Who is Orascom Development?
Orascom Development is a real estate and hospitality developer that works on a different model from most players in the Egyptian market. It doesn't build apartment blocks or gated compounds. It builds entire destinations.
What that means in practice: the company takes a large plot of coastline or land with no infrastructure at all, and builds the town itself — roads, utilities, hotels, a marina, services, and residential neighbourhoods — and then continues to operate and manage it long after handover, instead of selling the units and walking away.
That model ties the company's interest to the destination staying alive after delivery, not to the sales run ending. For a coastal buyer in particular, that's a fundamental difference, because the value of your unit depends on one thing: whether the place is still busy and functioning once the developer has finished selling — or empty for nine months of the year.
A presence across 7 countries
The company doesn't operate only in Egypt. Its portfolio spans seven countries, and that's what gives its track record weight:
In Egypt, the company is behind El Gouna — the destination that became the benchmark every other coastal project in the country is measured against — as well as Taba Heights on the Gulf of Aqaba, Byoum in Fayoum, O West in 6th of October, and Makadi Heights on the Red Sea. Outside Egypt: Andermatt in Switzerland, Jebel Sifah and Hawana Salalah in Oman, Luštica Bay in Montenegro, Chbika in Morocco, and a sustainable development project in the United Kingdom.
The point isn't the size of the list. The point is that the company has run the same process — raw land to inhabited destination — more than once, in more than one market, under more than one legal system. That kind of accumulated experience isn't easy to replicate.
Why this matters to you as a buyer
There are three real risks facing anyone buying a coastal unit off-plan, and the developer determines how big each one is:
Delivery risk. A coastal project far from any city needs complete infrastructure before the first unit exists. A developer with a delivery record in locations like this enters the project knowing the true cost and timeline, rather than discovering them halfway through.
Post-handover risk. This is the risk nobody discusses. A unit in a place with no operator, no management and no continuing services quietly loses value year after year. When the developer stays on as the operator of the destination, maintenance, security, services and hotels keep running — and the place keeps year-round activity.
Resale risk. A unit inside a destination with a recognised name sells faster and at a better price, because the next buyer is buying the reputation as much as the bricks. That is precisely the part the developer's name earns you.
And if you're approaching this as an investment rather than a second home, this detail is the whole calculation — we broke it down with numbers in Is real estate investment in Hurghada profitable?
Makadi Heights: the project
Makadi Heights is Orascom's project in Makadi Bay, south of Hurghada on the Red Sea, roughly half an hour's drive from Hurghada International Airport. The project is divided into three phases, each with its own character and unit mix:
Ledge Valley — chalets from one to three bedrooms; the entry point into the project.
Aden Parks — two- and three-bedroom chalets set around the lagoons and green spaces.
Siyal — the villas, townhouses and twin houses; the project's premium phase.
The practical difference between a chalet and a villa — in space, privacy and yield — is covered in detail in Apartments or villas on the Red Sea?
Prices and payment plans
Makadi Heights prices start at EGP 10,100,000 for a one-bedroom chalet in Ledge Valley and reach EGP 31,145,000 for a standalone villa in Siyal. In between: two-bedroom chalets from 15,000,000, three-bedroom from 19,585,000, and townhouses from 23,585,000.
Two official payment plans are available: 10% down with equal instalments over 7 years plus 10% on delivery, or 15% down plus 10% after two years and 10% on delivery, over 8 years. All units are delivered fully finished, including lower kitchen cabinets and bathrooms.
Full details per unit type are in Makadi Heights prices and payment plans
For the international buyer
Having an internationally established developer on the project removes much of a non-Egyptian buyer's uncertainty, because they are dealing with an entity that has a documented record and formal procedures. The legal conditions for foreign ownership in Egypt are explained in Can foreigners own property in Egypt?
The bottom line
When you compare two Red Sea projects at roughly the same price, the real comparison isn't between the two floor areas. It's between the two companies building them. A developer selling units finishes the job on handover day; a developer building a destination starts on handover day.
To see which units are currently available and at what price, get in touch and we'll come back to you with what's actually on the table.