With beautiful marine biodiversity, waters that offer good visibility, protected reefs, Aqaba is a great destination for a diving trip. They found the Aqaba Marine Park in 1997. It stretches for 7 km along the coast. They designed it to protect reefs, preserve this biodiversity, and make visitors aware of the fragility of the environment. This intensive and ongoing protection has now seen its efforts rewarded with over 20 sites listed near Aqaba and accessible to all levels, for dives from the shore or by boat.
During your diving trip, you can choose to dive on these reefs or discover beautiful wrecks such as Cedar Pride. Everywhere the colors are vivid and the life abundant. Scorpionfish, groupers, nudibranchs, and schools of “glassfish” will enhance your dives.
Take advantage of your diving vacation in Aqaba to discover Petra, one of the major archaeological sites in the Middle East, or to “taste” the desert in Wadi Rum.
Diving in Aqaba
Aqaba is the perfect place to dive gently. The sites are diverse, shallow, with very little current, visibility is often very good.
We can do the dives from the shore, the reefs are full of life and very colorful. The sites are much less frequented than in Egypt and therefore the corals are very well preserved. Aqaba has 23 dive sites including 21 in the Marine Park.
Dive on the reefs of Aqaba
Power Station. This site is 3 km from Aqaba. It is exposed so accessibly only if the sea is calm. The vertiginous drop-off goes down to 70m. It is completely colonized by corals. Morays and toadfish hide in cracks and small caves. There are also beautiful formations of black corals and elephant ear corals. This site is extremely popular with Tech divers.
First Bay North. Near the Sea Star diving center, on the northern part, you will do a drift dive. You will start by swimming between two reefs to arrive on a sandy plain. You will continue towards the drop-off. There are many rays and clouds of anthias.
Eel Garden. It is a sanctuary for garden eels and moray eels. A little after the strip of sand, you can admire the formations of black coral, shrimps, and nudibranchs. A little further, only 9 m, the spectacle is everywhere: anthias, shrimps, moray eels, lionfish, nudibranchs, and toadfishes twirl around to the delight of photographers.
King Abdullah Reef. They gave the name of this reef in honor of the king, an avid diver. You will start the dive with a zigzag between 2 fringing reefs to arrive on another reef covered with yellow corals. Be careful around, hawksbill turtles are wandering around. You then continue to the main reef, just as beautiful. There we observe lionfish, parrotfish, emperors, and fusiliers. The stingrays hide on the sandy bottom. This site is also famous for its beautiful sponges.
Rainbow Reef. This site is one of the most popular in the marine park. The dive begins in 2 reefs. We cross a breach in the coral to arrive in a canyon. There you will continue along a reef, to the north, inhabited by nudibranchs, shrimps, and Spanish dancers. The most seasoned divers can continue the descent. At 35/40m the last reef is covered with black coral and elephant ear coral. Further on we can see extensive structures that protect the electric cables between Jordan and Egypt. Coral life has resumed its rights all around. This dive is a must for night dives.
Japanese Garden. The architecture of this site is incredibly beautiful, sometimes rock, coral potatoes, or the walls of the reef. At shallow depth, wildlife is everywhere. There are barracudas, rifle fish, and large schools of sergeant majors.
Gorgon one. Shallow, it is a beautiful dive, extremely popular with photographers. Visibility is perfect, but sometimes with the current. The place is characterized by three coral reefs, rocks, and beautiful acropora tables. This superb decor is colored by soft corals and fire corals. The Massif Central is a cleaning station. Be careful, wildlife is everywhere: turtles, anthias, and swarms of colorful fish.
Yellowstone Reef. Another beautiful architecture, which earned it its name. The decor is very varied and above all very colorful. The dive begins at 6m and descends slowly. Black coral, yellow or red coral, the colors are everywhere. Tech divers can continue south, the drop off is home to large morays, shrimps, and nudibranchs.
Kiwi Reef. A New Zealander discovered this reef. The site is characterized by many pinnacles covered with coral. Life is everywhere, in the sand, in the cracks, or even around the coral massifs: crocodile fish, rays, shrimps, or even seahorses.