Red Sea Dive Sites - Nuweiba

Nuweiba is about 185 km north of Sharm El Sheikh and nestles between the deep blue of the Gulf of Aqaba and the high desert mountains of the Sinai. Nuweiba is a quiet getaway famous for its magnificent beaches and offers easy access to the cultural sites of St Catherine's Monastery and Petra in Jordan, also just 80 km away to the north is the busy seaside resort of Eilat, Israel. The diving in the area runs from Devils Head and in the north to Abu Gallum in the south and is mainly accessed from the shore by jeep or even camel due to the lack of jetty facilities or safe anchorages for boats.


Abou Lou Lou House Reef
The house reef lies just to the left of the jetty, off the hotels private beach. The main reef lies between 5 and 20 metres of depth, ideal for beginners and experienced divers alike, because of the concentration and diversity of the fish life present. Puffers, Morays, Groupers, Surgeonfish, Shrimps and crabs just to mention a few. A more appropriate name would be "Lion Fish City" as you spot easily more than 20 Lion Fish on any given dive! As darkness descends on Abou Lou Lou it becomes a "must" dive site.


M.F.O.
M.F.O. is an abbreviation for Multi-National Force and Observers.
The dive starts along two desalination pipes that were put there by the Israeli Army in the late seventies. Both pipes start at 5 metres and stretch out horizontally, sloping gradually down to 12 metres and 20 metres respectively. The pipes are around 5 metres apart and over the years have become overgrown with soft corals and small table corals. This has attracted an abundance of fish to shelter around the pipes.
A short swim north from the pipes we find the reef at a depth between 14 and 20 metres with a collection of small pinnacles, coral heads and masses of soft corals blanketing the bottom. The fish life is abundant with Jackfish, Grouper, Parrotfish and sometimes Leopard rays.

Sinkers
During the seventies the Israeli Navy decided to place a large mooring buoy just off the beach, but unfortunately the water was deeper than expected and they dropped the 25 meter chain in 35 metres of water. The buoy disappeared under the surface and since then it hangs suspended at a depth of 8 - 12 metres. Slowly circling the big chains, you can admire the wonderful coloured soft corals that cover the whole length up to the buoy. Continuously schools of blue fusilier fishes shoot up and down full speed as they are chased by jackfish. As you reach the buoy itself it's hard to focus on one thing because of the profusion of fish life including Glass Fish, Damsels and Banded Boxer Shrimps.

Outside Hilton
Only 5 minutes by jeep from the hotel you will find one of the most beautiful reefs around. 40 metres from the beach the reef starts at a depth of 4 metres and descends slowly down to a depth of 28 metres. This area is blessed with large table corals and abundant fish life including Big-Eye, Angel Fish and Jacks. If you are very lucky, at certain times of the year it is possible to sight Frogfish here. The last minutes of the dive are at a depth of 4 to 5 metres enjoying the beautiful coral pinnacles whilst doing your safety stop.


El Mazeriq
The site is about 7 km south of Nuweiba. After a gentle shore entry through a break in the coral plate one sees rolling coral "hills" bottoming out in sandy bottomed "valleys". Beautiful hard corals form the hills, which you will swim over and around exploring the valleys at between 20 - 25 metres. At the end of the dive is a spectacular five meter high brain coral, affectionately named Brian's Brain.

Ras El Shetan - Devils Head
North of Nuweiba, about 30 minutes drive, is one of the best known dive sites. This is a Bedouin Camp and we usually come here for a 2 tank dive outing. The southern side of the reef starts at 12 metres where we hit the reef plateau covered by an incredible variety of hard corals and drops down sharply to a depth of 40 metres in the canyon; it is the home of octopus, puffer fish and moon groupers. This scenery leaves fantastic memories.
After the surface interval we start the second dive on the northern side of the reef which reveals a completely different structure. Swimming straight out from where we set up the equipment we descend over a patch of sea grass and a beautiful coral garden looms in front of us. It is a coral garden full with colourful and healthy coral blocks. The table corals are impressive ranging in size from a few centimetres to 3 metres in diameter. Along with various other hard and soft corals it has often been likened to a "Japanese garden", home to many fish including the very brightly coloured Lemon Goby and the Blue Green Puller.

The Valley
20 minutes by car, north of Nuweiba we reach THE VALLEY; it is outside a Bedouin camp with 2 dive sites. On the first dive we head to the right and at about 12 metres we will find a coral garden which drops into a big Canyon with a max. depth of 35-40 metres. After a one hour surface interval we head for the second dive this time turning left, here also we find another Canyon with beautiful hard and soft corals. On our way back, in shallow water we will find on both dive sites a beautiful reef plate with stunning fire corals and an abundance of coral fishes.

El Magana
25 minutes by car towards Taba is El Magana, a site next to a very basic beach camp with 2 dive sites. The reef starts just 20 metres from the beach at a depth of 5 metres. Our first dive takes us to the left side along a wall where the reef drops to 35 metres. A break in the coral plate forms a canyon which we fin through at a depth of around 20-25m from where we head back through a coral garden to the exit. After a surface interval we commence the second dive heading right this time along the coral reef plate. This is a very similar site to the first with some large fish and plenty of healthy corals. Both reefs are mainly hard corals and with a little bit of luck you can spot Napoleons, Barracudas and Seahorses.


Eid's Place (Hebeck)
This site is also located in the Ras Mamlach National park and offers a variety of hard corals and clouds of reef fish.

Ras Mamlach
Situated in the Abu Galum National Park, this is the highlight of a week's diving. It's a 1 ½ hour drive along the desert road by Jeep to get there but it's a worthwhile trip. The reef starts at about 12 m, with a beautiful coral garden and on to a steep wall that bottoms out at 70 m plus. Beautiful fan and table corals covered with soft corals and the intensive blue of the Gulf of Aqaba create a fantastic picture. The variety of the underwater life opens a new world; Barracudas, Jackfish, Groupers and much, much more. Two dives are not enough to see everything!