Jackson Reef
Most northerly of the reefs of Tiran and the northern limit of day boats from Sharm El Sheikh. The wreck of the “Lara” lies at the northern end. There is superb wall diving along its entire perimeter, with numerous buttresses and gullies.  Sightings of sharks, turtles and other big fish are not uncommon and you will find a huge diversity of different corals and sponges as well as clouds of trigger fish, masked puffers and banner fish. At the point you may be lucky and spot a Hammerhead in summer.

Thomas Reef
Between Gordon and Woodhouse reefs, smaller round reef with walls plunging deep and fully covered with soft coral, gorgonians and colourful fish life. It is almost possible to circumnavigate this reef in one dive. The east wall plunges dramatically to great depths with a mass of brightly coloured soft corals. The west wall is darker with overhangs and caves but is a great drift dive with sightings of Trevally and Tuna in the blue and schooling reef fish close to the reef.

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Ras Nasrani (9km north of Naama Bay)
This site can be accessed by four wheel drive vehicle as well as boats. The reef drops from the shallow bays to a wall down to 60m+ with many caves and overhangs. The best diving is among the big coral heads (or ergs) in the shallow areas. A good spot for Spanish dancers and coneshells in the sandy gullies.

White Knight
The reef wall drops away to a sandy plateau at about 13m, at the center is a gully with swim throughs at 10m and 35m. There is an eel garden to the north. This sheltered site is home for trigger fish, groupers and the occasional manta.

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The Gardens (just north of Naama Bay)
Really three “gardens” near, middle and far. The most seaward of the gardens (far), is a colourful fringing reef with a slope to 25m and dotted with small “ergs” At the top of the drop off there is a few pinnacle frequently visited by pelagics. Glass fish caves are in the reef wall at 12m. “Near” garden is just a few minutes from Naama Bay and is a great spot for a night dive with a sandy ledge sloping away to 25m. Look out for flashlight fish at night and napoleons, blue spotted stingrays and the odd grey reef shark in daylight hours.

Pinkys Wall
The wall here seems bottomless, drift dive along the reef which is richly covered in soft corals. To the south is a sandy slope from where richly covered coral heads emerge before becoming a shear bottomless wall once again.

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Paradise
Northern side of Ras Umm Sidd wall, fully decorated ergs rise from a gentle slope, home to schools of glass fish against a colourful background of soft corals.



Ras Umm Sidd
The south side of the headland offers a superb gorgonian forest on the drop off. The plateau is bursting with life and swarms of reef fish. The possibility of spotting whale shark or manta exists at the corner.


Temple
At the center of the Ras Umm Sid bay a huge coral pillar extends skywards, the reef wall drops to 15m. There are lots of pinnacles which are well worth exploring, this is a good spot to see octopus. The rest of the site is featureless and it is easy to get lost so don’t forget your compass.

Ras Ghazlani
Description coming soon

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Ras Za’atar
Most northern dive of Ras Mohammed National Park, it is the southern entrance to the bay of Marsa Bareika. Where the steep wall of Ras Mohammed, with caves and overhangs, meets the gentle slope of the bay of Marsa Bareika, and is scattered with colorful coral heads. Head north along the wall amongst big overhangs and dark gullies, the wall is swathed in sea fans, gorgonians and the odd sprig of black coral. Just before the corner look out for the chimney at 15m home to malabar grouper, look closer and find the cleaning stations with the wrasse and shrimp in attendance. Don’t forget to check out the blue for schools of barracuda and jacks or the odd eagle ray cruising by.

Jackfish Alley
The white patch on the cliff is a good marker for this site, usually done as a drift dive there are some interesting caves at 5m usually full of glass fish. As you move south you find two ergs again covered with glass fish, this is a great spot for photographers. Further south is a coral garden and the sandy gulley, which gives this, sites its name. Stingrays can be found resting in the sand as well as white tip sharks. In late summer beware of Titan trigger fish guarding their nests.

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Ras Mohammed
Really several dive sites Ras Mohammed has earned itself a reputation as one of the top dive sites in the world, here at the tip of the Sinai where the vast bodies of water the Gulf of Suez and the Gulf of Aqaba meet has created an ecosystem like no other and wall diving at its very best.

Shark Observatory
The site is not aptly named as it is not noted for its shark sightings, however, it is a fantastic dive. Beneath the towering cliffs that continue below the surface to disappear into the deep abyss the wall is covered with soft coral and honeycombed with numerous gullies and canyons that are home to hoards of glass fish and hatchet fish herded by red mouth grouper. An overhang, fringed with sea fans at 10m, is a great place to watch the Trevallies, Jacks and Turtles passing in the blue. At the southern end Anemone city is worth a visit.



Shark & Yolanda Reefs
Situated right at the tip of the Sinai this site is world renowned, the two small ergs are joined by a vertical wall dropping into the abyss Start your dive at Shark reef and use the prevailing current to explore the wall abounding in multihued soft corals. At 30m large schools of barracuda and snappers gather in often-strong currents just off the wall, swim through the schools to the outside as silky sharks usually gather there but be careful not to lose your orientation to the wall. As you proceed toward Jolanda you will reach a plateau at 15-25m scattered with small ergs and coral outcrops where stone fish and scorpion fish wait for a meal. Continuing round the reef you will come upon the scattered remains of the wreck of the ‘Jolanda’ complete with its cargo of toilets and baths. The whole of this area is big fish territory so keep an eye on the blue for the action with tuna, bluefish, and the occasional hammerhead. Ensure your dive guide gives you a thorough briefing as the currents here can be strong and complicated.

Click on the map to view dive site descriptions

GUBAL STRAITS The area either side of the Straits of Gubal is mainly the preserve of liveaboards. Flanked in the west be the islands of Gubal and Shedwan and in the east by the reef systems of Shab Ali and Shab Mahmoud. Most of these wrecks are covered during liveaboard trips however, Colona Sharm El Sheikh runs regular day trips to the wrecks of the Dunraven and of the Thistlegorm. Crossing the straits can be rough and sometimes downright impossible in all but the largest ships. The areas around Shedwan Island are closed to diving as this is a military area.

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The Alternatives
About 30 minutes north west of Ras Mohammed is system of flat top ergs, with names like “lonely mushroom, stingray station and sometimes known as the ‘seven pinnacles’. Best dive is around the third or fourth erg from the east where the current sweeps through feeding pristine corals with bright vivid colours, however, the visibility can be effected in rough weather. ‘Stingray Station’ lies at the western extremity of the Alternatives; this is an irregular reef and  owes its name to the gathering of stingrays in March and April. The whole area is known as home to large groupers, turtles and leopard shark.

The Wreck of the Dunraven
At the southern extreme of ‘Shab Mahmoud’, a series of shallow reefs and lagoons among which lies the wreck of the 72m English steamer sunk in 1876 on its from  Bombay to England loaded with timber and spices. The hull lies upside down and is totally covered in corals (max. depth 29m), the prop and rudder lies at 19m. The wreck is home to a wide variety  of marine life, morays, napoleon, groupers and schools of glass fish and goat fish inside the wreck.

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Small Crack (Small Passage)
Small split in the middle of Shab Mahmoud’s barrier. The tide empties and fills the inner lagoon twice daily, thus creating strong currents that promote an impressive explosion of life. Brilliant soft corals and resident flashlight fish also make it a premier night dive location - weather permitting.



Wreck of the Thistlegorm
This World War II wreck is famous around the world. In October 1941 she was at anchor behind Shab Ali and awaiting orders to move up through the Suez canal to deliver a cargo of munitions to the British troops in north Africa when German aircraft bombed the 129m British freighter. The cargo is still virtually intact and includes railway locomotives, bren gun carriers, trucks motorcycles and a host of ammunition of all sizes. You need to do at least two dives on this wreck to even get a feel for the site. Dive the deeper stern section first and the bow for the second dive of the day.  The wreck is home to bat fish, jacks, barracudas, surgeon fish, nudibranchs and rabbit fish graze the hull.  The current here can be strong and the visibility reduced so ensure a full briefing from you dive guide and enjoy your visit to this part of British history.



Shag Rock
Being so close to its neighbour, the Thistlegorm, this large circular reef is often overlooked.  It offers excellent diving on pristine coral from any location on its perimeter. The sheltered southern point is the most dived location offering the opportunity for drifts along the west or east sides. Weather permitting the northern point hosts the wreck of the Kingston (‘Sarah H’) just below the surface (max. depth 12m). Large schools of yellow goat fish, sweet lips abound here and the area regularly patrolled by grey reef sharks.

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Wreck of the Rosalie Moller
This wreck lies in the channel north of Gubal island and is a dive only for the more experienced as the visibility can be  reduced and the wreck swept by strong currents on occassions. She was on her way to Alexandria with a cargo of coal when she was sunk by German aircraft on the 7th October 1941, just two days after the Thistlegorm. Originally named the Francis she was launched in 1910, she was then purchased by the Moller Line in 1931 and renamed after the grandchild of one of the company directors. The wreck is  in pristine condition,and home to prolific fish life and a magnificent array of hard and soft corals,  she is 108mts long and sits upright on an even keel with the bow at 39mts and the keel in 50mts. The top of the mast is at 17mts. She is rarely dived due to her position and can only be accessed in the best of weather.

Bluff Point
At the gate of the Straits of Gubal, ‘Bluff Point’ draws its name from the turbulence created by strong currents that beat the eastern most wall of the island. Huge fan corals cover an impressive drop off with caves and glass fish. Sightings of turtles and napoleon fish are not uncommon. An unknown wreck lies on the reef 300m north of the lighthouse, starting at 5m depth and sloping to 25m. Rumor has it that this is the wreck of an Egyptian patrol boat sunk in the 6 day war.

Abu Nuhas
Also known as the ‘Ships Graveyard’, this reef is dangerously positioned close to the busy shipping lanes of the Gulf of Suez.  This reef has claimed more ships than any other in the area.  On the north side are four wrecks laying on a sandy seafloor at the bottom of a steep sloping reef layered with table corals. The wrecks are sometimes inaccessible in anything other than a RIB or inflatable due to the heavy swell driving down the length of the gulf. On the south side is a safe anchorage for liveaboards and two beautiful ergs, known as Yellow fish reef that make an excellent third dive or night dive or an alternative if the weather is extremely bad.

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Giannus D
This Greek freighter hit the reef in April 1983 and over the course of two weeks slowly broke in two and sank. She is the most dived wreck here, Laying in 28m and leaning to port with a fully intact stern section and an impressive engine room packed with glass fish.  Locally known as the ’wood’ wreck for the cargo it was carrying when it sank. The bow is also very interesting but is a long swim out. She is a great wreck for penetration but beware of disorientation due to the angle at which she lays. Be weary of the many lion fish and scorpion fish that call this wreck home. and watch out strong surges in and around the wreck in rough weather.

Carnatic
A British P & O steamer which struck the reef in 1869.  and sank the next day as the weather worsened.  She was a passenger and mail ship and is sometimes known as the ‘wine’ wreck for the numerous bottles once found in the holds, sadly not many now remain to be seen. Rumor has it that she sank with forty thousand pounds sterling of gold bullion, much of which was never recovered. She lays in 29m and now the whole hull is draped in multicoloured soft corals and the inner areas are full of glass fish complete with red mouthed grouper sentinel.  One davit supports a beautiful table coral. The wreck is now home to large grouper, octopus and morays and jacks and tuna cruise overhead.

Chrisoula K
Another Greek ship which sank in 1976, now laying in 30m is fully laden with stone floor tiles and sometimes called the ‘tile’ wreck for obvious reasons. Early morning divers may find a white tip reef shark sleeping under the rudder at the stern. Be weary of very limited and small entry/exit points into the engine room, however, penetration of the wreck is not recommended due to the unstable nature of the wreck.

Olden
Not a lot is known about this wreck except that it struck the reef in 1981 and is locally known as the ‘lentil’ wreck for the cargo she carried.  Lying in 31m and completely on its starboard side exposing its huge hull on one side and gaping cargo holds on the other.  Growth on the hull is fairly sparse due to the position and current. Large morays live in the scattered remains of wreckage on the starboard side and bat fish circle the topside. Most of the fish in the vacinity of the wreck are overweight from dining on the lentils leaching from the sacks once contained in her holds.

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Shab Umm Usk  
A large horseshoe shaped reef that shelters a shallow lagoon and offers good shallow diving on coral gardens at either point. Further around the southern reef exterior provides a steep coral encrusted wall sloping to 40+m. Playful bottlenose dolphins are found inside the lagoon at times.

Blind Reef
An Isolated reef south of Siyul Island, with good diving on its north side. Soft coral, sea whips, many ergs home to glass fish and turtles can often be found here.

Siyul Kebira
This reef extends around the Island of Big Siyul and has a varied profile, in some areas sand chutes (wadis) split the reef face, in others there are overhangs and gullies to explore. The coral growth is abundant as is the fish life. Most diving here is in swift currents on the drift but the north eastern point offers a plateau which slopes gently from 10m to 30+m. Sharks and large rays are often sighted in the deeper water, with schools of sweet lips and masked butterflies in the shallows.

Siyul Seghira
Despite it Arabic name Little (seghira) Siyul is the largest reef in the area at over 4km long. It is usually dived as a drift due to the strong currents along the sloping reef. The depth range is 20-25m, the corals are lush and vibrant and the fish life is dense and varied. The best dive here is along the north side but can only be done in moderate weather due to the exposed nature of the reef.

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