Sharm El Sheikh SIM Card: Airport, Shops, and Signal

You land in Sharm late, walk past the airport counter, and reach your transfer with no data. Shops in town close at 10 or 11 p.m. On Friday they don't open until 2 p.m. Wi-Fi can show up in your list and still refuse to connect, so you have no map and no way to book a ride.

The easiest place to buy a Sharm El Sheikh SIM card is the airport. WE lists two points there open 24 hours, and Orange lists two Orange Travel points open all day. WE's tourist bundle was 5 GB for 100 Egyptian pounds, about $1.80, before tax on 2026-10-30. If your phone has no SIM tray, or you want data the moment you land, install a data eSIM at home instead. It costs more, but there is no counter and no passport step.

In short:

• Buy at the airport if you land at night. Town shops close by 11 p.m. and open at 2 p.m. on Friday.
• Orange and WE both have shops at the Old Market, in Hadaba, and in Nabq. Orange also has two in Naama Bay.
• Signal is strong in town. Orange and Vodafone have almost no test readings on the Ras Mohammed park road, off the Tiran reefs, or in the mountains on the way to Dahab.
• The Moosetrip Egypt eSIM runs on Orange and starts at $6 for 1 GB over 7 days, on 2026-10-30.

Egypt eSIM from $6Install at home, connect when you land.See plans

For plans across the country and the phone rule for visitors, see our Egypt internet guide.

What a SIM costs in Sharm

Dollar amounts are rough, at about 56 pounds to the dollar. Check the rate before you buy.

A local SIM wins on price. Our 5 GB plan is $19.50, more than ten times WE's bundle before tax. If your phone takes a physical SIM and a stop at the counter doesn't bother you, buy the local SIM.

WE says its bundles are only for tourists, and a foreign buyer needs a valid passport. Ask for the full total at the counter. WE's prices leave out tax, and the line may cost extra.

Roaming needs no setup. At $12 a day, 7 days of use is $84. Confirm Egypt and your rate in your carrier's app. If your US plan already includes enough data in Egypt, you don't need any of this.

SIM card at Sharm El Sheikh Airport

The airport has two passenger terminals, marked T1 and T2 on OpenStreetMap. Here is what the operators listed on 2026-10-13:

The WE points and the first Orange point don't name a terminal. You may also see Vodafone and e& desks.

Bring your passport and an unlocked phone. Plastic SIMs need a tray, and many newer iPhones sold in the US don't have one. Check your phone here. Before you walk away, turn off Wi-Fi and open a map. If it loads, the line works.

Signal is strong at both terminals. On nPerf, Orange, Vodafone and e& show mostly 5G there. On the road to Naama Bay, about 9 miles, those three had readings at all 57 points we looked at, and all were 4G or better. If your counter is closed, see our guide to buying a SIM at the airport. Our Sharm taxi guide covers the ride into town.

Where to buy a SIM card in town

These addresses come from the Orange and WE store lists, read on 2026-10-13.

You can't buy in town at night or on a Friday morning:

• Orange: Saturday to Thursday 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday 2 p.m. to 11 p.m.
• WE: Saturday to Wednesday 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., Thursday 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday 2 p.m. to 11 p.m.

At the Old Market, the two shops are about 1,000 feet apart, so it's easy to compare offers. In Hadaba, WE is about half a mile from Orange at Il Mercato. If you're staying near Soho Square or in Sharks Bay, plan a trip. The nearest shops are in Naama Bay and Nabq, about 5.5 miles from Soho Square in a straight line.

Orange doesn't list a tourist plan on its site, so ask what it sells visitors and the total with tax. If your phone has one tray, taking out your US SIM also stops your bank texts. Our guide to keeping your US number abroad covers what to do.

Signal by area

nPerf collects tests from users over two years and shows what network type phones found. These are user readings, not our own tests. The table shows the most common reading within about 190 yards of each spot. A star means the wider radius of about a third of a mile. Maps were last updated October 7 for Orange and WE, October 12 for Vodafone, and September 19 for e&, and we read them on 2026-10-13.

"No tests" only means nobody ran a test there, not that there is no signal. Orange is the column that matters for our eSIM, and it leads across town. Vodafone is weakest at Ras Um Sid. WE has the fewest tests in Sharm.

Ras Mohammed, Tiran, and boat trips

The park gate is about 15 miles by road from the Old Market. For the first 7 miles, Orange and Vodafone mostly show 4G or better. From the turn off the main highway to the end of the park road, about 10 miles, neither has a single reading. e& has only scattered results there.

Signal comes back at the cape:

• Shark Observatory: Orange shows 4G.
• Yolanda Reef: Orange shows 4G+, and e& shows 4G.
• Hidden Bay: no tests from any network.

Vodafone has no readings at the cape at all.

Sea trips look similar. We drew a straight line from Naama Bay to Gordon Reef, about 9 miles. Orange has readings on the first 4 miles, mostly 4G and 4G+, then almost nothing. Around the Gordon, Thomas, Woodhouse and Jackson reefs, there are only a few Orange readings, and none from Vodafone, e& or WE. Tiran Island itself has no tests from anyone.

Before a trip, download an offline map, agree on a meeting point with your guide, and send your photos while you're still close to shore.

The road from Sharm to Dahab

It's about 59 miles from Naama Bay to Dahab, mostly through the mountains. Read the current US travel advisory for Egypt at travel.state.gov before you go. It covers the Sinai and it can change.

We read nPerf along the road, every 270 yards or so:

• First 6 miles: Orange, Vodafone and e& mostly show 4G+ and 5G.
• Orange: from about mile 12 to mile 43, we found readings at only 5 of 200 points.
• Vodafone: mostly 4G to about mile 25, then no readings until about mile 43.
• e&: readings almost everywhere, but mostly 2G from about mile 25 to mile 56.
• Near Dahab: 4G returns on all three, and town has 4G+ and 5G.

Save your map and send important messages before you leave. If you need a SIM on arrival, Orange has a shop at 5 El Salam Street in Dahab, opposite the Go Bus station, with the same hours as Sharm.

Wi-Fi at the airport and hotels

If a network shows up but the login page won't load, try our Wi-Fi login fixes. Hotel Wi-Fi ends at the gate, so it won't help on a transfer or a tour. On open networks, skip passwords and card details.

Arriving with data already working

A data eSIM installs at home over Wi-Fi with a QR code. Your days start at your first connection in Egypt, so you can set it up well before the flight. After landing, turn on data for the eSIM line. If it doesn't connect, turn on data roaming for that line. Your US number can stay on as a second line, and you should turn off data on it so a daily pass doesn't start. Our setup guide has the steps for iPhone and Android.

Your phone must support eSIM and be unlocked. On 2026-10-30, Moosetrip Egypt plans were $6 for 1 GB over 7 days, then $17 for 3 GB, $19.50 for 5 GB, $41 for 10 GB and $69 for 20 GB, each over 30 days.

As a generous guide, 1 GB is about 5 hours of maps and taxi apps, or 1.5 hours of video calls. So 3 GB covers about 15 hours of maps. Pick a plan on the Egypt page, and add data to the same eSIM if you run short. Also visiting Hurghada? See our Hurghada SIM guide.

Questions

Where can I buy a SIM card in Sharm El Sheikh at night?

At the airport. WE lists two points open 24 hours, and Orange Travel lists its points as open all day. Town shops close at 10 or 11 p.m.

How much is a SIM card in Sharm El Sheikh?

WE's tourist bundle was 100 pounds, about $1.80, for 5 GB over 30 days before tax on 2026-10-30. e& charged 200 pounds, about $3.60, for 7 GB with tax on 2026-10-13.

Is there cell service at Ras Mohammed?

At the cape, yes. Orange shows 4G at Shark Observatory and 4G+ at Yolanda Reef. Orange and Vodafone have no readings on about 10 miles of the road through the park, so save an offline map first.

Do I get signal on a boat trip to Tiran?

Near shore, usually. Orange shows mostly 4G and 4G+ on the first 4 miles from Naama Bay. After that, readings almost stop, and the island has none.

Is there internet on the road to Dahab?

At the start and the end, yes. In the mountains, Orange and Vodafone have few or no readings, and e& is mostly 2G. Plan for a gap.

Sources

• WE, Mobile Egypt tourist bundles, checked 2026-10-30
• WE, store locator, checked 2026-10-13
• WE, FAQ, checked 2026-10-13
• Orange Egypt, find a store, checked 2026-10-13
• e& Egypt, Traveling to Egypt, checked 2026-10-13
• nPerf, Egypt coverage map, maps updated September 19 to October 12, 2026, read 2026-10-13
• OpenStreetMap and OSRM, places and routes, checked 2026-10-13
• Verizon, TravelPass FAQs, checked 2026-10-30

More guides

• Sharm El Sheikh Taxi: inDrive, Meter Fares, Airport Rides
• Hurghada SIM Card: Airport, Shops, Friday Hours, and eSIM
• Hurghada Taxi Guide: Uber, inDrive and Airport Fares
• Internet in Egypt for Tourists: SIM, eSIM, or Roaming