Isn't Evolution supposed to be one of the quality operators in the area?
At least the divers are safely off the boat, a shame about the reef.
Vessel Egyptian Royal Evolution liveaboard reefed - Red Sea
- Thread starter DandyDon
- Start date
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Isn't Evolution supposed to be one of the quality operators in the area?
At least the divers are safely off the boat, a shame about the reef.
"requires trip insurance " or highly recommends it?
bathbiggles2
Registered
I've been lucky enough to have experienced about 15 Red Sea liveaboard trips - but none of them in the last 10 years - because of the issues I had with safety. For example. - two of those boats (Emperor Fraser and Hurricane) have since sunk! You only have to see the huge dockyard in Hurghada churning out these wooden dive boats in a few weeks to see how they view the temporary nature of their use.
However I went for a land-based holiday in Egypt last month and did a trip on a day boat to Abu Dabbab with a supposedly good operator - Extra Divers. The safety was shocking! The boat was large and spacious but the crew and guides had virtually no interaction with the divers. There was a brief orientation talk, but no safety briefing (I asked a crew member where the life jackets were and he pointed somewhere vaguely). I never found them! Because the boat was moored off a rickety old pier, embarkation and disembarkation at the dock was via a 10 meter (very) springy plank - not easy when you are loaded with gear - and falling in between the bucking boat and the dock was real possibility! The whole day felt 'cursory' and just designed to get the crew back as soon as possible. Instead of two dives with lunch in between we did the bare minimum safety stop (30. mins) and then lunch was still being eaten on the way back to the pier.
Add to that the bleaching and serious reduction in marine life I have witnessed over recent years and I won't be going back to Egypt any time soon!
However I went for a land-based holiday in Egypt last month and did a trip on a day boat to Abu Dabbab with a supposedly good operator - Extra Divers. The safety was shocking! The boat was large and spacious but the crew and guides had virtually no interaction with the divers. There was a brief orientation talk, but no safety briefing (I asked a crew member where the life jackets were and he pointed somewhere vaguely). I never found them! Because the boat was moored off a rickety old pier, embarkation and disembarkation at the dock was via a 10 meter (very) springy plank - not easy when you are loaded with gear - and falling in between the bucking boat and the dock was real possibility! The whole day felt 'cursory' and just designed to get the crew back as soon as possible. Instead of two dives with lunch in between we did the bare minimum safety stop (30. mins) and then lunch was still being eaten on the way back to the pier.
Add to that the bleaching and serious reduction in marine life I have witnessed over recent years and I won't be going back to Egypt any time soon!
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