Red Sea Liveaboard/Itinerary choice

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potato cod

Contributor
Messages
585
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Location
Rust Belt
# of dives
200 - 499
Hi all,

Spouse and I just decided to travel to Cyprus this summer (late June-early August, exact dates TBD) to visit friends and realized that we're an inexpensive flight from Hurghada or Sharm and Red Sea Liveaboards. I did a little initial searching and there are a LOT of options and it's a little confusing. I guess the biggest question is which itinerary is best for us at this time of year.

Stuff that matters:
*We like sharks and big stuff
*We also like pretty corals and schools of fish
*Wrecks are cool because they tend to have corals and fish, but aren't in themselves that interesting. Except maybe Thistlegorm
****We have 170-some dives each, but it's vacation, so we don't like to be stressed out going too deep (we like to keep dives to 70 feet or so) or fighting crazy currents (but we're reasonably fit runners and can handle some current/cardio demands)

We'd also like a liveaboard where English is commonly spoken by crew and guests. Never been to this part of the world, so not sure what the language situation is. We've been on several liveaboards where there have been guests that didn't speak the dominant language, and they didn't seem to have as much fun. We want to avoid that. We like chatting with other guests and crew.

Any input would be greatly appreciated. THANKS!!!

P Cod
 
I have been on 3 liveaboard trips to the Red Sea and generally, most crew speak reasonably good English. As for the guests, it is luck of the draw bit in this day and age, it is probably true to say that most divers speak at least passable English.

As for the itinerary itself, the best for sharks and big stuff is the one they call "Simply The Best". This week covers Elphinstone, Daedalus and both Brothers and you are virtually guaranteed to see pelagics in July-August.

The best itinerary for wrecks, coral and small critters is the one they call "Northern Wrecks & Reefs" which covers Ras Muhammed and other reefs plus all the great wrecks there.

Therefore, to get the best out of your trip, I suggest that you do back to back liveaboard trips to those destinations. If you keep Hurghada as your starting/finishing point and enquire with Regal Dive, Blue-O-Two etc, it should be possible.

If you cannot manage 2 weeks of liveaboard diving, then the best option for you is a week-long itinerary called "Famous Five" offered by Regal Dive. That includes some reefs and wrecks in the north as well as the Brothers, Elphinstone and if conditions permit Daedalus.
 
The Red Sea covers some area. There are a number of Egyptian options that offer just liveaboard diving and some that also offer Egypt and Nile land trips as part of the package. We have also started to offer trips out of Sudan and the diving there offers some great destinations. Some of these trips due to the length of the route (Deep South for example) can be 2-week cruises, but some 7-day cruises are available. Remember when you speak of the Red Sea there are routes in the Egyptian waters and also in the Sudanese waters.
 
Blue O Two is a great choice among liveaboards - well-run and great crews. Agree with Simply the Best as a perfect sampler. IMHO, the further south you go, the better the reef and diving quality (at least within Egypt).
 
As I recall the Red Sea Aggressor ran aground on the Elphinstone Reef back in mid-2014 and has been undergoing repairs. I have not booked any divers on that ship prior to the grounding. It is my understanding that they have subcontracted the use of another ship while the Aggressor is being repaired. That may be the reason for few comments on the forum. Not sure if the original ship has been returned to service.
 
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