Any Recommendations on Middle East Destinations

[bermudaskink]

FYI Sharm is very touristy and there are often several dive boats at one dive site at one time. Beautiful marine park though - Ras Mohammed. I would reccomend a trip to Sharm only for the day, as a side trip form Dahab. Dahab is less trouristy, more geard for the travller so if you hate travellers, stay away. But at least in most places, you will often get the dive site to yourself and it is easy to do as many shore dives as you like. There are other spots up the Sinai coast that are less touristy and are said to be great for diving... so have a search on the web. I really would say that Sharm is good for a long stay if you like the really commercial type of holiday diving, big boats and lots of people!!

I would highly rate the Maldives, which is not far from dubai by plane.... plenty of islands to chose from and fabulous diving. Manta rays almost gauranteed! Most dives are deep drift dives and lots of fun....although the coral is in better shape in the Red Sea, the Maldives has plenty of fish to boast and is a much nicer holiday destination than Sharm for sure!

I would reccomend the Maldives, as most of these island will be under water in the next 50 years.... so best to go now while you can.

Hope this helps.

 

[gehadoski]

Hi! I've been living in UAE for more than a year now. And only been diving in Fujeirah (UAE) twice, most of the dive sites here in Middle East are wrecks, right? I've heard about Red Sea, Gulf of Oman, but can anyone tells me about the best time to go diving? What sort of exposure suits do i have to wear? And the dive sites please.

All your opinions are very much appreciated.

Me I prefer diving in the Red Sea, If you want to come. Come in April - May the best time in the Sharm and in Dahab. its about summer there, clothes (t-shirts) and diving if you are a deep diver 5mm will do it. visibilty is clear (35m +) most of the time and water temp is OK. If you would like some help. contact me on Gehad_Zeidan@hotmail.com

 

[Ian T]

Just remember that when you go to Fujairah from, say, Dubai. Women and men can only travel together in private cars if they are married or closely related. You have to pass through Sharjah (one of the Emirates), and they have started implementing the stricter version of Islamic law. Most likely as tourists you won't have a problem, but for couples travelling w/o being married, maybe something to ponder? Living here, you learn to take nothing for granted and prepare for everything....
Is diving there worth the fine? Yup, you bet.

 

[anton]

Hi! I've been living in UAE for more than a year now. And only been diving in Fujeirah (UAE) twice, most of the dive sites here in Middle East are wrecks, right? I've heard about Red Sea, Gulf of Oman, but can anyone tells me about the best time to go diving? What sort of exposure suits do i have to wear? And the dive sites please.

All your opinions are very much appreciated.

anemone: Try http://www.emiratesdiving.com/uaedive_main.htm for dive sites and descriptions. You will find GPS coordinates as well as short description and depth for 27 or so sites from 3 to 80 meters for both your east and west coasts. bubble-og is right on with the suit. I climbed into my 3mil in December and figure late next month it is back to the lycra. All my dive buddies are going in shorts right now but I checked my log and am registering 19 over the past 2 weeks which is a bit cold for me so I will keep the 3mil on for a bit longer

 

[chippy]

An excellent dive guide book if your going to Sharm, which can be bought in most places, is called "Sharm El Sheikh diving guide". Most of the instructors there use them for dive briefings, and it's packed with info, 3D dive site guides which not only show routes but also tidal movements, sealife guide, etc. Well worth the money IMO.

The ISBN is : 977 304 000 3

 

[Echo]

Off Dubai, you have the wrecks, unfortunately the Palm Island (with all the dredging) has mucked up the vis and changed some of the currents, but it's still ok. To the north, you have Ajman where you can dive with manatees and dolphins..
Go to Musandam and do all kinds of dives (not that many wrecks though), wall diving, coral reefs, drift dives etc... Dec - March, you have a chance to dive with whale sharks, reef- bull- hammerhead sharks, dolphins and so on...
Oman: Dimaniyat Islands, go to Al Suwaidi and you have a string of 9 islands with about 20-25 different dive sites, loads of fish, corals. The Islands are a marine park and protected by law.
I do most of my diving there and really recommend it. If you want more information, send me a private message and I can answer any and all questions you have.
For the Red Sea, well, I'm not the expert. I know that some people I have talked to said that, even though the vis is better in the Red Sea, fish life is about the same as off the Dim Islands.
In Oman you can also head down south to Turtle Island (they might have changed the rules there, but you used to be able to dive there), and there is also diving off Salalah, but I have never been down there so can't tell you...

Temp's, well you live in Dubai so you know what it's like. Humidity is a bit worse here in Oman though...
Best times to dive? Anytime. visibility is improving at the moment, still good to dive though...

At the moment in Oman, I'm using a 2/3mm full, but in a couple of weeks, a shorty should be alright, come late-April and May, a diveskin should be alright -- all of it depending on how much you dive. Some use a 5mm full, depends on how easily you get cold...

I am coming to Oman in August with my family. I have a 5mm shortie and for UK use a 7mm double thickness full semi-dry. We want to do the OW course (we are currently BSAC snorkellers) and would like to know if my shortie would be too thick for Oman in August.

Regards

Echo