LDA Travel

Please note: This is a MAX itinerary and depending on sea conditions we aim to offer up to 28 dives in the summer and most trips do 25/26 but in the winter, realistically only 24 are possible. This requires getting up early each day. The boat will not move to a different site for each dive. At least 3 dives per day will be guided with other dives taken with a buddy. There are no night dives allowed at Rocky or Zabargad. You must observe the 24 hours dive/fly rule. We can't control the weather but we do our best to max the dives!
We recommend that you hold a minimum of 30 logged dives to get the best from this trip and you should be comfortable with drift dives. Currents can be strong. All your diving is made from zodiacs to give precise entry and exits points. Experienced divers can dive in a buddy pair unguided.
Sailing to the southernmost reefs, this cruise departs from Hamata Port.
At Fury Shoals, dive Shaab Claude with its famous swim-throughs and huge porite corals. White Tip Reef sharks and an anemone and clownfish settlement can be seen a little off the reef to the South. Abu Galawa Soraya has a fantastic coral garden and a wreck of a private sailing boat packed with glass fish.
Sha'ab Maksur is a large and varied reef that is often compared to the Red Sea classic Elphinstone with steep drop offs and strong currents make it a dive where some diver experience is beneficial. North and South plateaus start at around 20 meters and extend to around 40 meters, although the plateau has some pinnacles on that can be enjoyed on the ascent and safety stop. On the plateaus and drifting down the east wall, you can encounter some species that make a proud entry in your log book, hammerheads, reef sharks, mantas and whale sharks have all visited Maksour!
Sha'ab Sataya is situated at the very south of Fury Shoals, this huge natural lagoon is formed by a massive reef (sha'ab) rising from the depths. The fame of Sataya is rising, with steep drop offs along with pelagic sightings and protected pinnacles smothered in soft and hard corals. But the real stars can be the huge pods of spinner dolphins that frequent here, meaning Sataya has become the 'Dolphin House' of Hamata.
Zabargad Island lies along the western margin of the Red Sea rift with walls abundant with soft coral and spectacular coral pinnacles. A 75m long, intact wreck known as the "Russian Wreck" and believed to be The Khanka, lies 24m in the western bay on the eastern side of the island provides an alternative to reef diving.
Rocky Island, just 4 NM south of Zabargad, has a fringing reef, sheer walls covered with beautiful soft corals, gorgonias, fans, sponges and black coral trees and vast drop offs in to the deep circle the island. Constant currents flow all year long attracting visitors such as; hammerheads, grey reef and white tip reef sharks, remember to look out in to the blue for manta rays, turtles and dolphins.
St Johns is a vast collection of small reefs offering some of the most remote and rewarding diving in the Red Sea. Habili Ali offers giant gorgonians and black corals whilst Grey Reef, Silvertip and schools of Hammerhead sharks might be found on the west side. Habili Gafaar is a mass of soft corals teaming with shoals of snappers, butterfly fish and barracudas. Mantas, Grey Reef and Silvertip sharks can be seen in the blue.
Gota Kebir is a massive reef, famous for its tunnels and south plateau, where jacks and barracudas can be seen and the occasional manta. The tunnels are ideal for novice cave divers.
Gota Soraya is rated as possibly one of the best wall dives in the Red Sea, with overhangs and cracks in the reef wall full of glass fish and sweepers and an abundance of corals, Grey Reef, Silvertips and Hammerhead sharks.

Please note: Emperor requires that you have 30 logged dives to dive in the Marine Parks and you are expected to be able to complete each dive with your buddy or following the guide. The guides may not enter the water and remain onboard as surface support for some dives. No night dives are allowed in the Marine Parks. These are challenging dives with strong currents, so not for inexperienced divers. Adverse weather can affect this route.
This trip offers you some of the best diving in the Red Sea and includes Big and Little Brothers and Elphinstone. With less distance to travel than the Simply the Best route, you have more time to dive these iconic sites as well as dive around Torombi and Sha’ab Abu Dabab on the way to and from Port Ghalib. Depending on prevailing weather conditions your guides will pick sites suitable for night dives outside the Marine Park.
The Brother Islands are the pinnacles of two undersea mountains rising from the depths of the abyss, located about 60 miles offshore. Part of the Marine Park Islands National Park, they offer stunning wall diving with the walls being covered in soft corals and forests of gorgonians creating a kaleidoscope of ever-changing colours. They attract a diverse array of marine species and large pelagics. Large tuna, jacks and snappers cruise in the blue, accompanied by occasional hammerheads, silvertips, silky and oceanic white tip sharks and mantas. Even the rare thresher shark can be found here. Sightings of the grey reef shark are almost guaranteed on the North and South Plateaux of Small Brother.
If it's wrecks you're after, then the Aida II, an Egyptian supply vessel, and the Numidia, a cargo ship, lie on the walls of Big Brother. Both are covered in a rich growth of soft and hard corals. Marine life includes a family of Napoleon wrasse and grey reef sharks.
Elphinstone, with its sheer walls covered in soft corals, offers a likely encounter with oceanic white tip sharks.

(from Hurghada to Marsa Ghalib or Marsa Ghalib to Hurghada)
Panorama Reef - Middle Reef - Abu Kafan - Salem Express - Brother Islands - Abu Dabab - Elphinstone
Please note: Emperor requires that you have 30 logged dives to dive in the Marine Parks and you are expected to be able to complete each dive with your buddy or following the guide. The guides may not enter the water and remain onboard as surface support for some dives. No night dives are allowed in the Marine Parks. These are challenging dives with strong currents, so not for inexperienced divers. Adverse weather can affect this route.
The area around Safaga has some great diving, the best being the offshore reefs of Panorama Reef, Middle Reef and Abu Kafan. Some divers say this area equals the great sites of Ras Mohamed. The diving offers a combination of shallow reef dives and drop-offs, as well as the famous wreck of the Salem Express.
The Salem Express is a dramatic dive. Around 500 people perished in one of the worst marine tragedies of all times. The 100-metre ferryboat was on its way back from Mecca to Safaga after the annual Muslim pilgrimage in December 1991 when it hit the reef during a stormy night and sunk rapidly without giving the crew and passengers the chance to board the lifeboats. It is now home to a thriving underwater life, including a famous resident frogfish, blue-spotted stingrays, angel and butterfly fish. The ship itself is covered in a large quantity of hard and soft corals. It is one of the largest wrecks in the Egyptian Red Sea, roughly the same size as the Thistlegorm.
There is superb wall diving at Panorama, on the south-east of the plateau is a gorgonian and glassfish corner with the whole plateau covered in soft corals and on the south side is an anemone city.
Hal Hal (Middle Reef) is a rarely chosen dive site due to its distance from the coast, which makes it a virgin spot. The north side is a drop off going down to 80 metres and is a perfect location to spot tunas, barracudas, turtles and sharks. The southern side has colourful coral gardens along with some caves and canyons.
Abu Kafan is a 300-metre long, narrow reef offering a plateau at both north and south tips. We normally jump in the water on the north plateau and glide with the frequent strong current southwards along the impressive walls covered with soft and black coral, giant fans and gorgonians.
The Brother Islands are the pinnacles of two undersea mountains rising from the depths of the abyss and are located about 60 miles offshore. Part of the Marine Park Islands National Park, these islands offer stunning wall diving, with the walls being covered in soft corals and forests of gorgonians, creating a kaleidoscope of ever-changing colours. They attract a diverse array of marine species and large pelagics. Large tuna, jacks and snappers cruise in the blue, accompanied by occasional hammerheads, silvertips, silky and oceanic white tip sharks and mantas. Even the rare thresher shark can be found here. Sightings of the grey reef shark are almost guaranteed on the North and South Plateaux of Small Brother.
Abu Dabab is six reefs commonly known as "Fathers Steps" or "Fathers Stepping Stones" and as the name suggests a set of fairly shallow reefs ranging from depths of 25 metres to the seafloor. In between Abu Dabab II and III at approximately 15 metres is the wreckage of a small ship sunk after a fire in 2004. The reefs themselves offer colourful coral gardens and an underwater cave system to explore. Pods of dolphins have been known to frequent the area as well as blue spotted rays, Napoleons, giant puffers, box fish, sweetlips, batfish, nudibranchs and more.
Elphinstone is approximately 30km from Port Ghalib; Elphinstone reef is 300 metres long with sheer walls richly covered in colourful pink and red soft corals and elegant red gorgonians descending to around 40 metres. Other areas of the reef have near vertical cliffs, overhangs, small caves and drop offs of up to 100 metres. Elphinstone is known to experience some strong currents attracting many diverse species such as barracuda, angel fish, groupers, Napoleons, morays, reef sharks and great shoals of dogtooth tuna and jacks. Occasional sightings include dolphins, turtles, oceanic white tip and hammerheads sharks.

Please note: As a 21+ DIVES cruise, there's a good chance that you can enjoy 21 or more dives on a 7-day safari if you so wish. You must be a PADI Open Water diver or equivalent and you are expected to be able to complete each dive with your buddy or following the guide. The guides may not enter the water and remain on-board as surface support for some dives. However to get the most from the trip we suggest you are certified to dive to 30 meters and be PADI Advanced Open Water or equivalent. The PADI Advanced course can be completed whilst on-board so be sure to pre-book.
This itinerary presents the best of both worlds, where you visit famous wrecks in the northern Red Sea along with some stunning reef diving.
The famous horseshoe shaped reef of Shaab El Erg is a perfect example of the reefs on offer on this cruise with its beautiful hard coral garden and the chance to see dolphins.
Abu Nuhas has four well-known wrecks: Giannis D, Carnatic, the Chrisoula K ('tile wreck') and the Kimon M ('lentil wreck'), all offering spectacular dives and plenty of fish life.
In between wreck dives you will also visit the reefs of the Straits of Gubal, Gulf of Suez and those to the north of Hurghada. A variety of deep walls and hard coral gardens with an abundance of reef fish make them well worth a visit.
Night dives can be superb as Gubal Island offers protected anchoring for the night. A small wreck at 8-10 metres makes for a spectacular night dive with lionfish, scorpion fish and its resident giant moray eel as well as the wreck of the Ulysses. Next onto the Kingston lying at Shag Rock, the Carina lying close to Sha'ab Ali and the Dunraven at Beacon Rock.
Ras Mohamed lies on the southernmost tip of the Sinai and is one of the best kept National Parks in Egypt with waters full of nutrients, steep walls going down to a depth of 1000 metres attracting a large amount of big fish and earning itself a reputation as one of the top diving areas in the world. Whilst here, you may have the chance to dive at Shark Reef; a sheer wall falling into the blue, as well as the wreck of the Yolanda.
Jackson Reef, locally named the 'Aquarium', is Tiran's most popular dive with the 'Jackson Drift' being Sharm's' fastest and most exhilarating drift dive past a stunning wall bursting with prolific coral growth. Occasionally, in the summer months, a school of scalloped hammerheads can be seen. Thomas Reef gives you plunging walls covered with soft coral, gorgonians and colourful fish life. The west wall is darker with overhangs and caves full of glassfish and sweepers. A night dive at Gordon Reef promises various species of coral, small nudibranchs hidden in the crevices and the soft corals and a chance to see white tip reef sharks, eagle rays, octopus and different types of eel such as moray, peppered and gold edged morays.
Finally the most famous wreck in the Red Sea, the SS Thistlegorm, at Shaab Ali and including a night dive on Thistle. The Thistlegorm was sunk in 1941 after being bombed by the German Luftwaffe while on a mission to deliver a cargo of ammunition and other war materials to the British troops in North Africa.
From here the boat heads back towards Hurghada.
All dives sites are subject to divers' experience and weather conditions.

St Johns - Rocky - Daedalus - Elphinstone
Please note: You need a minimum number of 30 dives for this trip and should be comfortable with drift dives. Currents can be strong. All your diving is made from zodiacs to give precise entry and exits points. Experienced divers can dive in a buddy pair unguided.
Looking for some shark action? We know the best time to have the best chance to see those sharks in action! Explore the majestic southern Red Sea during the warm summer months of May to August with our much anticipated Southern Sharks itinerary offering flexibility and focus for 'action' dives. These months are best-known for the variety of sharks visiting some of the remote offshore reefs. But be prepared to change diving plans at the last minute because we go where the action is.
Our guides select the best possible action sites to visit based on their immense local knowledge and on insider-data on recent activity including a variety of Red Sea sharks, dolphins and anything else that chooses to join the party.
Some of the sites we might visit are St Johns, Rocky, Daedalus and Elphinstone. However, please remember that the focus of this trip is not about where we go but about what we want to see...sharks! And as always it's subject to weather conditions.
As you may be visiting some of the remote offshore Red Sea reef systems many of these may have deep drop offs and be exposed to strong currents so be prepared to spend some time waiting 'in the blue' or in the shallows looking for those unmistakable shapes and shadows.
There are no guarantees in life but one thing is for sure, this itinerary will give you the best chance of close encounters of the 'sharky' kind.