Is the WiFi in Dahab good? What speeds can you expect?

This is my third time in Dahab, and in 2026, I can safely say that the WiFi is still a big issue. I made my first trip to this cute beachside town in 2022, and ironically, that was probably the best experience I had with WiFi here.

I last visited in 2024, before coming back for a 2026 visit, and it feels like the WiFi is getting worse and worse. A lot of this is down to luck, as WiFi can massively differ in speed from house to house and place to place, but long story short, you really can’t rely on the WiFi here, which is a massive shame as the town does have a lot of potential.

How do you get around the slow WiFi?

I work in sports social media, so I use video a lot, and I’ve had to neglect WiFi for the majority of my work, and instead I use a local sim card. Thankfully, the cost of local sims are pretty cheap (I was able to get a 50GB sim for around £12.75 GBP) which I can top up easily, and this has been my go to.

If you are looking for a local sim card, Etisalat has been great. When I topped up after the initial purchase, I was able to get a double up offer, so essentially I got 100GB for 750 EGP (the top up price was cheaper). You can also select three apps to use for free which helps to save on data usage.

The double up lasts a week (on my phone at least), and they also have a very good app that lets you check your remaining data, and they have daily freebies you can take advantage of (free social media data etc). 

I frustratingly wasn’t able to top up on the app directly, which might have been because I didn’t have an Egyptian bank card (I tried a number of cards). I had to go to the store in person, but topping up is a lot quicker than the initial sign up, and Dahab is small, so it shouldn’t be too far out of your way. 

This was my only minor issue with Etisalat, though. The data has been great with video downloads, social media posting etc, and coverage seems relatively strong throughout the town.

I have written a post on the best local sim card to get in Dahab (updated for 2026) which you can read here.

Anyway, talk to me about the WiFi:

My bad, I have a tendency to get sidetracked. I’ve tried a number of places in Dahab, and as you can see, results are mixed across the board. One of these places was my apartment and two were restaurants. 

There is a coworking in Dahab, which I have reviewed separately and this will be your best spot for a steady internet connection. I decided I didn’t need the coworking this time around, so if you’re doing what I’m doing and don’t plan to use it, I recommend the Sim Card approach detailed above.  

If you’re working close to full-time though, then I’d for sure recommend the coworking. The people who run it are great, and they have a number of connections, so in theory, you should be online the majority of the time. If you want stable WiFi, this will be your best bet. 

The two restaurants I tested the speed at were Schoenemanns Café and Eel Garden View. Both are remote worker friendly, and offer great food, so definitely go and check them out.

Not here to internet shame, but this was the speed in one of the two restaurants I've just mentioned

Schoenemanns were typically a bit busier as they’re closer to the main part of town. Eel Garden was nice and chill when we went there, and as long as you order food or drink, you’ll be fine working from both.

And this was the speed test in the other restaurant we checked

To be honest, even when the speeds look promising, the internet tends to come in and out, so I would often give up pretty quickly and revert back to data.

Is there any good Wifi anywhere in Dahab?

I also go to my friend’s apartment to work from there, even if I did use my mobile data a lot, but I checked her WiFi one time, and these were the insane results.

This internet speed had me shook

I don’t know what was happening at this particular moment, and I’ve used her WiFi previously and it wasn’t at this level, but this goes back to what I was talking about and inconsistencies with connections. Sometimes you’ll get a freak result like this, and sometimes you’ll barely be able to connect.

Ultimately, the WiFi is hard to trust, as you’re at the beck and call of whatever mood it happens to be in. You should be fine if you’re doing very basic internet work, as the pages should eventually load, and sometimes they load quickly. This was the speed when I tested at my place:

This doesn't look too bad on the surface, but speeds do not stay consistent

If you’re doing any heavy lifting though, then you’ll absolutely have to get a local Egyptian sim card. I normally recommend getting an eSIM, but the prices are much higher in Egypt than the cost of getting a local one. 

I do get one at the start of my trip so I’m covered when I land and for a few days or so after, and if you do want to get one through Airalo, you can use the following code DAVID8186 at checkout to get $3 off your first purchase (or the equivalent in your local currency). Alternatively, click this link to sign up, and you’ll get that discount so you can make sure you’re covered on arrival.

Conclusion:

I really don’t want to put people off checking out Dahab, I just wanted to share an on the ground report documenting what the WiFi is like here. Don’t let the slow speeds put you off, as there are alternatives, and I’m still able to do what I need... I just need an Egyptian sim card to be able to do it. 

Dahab is a cute spot, albeit a windy cute spot, and there are lots of positives. Say you’re working on a book or something, this would be a great place to go from cafe to cafe to work. Even a lot of day-to-day internet stuff is okay, it is just a bit slower than a lot of us will be used to. 

The lack of consistent WiFi is an issue, as speeds seemingly different from minute to minute, and that can be frustrating. When it comes to video calls, video downloads and uploads though (especially the uploads), it can struggle. If you manage to get that local sim card early on though, then you’ll hopefully be fine.

If you do know anywhere in Dahab that does have that faster connection, feel free to share in the comments :)