xmas hols to hurghada which dive operater

[trimix taz]

the club has been to sharm for the last 5 years so for a change they are looking at hurghada at christmas
which dive operater would you recommend and what are some of the better dives in the area
can the salem express be dived from here i know it is a fair treck
any other recommendations please

[Richie]

We were in Hurghada just before Easter by way of a change from Sharm.
If we had never been to the Red Sea it would have been good but frankly we were disappointed.
That there were serious northerly winds may have been a factor. This restricted us to south facing dives only for 4 days but having said that: -
a) there were none of the fantastic walls such as Ras Mohammed or some of the Tiran reefs.
b) The average depth was circa 12 m with a sandy bottom underneath an average reef. Similar to Ras Katy perhaps but with fewer fish. Drops to 30m produced nothing more.
c) The only dive that approached the average Ras Mo/tiran dive was little Giftun. We did see a turtle on this one but little else.
d) Hurghada itself reminded us on Cairo on Sea - an Egyptian town that became a resort rather than bespoke resort. To be fair we were in the south and I now understand the better, more tourist friendly areas are north of the town centre.
e) You can do the Salem Express and it is a fair haul, We did do the Carnatic and the Ghannis D which are a couple of hours steam from Hurghada that redeemed the place a bit. Nice dives both ofthem.

I'm sure that we did not see the best of the place but the wind was fierce. Force 6+ on the way back from somewhere forgettable was unforgettable.

We used Emperor Divers as we've done on each visit to Sharm. The Hurghada operation is equally efficient but much smaller.

HTH

...Otherwise Marsa Alam ....?

[Jay]

There are a number of holiday companies registered on the Diving Directory for Hurghada as well as other Red Sea destinations. There are diving images and links through to their websites for more information.

[Jay]

Quick guide to how to use it:

1. Select Africa and Egypt from the first two drop down boxes at the top and then hit GO
2. Tick the holiday operator box on the right hand side and balloons appear on the map corresponding to their locations. A ranked list also appears below the map.
3. Either click on the balloon in the area you wish to check out or select directly from the list.

In the area you mention, the following are lsited:

Regaldive in El Gouna
Longwood Holidays in El Gouna
Regaldive in Hurghada
Longwood Holidays in Hurghada
Longwood Holidays in Soma Bay
Regaldive in Safaga

If you want to research a little more, there are also trip reports and articles to read (check the relevant boxes on the right hand side and watch for the balloons appearing).

Let me know how you get on with it!

[clearwater]

Why not try El Gouna, it is quieter, and has a better chance of reaching the northern dive sites, Hurghada can be a bit hectic expecially aftert being used to Sharm.
Weather is always more of a factor on the west coast, as it is more open, but with some luck the dives can be fantastic and generally less crowded then Sharm.