Hurghada's bar scene is orientated toward European package tourists and has a slightly artificial quality — Ministry of Sound, Hed Kandi Beach Bar, and a string of Irish and sports bars along the Sakkala strip feel more like they've been transplanted from a holiday resort in Spain than grown organically from the place. That said, they do the job: the drinks are cold, the music is loud, and the crowd is generally good-natured.
More authentic are the shisha cafes in the El Dahar old town, where locals and longer-staying travelers gather over mint tea and nargileh pipes after dark. The atmosphere is quieter and the experience more genuinely Egyptian. Prices are also a fraction of the resort strip.