Diving Egypt

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JohnnyBoy

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Hi there
I've already used the search facility fo reviews on diving in Egypt & I was just looking for an update.
I can't make up my mind on whether to stay north in Sinai or go further south to Marsa etc.
Does anybody have any strong opinion on Sharm vs Hurghada vs dahab.
I will more than likely be travelling on my own,so a bit of activity above water at night would be appreciated.I was thinking about going in Feb.
Cheers
 
Hurghada is at best average in the evening and probably inferior to Sharm also on the diving front. Not as many tourists and quiet time of year so Sharm probably better. Haven't been to Hurghada in about 7 yrs but there is a beach nightclub which is quite good - Hurghada may have developed alot since I was there so get some more responses also,
Best,
FCC
 
I stayed in El Gouna this September and thought it was alot nicer place than Hurghada. The town had lovely shops and restaurants and bars and the square had entertainment some nights, plus there was the Marina which also had lovely restaurants and few shops and entertainment in around the marina aswell some nights. Hurghada looked a bit run down in parts and the people we talked to said you still got hassled to come into this shop and that one where in El Gouna there is none of this. We stayed in the Movenpick Hotel and i would really recommend it, lovely pools, rooms restaurants etc and we went scuba diving with a company that is based in the hotel, they also did snorkelling etc. The hotel did a shuttle bus that runs every few minutes to downtown and the marina and it only costs a few pounds for the week.
 
I am off to Egypt myself in May for a spot of diving. Sharm El Sheikh was highly recommended by a friend, much better than Hurghada, for diving, apparently
 
I went to Sharam a few years ago and the diving was excellent. One thing you absolutely have to do is dive the Thistlegorm which I dont think you can do from Hurgada (but check that out yourself). Its a WWII cargo vessle which was sunk with its full load on board. You get to go inside it and see all the uniforms and guns hanging up, cannon on the deck, carraiges for locomotives lying in the sand beside the ship and loads of other goodies. You simply cannot go all that way and not dive it. One of my best diving experiences ever. Other dives we did were Ros-um-sid (my spelling is awful so its probably wrong) and Ross mohamud national park (or something like that). If you are lucky you can see hammerhead sharks but we didnt see any.

Also check out the dive centres online before you go because some are cowboys. I cant remember which outfit I went with but PM me if you want to know and I'll look it up for you.

Personally I found dahab to be really dissapointing. It's a dump basically. I dont know what sort of travelling you like to do but everything in dahab was filthy with swarming with cockroaches. We checked out a place costing $3 a night and just couldnt stay there. Its worth a visit but it was full of pseudo-hippy americans and europeans trying to outcool one another and I just found it soulless. (i hope i am not insulting anyone by saying that but it is honestly how I felt) I dont think there is much in the way of diving there either compared to sharam although we did go snorkling and saw a lion fish very near the shore under some rocks which was cool!
 
Totally agree with Homeowner re Thistlegorm.
I went in May and stayed here:

http://www.longwoodholidays.co.uk/sharm/hotels/hyassh.htm

Fantastic hotel, pricier than the rest in Sharm (save the Four Seasons) but well worth it. 5 good restaurants so you do not need to leave the complex but if you want to hit the bright lights of Sharm, it's only 5 minutes in a cab.
The hotel has a private beach and a jetty that leads you straight into the coral so it really is only 100m from the beach to a good diving/snorkelling area. Private dive boats ferry punters over to this area for diving whereas you can just walk to it.

I flew Ryanair to LGW to pick up the flight and still managed to save about 500E on what Falcon were offering to the same hotel plus the Longwood Reps are very knowledgeable about the area.

(no connection with Longwood or Hyatt).
 
Thanks for the replys guys
I think it'll be Sharm.yeah I've read alot about the Thistlegorm,do u need any specific wreck training for it to be allowed inside?It's pretty shallow,starting @ 15m & all within 30mtrs.
2 companies,Tony backhurst & regaldive were recommended to me,anybody any experience with them?
 
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