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most enclosed seas of the world’s oceans, but at the same time, it is also one of the most fascinating. It is unique and famous for its endemic marine life, its corals that completely cover the submarine landscapes, its deep walls and the numerous wrecks that lie on its seabed.

The Red Sea is a sort of heaven under the surface and that is why a great part of it is a Marine Park, under supervision of the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA).

In the last decade a lot of organizations have been created to safeguard this sea and encourage coral growth. New artificial reefs have been created to give shelter to fish life, to encourage the growth of coral on its structures and to create new dive spots. Other important aims are those of saving natural reefs and wrecks from pirate moorings, fighting the poachers and protecting particular sites.

Thanks to these actions that aim to protect and preserve its natural treasures, the Red Sea is one of the most loved destinations by divers from all over the world. can snorkel from the boat or if they are 8 years old they can get familiar with the underwater world with the “Bubblemaker” experience or, after 10 years old, they can take a Discover Scuba Diving course. If they enjoy it and want to do more they can continue their training to complete the junior open water course. If you are already qualified and you just want to discover the wonderful marine life of the Red Sea you have different options available.

You can choose to have a full day trip with two dives and lunch on the boat, you can decide to dive a “house reef” directly from the beach without taking a boat or you can spend an entire week on a liveaboard to fully experience the Red Sea.

With a daily trip guests can reach sites in the middle of the sea where marine life is richer and where it is not difficult to observe the passage of pelagic life such us tuna or even sharks. You can also reach one (or two) of the several wrecks lying on the bottom of the Red Sea.

By sailing on a daily boat divers can be in touch with the sea, feel the waves, enjoy the wind and it is not unusual to meet schools of dolphins playing around the boat!

the second dive of the day, before going back to the jetty.

All diving centers give tanks and weights included in the price. Tanks are 12- litre aluminum, but 15- litre steel tanks are available upon request. fish are getting ready to go to sleep and the nightlife is preparing to wake up. This is an exceptional dive not to be missed.

After the dive you can enjoy lying on the top deck looking up at millions of stars in the silence of the night, a really special experience you won’t forget.

Lots of hotels and resorts have their own “house reef” and you can go for a dive directly from the beach, not far from your room. Sharm el Sheik and the resorts in the area of Marsa Alam have a lot of house reefs while in Hurghada most of the hotels have sandy beaches with reef areas located further from the shore.

There are two kinds of house reefs: those starting from the beach with a sandy canyon which allows divers to enter the sea without touching the corals or those which are a barrier between the beach and the open water and which go deep in the sea after having crossed them. In the past these house reef, where divers looked for the wonders of the Red Sea marine life, were paradoxically not protected: everybody walked on the reefs, touched the corals and tried to play with fishes.

This behavior did a great deal of damage to the marine life, as delicate corals were killed and the inhabitants could not find the right environment to live. In a few years a rich colored and crowded fish reef could become a submarine desert. This is why hotels and resorts began to build long jetties to avoid people walking and destroying the corals and its inhabitants. Today the majority of house reefs are gaining new life as hoteliers and tourists gain a new environmental awareness.

training. This “House Reef” boasts a spectacular array of marine life from the smallest to the largest creatures.

There are plenty of reasons experienced divers choose a liveaboard holiday. A weekly liveaboard trip is an easy way to dive. When you arrive on the first day you assemble your equipment and then for the rest of the week you just have to roll out of bed, into your kit and into the water. You wake up early in the morning, go out on the platform, and you are on a new dive site, which very often is deserted with only your

boat! There are some exceptions, for example the Thistlegorm wreck. It is one of the most famous wrecks in the world, sunk on the west of the Sinai Peninsula in October 1941, and it is often full of daily boats. But being on a safari boat you do not have to go back to the jetty before sunset and so you can chose to dive when you want, when all the others are having lunch on their daily boats for example! So you manage your time and your dives to get the best from your holiday! As safari boats are often very beautiful and have all the amenities you desire, your week will be perfect. You will spend your time tanning on the sundeck, sleeping in your cabin, reading a book in the salon, enjoying the company of your friends while having breakfast, lunch and dinner together, watching the sea with all its nuances. And when it’s time to dive, after listening to the detailed briefing of your dive guides, you wear your suit and your tank and jump into the water!

you must be) whale sharks!

It is not true that to try a liveaboard you must be a really good and experienced diver, but before organizing your holiday, you must check the routes. Even open water divers can make some trips as they can dive in calm lagoons or in easy dive spots. Other routes are a bit more challenging with currents and conditions and divers must be more experienced to avoid accidents. This is why the Egyptian Government set some rules for some Marine Parks such us Brothers Islands and Daedalus: divers need to have at least 50 logged dives or a advanced certification.

The Red Sea is characterised by reefs that emerge from the water or are semi-submerged allowing tranquil and complete observation of this extremely rich environment and it’s inhabitants, even to those that limit themselves to swimming on the surface. The first few metres of reef are the richest in life and colour and where a large amount of fish life is concentrated in this shallow area. By freediving just a couple of metres holding your breath you open yourself up to see inhabitants hidden in caves, under table coral or on the sandy bottom. If you gain greater freediving experience and training you can then dive deeper and swim in deeper waters to encounter larger animals such as moray eels, turtles and dolphins which are easier to approach while snorkelling as you are more silent without bubbles to disturb the experience.