Pinnacle
down to 27 m
Fanous East
Shallow wall over a sandy slope where jackfish and lionfish hunt clouds of glassfish and silversides around two pinnacles.
- Open Water
- Silversides
Hurghada
Diving in Egypt
15 documented dive sites, 8 of them for Open Water divers. Known for whitetip reef sharks, dolphins and turtles.
- Best months
- Apr–May, Oct–Nov
- Water
- 21–28 °C
- Levels
- Open Water, Advanced, Experienced
- Diving from
- Dive resorts, Day boats, Liveaboards
- Nearest airport
- HRG
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
Hurghada in October
Best season- Sea
- 27 °C
- at the surface
- Air
- 30 °C
- 23 °C at night
- Rain
- < 10 mm
- very little rain all year
- Wind
- 23 km/h
- on average
Typical weather, not a forecast: averages for 2021–2025 (air, rain, wind) and 2023–2025 (sea), data from Open-Meteo (ERA5 / Copernicus, Météo-France). Covers an area of roughly 10 to 25 km around the destination.
Hurghada operator Diving Around names April, May, October and November as peak months; the rest of the year stays diveable (Dive The World: marine life sighted throughout the year).
Dive sites in Hurghada
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 m8 sitesReef
down to 30 m
Shaab El Erg (Dolphin House)
Reef whose lagoon is home to many bottlenose dolphins; it is not uncommon for a pod to join the dive.
- Open Water
- Manta rays
Wall
down to 40 m
El Fanadir
Reef for all levels where camouflaged octopuses, scorpionfish and several moray species are seen.
- Open Water
- Manta rays
Pinnacle
down to 12 m
Erg Sabina
Shallow coral garden and pinnacles on the east side of Giftun where turtles and eagle rays pass by.
- Open Water
- Turtles
Reef
down to 14 m
Fanous West
Shallow reef wall and a lagoon reached through a narrow channel, with giant morays in the coral garden, 30 minutes from Hurghada.
- Open Water
- Dolphins
Reef
down to 25 m
Turtle Bay
- Open Water
- Turtles
Drift
down to 14 m
Shaab Sabina
- Open Water
down to 35 m
Abu Ramada Island
- Open Water
For Advanced divers
usual dive down to 30 m6 sitesPinnacle
down to 40 m
Carless Reef
Two pinnacles rising from an 18 m plateau where whitetip reef sharks, jacks, tuna and barracuda are quite commonly seen.
- Advanced
- Hammerhead sharks
Drift
down to 40 m
Small Giftun
Giftun National Park wall dropping past 100 m, where Napoleon wrasse and hawksbill turtles can be seen.
- Advanced
- Turtles
Giannis D (Abu Nuhas)
Abu Nuhas wreck whose engine room at 13 m allows easy penetration through clouds of glassfish.
- Advanced
- Wreck
- Nudibranchs
For experienced divers
usual dive down to 40 m1 siteMarine life
When the big encounters happen, month by month.
| Species | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DolphinsSource: divingaround.com | ||||||||||||
| Manta raysSource: egyptdivers.com |
- Peak season
- Seen
Dolphins: All year. Manta rays: Feb–Mar
Also reported here, season not documented yet:
- Whitetip reef sharks
- Turtles
- Stingrays
- Tuna
- Barracuda
- Trevally
- Nudibranchs
- Octopus
- Scorpionfish
- Groupers
- Moray eels
- Napoleon wrasse
- Hammerhead sharks
- Guitarfish
- Frogfish
Where is Hurghada?
- Nearest airport
- HRG
- How people dive here
- Dive resorts, Day boats, Liveaboards
Hurghada: frequently asked questions
- When is the best time to dive Hurghada?
- The best months to dive Hurghada are Apr–May, Oct–Nov. Hurghada operator Diving Around names April, May, October and November as peak months; the rest of the year stays diveable (Dive The World: marine life sighted throughout the year).
- Is Hurghada good for beginner divers?
- Yes, partly: 8 of the 15 dive sites we document are suited to Open Water divers, including Fanous East, Shaab El Erg (Dolphin House) and El Fanadir. The others need more experience or a higher certification.
- What is the water temperature in Hurghada?
- The water is usually between 21 °C and 28 °C over the year.
- What marine life can you see in Hurghada?
- Divers regularly see whitetip reef sharks, dolphins (all year), turtles, stingrays, tuna and barracuda.
- How do you dive Hurghada?
- The nearest airport is HRG. Ways to dive here: dive resorts, day boats and liveaboards.
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.
Your next dive is somewhere out there.
Find my next dive tripPhoto credits
- Giftun Island seen across the sea off Hurghada, user:vberger, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- Diver under the hull of the El Mina wreck, Hurghada, Jouni Kuisma, DiveCodex, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Divers at the bow of the Giannis D wreck, Abu Nuhas, W.Strickling, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Inside the Carnatic wreck, Abu Nuhas, Roland Unger, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Sunlight and bubbles in deep blue water, Sarah Lee, Unsplash License, on Unsplash
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