Marsa Alam or El Quseir

[oliviamarine]

Hi,

I am a new member of this board and would like to have some info about Egypt. I am planning to dive in Egypt in October 2003. Which place would you recommend between El Quseir and Marsa Alam, provided the following info :

- I am not searching for nightlife

- I would like to see nice and beautiful corals

- I would love to see big fishes (a shark would be great !)

- I am AOW diver with 14 dives

Would you recommend going to Marsa Alam, even if I cannot go to Elphinstone ?

Thanks a lot in advance for your answers and your help.

Marine

 

[Louie]

Some of the best sites are a bit out of the way and if you don't mind being stuck on a boat for seven days (or even two weeks if you're keen), liveaboards may be the best way to do the Southern Red Sea. You get a lot more diving.
There are many boats going out of Marsa Alam for the various southern routes. I did a seven-day trip in August to Fury Shoal and St John's Reef and it was some of the best diving ever for me (saw quite a few hammerhead sharks).
But whether you do land-based or liveaboard, find out where the likely iteneraries will take you in advance. THe Brothers have some very lovely coral if you don't want to go too far down south.

On the Southern Red Sea trips, operators generally ask that divers have a minimum number of dives when they embark (usually 35 dives) but I've met divers with fewer dives. Besides, you may have plenty of dives behind you by next year.

 

[clive francis]

check my site, in the new section, there are pages of red sea photo's from marsa alam, i would recomend this to anyone, the diving is great, and by then you may have done enough dives to elphinstone, wait till november though, a friend was there a week or 2 ago and she said they had whale sharks and manta's, i booked mine through oonasdivers, but it was the red sea diving safari site at shagra

 

[David D]

You will be very lucky to see any sharks at Marsa Alam or El Quesir, although you will see lots of healthy coral and small fish (unless the relentless development down there has started taking its toll!).

Unless you are paying extra for day trips to Elphinstone etc, only shore diving was available when I was there a few years back.
Expect to drive to sites in a dusty truck, get kitted up on a sharp coral beach, then negotiate fifty yards of razor sharp coral rock with lots of ankle twisting holes and crevices in full kit before falling into the surf in a fairly undignified way!

This is all very pretty, but you really need to get on the boats for the good stuff. To be honest, if you can't get out to Elphinstone I think you are more likely to see good larger stuff off Sharm or Hurgada! Nice relaxed and varied boat diving and deep water where anything is possible. I know the sites can be crowded, and the coral is a little battered, but stick with a decent operator and you'll be fine.

At the end of the day though, a liveaboard is the way to go!

 

[clive francis]

David D once bubbled...
You will be very lucky to see any sharks at Marsa Alam or El Quesir, although you will see lots of healthy coral and small fish (unless the relentless development down there has started taking its toll!).
[/i]

rubbish, i snorkeled with black tips every morning at marsa alam, and some of the guys saw a white tip on another shore dive!

Unless you are paying extra for day trips to Elphinstone etc, only shore diving was available when I was there a few years back.
Expect to drive to sites in a dusty truck, get kitted up on a sharp coral beach, then negotiate fifty yards of razor sharp coral rock with lots of ankle twisting holes and crevices in full kit before falling into the surf in a fairly undignified way!

again rubbish, yes we got kitted up on the shore, but never more than 20 to 30 yards walk, and you are supposed to be wearing bootys! just because you chose to wear closed heel fins, that doesn't make it a bad dive or entry into the water!

This is all very pretty, but you really need to get on the boats for the good stuff. To be honest, if you can't get out to Elphinstone I think you are more likely to see good larger stuff off Sharm or Hurgada! Nice relaxed and varied boat diving and deep water where anything is possible. I know the sites can be crowded, and the coral is a little battered, but stick with a decent operator and you'll be fine.

At the end of the day though, a liveaboard is the way to go!

not at all, check my site, we had excellent photo's from shore dives, the two trips we did by boat (Elphinstone and Dolphin House) were no where near as good as the shore dives.

there was a 2 -3m swell, you could get decent photo's as you were moving up and down and the vis was terrible!

 

[wazza]

Ok listen oliviamarine
I am able to help u with this one I have been working in the Red Sea for 3 years in a diving center and I had there more than 1500 dives, I know every single dive site depth, maps, even fish where they sleep u name it.
Neither Marsa Alam nor El Quseir
These 2 places are good I cant say they are not, but what I am trying to say u can have same quality diving some where else like Dahab, Sharm, or Hurghada.
What I am trying to say that after diving in the 2 two places u are talking about there is no life or let's say night life. Even if u are going for diving its nice after that to go and have nice time with nice friendly people like a pub or restaurant or whatever.
Anyway if u will change your plan for example Sharm or Hurghada I can give u an email to one of the biggest tek and recreational diving center there and u will have a good price and ask then if they have offers at this time, or when u are going. Some time they have offers like
for 500$ = 6 or 7 night in a 5 star hotel + 5 days diving and so on
so if u are lucky maybe u can get something like this at this time I am not sure …
send me a PM and I will give u all the details u need.

 

[oliviamarine]

Thanks a lot to all for your help. We have decided to go to Marsa Alam which seems to be the place where we are sure to have good dive and see big stuff without having 300 divers around us.

Again I enjoyed reading your comments and advices and thank you for this.

Marine

 

[wazza]

Anyway I would be happy to help anyway , all I can say now could luck have fun and be a safe diver

 

[clive francis]

wazza once bubbled...
Ok listen oliviamarine
I am able to help u with this one I have been working in the Red Sea for 3 years in a diving center and I had there more than 1500 dives, I know every single dive site depth, maps, even fish where they sleep u name it.
Neither Marsa Alam nor El Quseir
These 2 places are good I cant say they are not, but what I am trying to say u can have same quality diving some where else like Dahab, Sharm, or Hurghada.
What I am trying to say that after diving in the 2 two places u are talking about there is no life or let's say night life. Even if u are going for diving its nice after that to go and have nice time with nice friendly people like a pub or restaurant or whatever.
Anyway if u will change your plan for example Sharm or Hurghada I can give u an email to one of the biggest tek and recreational diving center there and u will have a good price and ask then if they have offers at this time, or when u are going. Some time they have offers like
for 500$ = 6 or 7 night in a 5 star hotel + 5 days diving and so on
so if u are lucky maybe u can get something like this at this time I am not sure …
send me a PM and I will give u all the details u need.

i did a northern liveaboard, did hurghada to thistlegorm and back, yes the diving was good, but some of the dives were very crowded, 20 plus boats, other boats tied up next to us and pulled our lines up, and i didn't see a shark all week, the fish life was good, but i found the fish life at Marsa to be far far better than the north.

one regular guy there said this is what sharm and hurghada looked like 10 - 20 years ago.

 

[jamila]

I went to Marsa Alam Read Sea Diving Safari and had just taken my diving course back home. It was perfect for me and my husband - with a house reef with unlimeted dives on gaves a perfect chance to train, train and see so many fishes.

It's a dive camp for divers!

Good luck