When is the best time to dive Aqaba?

Aqaba can be dived all year round. Year-round diving; water is ~20 °C in winter and ~26 °C in summer.

Is Aqaba good for beginner divers?

Yes, partly: 6 of the 10 dive sites we document are suited to Open Water divers, including First Bay North, Rainbow Reef and Seven Sisters. The others need more experience or a higher certification.

What is the water temperature in Aqaba?

The water is usually between 20 °C and 26 °C over the year.

What marine life can you see in Aqaba?

Divers regularly see turtles, eagle rays, stingrays, barracuda, frogfish and nudibranchs.

Aqaba

Diving in Jordan

10 documented dive sites, 6 of them for Open Water divers. Known for turtles, eagle rays and stingrays.

Best months: All year
Water: 20–26 °C
Levels: Open Water, Advanced

When to go

Pick a month: the diving season, from published sources, and the typical weather.

Pick a month

Best
Good
Possible
Closed
Not documented yet

Aqaba in October

Best season

Air: 33 °C; 22 °C at night
Rain: < 10 mm; very little rain all year
Wind: 14 km/h; on average

Typical weather, not a forecast: averages for 2021–2025 (air, rain, wind), data from Open-Meteo (ERA5 / Copernicus, Météo-France). Covers an area of roughly 10 to 25 km around the destination.

Year-round diving; water is ~20 °C in winter and ~26 °C in summer.

Source: visitaqaba.com

Dive sites in Aqaba

From the easiest to the most demanding. Levels with a dashed outline are estimates we are still verifying.

Open Water friendly

usual dive down to 18 m6 sites

Reef

down to 30 m

First Bay North

A 700 m coral reef with its most diverse corals around 15 m, along with octopus, squid, lionfish and grouper.

Open Water
Octopus

Reef

down to 25 m

Rainbow Reef

A short swim from the shore platform to 6 m, then a reef where morays and lionfish hunt among Spanish dancers; a favourite night dive.

Open Water
Eagle rays

Pinnacle

down to 16 m

Seven Sisters

Seven coral pinnacles in under 10 m of water just 30 m from shore, with schooling fusiliers and barracuda.

Open Water
Barracuda

Wreck

down to 7 m

The Tank

An M42 anti-aircraft tank sunk in 1999 rests in 5-7 m of water, its hull taken over by soft corals, sponges and lionfish.

Open Water
Lionfish

Wreck

down to 17 m

C-130 Hercules Wreck

A Lockheed C-130 Hercules transport plane, 30 m long with a 40 m wingspan, scuttled in 2017 at 17 m, 300 m from shore.

Open Water

Pinnacle

down to 18 m

Gorgon I

A shallow dive between three coral pinnacles, swimming among turtles past stonefish, lionfish and a large yellowmouth moray.

Open Water
Turtles

For Advanced divers

usual dive down to 30 m4 sites

Reef

down to 40 m

Japanese Garden

Coral pinnacles and ancient table corals at 10-12 m, where turtles and eagle rays cruise the reef.

Advanced
Turtles

Wreck

down to 26 m

Cedar Pride

A 74 m cargo ship scuttled in 1985, her bow around 20 m and stern at 16 m, after a 130 m swim from shore.

Advanced
Turtles

Macro

down to 22 m

Ras Al Yamanya

A seagrass bed in 7-10 m prowled by lionfish, scorpionfish and several species of seahorse, with a black coral forest around 20 m.

Advanced
Octopus

Wreck

down to 28 m

Hidden gem

Aqaba Underwater Military Museum

Nineteen decommissioned tanks, helicopters and guns laid out on the seabed a few dozen metres from shore.

Advanced

Marine life

When the big encounters happen, month by month.

Species	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
OctopusSource: en.wikipedia.org
LionfishSource: en.wikipedia.org

Peak season
Seen

Also reported here, season not documented yet:

Turtles
Eagle rays
Stingrays
Barracuda
Frogfish
Nudibranchs
Seahorses
Garden eels
Moray eels
Whale sharks
Dolphins
Dugong

Where is Aqaba?

View on OpenStreetMapLocation: Aqaba (Wikipedia)Map: Natural Earth

Aqaba: frequently asked questions

When is the best time to dive Aqaba?: Aqaba can be dived all year round. Year-round diving; water is ~20 °C in winter and ~26 °C in summer.
Is Aqaba good for beginner divers?: Yes, partly: 6 of the 10 dive sites we document are suited to Open Water divers, including First Bay North, Rainbow Reef and Seven Sisters. The others need more experience or a higher certification.
What is the water temperature in Aqaba?: The water is usually between 20 °C and 26 °C over the year.
What marine life can you see in Aqaba?: Divers regularly see turtles, eagle rays, stingrays, barracuda, frogfish and nudibranchs.

About this page

Seasons and marine life come from the sources below. Site levels and depths marked as estimated come from our original catalogue and are being checked one by one. Conditions change: always confirm with a local dive centre.

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Photo: Sarah Lee on Unsplash

Photo credits

Sunlight and bubbles in deep blue water, Sarah Lee, Unsplash License, on Unsplash