Ras Mohammed National Park is at the southern tip of Sinai. The exceptional beauty of its reefs makes Ras Mohammed the most popular diving spot in Egypt. Ras Mohammed National Park covers 480 km2, including 345 km2 of seabed. It is located 25 km from Sharm El Sheikh; it is extremely protected and subject to many rules.
Ras Mohammed’s seabed is characterized by unique coral formations in the world, where an exceptional fauna evolves.
To dive on Ras Mohammed, you can choose either to stay in Sharm El Sheikh or to embark on one of the many cruises that program the North region. It also organizes snorkeling trips from Sharm.
Diving in Ras Mohammed
The biodiversity of Ras Mohammed National Park is spectacular. The sites are all very close to each other and are very often subject to strong currents.
We dive on Ras Mohammed from Sharm el Sheikh on a day trip (1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes of navigation). To fully enjoy the dives on Ras Mohammed, we recommend a diving cruise, which allows you to dive exceedingly early in the morning or later in the day, to avoid the crowds of divers.
Dive sites
Ras Za’atar. The Ras Za’atar Reef is the closest to Sharm El Sheikh. It is very protected; the corals are flush with the water and the water is translucent. The current is permanent and as it is changeable, we can do this drift dive in both directions. It is a splendid wall covered with alcyonarians with 2 chimneys in the middle. Look in the blue, sharks often accompany divers. We observe groupers, napoleons, barracudas, “glassfish” or even turtles. This site is superb and relatively uncrowded.
Jackfish Alley. This extremely popular site is located 1 hour 30 minutes from Sharm El Sheikh, south of Ras Za’atar. The current requires drift diving. Underwater architecture is impressive and very varied. At the very beginning of the dive, do not miss the entrance to 2 caves, only good divers can enter. A myriad of “glassfish will greet you”. You will end with a sandy slope where schools of barracudas and jacks, white tip sharks and sometimes manta rays often roam.
Eel Garden. Also accessible by road, it is in front of a small beach, so it is possible to do shore dives. The site is sheltered from currents but exposed to winds. The underwater architecture is incredibly beautiful, it is a large wall with, in places, sand flows. The chief attraction is the multitude of garden eels that dance in the current trying to catch the plankton. Diving on Eel Garden is sometimes combined with Shark Observatory.
Shark Observatory. This site is in front of a large promontory, an enormous rock 50m high, south of Eel Garden. We can do this dive from the shore of the bay. We walk along an enormous wall covered with hard and soft corals and, in places, gorgonians. The many cracks and small caves are full of life. In the blue, trevally, wrasse, grouper, and snapper roam.
Sharks are decreasing in number, but keep an eye out. Whale sharks have been spotted nearby.
Anemone City. As its name suggests, it is a site full of anemones and therefore clownfish. It is a large balcony between 12 and 20m deep. This site is located north of Shark Reef. It is often traveled by drift diving. The primary interest of the place is only the clown fish that flutter around the many anemones, the lieut is magical! Anemone city is usually the start of diving on Shark Reef.
Shark Reef. This site extends Anemone City, often listed as one of the most beautiful dives in the Red Sea. Arriving from Anemone City, we walk along a vertiginous wall, with a sometimes very violent current. July is when you will have the best chance of seeing sharks. The concentration of species is impressive: schools of snappers, large barracudas, batfish, tunas, or trevally will delight you if sharks were not present. Shark Reef is a real aquarium!
Yolanda Reef. South of Shark Reef, Yolanda Reef is best known for… its toilets. Yolanda is the name of a South African cargo ship that ran aground on the reef and which was carrying a large cargo of toilets and bidets. The wreckage is fully colonized. The coral landscape is superb, and the fauna is very present: napoleons, groupers, stonefish, and a multitude of reef fish. The current can sometimes be violent.