The Red Sea has been a huge diving attraction for decades now and rightly so. Particularly popular with European divers travelling to Egypt, this part of the world offers some excellent reefs teeming with diversity. With both ample shore, day boat and live-aboard options, it can cater to all types of diver.
Quick Jump
Usually split into north and south by live-aboard itineraries, the red sea is accessible from many areas including Sharm El Sheikh, Marsa Alam, Hurghada, Dahad, Eilat and Aqaba. There is also a multitude of live-aboard options available from most of these ports.
The north is home to the famous Thistlegorm wreck which is not to be missed for wreck enthusiasts. It also stages the Ras Mohammed National Park, a protected area offering many reefs and some superb wall diving.
The south is regarded as a little less popular which some people may find preferable, having less crowded sites and vessels seen along the way. Some of the favourite sites here are Fury Shoal, Elphinstone reef and Abu Dabbab which offer great visibility, a good chance of seeing dolphins, sharks including the oceanic white tip and for the very lucky, the elusive dugong!
Best Sites
Thistlegorm Wreck
The Brothers
Daedalus Reef
Elphinstone Reef
Blue Hole
Fury Shoals
Hark and Yolanda Reef
Jackson Reef
Conditions
Visibility – Can vary anywhere from 20m-40m year round! Depending on conditions, expect around 30m on most dives
Currents – Can vary a lot on tides and location from zero to quite strong. Some sites like Brothers are well known for drift dives in strong currents!
Depths – Range from 5m to 30m, most sites are between 10m and 20m deep so accessible to all level of divers.
Air Temps – Highs between 20℃ in winter and 40℃ in summer, warm winters and very hot summers, can be much cooler at night
Water Temps – Year round ranges from around 21℃ to 28℃. Summer months are warmest, August being the hottest while Februaury being the coldest.
What will I see
The red sea offers a huge potential of creatures great and small, like most waters this depends on the time of the year and location. However if the timing is right you can see many species of shark, whale sharks, dolphins, large pelagic fish, turtles and even dugongs.
Shark species that call the red sea home
- Oceanic white tip shark (Year round on some sites or Oct to Jan)
- Hammerhead shark (June to Sept)
- Tiger shark
- Grey reef shark
- Nurse shark
- Black tip reef shark
- White tip reef shark
- Whale shark (May to July, more common in the north)
- Thresher Shark (Autumn and winter, best bet is Brothers or Daedalus)
- Silky Shark
Pelagic Fish Species
- Great Barracuda
- Bluefin Trevally
- Giant Trevally
- Napoleon Wrasse
Macro Life
- Nudibranches
- Frogfish
- Pipefish
- Seahorses
- Harlequin Shrimp
Morgan's Ocean Images 