges, furnishing cost, realistic rent, beach access, competing supply and likely resale audience.

Red Sea Listings does not need Sahl Hasheesh to beat Makadi Bay or Makadi Bay to beat Sahl Hasheesh.

It is an independent marketplace.

Browse Red Sea properties for sale from verified agencies, compare equivalent units and choose the investment only when the numbers still make sense without the sales pitch.