Safaga, also known as Port Safaga (Egyptian Arabic: سفاجا Safāga, IPA: [sæˈfæːɡæ]), is a port city in Egypt, on the coast of the Red Sea, located 53 km (33 mi) south of Hurghada. The city is also a tourist area that consists of several bungalows and rest houses. Having numerous phosphate mines, it is regarded as the phosphates export center. A paved road of 164 km (102 mi) connects Safaga to Qena of Upper Egypt.
History
The town was founded between 282 BC and 268 BC, by Satyrus (Ancient Greek: Σάτυρος).[2][3] It was called Philotera (Ancient Greek: Φιλωτέρα) in honor of the deceased sister of the Pharaoh Ptolemy II Philadelphus.[2] Stephanus of Byzantium write that it was also called Philoterida (Ancient Greek: Φιλωτερίδα).[3]
Safaga City is considered one of the most important therapeutic tourist centres, as special medical researches have proved the potential of attracting international tourism to Safaga.
Safaga was a merchant port for many years. The town has a small tourism industry, specialising in scuba diving. It was the host of the 1993 Red Sea World Windsurfing Championships.
Climate
Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as hot desert (BWh),[4] as the rest of Egypt.
The highest record temperature was 46 °C (115 °F) on July 30, 2002, while the lowest record temperature was 0 °C (32 °F) on February 2, 1993.[5]
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 °C (73 °F) | 22 °C (72 °F) | 22 °C (72 °F) | 23 °C (73 °F) | 25 °C (77 °F) | 26 °C (79 °F) | 28 °C (82 °F) | 29 °C (84 °F) | 28 °C (82 °F) | 27 °C (81 °F) | 26 °C (79 °F) | 24 °C (75 °F) |
Port
Safaga port is also a gateway for Duba port to some hajj pilgrims or travelers to Mecca, by ferries.
See also
References
- 1 2 3 "Safājā (Kism (urban and rural parts), Egypt) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location". City Population. Retrieved 17 March 2023.
- 1 2 Strabo, Geography, §16.4.5
- 1 2 Stephanus of Byzantium, Ethnica, §Ph666.16
- 1 2 "Climate: Port Safaga - Climate graph, Temperature graph, Climate table". Climate-Data.org. Archived from the original on 5 November 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2013.
- 1 2 "Safaga, Egypt". Voodoo Skies. Archived from the original on 2014-01-16. Retrieved 2014-01-15.
- 1 2 "Safaga Climate and Weather Averages, Egypt". Weather2Travel. Archived from the original on 2014-10-07. Retrieved 2014-01-15.