Egypt and the Red Sea are known all over the world for their beautiful diving sites. Not only sharks, eagle rays and turtles and other kind of fish make the beauty of the underwater world, but also large coral reefs and sunken monuments complete this image. Here are some examples of Diving sites in Egypt, which are worth seeing and exploring.

One of the favored places of divers in Egypt is Sharm El-Sheikh which is located in the South of the Sinai Peninsula. Here are four diving areas: The Local Divespots, Ras Mohammed, Strait of Tiran and Strait of Gubal.

The generic name ‘Local Divespots of Sharm El-Sheikh’ covers all the mainland dive sites north and south of Naama Bay between the Strait of Tiran and Sharm El-Sheikh. Departing from the Naama Bay Jetty divers can reach seventeen dive sites within 70 minutes:

Thanks to their relatively sheltered position, they are all protected from strong currents and waves and the fringing reef extends all the way along the coast-line creating the perfect ecosystem for coral growth and fish life.

These dive sites are suitable for divers at all levels. In good conditions they can see many genera of madrepores, innumerable varieties of Alcyonarians and an almost complete range of reef fish: from the small Anthias to the large Napoleon fish (Cheilinus undulatus), and from the multicoloured Butterfly fish to Parrotfish, Orange-striped Triggerfish and Surgeonfish.

The eastern coast of the Ras Mohammed peninsula is comprised of a tall fossil coral reef that is interrupted for a few dozen meters by the only accessible beach in the area, Aqaba Beach, and ends at the Ras Mohammed Headland - Mohammed's Cape in Arabic, because its profile is like the bearded one of the prophet.

Because of its geographic position the Ras Mohammed peninsula is a privileged area famous for its strong massive currents which transport large quantities of plankton and other food. With so much food in the water there's to an extraordinary growth of hard and soft corals and huge schools of both reef and pelagic marine are attracted. Given the great abundance of food, barracuda, Jackfish, tuna, and sharks swarm in these waters, offers divers the chance to make very exciting dives, especially from June to August.

In Ras Mohammed there are five diving spots:

• Ras Za'atar
• Jackfish Alley
• Eel Garden
• Shark Observatory (which is also known as Ras Mohammed Wall)
• Shark Reef with Yolanda Reef & Anemone City

The Strait of Tiran lies at the mouth of the Gulf of Aqaba and is delimited to the west by the coast of Sinai and to the east by the island of Tiran. In the middle of this channel are four coral reefs laying in a northeast-southwest direction. This reefs were named after the English cartographers of 19th-century who drew the first nautical map of this region:

• Jackson Reef
• Woodhouse Reef
• Thomas Reef
• Gordon Reef

Further diving spots here are:

• Komoran Wrack
• Laguna Reef

The strong currents which characterize the Strait of Tiran transport great quantities of plankton and other nutrient material every day. This supplies a great deal of food to the corals and hence to the reef fish, which in turn are eaten by the large pelagic predators such as barracuda, jackfish, tuna and all sharks, which are always present in this zone. Consequently, scuba divers in the waters of Tiran are sure to see not only an infinite number of corals but also rich fauna, both reef and pelagic.

The Strait of Gubal connects the Gulf of Suez and the Red Sea and is bordered to the west by the Egyptian coast and to the east by the Sinai peninsula. Diving Sides here are:

• Alternatives & Stingray Station
• Dunraven Wrack (Beacon Rock)
• Small Crack
• Thistlegorm Wrack

The southeastern section of the strait is characterized by the presence of two massive, half-outcropping coral formations (called sha'ab in Arabic) that create a coral reef inside which there are shallow lagoons with sand floors.

Another great diving area in Egypt can be found in Marsa Alam. Dving Spots here are:

The north side of Marsa Murena is covered with numerous magnificent fire corals. Sightings of sharks are common here. At the south side interesting reef residents can be seen. It continues to a coral block, where several cleaning stations can be found. This part of the reef is known for it‘s plethora of soft coral.

In the north Marsa Abu Dabbab is the reef called “Aquarium”. In the south divers can see unique meadow of sea grass, Giant green turtles and Guitar, while searching for the impressive Dugong! Other residents of the sandy plateau, such as the Pyramid box fish and Crocodile fish, are worthwhile seeing.

The diving site Elphinstone can be divided into 4 diving regions: the northern plateau (covered with beautiful soft coral), the south plateau, the western wall (home to turtles and moray eels) and the eastern side which is characterized by an impressive landscape, populated with a multitude of Red Sea Antheas.

Marsa Shagra is the ideal site to dive especially when surface conditions are too rough elsewhere. It is a simple bay consisting of a sandy bottom with numerous Puffer fish and Crocodile fish. Baby Black tip reef sharks are sighted over the northern reef plate.

The dive site Marsa Egla is suitable for drift diving. This “one way dive” takes divers in a southerly direction into the bay, past wonderful coral and a large number of Anenome fish. This site is also known as “ Nemo City ”

The diving site Shaab Samadai is known for its dolphins which can be seen here very often. That’s why it’s called Dolphin House.