Apeks Predator
Registered
I present my trip report for the MY Ghazala Explorer liveaboard from September 2 to September 8, 2024 departing from and returning to Hurghada. The boat accommodates up to 24 passengers, and our itinerary was wrecks and reefs of north Red Sea: Ras Mohammed Nature Preserve; Straits of Tiran; Gubal Islands; Abu Nuhas; Shaab el Erg. 21 total dives. Air temperature was highs of 95F (35C), lows of 82F (27.7C). Water temperature 82F to 86F (27.7C to 30C). I dived with @Rafael Moreira and @Opa-TX, we averaged 60 minutes per dive, and I'm sure they'll chime in with anything in this thread.
I. Safety
The guides were sticklers on dive safety. Very thorough briefings for each site and safety tips. Ahmed, the lead dive guide, gave me a stern lecturing after one dive when I returned with less than the safe amount of gas in my tank. Guides and staff discouraged charging batteries and electronic devices in the cabins while occupants were out. Some passengers did charge their devices unattended in the indoor common area, but staff didn't make a fuss about it. I guess it's because they can see the devices plugged in. A dedicated charging station was located on the dive deck away from water.
II. Dive organization
Daily rhythm
600AM Wake-up call
630AM Morning dive briefing, dive, followed by breakfast
1030AM Mid-morning dive briefing, dive, followed by lunch
230PM Mid-afternoon dive briefing, dive
500PM Snack
630PM Night dive briefing, dive, followed by dinner
A very well-rhythmed dive cruise; everything was punctual and as scheduled and briefed. One of the dive guides, Ahmed, Mousa, or Beebo, would knock on all cabin doors for wake-up call. All dive briefings were super detailed, which was great for first-timers diving the sites. However, the briefings tended to be rather lengthy, which could be boring for the more veteran divers of the sites. My boat consisted of mostly divers from the UK who dived the sites before. After each briefing, the divers were assigned to groups for guided or unguided dives. Each person diving wrote his/her name on a dry-erase board. Before each dive, each diver using nitrox was expected to analyze his/her tank, record the readings, and sign. Each group geared up at different intervals to allow more room on the dive deck, although the dive deck had enough room to accommodate all divers gearing up at the same time. Most divers opted for guided for the first dive at each site, then most went unguided for subsequent dives. The dive guides themselves just guided the dives and didn't do much in pointing out interesting things. After the dive, each diver erased his/her name off the dry-erase board for accountability purposes and refreshments of fruit and drink were handed out. Beginning and ending gas pressures recorded for each diver. The deck hands always helped out with getting BCDs and fins on. And if needed, they assisted with getting into and out of the inflatable boats.
III. Food
Food was served buffet style. Breakfast leaned English style with some aspects of mainland Europe i.e. bread, cold cuts, cheese, and Nutella. Eggs could be made to order. For lunch and dinner, I did notice that effort was given to providing more options for vegetables and greens with 3-4 items provided. The main course consisted of rice or noodles; sauteed or grilled vegetables; fish, beef, chicken, pork served on separate occasions. Snacks served consisted of pizza, sliders, or sandwiches with a smoothie-type beverage. Coffee, tea, and a sugary fruit drink was always available along with some pastries, cookies, grapes, bananas, and pears. Figs were provided one day, and they disappeared fast. Beer available was Stella and at additional expense. I didn't ask about the boat accommodating dietary restrictions because I have none; I eat everything.
IV. Boat amenities
The Ghazala Explorer offered plenty of space. The dive deck could easily accommodate all 24 divers gearing up at the same time. We had about six inches of space on either side of each diver. None of the cabins had bunk beds, and it seemed all cabins had plenty of space for two people. The indoor common area had enough space to comfortably seat all divers for dive briefings. The dining area was adjoined to the indoor common area provided enough space for all passengers to dine together. The boat had a spacious upper deck with good cover from the sun for those wanting to relax outdoors between dives during the cruise. The entry/exit platform offered two shower heads, one on port side and one on starboard side, for divers to rinse off after exiting the ocean. The dive deck featured restrooms with showers on port and starboard sides.
For diving, divers can opt for 12 liter tanks or upgrade to 15 liter tanks. The upgrade cost 45 Euros for the week.
V. Dives
September 3: Poseidon Reef; Abu Nuhas; Shaab Mahmoud.
Check dive at Poseidon Reef with nothing particularly interesting to see. Each diver did deploy at depth his/her SMB to check that piece of equipment. The Giannis D wreck at Abu Nuhas proved interesting as the stern sat at a 45 degree tilt to port, which made penetrating inside somewhat disorienting. Night dive at Beacon Rock vicinity Shaab Mahmoud.
September 4: Ras Mohammed and Straits of Tiran.
Morning dive at Shark and Yolanda reefs. The corals here were very healthy and the amounts of fish on the reefs was astounding. We motored to Straits of Tiran during breakfast and positioned ourselves to dive Jackson and Gordon reefs. The scenery there equaled Shark and Yolanda reefs. Night dive at Gordon reef.
September 5: Straits of Tiran; Ras Mohammed; Thistlegorm
Morning dive at Thomson Reef in Straits of Tiran. Motored during breakfast back to Ras Mohammed to dive Shark and Yolanda Reefs again. Then proceeded to site of S.S. Thistlegorm. Mid-afternoon dive at Thistlegorm for familiarization followed by a night dive onsite.
September 6: Thistlegorm and Gubal Islands
Morning dives on Thistlegorm. Overall, the Thistlegorm is a very interesting wreck with ease of access for any diver. During lunch the boat motored over to Gubal Islands and site of The Barge. Mid-afternoon and night dive on The Barge. The one thing of highlight is George and Georgina, the two massive moray eels living at The Barge site.
September 7: Gubal Islands, Abu Nuhas, Shaab el Erg
Morning dive on the wreck Ulysses. Then we ventured back to Abu Nuhas to dive the wrecks of Carnatic and Chrisoula K. The Chrisoula K has in her holds cargo of tiles made in Italy. A very interesting wreck. For night dive, we went to "Dolphin House" at Shaab el Erg.
September 8: Shaab el Erg and Abu Nugar
Did another dive at Dolphin House and finished the trip with a long, shallow dive at Abu Nugar. Abu Nugar was interesting in that it has a sandy bottom but coral pillars scattered throughout the site. The pillars host an amazing array of life.
VI. Negatives
1. Some passengers experienced malfunctioning toilets mostly with the tank not filling; they were repaired quickly.
2. Some passengers complained that cabin air conditioning was too cold.
3. Spotty Wi-Fi especially when further out at sea. When the boat was close to shore i.e. Sharm el Sheikh wireless service can be accessed via the towers on land.
4. Galley noise. The galley is separated from the dining area by a door. However, the door is open often to bring food out. The noise spilling out can be enough to drown out any conversation at the dining tables.
VII. Overall
I thoroughly enjoyed my experience on the Ghazala Explorer. I really enjoyed the ample space available to all the divers in the common areas. The service at all times was very good from dining, diving, cabin tidying. I am happy that the itinerary gave the option of a night dive on every day of the trip (except for the last day). I paid $1290.72 USD for a below-deck, twin cabin and lucked out to have the cabin all to myself. The other person to solely occupy a cabin was a female from Germany, but she booked the lower deck suite. This trip marks the first to Egypt and the Red Sea for me and my friends. We thoroughly enjoyed diving the Red Sea, and a good liveaboard enhances the experience. Ocean Tribe Fleet, who operates Ghazala Explorer, is building a sister boat. The guides mentioned Ocean Tribe Fleet may in the future offer cruises from Hurghada for the Brothers, Daedelus, and Elphinstone route. I seriously would consider booking the Ghazala Explorer for that route in the future or to dive the north Red Sea again!
Link to Ocean Tribe Fleet below:
www.oceantribefleet.com
I. Safety
The guides were sticklers on dive safety. Very thorough briefings for each site and safety tips. Ahmed, the lead dive guide, gave me a stern lecturing after one dive when I returned with less than the safe amount of gas in my tank. Guides and staff discouraged charging batteries and electronic devices in the cabins while occupants were out. Some passengers did charge their devices unattended in the indoor common area, but staff didn't make a fuss about it. I guess it's because they can see the devices plugged in. A dedicated charging station was located on the dive deck away from water.
II. Dive organization
Daily rhythm
600AM Wake-up call
630AM Morning dive briefing, dive, followed by breakfast
1030AM Mid-morning dive briefing, dive, followed by lunch
230PM Mid-afternoon dive briefing, dive
500PM Snack
630PM Night dive briefing, dive, followed by dinner
A very well-rhythmed dive cruise; everything was punctual and as scheduled and briefed. One of the dive guides, Ahmed, Mousa, or Beebo, would knock on all cabin doors for wake-up call. All dive briefings were super detailed, which was great for first-timers diving the sites. However, the briefings tended to be rather lengthy, which could be boring for the more veteran divers of the sites. My boat consisted of mostly divers from the UK who dived the sites before. After each briefing, the divers were assigned to groups for guided or unguided dives. Each person diving wrote his/her name on a dry-erase board. Before each dive, each diver using nitrox was expected to analyze his/her tank, record the readings, and sign. Each group geared up at different intervals to allow more room on the dive deck, although the dive deck had enough room to accommodate all divers gearing up at the same time. Most divers opted for guided for the first dive at each site, then most went unguided for subsequent dives. The dive guides themselves just guided the dives and didn't do much in pointing out interesting things. After the dive, each diver erased his/her name off the dry-erase board for accountability purposes and refreshments of fruit and drink were handed out. Beginning and ending gas pressures recorded for each diver. The deck hands always helped out with getting BCDs and fins on. And if needed, they assisted with getting into and out of the inflatable boats.
III. Food
Food was served buffet style. Breakfast leaned English style with some aspects of mainland Europe i.e. bread, cold cuts, cheese, and Nutella. Eggs could be made to order. For lunch and dinner, I did notice that effort was given to providing more options for vegetables and greens with 3-4 items provided. The main course consisted of rice or noodles; sauteed or grilled vegetables; fish, beef, chicken, pork served on separate occasions. Snacks served consisted of pizza, sliders, or sandwiches with a smoothie-type beverage. Coffee, tea, and a sugary fruit drink was always available along with some pastries, cookies, grapes, bananas, and pears. Figs were provided one day, and they disappeared fast. Beer available was Stella and at additional expense. I didn't ask about the boat accommodating dietary restrictions because I have none; I eat everything.
IV. Boat amenities
The Ghazala Explorer offered plenty of space. The dive deck could easily accommodate all 24 divers gearing up at the same time. We had about six inches of space on either side of each diver. None of the cabins had bunk beds, and it seemed all cabins had plenty of space for two people. The indoor common area had enough space to comfortably seat all divers for dive briefings. The dining area was adjoined to the indoor common area provided enough space for all passengers to dine together. The boat had a spacious upper deck with good cover from the sun for those wanting to relax outdoors between dives during the cruise. The entry/exit platform offered two shower heads, one on port side and one on starboard side, for divers to rinse off after exiting the ocean. The dive deck featured restrooms with showers on port and starboard sides.
For diving, divers can opt for 12 liter tanks or upgrade to 15 liter tanks. The upgrade cost 45 Euros for the week.
V. Dives
September 3: Poseidon Reef; Abu Nuhas; Shaab Mahmoud.
Check dive at Poseidon Reef with nothing particularly interesting to see. Each diver did deploy at depth his/her SMB to check that piece of equipment. The Giannis D wreck at Abu Nuhas proved interesting as the stern sat at a 45 degree tilt to port, which made penetrating inside somewhat disorienting. Night dive at Beacon Rock vicinity Shaab Mahmoud.
September 4: Ras Mohammed and Straits of Tiran.
Morning dive at Shark and Yolanda reefs. The corals here were very healthy and the amounts of fish on the reefs was astounding. We motored to Straits of Tiran during breakfast and positioned ourselves to dive Jackson and Gordon reefs. The scenery there equaled Shark and Yolanda reefs. Night dive at Gordon reef.
September 5: Straits of Tiran; Ras Mohammed; Thistlegorm
Morning dive at Thomson Reef in Straits of Tiran. Motored during breakfast back to Ras Mohammed to dive Shark and Yolanda Reefs again. Then proceeded to site of S.S. Thistlegorm. Mid-afternoon dive at Thistlegorm for familiarization followed by a night dive onsite.
September 6: Thistlegorm and Gubal Islands
Morning dives on Thistlegorm. Overall, the Thistlegorm is a very interesting wreck with ease of access for any diver. During lunch the boat motored over to Gubal Islands and site of The Barge. Mid-afternoon and night dive on The Barge. The one thing of highlight is George and Georgina, the two massive moray eels living at The Barge site.
September 7: Gubal Islands, Abu Nuhas, Shaab el Erg
Morning dive on the wreck Ulysses. Then we ventured back to Abu Nuhas to dive the wrecks of Carnatic and Chrisoula K. The Chrisoula K has in her holds cargo of tiles made in Italy. A very interesting wreck. For night dive, we went to "Dolphin House" at Shaab el Erg.
September 8: Shaab el Erg and Abu Nugar
Did another dive at Dolphin House and finished the trip with a long, shallow dive at Abu Nugar. Abu Nugar was interesting in that it has a sandy bottom but coral pillars scattered throughout the site. The pillars host an amazing array of life.
VI. Negatives
1. Some passengers experienced malfunctioning toilets mostly with the tank not filling; they were repaired quickly.
2. Some passengers complained that cabin air conditioning was too cold.
3. Spotty Wi-Fi especially when further out at sea. When the boat was close to shore i.e. Sharm el Sheikh wireless service can be accessed via the towers on land.
4. Galley noise. The galley is separated from the dining area by a door. However, the door is open often to bring food out. The noise spilling out can be enough to drown out any conversation at the dining tables.
VII. Overall
I thoroughly enjoyed my experience on the Ghazala Explorer. I really enjoyed the ample space available to all the divers in the common areas. The service at all times was very good from dining, diving, cabin tidying. I am happy that the itinerary gave the option of a night dive on every day of the trip (except for the last day). I paid $1290.72 USD for a below-deck, twin cabin and lucked out to have the cabin all to myself. The other person to solely occupy a cabin was a female from Germany, but she booked the lower deck suite. This trip marks the first to Egypt and the Red Sea for me and my friends. We thoroughly enjoyed diving the Red Sea, and a good liveaboard enhances the experience. Ocean Tribe Fleet, who operates Ghazala Explorer, is building a sister boat. The guides mentioned Ocean Tribe Fleet may in the future offer cruises from Hurghada for the Brothers, Daedelus, and Elphinstone route. I seriously would consider booking the Ghazala Explorer for that route in the future or to dive the north Red Sea again!
Link to Ocean Tribe Fleet below:
MY Ghazala Explorer
Completed in 2021 to be one of the best diving liveaboard yachts in the Red Sea
www.oceantribefleet.com
