The best dive sites in Hurghada: reefs, wrecks and what each suits

The strongest all-round sites are the Giftun drifts (Giftun Soraya and Erg Somaya), the Umm Gamar wall, Careless Reef and the Abu Ramada reefs, with El Mina as the local wreck. The Abu Nuhas wrecks and SS Thistlegorm are the big wreck dives, but they are longer special day trips, not part of a normal day boat.

The list below is ordered by how much each site gives a certified diver on a good day, not by difficulty. Depths and levels come from the pages in our dive-site directory, which compares several published guides. Where those guides disagree on depth, we give the range. Visibility at most sites is listed as 10–30 m; at El Mina, inside the harbour area, it is 5–10 m.

Banana Reef, Shaab El Erg, Gota Abu Ramada and Shaab Sabina are the gentlest: shallow coral, mostly mild current and plenty to see between 10 and 15 m. They suit new Open Water divers and anyone back in the water after a break.

• Banana Reef: coral gardens slope to sand at about 20 m, with two small pinnacles at 14–17 m. Eagle rays and feather-tailed rays are regular.
• Shaab El Erg: no deeper than about 16 m. Napoleon wrasse, crocodilefish and blue-spotted rays; dolphins use the channel, and a binding dolphin-watching code of conduct has applied in the Red Sea Governorate since June 2013.
• Gota Abu Ramada: nicknamed the Aquarium, typically dived around 10 m among brain corals and goatfish schools. It gets crowded in August and September, when triggerfish can also be territorial.
• Shaab Sabina: a reef tongue made for an easy drift, with turtles and pufferfish. It is inside the marine park, which charges a park fee.

Giftun Soraya and Abu Ramada South are also rated beginner by independent guides, but they are drifts where the current varies, so a guide should judge the day. PADI trains Open Water Divers to a maximum of 18 m, so on deeper sites a beginner stays on the plateau or the upper wall.

Never dived? A try dive costs €45 and is one-to-one with an instructor. The Open Water course starts at €365 (SSI/SDI) or €395 (PADI), all-inclusive.

Umm Gamar, Careless Reef, Erg Somaya, El Mina and El Fanadir North reward experienced divers: they have depth past 30 m, current, or exposure to open sea.

• Umm Gamar: the standard dive runs from the south plateau to the drop-off and north along the wall to three pinnacles. Its northern tip is dived only in very good weather. Titan triggerfish nest here in September.
• Careless Reef: exposed, with no protecting moorings, so boats go only in excellent weather. The east wall drops below 40 m. Its morays are used to people because of years of fish feeding, which is why we never feed fish.
• Erg Somaya: strong currents and a chimney at the north-east corner. Recommended minimum is Advanced Open Water.
• El Fanadir North: shallow wall and plateau for everyone, then a drop-off beyond 30–40 m for divers trained to go there.

PADI trains Advanced Open Water Divers to 30 m and Deep Divers to 40 m, the recreational limit. Some sites go deeper than that, but the dive plan does not.

Close to town you can dive El Mina, an Egyptian T-43 minesweeper, and a small patrol boat at Shaab Rur Umm Gamar. Further north are the four Abu Nuhas wrecks and SS Thistlegorm, both full-day trips.

El Mina lies on its port side just east of Hurghada harbour, less than 10 minutes by boat, from about 25 m under the bow to 32 m at the stern. Sources disagree on when it sank: 1970 in one guide, while others give 1969 or even 1967. Live shells lie on the seabed. Look, never touch, and stay out of the narrow, silty corridors. On our guided 2-dive day trip a wreck dive is on request, for €25.

Abu Nuhas is a shallow reef next to the shipping lane to the Suez Canal, which is why it holds four wrecks:

SS Thistlegorm was a British cargo ship, launched in Sunderland in April 1940. German bombers sank her at Safe Anchorage F near the Strait of Gubal at about 01:30 on 6 October 1941, and nine men died. Her holds still carry trucks, motorcycles, rifles, aircraft parts and two steam locomotives. Our directory gives a maximum of 31 m; the Thistlegorm Project gives about 32 m. Taking anything from the wreck is forbidden.

We run both as private or group day trips: Thistlegorm and Abu Nahas from €250 per person on a group date, or from €1,750 for a private boat. Both are also on our 7-night North Wrecks & Reefs liveaboard.

You can dive Hurghada all year. The water is warmest in August (about 29 °C on average) and coolest in February and March (about 22 °C). One climate guide names April and mid-October to mid-November as the most pleasant months.

The figures above are 10-year averages from seatemperature.info. Another climate source runs about a degree cooler, at 21 °C in February and March and 28 °C in August. Wind matters more than temperature for which sites you reach. By that source's averages, June is the windiest month and November and December are the calmest. On calm days the boat can reach exposed sites like Careless Reef and the northern tip of Umm Gamar. Seasonal extras: mantas are occasionally seen at Umm Gamar in February and March, and titan triggerfish nest in September.

The captain picks the final two sites on the day, based on wind, sea state, permits and the experience of the divers on board. Tell us your level and any site you would like when you book, and we will try to fit it in.

• The first dive is usually the deeper site, while the sea is calmest. The second is shallower and easy.
• The boat leaves at about 09:00, and the first site is about an hour and a half away. Your guide briefs each dive on the way, with a map.
• When the open sea is rough, the El Mina wreck by the harbour is a good bad-weather alternative.
• Groups are no larger than 4 divers per guide, so the plan can match the least experienced diver in your group.

The guided 2-dive day trip costs €50 (normally €60), with hotel pickup at 08:00 from Hurghada, El Gouna, Makadi Bay, Sahl Hasheesh, Soma Bay or Safaga. You are back at your hotel at about 16:30. Lunch, tanks, weights and the guide are included, full gear is €10 a day, and you pay in cash on the day. Cancellation is free up to 24 hours before. Non-divers can come on the same boat and pay the snorkelling-trip price of €35, with mask and fins included. See every site on the map in our dive-site directory.