Red Sea in september

[the_masked_diver]

Hi everyone.

My girlfriend and I are going to the Red Sea in september. There are a lot of routes and we are confused. We know there are a lot of wrecks there but we don´t like wrecks. What we like is sea life. Small and big (Corals, small fish, sharks...).

In that date, which are the bes routes?

Thank you.

Best regards

 

[diverLux]

Hola!

By Red Sea I suppose you mean Egypt, along the main land from the Hurghada area down to Marsa Alam area, and the Sinaï area with Sharm El Sheikh and Dahab.

My favoured is the El Quseir area, fly into Hurghada 1,5 hr drive or Marsa Alam International Airport 1 hr drive, stay at the Radisson, or Mövenpick or Flamenco and dive with Pharaoh Dive Club.

I am not familiar with Liveabord if that is what you are looking for.

 

[scubajasonr]

Assuming you are doing a Liveaboard you have three main choices:

1. Wrecks & Reefs (or Northern Egyptian Red Sea) don't be put off by wrecks in the title, there are plenty of reefs and the wrecks all have lots of marine life. My wife isn't a fan of wreck diving but we have done this route a couple of times and she has always enjoyed it. In fact lots of the wrecks are more like reefs now. Generally fairly easy diving, so good for any experience level. A nice mixture of reef types. Unlikely to see sharks on this route at this time of year, although I have seen one or two in October. If you want to do night dives these will be available every night. I think this route gives the best introduction into the Red Sea and is a fairly relaxed week of diving.

2. B-D-E. Basically a journey around the sites of Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone. A reasonable amount of experience is needed for this route, and there will be a couple of overnight crossings. Weather in September should be calm, but sea conditions can be rough at any time of year. Nearly all the dives are deep wall dives with great coral and marine life. A good chance of seeing sharks. Maybe a chance for a night dive at the start or end of the trip. I have done this route a few times and I heading back this year in October again.

3. St Johns. This is the area south from Marsa Alam. Generally fairly easy, with very pretty reef dives. Normally sheltered crossings overnight. A slim chance of seeing sharks. I have dived this area a few times and do find all the dives sites start to merge into one after a while. It isn't my favourite area, but would happily go back again.

I think the favourite route I have dived in the Red Sea is 'Brothers and North' This went from Hurghada to the Brothers, we spent two nights there before heading north to Ras Mohammed, Thistlegorm and Abu Nuhas and finally back to Hurghada. Personally I think this showed the best sites in the Egyptian Red Sea, it is just a shame that not many boats operate on this route.

Which ever route you pick the diving will be great. If you want sharks BDE is the one to go for, maybe a little early to see them, but you never know what is out there.

 

[the_masked_diver]

Thank you for your answers. Yes I mean the Egypt side and yes, we want a live aboard

 

[diverLux]

No wrecks at Ras Mohammed, day boat from Sharm El Sheikh also no wrecks at Sha'ab El Erg Dolphin House/Poseidon Gardens, day boat from Hurghada. Reef sharks at Sha'ab Marsa Alam, day boat from Coraya.

There is so much life shore diving, Dugong at Sheikh Maleg and Marsa Egla.

 

[the_masked_diver]

Thank you!

 

[Paul Desmarais]

Hi everyone.

My girlfriend and I are going to the Red Sea in september. There are a lot of routes and we are confused. We know there are a lot of wrecks there but we don´t like wrecks. What we like is sea life. Small and big (Corals, small fish, sharks...).

In that date, which are the bes routes?

Thank you.

Best regards

There are lots of wrecks, but mostly from Safaga (Salem Express) north to Shamr el Shekh (Thistlegorm). For great coral, the further south you go on the mainland the better conditions the reefs are. For live aboards, the southern route to Brothers Islands, Elphinstone, Daedelus, Fury Shoals, St. John's offers the best chances to see pristine reefs and big pelagics like sharks, rays, and tuna.

Sha’ab Claudio has shallow swim throughs, Sha’ab Sataya has dolphins pretty much any time you go, Elphinstone is an amazing dive, clear water, big fish, and lots of smaller fish and coral, but the current is often strong. Daedalus is a popular liveaboard destination with more strong currents. Drift diving along the steep walls is the norm there.

 

[the_masked_diver]

Thanks for your response

 

[scubadada]

Hi @the_masked_diver

There are many operators and quite a few routes in the Red Sea. I really only know Aggressor, as an example. They use 3 boats in the Red Sea. They have 2 northern routes, one is mostly wrecks, few reefs and the other is less wrecks and more reefs. They run 2 southern routes, Brothers Daedalus Elphinstone (BDE) and Daedalus St Johns. Both the southern routes dive Daedalus and Elphinstone good locations for big stuff. Boats are only allowed to stay one day at Brothers, usually 2 dives at Big and 2 dives at Little. When I went in 2016 we spent 2 days there, 4 dives at each. Oceanic White Tip attacks changed that. the St Johns route has some really beautiful coral. The deep south route does not go to Daedalus or Elphinstone but goes to some other sites known for big stuff.

There are pretty good descriptions of these 5 routes on the Aggressor website that might give you a good idea of what other operators do Aggressor Adventures® | Aggressor® Liveaboards, Safaris & River Cruises

Best of luck on your trip to the Red Sea.

 

[the_masked_diver]

Thank you!