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Liveaboard Diving in Red Sea
What To Expect On A Red Sea Liveaboard
Liveaboards in the Red Sea have long been a divers favorite destination offering amazing scuba diving with healthy, colorful reefs and abundant marine life. Egyptian liveaboards have provided divers from around the world with some amazing dive experiences on some of the world's best-known dive sites. Numerous liveaboard itineraries are available, which can visit remote reefs or wrecks from WWII.
The name 'Red Sea' is rumored to come from the seasonal blooms of red-colored algae that appear near the surface at certain times of the year. But despite its name, the waters are an amazing blue water destination boasting comfortable water temperatures throughout the year, superb visibility, and great dive conditions year-round. As some of the best dive sites are far from shore, a liveaboard dive cruise is the best way to visit the more remote areas of this region.
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet extending from the Indian Ocean and lies between Africa & Asia. It holds the title of one of the saltiest bodies of water on earth due mainly to its geological formation, leading to high evaporation levels. Due to the water's high salinity, divers should be aware that they will need to add extra weight to their normal amount to compensate for the extra buoyancy provided by these salty waters.
Whilst the Red Sea is primarily bordered by Egypt and Saudi Arabia, most diving liveaboards in the Red Sea offer diving safaris directly from Egypt, with multiple well-established tourist destinations located throughout the country from North to South. An Egypt dive safari on a liveaboard is the best way to see this amazing dive and snorkeling area.
Diving areas/regions can be split between North & South, with different dive trip itineraries offered in both areas.
Northern Red Sea
The northern area of the Egyptian Red Sea is a divers paradise, offering amazing dive cruises at world-famous dive sites such as the Straits of Tiran and Ras Mohammed National Park. If diving wrecks is your thing, then the SS Thistlegorm or Dunraven wrecks will surely be a must-do on your dive list. A dive liveaboard departing from Sharm El Sheikh, Safaga, or Hurghada is an excellent way to fully explore the different dive sites available.
Southern Red Sea
To the south awaits some fantastic dive opportunities away from the crowds for those visiting on a liveaboard dive trip. Dive sites that are only accessible by overnight dive safaris can be explored. With well-known sites such as Daedalus Reef, The Brothers, St. Johns, Elphinstone, and Fury Shoals, it will surely delight all divers. Most liveaboard itineraries that operate in this southern area will depart from either Port Ghalib (Marsa Alam), Hamata or Hurghada.
Getting There
Northern Red Sea - Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada have their own international airports, with various international airlines flying directly to them. These would be a more convenient arrival port for dive liveaboard departures. Cairo is the main International airport in Egypt and will also offer domestic flights to most areas within Egypt.
Southern Red Sea - Marsa Alam International airport to the south is used by some international airlines, mainly from Europe. It is located very close to Port Ghalib (Marsa Ghalib), so it is a perfect arrival port for liveaboard trips from this area. Domestic flights from Cairo are also available. Land transfers from Hurghada to Port Ghalib are also possible; the journey takes approximately 2.5 hours each way.
Red Sea Diving Reviews
- 9.1 Superb
- 368 Verified Reviews
Overall good; lot of variety,Good
Diving Red Sea in November on the Emperor Superior
Overall the diving in the Red Sea was great.
Diving Red Sea in November on the Red Sea Blue Force 3
A bit cold for me (I'm a Caribbean diver - so my being cold is not a spectacular remark). Some divers bring dry-suits, I settle for a 7 mm wetsuit. I like the Red Sea - there's always something to see on each dive.
Diving Red Sea in December on the Emperor Echo
Our February trip was quite windy and cool, visibility was just okay, and water temp was 20-21C. But what can you do about Mother Nature?
Diving Red Sea in February on the Blue Planet 1
Well, a bit disappointing compared to other well known dive spots (Raja Ampat, Alor, Cuba, etc. ). Coral is healthy but fish life is lacking. Best time for sharks is mid September to early December.
Diving Red Sea in March on the Blue
I was somewhat disappointed. I had seen pictures of beautiful colorful reefs and on our trip we saw very little of this. I was told the reefs are more to the south. Watch which direction your trip goes. I wished I had den some more research on this and made a better decision for such a long and expensive trip.
Diving Red Sea in November on the Blue
Didn't know the water could be so blue.
Diving Red Sea in October on the Snefro Spirit
I've dove both northern and Southern routes. If I had to choose which was more enjoyable, the southern route comes out on top.
Diving Red Sea in March on the Emperor Asmaa
It was good, but would imagine it would be a great experience if better luck with wind conditions.
Diving Red Sea in April on the Snefro Pearl
Beautiful corals and easy shallow dives
Diving Red Sea in April on the Emperor Elite
Average overall, reefs are not that good, so if there's no big fish, or a wreck, it could be a boring dive. If you've done any diving in Maldives or Asia, you won't be too impressed with reefs here.
Diving Red Sea in May on the Emperor Superior
Average overall, reefs are not that good, so if there's no big fish, or a wreck, it could be a boring dive.
Diving Red Sea in May on the Emperor Echo
Diving the Red Sea was great lots of life on the reef and corals are in great condition. Pay attention to what Wetsuit to bring at what time of year the Blue-O-Two guide was spot on. We dived in June with 5mm no hood and were comfortable
Diving Red Sea in May on the Blue Horizon
Diving in the red sea was fantastic, lots of diverse coral and marine life, small schools of fishes and large marine life.
Diving Red Sea in July on the Blue Planet 1
Very Healthy, vibrant corals - soft & hard, warm
Diving Red Sea in July on the Sea Serpent Contessa
Incredible as always for variety ! 26-28 degree water temps, low to moderate winds = smooth channel crossings
Diving Red Sea in August on the Blue Pearl
A little different than I expected but beautiful coral gardens
Diving Red Sea in August on the Snefro Pearl
Loved all of the different fish, unbelievable coral formations and many Nemo sightings. Best place we have ever been to.
Diving Red Sea in September on the Blue
Diving was very nice, but not our best experience. Water was warm enough so that a skin or 3 mil was all we needed. Visibility was okay but not great. No problem with current. Overall nice but not fabulous.
Diving Red Sea in September on the Blue Melody
Rich coral and fish life - the best I have ever encountered
Diving Red Sea in October on the Blue Melody
3/10. Coral good but lacking color. Plenty of small fish but nothing larger. Extremely crowded dive sights; best quote was "100 divers for every shark seen". Many time the bubbles from so many other divers prevented seeing the sharks. At one dive sight I saw ~50 divers descend from the surface right in front of me. You have to memorize your boat name because there could be 40 zodiacs at the dive sight when you surface.
Diving Red Sea in October on the JP Marine
rougher waters than expected. not as colorful as expected. water temperature perfect.
Diving Red Sea in October on the Blue Horizon
The water was clear and a great place to dive.
Diving Red Sea in October on the Sea Serpent Serena
The visibility was over 100 ft each day. This is my best week of diving and a new favorite destination
Diving Red Sea in November on the Emperor Elite
Best dives of my life--incredible light flowing through gorgeous hard and soft coral fields
Diving Red Sea in November on the Snefro Pearl
Nice and warm and my 7mm was never too warm.
Diving Red Sea in May on the Emperor Superior
The diving in the North Red Sea was amazing and I am looking forward to now visit the South.
Diving Red Sea in August on the Ghani
Not as much fish as I was expecting but I hear may/ June are the best months - we were at the end of the season ,I look forward to returning in high summer for the epic fish schools :)
Diving Red Sea in November on the Emperor Superior
Good, but not world-beating like had been hyped on various sites / articles. That could be because we have been diving in the Philippines for four years. Nothing we saw compared to Tubbataha or Verde Island.
Diving Red Sea in December on the Blue Seas
At between 21 to 24 degree celsius for this December trip, this was some of the „cooler“ diving we have done so far but it was well worth it and the dive sites were not as crowded as they can get during peak season.
Diving Red Sea in December on the Sea Friend
Super great, I will make a tour to the south red sea after this great experience in the north
Diving Red Sea in January on the Emperor Elite
5 stars. Dolphins and coral in the north were incredible
Diving Red Sea in January on the Emperor Elite
always awesome to see the all kind of colores
Diving Red Sea in February on the Emperor Asmaa
Disappointing. No sharks or big animals at all. Specially because the package sold was specifically targeting diving with sharks.
Diving Red Sea in September on the Emperor Asmaa
Good value for the money but nothing exceptional. Maybe we weren't lucky this time.
Diving Red Sea in September on the Golden Dolphin
Everything is wonderfull in the red sea !
Diving Red Sea in October on the Blue
good temperature very good view
Diving Red Sea in November on the Blue Seas
Only about 23 degrees and chilly on the surface with the wind, but very nice and good coral health.
Diving Red Sea in February on the Emperor Asmaa
Extreme clear water with perfect marine life
Diving Red Sea in July on the Snefro Pearl
I love diving the Red Sea - healthy coral and marine life
Diving Red Sea in August on the Emperor Echo
I loved it. Very colorful. I missed some more sharks and macro, though
Diving Red Sea in September on the Snefro Spirit
beautiful reefs with a lot of colorful sea life
Diving Red Sea in September on the Snefro Pearl
Like swimming in an aquarium
Diving Red Sea in October on the Tillis
The Red sea is always a pleasure to dive in, and the liveaboard experience just made it better.
Diving Red Sea in October on the Emperor Echo
Great visibility and water temperature
Diving Red Sea in November on the South Moon
Nice dives, but we expected to see more sharks
Diving Red Sea in November on the Tillis
Amazing, great visibility and temperature, lots if marine life
Diving Red Sea in November on the Tillis
Excellent, varied and beautiful
Diving Red Sea in November on the Blue
Very colorful coral gardens
Diving Red Sea in November on the Blue
Good but we were not lucky to see any sharks or dugongs
Diving Red Sea in November on the JP Marine
I love it, there was as well current as easy diving
Diving Red Sea in November on the JP Marine
Amazing visibility and marine life
Diving Red Sea in November on the Blue Melody
Fantastic, excellent corals, but unexpectedly cold !!
Diving Red Sea in December on the Emperor Echo
Great but a bit cold especially during night dives , I think it could be more comfy starting from April to November.
Diving Red Sea in January on the Emperor Superior
Wonderful healthy growing reefs, lots of beautiful corals fish . Self guided but enjoyed Deano Jenkins and Oscan Gamal for guides and dive briefs.
Diving Red Sea in January on the Emperor Echo
Diving was simple and quiet at this time of year with lots to see.
Diving Red Sea in February on the Blue Pearl
Wild life and environment is well protected and kept
Diving Red Sea in March on the Blue Adventurer
Healthy coral, many fish and life
Diving Red Sea in March on the Blue Seas
A little bit cold in march
Diving Red Sea in March on the Blue
March is great for a bit of winter sun but a little early in the season really.
Diving Red Sea in March on the Blue
Clear water, healthy corals,
Diving Red Sea in March on the South Moon
The Red Sea as usual is very charming, beautiful and highly recommended.
Diving Red Sea in March on the Sea Serpent Contessa
great, but bad visibility in the north
Diving Red Sea in March on the Emperor Elite
I was pleasantly surprised about the perfect health of the corals in the Red Sea
Diving Red Sea in April on the Red Sea Blue Force 2
Not great visibility and a bit chilly (mid April) but still very good!,Not great visibility and a bit chilly (mid April) but still very good!
Diving Red Sea in April on the Blue Horizon
good, less pelagics than previously sadly and quite a lot of dead coral :(
Diving Red Sea in April on the Sea Serpent
I don't think you can get better value for money diving anywhere else.
Diving Red Sea in April on the Sea Serpent Grand
Fairly good given price and travel distance. Next time I will try the more southern part, closer to Sudan.
Diving Red Sea in April on the Red Sea Aggressor III
There is not as much fish as it was back in the days, but still Egypt is very good value for money if it come to liveaboards. Just mind the tourist traps anywhre on land incl. bad divecenters.
Diving Red Sea in April on the Red Sea Aggressor III
At times overcrowded but the crew did a great job of managing the situation as good as possible.
Diving Red Sea in April on the Emperor Echo
The red sea is rich in marine life with good visibility while warm. Love it!
Diving Red Sea in April on the Red Sea Aggressor III
Very pretty, lots of hard and soft corals and great marine life
Diving Red Sea in April on the Red Sea Aggressor III
Great but with less fish than before.
Diving Red Sea in May on the Blue
Nice but a very windy week
Diving Red Sea in May on the Blue Storm
Great overall, good value for money
Diving Red Sea in May on the Seawolf Felo
Visibility was amazing (20m+) but cooler than expected (24 degrees).
Diving Red Sea in May on the Snefro Pearl
Corals are well intact, you can spot nice life, be it big or small.
Diving Red Sea in May on the Emperor Elite
Still - after several Red Sea diving experiences - diving in the Red Sea is exciting! And: as THE responsibility of all of us - To be protected and preserved for future generations!
Diving Red Sea in June on the Tillis
Corals are here healty and full of life.
Diving Red Sea in June on the Snefro Pearl
Red Sea is always great for diving although this time (in June) the water temp was lower than usual, so even a 3mm long wetsuit was a bit chilly at times, probably due to the full moon cycle churning things up
Diving Red Sea in June on the Blue Adventurer
Every trip we saw different things! And variety of diving spots too,Good
Diving Red Sea in July on the Blue Melody
uiteraard kunnen ontmoetingen met manta's haaien etc. niet gepland en gegarandeerd worden, maar als ik mijn ervaringen met de rode zee afzet tegen andere liveboards ga ik de volgende keer ergens anders naar toe waar de kansen beter zijn.
Diving Red Sea in July on the Emperor Echo
Such great diving. Superb conditions, great viz, amazing sea life and incredible variety.
Diving Red Sea in August on the Snefro Pearl
Warm water, great visibility, lots and lots of fish and corals.
Diving Red Sea in September on the Grand Sea Serpent
Great (although not many big fishes)
Diving Red Sea in September on the Snefro Pearl
I felt cold at 27 degrees. Getting a 5ml for next time.
Diving Red Sea in September on the Snefro Target
Crowded, Diving is a real Mass tourism in the Red sea.
Diving Red Sea in September on the Emperor Asmaa
Wasn't as good as it has been. Missing the sharks, octopus and turtles
Diving Red Sea in September on the Snefro Pearl
Das rote meer fasziniert mich immer wieder mit den beeindruckenden Riffen und der Vielfalt.
Diving Red Sea in September on the Blue Horizon
Good. Visibility and fish not. not as good as previous trips to the Straits of Tiran.
Diving Red Sea in October on the Snefro Pearl
Very colorful, a lot of marine life, warm 29-30C water in early-october
Diving Red Sea in October on the Emperor Elite
Great BUT The Red Sea needs help and a rota of boats is essential to allow reef recovery. More attention needs to be devoted to environmental preservation in the dive briefing. The golden goose of liveaboards will evaporate if more species such as the already missing garden eels disappear altogether
Diving Red Sea in October on the Blue Melody
It is an underwater paradise, I praise myself fortunate to have seen it.
Diving Red Sea in October on the Al Farouk II
Beautiful well-preserved reefs all over.
Diving Red Sea in October on the Tillis
Can only recommend - good vis and stunning reeves
Diving Red Sea in October on the South Moon
Great. The colours, the life, the different kind of fishes.
Diving Red Sea in November on the Snefro Pearl
Amazing marine life and visibility, great weather in November.
Diving Red Sea in November on the Blue Melody
Overall very enjoyable! Some coral bleaching noticeable in relation to the last time I was there around 10 years ago
Diving Red Sea in November on the JP Marine
Always plenty of fish, turtle, lion fish, stingray. Group saw a shark 2 times!
Diving Red Sea in November on the Freedom III
Warm water. Little chilly close to the coast but late in season.
Diving Red Sea in November on the Contessa Mia