Djibouti remains an uncrowded destination for a diving trip. And yet Djibouti offers the best of the Red Sea, with superb dives, and the largest concentration of whale sharks in the Red Sea.
Its location between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, its waters full of fish and whale sharks, give it the status of an unbelievably beautiful destination for a diving cruise. Djibouti is the southernmost country of the Red Sea, it is on the border between Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia. It was for a long time a French military port. Even if the country is now independent, it is still predominantly French speaking and hosts many military bases.
Djibouti offers two beautiful diving areas for cruises: the Gulf of Tadjourah and the 7 brothers archipelago. It is possible to combine the two diving areas.
Diving at the 7 Brothers
The Islands of the 7 Brothers make up a small archipelago located north of Djibouti, at the crossroads between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. The seabed is shaken by currents, sometimes violent, which also attract a very impressive fauna, many of which are pelagic. The reefs are home to large schools of batfish, snappers, sweet lips, and jacks. Manta rays are also very present. These small, desolate islands are only accessible by cruise. Read more.
Diving in the Gulf of Tadjourah
The calm waters of the Gulf of Tadjourah are protected and offer beautiful dives. The water is sometimes loaded with plankton, which reduces visibility but attracts a plethora of fish. Lots of turtles, groupers, wrasse, dolphins, or sharks. It is also here that whale sharks come to breed from November to February. There are also many barracudas and large groupers. Read more.
The best season to dive in Djibouti
The whale sharks cruise in Djibouti operates from October to January, and the best time to dive is from October to April.
From May, the heat increases, and the winds are strong from May to October.
From December to February, the winds can also be quite strong, refreshing the water and the outside temperature.
The underwater fauna of Djibouti
Djibouti’s dive sites are probably the most impressive in the Red Sea. You will discover a large population of grouper fish, huge groupers, rays of all kinds, jacks, barracudas, wrasse, leopard moray eels, parrotfish, turtles, triggerfish, and sweet lips. There are no less than 167 species of corals and 27 species of sharks.
From November to January, it is the whale sharks that invite themselves in large numbers to the Gulf of Tadjourah.
Djibouti whale sharks
Thanks to the large concentration of plankton, from October to January, whale sharks are present in numbers in the Gulf of Tadjourah. This is an opportunity for scientists to tag them, photograph them, and try to better understand their migration and reproduction. Swimmers can approach gently, and only over 3 meters. They organize many whale sharks’ cruises, to the delight of snorkelers.