News
Think Flexibly with Regaldive
For Red Sea enthusiasts looking for cheaper and more flexible holiday options, the answer, says UK based tour operator Regaldive, is to think outside the box. With increased flight capacity to Hurghada now available from London Gatwick, Birmingham and Manchester, customers can benefit from more regular and better value flights when travelling to any Southern Red Sea resort via road transfer from Hurghada airport.
For divers looking to get away from the crowds, the vastly undiscovered resort of El Quseir can be reached by road transfer in under two hours from Hurghada. With over 30 dive sites within easy reach of the resort, El Quseir is the ideal location for experienced divers wanting to be at one with the marine life. Underwater photographers can explore the coral covered pinnacles, navigate the labyrinth of coral gardens, and glide through the narrow passages and blind alleys of Serib Kebir, the Rock and Sharm Fungani while admiring the macro life and nudibranchs on offer.
Home to some of the best dive experiences in the Red Sea, Marsa Alam can also easily be reached by road transfer from Hurghada airport in around three hours. Offering divers the chance to come face to face with Spanish dancers, turtles, eagle rays, great hammerhead sharks and whale sharks, Marsa Alam combines the very best of shore and boat diving. Located close to the resort is the fascinating site of Sha’ab Samadai, also known as ‘Dolphin House’. This site is frequented by a pod of around 60 spinner dolphins and is home to a network of caves and tunnels, in addition to a carpet of seagrass hiding moray eels, leopard groupers, goatfish, lionfish, masked butterfly fish and much more.
Andreas Elia, Managing Director of Regaldive, commented “Up until now, there was little flexibility on when customers could travel to many of the Southern Red Sea resorts, including El Quseir, Marsa Alam, and Hamata. Previously, there was only one flight per week from the UK to Marsa Alam for example, allowing very little flexibility to customers looking to travel on anything but a Wednesday. Now, with more regular flights into and out of Hurghada, customers can choose to travel on a day that suits them, and travel by road transfer to their resort, allowing them to see more of Egypt in the process”.
Seven nights’ at the Marina Lodge at Port Ghalib in Marsa Alam cost from £463 per person, to include flights to Hurghada, road transfers and seven nights half board accommodation. A four day boat dive pack costs from £138 per person, when taking advantage of Regaldive’s Buy One Get One Half price deal on dive packs*.
Seven nights’ at Roots Luxury Camp in El Quseir cost from £709 per person, to include flights to Hurghada, road transfers, seven nights’ half board accommodation and five days diving.
For further information or to book, visit www.regaldive.co.uk or call +44 (0)1353 659 999.
*Buy One Get One Half price deal available on four, five and six day dive packs, valid for travel between 4 January and 26 March, 5 June and 21 July, and 13 November and 12 December, 2014
Free Octopus with every purchase of a SCUBAPRO regulator system
Just in time for the spring season, divers can save money with the FREE OCTOPUS SPRING PROMOTION! Until July 31st SCUBAPRO offers an Octopus for free
with every purchase of a regulator system!
Get a free S270 OCTOPUS with purchase of these combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with A700
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with S620Ti
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with D420
MK25 EVO Din mit S620Ti-X
Get a free R105 OCTOPUS with purchase of the following combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with G260
MK25 EVO or MK17 EVO with S600
SCUBAPRO offers a 30-year first owner warranty on all regulators, with a revision period of two years or 100 dives. All SCUBAPRO regulators are of course certified according to the new European test standard EN250-2014.
Available at participating SCUBAPRO dealers. Promotion may not be available in all regions. Find an authorized SCUBAPRO Dealer at scubapro.com.
More information available on www.scubapro.com.
Jake Davies boards Ghazala Explorer for an unforgettable Red Sea diving experience…
Overnight, the wind picked up, making the planned morning dive a bit bumpy on the Zodiacs to the drop point on Thomas Reef. There, we would dive along the reef before descending through the canyon and then passing under the arch before ascending the wall with a gentle drift. The site provided great encounters with more pelagic species, including shoals of large barracuda, tuna, and bigeye trevally.
Once back on the boat, it was time to get everything tied down again as we would head back south. This time, with the wind behind us, heading to Ras Mohammed to dive Jackfish Alley for another great gentle drift wall dive before then heading up the coast towards the Gulf of Suez to moor up at the wreck of the Thistlegorm. This being the highlight wreck dive of the trip and for many onboard, including myself, it was the first time diving this iconic wreck. I had heard so much about the wreck from friends, and globally, this is a must on any diver’s list. Fortunately for us, there was only one other boat at the site, which was a rarity. A great briefing was delivered by Ahmed, who provided a detailed background about the wreck’s history along with all the required safety information as the currents and visibility at the site can be variable.
Kitting up, there was a lot of excitement on deck before entering the water and heading down the shoreline. Descending to the wreck, there was a light northerly current which reduced the visibility, making it feel more like the conditions that can be found off the Welsh coast. At 10m from the bottom, the outline of the wreck appeared as we reached the area of the wreck which had been bombed, as our mooring line was attached to part of the propeller shaft. Arriving on deck, instantly everywhere you looked there were many of the supplies which the ship was carrying, including Bren Carrier tanks and projectiles that instantly stood out.
We headed around the exterior, taking a look at the large propeller and guns mounted on deck before entering the wreck on the port side to take a look in the holds. It was incredible to see all the trucks, Norton 16H, and BSA motorcycles still perfectly stacked within, providing a real snapshot in time.
Overall, we had four dives on the Thistlegorm, where for all of the dives we were the only group in the water, and at times, there were just three of us on the whole wreck, which made it even more special, especially knowing that most days the wreck has hundreds of divers. Along with the history of the wreck, there was plenty of marine life on the wreck and around, from big green turtles to batfish, along with shoals of mackerel being hunted by trevally. Some unforgettable dives.
The final leg of the trip saw us cross back over the Suez Canal to the Gobal Islands where we planned to stay the night and do three dives at the Dolphin House for the potential of sharing the dive with dolphins. The site, which included a channel that was teeming with reef fish, especially large numbers of goatfish that swam in large shoals along the edge of the reef. These were nice relaxing dives to end the week. Unfortunately, the dolphins didn’t show up, which was okay as like all marine life they are difficult to predict and you can’t guarantee what’s going to be seen. With the last dive complete, we headed back to port for the final night where it was time to clean all the kit and pack before the departure flight the next day.
The whole week from start to finish on Ghazala Explorer was amazing; the boat had all the facilities you need for a comfortable week aboard. The crew were always there to help throughout the day and the chefs providing top quality food which was required after every dive. The itinerary providing some of the best diving with a nice mixture of wreck and reef dives. I would recommend the trip to anyone, whether it’s your first Red Sea liveaboard in the Red Sea or you’re revisiting. Hopefully, it’s not too long before I head back to explore more of the Red Sea onboard Ghazala Explorer.
To find out more about the Northern Red Sea reef and wrecks itineraries aboard Ghazala Explorer, or to book, contact Scuba Travel now:
Email: dive@scubatravel.com
Tel: +44 (0)1483 411590
Photos: Jake Davies / Avalon.Red
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