Red Sea Diving Hurghada

Hurghada is a lively holiday resort offering easy access to a varied selection of dive sites for all levels and the opportunity to mix diving with a visit to Luxor to see the Valley of the Kings and Queens and the temples of Luxor and Karnak.

Essential Diving Info

Location: On the Red Sea coast of mainland Egypt, around 500km south of Cairo.
Transfer time: Approximately 30 mins from Hurghada airport.
Dive centres: Divers' Lodge
Medical: Nearest recompression chamber / medical facilities are at the Hurghada Naval Centre, 10 mins by road.

Summary: Diving in Hurghada

• Hurghada offers divers the choice of over 30 sites around the numerous offshore islands, which provide shelter for the day boats.
• For the wreck diving enthusiast there are trips available to the world-renowned Abu Nuhas and S/S Thistlegorm Red Sea wrecks.
• If you enjoy the rush of drift diving, the beautiful Giftun drift is a mere stone's throw away.

Diving Highlights

Careless Reef

This isolated reef is known to divers the world over for its large population of semi-tame Moray Eels. The reef features a steep wall dropping well beyond 40 meters, with a contoured profile offering many caves and cavelets for the more experienced diver. The reef's isolation, combined with the deep water in which it lies, makes it ideal for Pelagic-spotting and sharks are as likely here as at any reef in the area. Jacks, Tuna and Barracuda are also frequently spotted.

Giftun Seghir

The eastern wall of Giftun Seghir has sheer drops to great depths, it is very contoured and its craggy profile features some interesting caves. The reef is well covered with both hard and soft corals. The steep wall section boasts a phenomenal congregation of Gorgonians, as well as dense growth of sea whips and black corals. The reef shallows are particularly rich in friendly smaller reef fish while big impressive Pelagic buzz past in the blue waters off the wall.

Shaab Um Gamar

One of the nicest sites in the Hurghada area, packing lots of action into its small confines. There is a small wreck, lying at around 25 meters (80ft), as well as a very dense population of reef and Pelagic fishes.

Abu Nuhas

A ship graveyard containing the wrecks of Giannis D, Carnatic, Kimon M, Chrisoula K. All around 100 meters in length and found between 5 and 28 meters below the surface. These wrecks can only be dived if weather conditions permit, due to their location. There is great coral life in the area and lots of schooling fish around the wrecks.

Thistlegorm

The Thistlegorm was a 126 meter long and 17.5 meter wide merchant vessel commandeered by the navy during World War II. In the early hours of 6th October 1941 she was hit by two German bombers. Rediscovered in the early 90's, sitting upright at 30 meters, she has become one of the best wrecks in the Red Sea. Her holds are open and easily accessed showing the full range of cargo which includes ammunition, trucks, motorbikes, armored vehicles, plane wings and engines, trains and tenders, Wellington boots and waders. The wreck is exposed to the tidal currents and prevailing winds, which can make this dive inaccessible at times. These conditions and the depth of the dive means that this is only open to experienced divers.

Marine Life

A wide variety of colorful hard and soft corals, clownfish, lionfish, tuna, groupers, jacks, turtles, dolphins, reef sharks, leopard sharks, eagle rays, schools of colorful tropical fish and numerous.