I have been lucky enough to dive in Egypt’s stunning Red Sea twice. I visited Dahab in 2013 and Hurghada in 2018. Both times I travelled in June which was perfect with air temperatures of 25-35 degrees and water temperature of around 30 degrees. Here's what you need to know about diving in Egypt...
Diving in Dahab
I was very lucky to go on a dive trip to Dahab with my college while studying Marine Biology and Ecology. Unfortunately, I don’t think the hotel and dive centre we dived with is open anymore. We flew into Sharm el-Sheikh which is about 6 hours from London Gatwick.
My favourite dive sites:
Eel Garden – hundreds of garden eels pop up through the sand like a weird underwater whack-a-mole game (but don’t whack them obviously).
The Canyon – bubbles break through the sand from the canyons below and create
curtain-like trails of bubbles. If you are an
advanced diver, you can dive deeper and go into the canyon and be the one creating the
bubbles that come through the sand above.
El Bells and The Blue Hole – wow! Dive in at El Bells and dive the outer wall, nipping over the rim and into The Blue Hole itself and around the rim to the exit. Colourful reefs and plenty of fish make this dive site beautiful but don’t be fooled. The Blue Hole is known to be
a dangerous dive site and the sheer blueness of the outside of The Blue Hole can be disorienting. Stick to 10-15m for the best views of the reef and marine life.
Dahab was my first ever dive trip and was only PADI Open Water at the time. The dives were well suited to this level of diving. I still remember the first time I put my head underwater and couldn’t believe how clear it was.
Diving in Hurghada
My second dive trip to Egypt was with some wonderful friends from university. We flew into Hurghada Airport (from Manchester, approx. 7 hours). We stayed at Sindbad Club Hotel (booked with Thomas Cook, all inclusive). We dived with Divers Lodge Hurghada.
My favourite dive sites:
Abu Ramada – we visited these sites several times over the 2 weeks we were in Hurghada. It was filled with reef life – crocodilefish, stingrays, lionfish, octopus, huge napoleon wrasse, the list goes on! There’s also a cool cave that is filled to the brim with glassfish.
El Minya Wreck – The El Minya sank
during the Egypt-Israel War in 1969. It lies on its portside at around 30 metres depth and still has 2 torpedoes attached to its bow. Look out for tiny nudibranchs on the wreck. There is also a fishing trawler nearby that is pretty cool so check that out too if you can, it’s home to many large lionfish and huge schools of glassfish.
Hurghada is one of my favourite places to dive. The dive sites were so full of life, the reefs were healthy, and the visibility was incredible! We did a few drift dives which were great, to just float there and let the current take you along so just magical.
I can't wait to go back to Egypt someday to see the sights and to dive...
Thanks for reading!
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