Best Red Sea

The Kingdom of Aksum flourished from roughly 100 to 940 CE in what is now Ethiopia and Eritrea. It was a significant Red Sea trading power, known for its advanced infrastructure including impressive obelisks and its adoption of Christianity around the fourth century under King Ezana. The kingdom’s i...

SS Thistlegorm was a British Merchant Navy armed freighter built in 1940 and operated by the Albyn Line for wartime transport between Britain and the Middle East. In October 1941, while at anchor awaiting transit through the Suez Canal, she was attacked and sunk by two German Heinkel He 111 bombers...

Sharm El Luli Beach offers a secluded coastal experience along Egypt’s Red Sea. Located within Wadi El Gemal National Park, it features pristine white sand and vibrant coral reefs protected since 2003. This remote location is ideal for divers and snorkelers seeking undisturbed marine environments an...

The Brothers Islands Reef represents a significant dive destination within Egypt’s Red Sea. This reef system centers around two small islands characterized by dramatic underwater topography including steep drop-offs. The presence of the wreck of the Aida adds to its allure. It is particularly appeal...

The Gulf of Aqaba is the narrow northeastern branch of the Red Sea, separating the Sinai Peninsula from the Arabian Peninsula. Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia border its coastline, while the cities of Aqaba and Eilat stand near its northern end. The gulf provides Jordan with its only maritim...

Sanganeb is an isolated coral reef structure in the central Red Sea, approximately 25 kilometers northeast of Port Sudan. It is a true atoll with a central lagoon, steep outer reef slopes, and marine habitats supporting coral, fish, sharks, rays, and other Red Sea species. Since 2016 it has formed p...

Daedalus Reef is a remote coral reef located within the Red Sea off Egypt’s coast. The reef's significance stems from its historic lighthouse, built in 1863 to guide ships through treacherous waters. It also serves as an important habitat for marine life, including regular aggregations of scalloped...

Jackson Reef is a coral reef located within Egypt’s Red Sea, specifically the Straits of Tiran. It's recognized as a significant diving site due to its diverse marine life and the presence of the Lara shipwreck, a historic wreck stranded there in 1982. The reef attracts recreational divers and snork...

The Blue Hole of Dahab is a unique marine sinkhole located off Egypt’s Red Sea coast. Formed by collapsed limestone, it presents significant diving challenges due to rapidly changing depths and currents. Experienced scuba divers seeking extreme conditions and challenging underwater navigation are dr...

Elphinstone Reef is an offshore reef located within Egypt’s Red Sea. It's recognized globally as a premier diving destination due to its dramatic vertical walls and frequent sightings of oceanic whitetip sharks, an endangered species. The reef attracts experienced scuba divers seeking challenging wa...

Thomas Reef sits within Egypt’s Red Sea, specifically the Straits of Tiran. It is recognized as the smallest yet deepest of the four reefs in this area. Its dramatic underwater topography—characterized by steep walls and powerful currents—attracts experienced scuba divers seeking challenging dives a...

The Ras Mohammed Reef constitutes a significant fringing reef system along the Red Sea coast of Egypt. It’s notable as the nation’s inaugural marine protected area, created in 1983 to safeguard its biodiversity. The reef supports exceptional coral and fish populations attracting divers and snorkeler...

MV Al-Salam Boccaccio 98 was an Egyptian passenger ferry that sank in the Red Sea on 3 February 2006 while traveling from Dubah, Saudi Arabia, toward Safaga, Egypt. A fire broke out before the vessel capsized and sank, and more than 1,000 passengers and crew died. The loss became one of Egypt's dead...

St. Johns Reef resides within the remote southern Egyptian Red Sea. It’s notable as a substantial reef system featuring extensive underwater caves and tunnels. The site boasts remarkable preservation of hard coral formations attracting experienced scuba divers seeking challenging dives and diverse m...

Angarosh Reef is a coral pinnacle located within the Sudanese Red Sea. It’s recognized as a significant diving destination due to its steep slopes and consistent sightings of hammerhead sharks, particularly great hammerheads. The reef attracts experienced scuba divers seeking encounters with this ap...

Woodhouse Reef is a coral reef located within the Red Sea’s Straits of Tiran, Egypt. Its distinctive shape creates significant depth variations offering exceptional diving opportunities. The reef supports diverse marine ecosystems including numerous fish species and invertebrates. It is particularly...

Sanganeb Reef is a remote coral atoll located within the Red Sea, off the coast of Sudan. It’s notable as Sudan’s inaugural marine national park recognized by UNESCO for its significant biodiversity and complex reef formations. The site offers opportunities for scientific research and diving explora...

The Eilat Coral Reef is a fringing reef near Eilat, Israel, at the northern end of the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea. Parts of it are protected within the Coral Beach Nature Reserve, which supports corals, reef fish, and other marine organisms. Corals from the northern Gulf have shown unusual toleran...

SS Umbria was an Italian cargo and passenger steamship scuttled near Port Sudan in the Red Sea in June 1940. With Italy about to enter the Second World War, her captain deliberately sank the vessel to prevent its cargo of bombs, ammunition, vehicles, and other military supplies from being seized by...

The Gulf of Suez is the northwestern arm of the Red Sea, lying between Egypt's mainland coast and the Sinai Peninsula. Its northern end meets the Suez Canal at the city of Suez, making the gulf part of the maritime route linking the Red Sea and Mediterranean Sea; the canal opened in 1869. The gulf o...

The Coral World Underwater Observatory is a public aquarium and marine park located in Eilat, Israel, situated on the shores of the Red Sea. The facility allows visitors to descend into a submerged observation chamber to view the natural coral reef ecosystem and its indigenous marine life up close....

Sha’ab Rumi Reef is a significant coral reef located in the Red Sea off Sudan. It gained international attention as the location where Jacques Cousteau conducted his Precontinent II experiment in 1963, utilizing an underwater habitat. The reef supports diverse marine life including notable shark pop...

MV Salem Express was an Egyptian passenger ferry that sank in the Red Sea during the night of 14 to 15 December 1991 after striking a reef near Safaga, Egypt. Many passengers were returning from the pilgrimage to Mecca, and official accounts reported more than 470 deaths, although the exact toll rem...

SS Carnatic was a British iron-hulled passenger and cargo steamship operated by the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company. In 1869, while traveling through the Red Sea, it grounded and later broke apart on the Sha'ab Abu Nuhas reef near Egypt, causing loss of life and cargo. Its coral-enc...

SS Dunraven was a British merchant steamship that sank in 1876 after striking the Sha'ab Mahmoud reef system in the northern Red Sea, near the southern approaches to the Gulf of Suez. The vessel was carrying cargo when it grounded, caught fire, and ultimately settled overturned on the seabed. Its co...

Abu Dabbab is a well-known coral reef and bay located along Egypt's Red Sea coast, situated south of Marsa Alam. The area is distinguished by its underwater seagrass beds, which provide a habitat for a resident population of vulnerable dugongs, often referred to as sea cows. The reef is also a gathe...

Naama Bay is a natural bay and neighborhood situated in the resort city of Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, on the Sinai Peninsula. It functions as the city's primary tourist hub, featuring a dense concentration of hotels, cafes, restaurants, and bazaars. The bay's coastline includes several man-made sandy b...

Fury Shoal is a large cluster of coral reefs located in the southern Egyptian Red Sea, near the Hamata region. It is a popular destination for scuba diving safaris, characterized by shallow sheltered lagoons, diverse hard and soft corals, and abundant marine life. The reef system is historically not...

Gordon Reef is the southernmost of four coral reefs in the Straits of Tiran, a narrow waterway at the entrance to the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea. The reef features a shallow circular plateau that drops to depths exceeding 50 meters, making it a popular site for recreational and technical diving. T...