Working in the Red Sea 2009

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canuck_downunder05

Registered
Scuba Instructor
Messages
50
Reaction score
0
Location
Alberta
# of dives
500 - 999
Hey!

I've got a question about workng in the Red Sea. I'm interested in heading that way march/aprilish of 2009 to look for work. I am wondering where the best place to work is, whether or not a work permit is required and should I try to line a job up before I arrive. Am looking for a busy area to do courses, further myself as an instructor, but also guide and work on liveaboards.

Any tips or suggestions?

Thanks,
Carissa
 
IMHO I'd always try and line something up before you arrive..

Thinking....

Arrive at Airport - Sharm perhaps. Mobbed with tourists.. You casually grab your dive kit / suitcase and walk out the door you your awaiting taxi - chap standing with sign with you name and all relevant visas to stick in your passport
You are whisked away to the dive centre to be introduced to your dive colleagues and enjoy a few cold drinks.
Next day you are in the Red Sea diving !!!


:D :D


Permit's... depends where you work, but they again can be arranged through whoever you are going to work for or bought at the airport.

There are options, work for a dive centre, on a boat, freelance or all of the above

Google "Diving Red Sea" and send out your CV ??

Good luck the Red Sea and what is therein is AWESOME
Also I Lurve the Read Sea area, and it's people..

:turtle:
 
The first question you will be asked by a dive shop is.... What languages do you speak, if you only speak english, you are in for a tough time.
 
Thanks for the tips LM. I will send out my resumes and do as you suggested.

James I only speak, english. I had this problem in Thailand as well... Only having the one language hurts my chances of maxiumum potential. What lanugages are dominant in Red Sea... most types of client? Any areas where I would be safer going with only english?

Thanks guys!

Carissa
 
Hi there,

Ok, so simply by coming to Sharm you are almost guaranteeing a busy dive centre with plenty of experience, which is great. I came out here over three years ago with the intention of doing my IDC followed by a few months' intensive experience... as I said that was three years ago... I simply stayed! The main dive centres are as follows:

Ocean College
Emperor
Sinai Divers
Red Sea College
Camel
Colona
Verna Lau
and
Oonas

There are of course many many more however you will find the smaller the dive center, the less inclined you will be to work for them if you get my drift. All the big centres follow an accepted level of dive safety (set out by a board called the CDWS) and adhere strictly to the PADI standards instruction-wise (I know everyone is meant to, but have heard stories to the contrary, not that I have witnessed it myself).

I would come out armed with a good financial buffer as you probably won't get work straight away. Most dive centres don't recruit ahead of time, although I would strongly agree that by dropping them all a line with your credentials you can at least introduce yourself ahead of your arrival.

As for work permits, these are a grey area, yes everyone is meant to have them, but they are a little like gold dust, and I would say that many of the foreign instructors here simply have a resident's visa which can be bought in El Tor (about an hour away) within the first month of your arrival. Most people can buy a month's tourist visa at the airport on arrival, which will suffice initially, while you find your feet.

Have you been to Sharm before? It really is quite an amazing place. The diving outstanding (if a little too popular on occasions) and the season lasts all year. We have no monsoon, and even the winter, whilst challenging and cool (for us), can provide some excellent diving. The sun shines most days (with a few cloudy ones in winter, and even a few hours of rain each year) and facilities here are pretty comprehensive, with plenty of wifi cafes if you are unlucky enough to have one of the apartments without broadband.

As for the languages, yes you will find it much easier if you do speak more than just English, but some centres do have mostly English guests, so not everyone requires multilingual instructors.

If you want more info, feel free to pm or email me. Good luck.
 
Thanks a bunch dive bunny! great information. I'll look online at the dc's you suggested and get in touch with them. I would like to get over there end of march/april'ish so I can start with the research and get amped to get over there! Would it be wise to arrange accomadation ahead of time? I've never been so I'm not sure of what the situation is like?

Thanks :wink:
 
I would arrange some kind of accommodation before you arrive. Sharm is quite severely lacking in back packer style places to bed down for a few nights (ie... there are none!). You might even find it cheaper to book a bargain package holiday in order to get out here, and then spend that week looking for longer term accommodation depending on what centre you end up working for.

There are plenty of instructors here so I would imagine finding somewhere to rent, should not be too hard once you are here, although prices will not be as cheap as Thailand... just to warn you. But there again, wages do reflect this too.
 
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