Red Sea - AOW divers with young kids

[kirisetta]

Hi all,

So we're looking at the Red Sea for a 2-3 week dive trip around June/July next year (2019). Husband and I as of yet have only 17 logged dives (certified in Grand Cayman last month), however by then we plan on having our AOW and many more dives!

Red Sea is our best option for some more amazing coral reef diving, as we're relocating (back) to the UK end of August this year. We are looking for recommendations for fantastic dive resorts (or non-dive resorts) that can also accommodate small children. By this time next year our kids will be 4 and 3.

Criteria are:

• Opportunity to see some large pelagics (sharks in particular - we missed seeing a cruising Caribbean reef shark on our last checkout dive in Cayman, due to obsessively checking our dive computers instead of looking around, and that has haunted us ever since!)
• Safe and reliable babysitting provision - obviously this goes without saying, but we need to know that our children will be safe and well cared for while we're out diving...!
• Boat diving that doesn't take you out all day - we need half-day dives to be back for the kids at regular intervals

Other than that we are pretty flexible - just looking for some recommendations. I know so little about Egypt and the Red Sea area in general - up until this summer we've been based in New York, so our diving (and my research) to date has been all about the Caribbean! Also, we're happy to flip from North to South during the trip, if that will give us the best range of opportunity for sea life viewing.

Thank you! Katie

 

[Edward3c]

Hi Katie,

Glad you like our underwater world.

When you get back to the U.K. why not check out some of our diving. There are quite a few clubs, BSAC, SSA and SSAC plus commercial operators; then there are the Charter boats and a few inland dive sites. Holding a qualification from another agency isn’t an issue, you just dive with it.

Where about in the U.K. will you be located.

I let someone else talk about the Red Sea as I dive either SE Asia or the Caribbean.

Kind regards

Edward

 

[kirisetta]

Hi Katie,

Glad you like our underwater world.

When you get back to the U.K. why not check out some of our diving. There are quite a few clubs, BSAC, SSA and SSAC plus commercial operators; then there are the Charter boats and a few inland dive sites. Holding a qualification from another agency isn’t an issue, you just dive with it.

Where about in the U.K. will you be located.

I let someone else talk about the Red Sea as I dive either SE Asia or the Caribbean.

Kind regards

Edward

Thanks so much Edward! Yes, the underwater world in the UK is very much on our agenda. We are fortunate to have a dive instructor friend based in Dorset, plus in-laws on the south coast (who have a camper van and are happy to babysit!) - looking now at dives off Chesil, plus Lundy (conditions permitting) shortly after we go back. Our stuff arrives after we do, so for the first 10 nights or so, that will be our dive spot selection.

Our main resting place will be in St Albans, just north of London - I have already joined the BSAC FB group for St Albans.

I don't really mind where I dive, as long as the viz is not terrible and I see things I would never normally see It's all about the magic!

 

[kirisetta]

I am also fascinated by North Sea diving - before we even got into diving, we were huge fans of Iceland/Scandinavia and the Northern Lights - however drysuit diving does sound horribly intimidating - I just read a post in a dive forum that claimed "you need 20-30 dives before you even feel comfortable in a drysuit". Really?!

 

[KenGordon]

Take grandparents.

However, two or three weeks in Egypt in the heat of June might be no fun for that age. If you were to do this then I like Marsa Shagra which has go as you please shore diving as well as boat trips.

You might also consider Malta but you would be best to be properly self sufficient at managing your diving.

Really your best bet would be to do single days out of Brighton/Portland/Plymouth while having the grandparents take the children.

 

[Tippytoes12]

There are very nice hotels around Soma Bay and Marsa Alam that almost definitely would work. Elphinstone Reef has lots of big stuff and is accessible from Soma Bay. Lots of Egyptian families visit and I’m certain there would be baby sitting or kids club available. Look at Trip Advisor for 4 star and above hotels and then see if they have a dive shop. You may need to fly into Hurgada via Cairo , but Skyscanner will know better. Another option would be Dahab , a lovely old town with excellent diving very near.

Have a great trip

 

[Christian]

Marsa Shagra is a very nice place to be with kids. Not sure what their baby sitting facilities are though. They have a nice beach and a beatiful house reef starting just 25 metres out in the water. I have been there many times with my children — since they were small. Elphinstone reef sits outside the dive camp and trips are arranged out there every morning, it’s a 20-30 minute dingy ride depending on sea conditions. June/July you should have good chances to spot a shark or two. I have seen all the usual suspects there — grey reef shark, white tip reef shark, scalloped hammerheads, threasher shark, silvertip shark and oceanic whitetip shark. Not in one dive though but in perhaps 50 or 60 dives spread out over 20 years. Always in June or July.

Wife and daughter on a reef near Marsa Shagra in 2008:

Visa bild - "Lotta & Engla" - Fotosidan

My oldest girl on Shagra House reef 2012:

Visa bild - "Reef" - Fotosidan

 

[Edward3c]

Thanks so much Edward! Yes, the underwater world in the UK is very much on our agenda. We are fortunate to have a dive instructor friend based in Dorset, plus in-laws on the south coast (who have a camper van and are happy to babysit!) - looking now at dives off Chesil, plus Lundy (conditions permitting) shortly after we go back. Our stuff arrives after we do, so for the first 10 nights or so, that will be our dive spot selection.

Our main resting place will be in St Albans, just north of London - I have already joined the BSAC FB group for St Albans.

I don't really mind where I dive, as long as the viz is not terrible and I see things I would never normally see It's all about the magic!

Those two dive locations are challenging. Chesil can be ‘interesting’ to get back out of the water, the waves will keep dragging you back in. Lundy, I’ve not dived, but not a newbie location.

Most of my diving is off the West Coast of Scotland. I also run the monthly regional training - open to all BSAC members.

I am also fascinated by North Sea diving - before we even got into diving, we were huge fans of Iceland/Scandinavia and the Northern Lights - however drysuit diving does sound horribly intimidating - I just read a post in a dive forum that claimed "you need 20-30 dives before you even feel comfortable in a drysuit". Really?!

Drysuits are not that complicated, people learn to dive in them from their first dive. The first dive in Ocean Diver covers the control of the drysuit.

As OW or AOW you could start the Sports Diver course.

 

[Altamira]

We stayed at Fort Arabesque All Inclusive Resort in Hurghada for five days in April. The resort has an outstanding on-site dive shop (Dive In Scuba) that has daily boat trips for diving and snorkeling, and a very good close-in house reef. Once you do a checkout dive with them, you and your dive buddy can shore dive the house reef as much as you like, with or without a dive guide. You won't need a guide unless you want one. Solo diving is not permitted. I can't speak to availability of child minding services, but I imagine they would have that service available for extra charge based on the age range of children we saw. The resort has a very nice beach with shallow water leading to numerous outstanding, very colorful and health coral heads, the tops of which are just below the surface. The beach would be ideal for small children, and you could introduce them to beautiful coral with a lot of wildlife without needing mask and snorkel. Food was much better than we expected at an AI resort. The staff was extremely helpful and friendly. We will go back to Fort Arabesque if our plans take us to Egypt in the future.

 

[scubadada]

I can't imagine taking 2 small children to Egypt for 2-3 weeks in the summer for a vacation and trying to get in a reasonable amount of good diving. What are the children even going to do there?

Why not find someone to watch your kids for a week and do a really good liveaboard?

Red Sea Aggressor April-May 2016
Emperor Divers and Marina Lodge Hotel April 2016