Red Sea diving; everything you want in a dive (and more)

August 18th, 2010

Do you ever wonder where you could go for a week and have some of the most amazing dives in the world? Going down on a majestic wreck in the morning, then seeing shoals of amazing pelagic species in the afternoon? Throw in a shark or two in-between and then an unforgettable night dive with giant Spanish Dancers?

Maybe it’s time you made a trip to the Red Sea or a return trip if you’ve already tasted some of its offerings. If you like excitement, variety and surprises, The Red Sea is one of those places that you can never get enough of.

Dahab – chilled out with many great shore dives

There are fantastic shore dives in this former fishing village-turned diving hub in the Sinai Peninsula. A short drive will take you to so many gems. The coral are very healthy considering how popular Dahab is for diving. The Blue Hole is a highlight for any trip to Dahab.

Dahab is an excellent location for divers of all levels and those looking to do their certification. There’s also plenty to do on land. Go into town and smoke a shish pipe in the evening and enjoy a fresh fish dish.

If you have a few extra days on your trip, you can travel to Sharm and dive out to the Thistlegorm or the marine park at Ras Mohamad.

Bit further south

Other popular Red Sea resorts include Hurghada and Sharm El-Sheik. You can dive land-based or liveaboard trips from these destinations.

Ras Mohamad in the southern Sinai Peninsula is characterised by lots of rich marine life.

The Thistlegorm is a 125 metre wreck sunk in the Strait of Tiran, suitable for all levels. It is the highlight for many divers doing the Red Sea.

The Brothers – drift along steep walls and see bright coloured corals and shoals of fish of all sizes. You might see some Whitetip Reef Sharks and huge Napoleon Wrasse.

Hurghada and Sharm are not the most beautiful seaside resorts in the world (a funny but not inaccurate description of Sharm I’ve heard is “Reno minus the class”). But when you’re there for the diving, who cares…

Liveaboards – lots of diving

A liveaboard has got to be the best way to dive the Red Sea. Picture yourself, not having to worry about details and logistics – like accommodation, meals and transport. You literally get out of bed and jump into the water for a refreshing early morning dive or pop out from a great day of diving and your dinner is waiting for you only a few feet away.

The real advantage of liveaboards is that they can get to the far-away sites that the dayboats can’t reach. You really get your diving value for money.

I can only envy those who had the resourcefulness or the guts to do a back to basics liveaboard out of Eritrea or Djibouti. But I can only imagine how unspoiled and beautiful the diving must be.

But if you prefer to be on land

You can’t have enough of the comforts of being land-based. Enjoy the culture, food and music. If you have extra time and money, you can do an Egypt highlights (pyramids, Cairo) combined with diving the Red Sea.

Going even further south

Avoid the crowds and see even greater variety and richness of marine life. Marsa Alam is now easier to access than before (I had a scary five-hour jeep ride in the middle of the night from Hurghada to Marsa several years ago).

Red Sea aficionados say the diving becomes better as you go further south. The dive sites of Elphinstone, St Johns and Zabargad have incredible of marine life (for numbers and variety). This part of the world has got to be one of my all-time favourites. It’s a real treat to see Hammerheads and Oceanic Whitetips on the same dive. The night dives were out-of-worldly experiences with huge octopus and nudibranchs everywhere in the light of the torch. And Snorkelling with dolphins was a nice extra at the end of an exciting liveaboard.

The currents can be strong in places in the southern region so the dives may not be suitable for those who aren’t experienced divers.

Pack up and go!

For those living in Europe, The Red Sea is easy to get to – especially for divers in the UK. There are direct flights from major European cities to the main resort towns. There are specialist travel agents and tour operators that offer Red Sea diving travels at competitive prices. From North America, the trip may take a while but it will be worth it. One way around the complications and the cost for North Americans is to book a package with one of the specialist operators out of the UK and make your own way to London on one of the many cheap airlines.

So whatever your desire – wrecks, sharks or beautiful coral reefs – have a great diving holiday!

Lou