Dugongs, turtles, seasonal shark encounters, colourful Red Sea reefs and world-class offshore diving at sites including Elphinstone Reef.
Marsa Alam sits on Egypt’s southern Red Sea coast and offers a brilliant mix of sheltered reef diving, marine life encounters and more adventurous offshore sites.
One of the area’s best-known locations is Abu Dabbab Bay, where shallow seagrass meadows provide an important habitat for green turtles and dugongs. It is probably the site most people associate with dugong encounters in Marsa Alam, although there is plenty more happening underwater even when a dugong decides not to make an appearance.
However, scuba diving in Marsa Alam is about much more than dugongs. Coral reefs run along much of the coastline, while offshore sites offer walls, drift diving and the possibility of larger pelagic encounters, including seasonal shark sightings.
For more experienced divers, Elphinstone Reef is one of the big draws. This narrow offshore reef is known for steep coral-covered walls, strong currents and the possibility of seeing sharks such as oceanic whitetips and scalloped hammerheads.
That contrast is probably what I like most about Marsa Alam. One dive can involve slowly searching a shallow seagrass bed for a dugong, while another has you drifting beside a wall with deep blue water below, constantly wondering what might appear next.
Marsa Alam can be dived throughout the year, although water temperature, air temperature, wind and the marine life you may encounter all change with the seasons. There is no single perfect month for everybody. Instead, the best time to dive Marsa Alam depends on what sort of diving you want to do.
Dugongs are a little different from some of Marsa Alam’s more seasonal marine life. They can be encountered throughout the year, particularly around the seagrass beds at Abu Dabbab, although there is never a guarantee that one will appear. For me, the bigger seasonal difference is how busy the site feels rather than whether a dugong is technically “in season”.
Spring, from March to May, is a very good all-round period.
The water begins to warm after winter, while temperatures above the surface are generally much more comfortable than during the hottest summer months.
It can also be an interesting time for offshore diving. Mantas are sometimes encountered around Elphinstone during March and April, although, as with anything wild, there are no guarantees.
If you want warm conditions without the full intensity of Egyptian summer heat, spring makes a lot of sense.
June to August brings some of the warmest water of the year. On land, though, it can get seriously hot.
For divers who do not mind the heat, summer can still be a fantastic time to visit. Scalloped hammerheads are more commonly associated with Elphinstone during these warmer months, particularly around June to August.
I visited in July 2024, and the warm water certainly wasn’t a problem. The heat above the surface was another matter.
During my Elphinstone dive, I also caught a distant glimpse of a hammerhead disappearing into the blue. It was nowhere near close enough for the photograph I wanted, but seeing that unmistakable shape out in the distance was still a great moment.
September to November is another excellent period for diving in Marsa Alam.
The water remains warm, while the extreme summer temperatures begin to ease. For divers particularly interested in sharks, autumn is also the period most strongly associated with oceanic whitetips at Elphinstone Reef.
This makes autumn a particularly interesting time if you want to combine relaxed Red Sea reef diving with something a little more unpredictable offshore.
My first visit was in November 2022, and although that trip was mainly about finding a dugong, I also really liked how much quieter the area felt compared with my return in July.
December to February brings cooler water and generally a quieter feel around some of the coastal sites.
You may want a thicker wetsuit, particularly if you’re doing several dives over a few days, but the diving certainly doesn’t stop.
In fact, if crowds bother you more than slightly cooler water, winter can have a lot going for it.
For comfortable all-round conditions, I would personally look towards spring or autumn.
Summer works well if warm water is your priority and you are happy dealing with the heat, while winter can be a good option if you prefer things a little quieter.
If particular marine life is high on your list, the seasonal picture becomes more specific:
These are patterns rather than promises, though. One of the things I enjoy most about diving is that the sea doesn’t really care what was written on your itinerary.
For many divers, seeing a dugong is one of the main reasons to visit Marsa Alam.
Dugongs are large marine mammals that feed mainly on seagrass, so shallow coastal bays with healthy seagrass meadows are particularly important feeding areas.
Abu Dabbab is one of the best-known examples. Its sheltered sandy bay contains extensive seagrass beds and is closely associated with both dugongs and large green turtles.
It is easy to understand why people get excited about seeing one. Dugongs have an almost prehistoric appearance, yet underwater they move surprisingly gracefully, often spending long periods slowly working their way across the seabed feeding.
And when you finally see one after spending half a dive staring at an empty patch of seagrass, it feels even better.
Dugongs can be encountered around Marsa Alam throughout the year, particularly in areas such as Abu Dabbab, although there is never any guarantee that one will appear during a particular dive.
They are wild animals and move between feeding areas, so even somewhere famous for dugong sightings can produce a completely dugong-free day.
I know that one first-hand.
During my first visit, we spent around 45 minutes searching without seeing one and had pretty much accepted that it wasn’t going to happen.
Naturally, one appeared shortly after we’d surfaced. Typical.
I’ll come back to that encounter later because it ended up becoming one of my favourite dives.
I wouldn’t describe Marsa Alam as having a strict dugong season.
For me, the bigger consideration is how busy the site is.
My November 2022 encounter at Abu Dabbab was incredibly peaceful, while my return in July 2024 was a very different experience, with significantly more divers and snorkellers in the water.
I was lucky enough to see a dugong on both trips, so from my own experience the difference wasn’t whether the animal was there. It was the quality of the encounter.
If seeing a dugong is high on your list, I would personally favour a quieter period if possible. An early start can also make sense before the busiest part of the day begins.
Seeing a dugong shouldn’t really be about ticking another animal off a list.
For me, the best part is simply being able to watch one behave naturally.
That means giving it space, not blocking its path, never trying to touch it and avoiding the temptation to swim directly into its face for a photograph.
Dugongs also need to surface to breathe, so they should always have a clear route to the surface.
During my July visit, I saw people getting much closer than I was comfortable with, including cameras and lights being pushed very near the animal. Before long, it moved away.
It was frustrating to watch.
A photograph is never worth stressing the animal you’re supposedly excited to see.
Abu Dabbab is one of the most famous dive sites in the Marsa Alam area and the location most closely connected with both of my dugong encounters.
The bay combines sandy seabed, large areas of seagrass and fringing coral reef, which means there is plenty to look for even when the dugong fails to turn up.
Green turtles are regularly seen feeding across the seagrass, while the surrounding reef supports reef fish and plenty of smaller marine life.
Compared with Elphinstone, Abu Dabbab is a much more relaxed style of dive.
The shallow depth and sheltered setting mean you can slow things down and properly look around rather than concentrating on currents or watching your position in the blue.
It would be very easy to spend the whole dive staring across the seagrass waiting for a dugong, but I think that would be a mistake.
There is still plenty happening around the reef.
That became obvious during my first trip. We’d spent around 45 minutes searching unsuccessfully for a dugong, so eventually we stopped looking and simply enjoyed the dive.
Naturally, that was when the dugong decided to turn up somewhere else.
Elphinstone Reef is one of the most famous offshore dive sites in the southern Red Sea and one of the major reasons experienced divers head to Marsa Alam.
The reef is long and narrow, surrounded by deep water, with steep walls and plateaus at either end.
Currents can sweep along the reef, bringing nutrients with them and supporting colourful coral while also attracting larger marine life.
It is a completely different experience from diving somewhere sheltered like Abu Dabbab.
Elphinstone has that proper blue-water feeling.
The reef drops steeply beneath you, the water beyond the wall looks enormous, and you find yourself glancing away from the coral every few seconds just in case something big appears behind you.
Currents can be strong, so this is generally a better site for confident divers who are comfortable with drift diving, good buoyancy control and deploying a DSMB.
Even without sharks, though, I think Elphinstone is worth diving.
The scale of the reef, the walls and that huge expanse of blue water give it a very different atmosphere from the coastal sites around Marsa Alam.
Of course, sharks are one of the main reasons Elphinstone has become so famous.
Oceanic whitetip sharks are particularly associated with the reef during autumn, while scalloped hammerheads are more commonly reported during the warmer summer months.
Other shark species can also appear, although nothing is guaranteed.
During my July 2024 dive, we were keeping an eye out for larger marine life when I caught a distant glimpse of a hammerhead.
It disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared.
Was I hoping it would come closer? Absolutely.
But that’s diving. Sometimes you get the perfect close encounter, and sometimes you’re left staring into the blue thinking, “Was that really what I think it was?”
This time, it definitely was.
Although Abu Dabbab and Elphinstone Reef are the only two sites around Marsa Alam that I have personally dived so far, there is much more to explore throughout the region.
The wider area offers everything from sheltered seagrass bays and coral gardens to protected reef systems, swim-throughs and wreck diving, making it easy to build several very different dive days into one trip.
I haven’t personally dived the sites below, so these aren’t first-hand reviews. Instead, they’re a quick introduction to a few other well-known options worth knowing about if you’re planning several days of scuba diving in Marsa Alam.
Close to Port Ghalib, Marsa Mubarak is a sheltered bay with extensive seagrass and surrounding reef. Green turtles are regularly seen here, while dugongs can occasionally appear to feed. The calmer setting also makes it well suited to slower dives and underwater photography.
Sha’ab Samadai is a protected reef system south of Marsa Alam, best known for the spinner dolphins that use its sheltered lagoon. Diving around the outer reef adds coral gardens, pinnacles and swim-throughs, so there is still plenty to explore even if the dolphins stay out of sight.
Gabal El Rosas offers a different style of dive, with a sheltered setting, coral-covered reef and a number of natural passages and swim-throughs. It is the sort of site that rewards good buoyancy and a slower pace, especially if you enjoy exploring reef structure and looking for smaller marine life.
South of Marsa Alam, the Abou Ghuson wreck offers a break from the region’s reef diving. The vessel now lies in relatively shallow water and has gradually become part of the underwater environment, making it an interesting option for divers who enjoy wrecks as well as marine life.
I’ve dived Marsa Alam on two separate trips, and although both involved Abu Dabbab and dugongs, the experiences could hardly have been more different.
When I first headed to Marsa Alam in November 2022, my goal was pretty clear. I wanted to see a dugong in the wild.
With help from the team at Hurghada Diving, arrangements were made through Mahmoud at Just Dive Marsa Alam. It meant a very early 4.30 am start from Makadi Bay, although the excitement made up for the lack of sleep.
Mahmoud was waiting when we arrived, ready to get us kitted up and out onto the water. Watching the sun rise over the Red Sea wasn’t a bad start to the morning either.
Then the searching began.
For around 45 minutes we looked across the seagrass for any sign of a dugong.
Nothing.
No shadow moving across the seabed. No sudden excitement from the dive master. Absolutely nothing.
Eventually, we accepted that it probably wasn’t going to happen and simply carried on with the dive. The water was warm and clear, the reef was full of life and there was still plenty to enjoy.
At that point I’d more or less stopped thinking about the dugong.
Then we surfaced.
News had come over the radio that one had been spotted close to the jetty.
Suddenly, the search was very much back on.
We headed across, geared up again and slipped into the water.
At around eight metres deep, there it was, calmly feeding across the seagrass as though the previous 45 minutes of searching had never happened.
It was just us, the dive master and the dugong.
There was no crowd surrounding it and no rush to get closer. We could simply stay back and watch as it slowly worked its way across the seabed feeding.
I’d wanted to see a dugong for a long time, and after all that searching, the encounter couldn’t really have been better.
It is still one of my favourite underwater experiences.
When I returned to Marsa Alam in July 2024, the day started with something completely different.
This time we were heading offshore to Elphinstone Reef.
The sea was calm as we left Abu Dabbab Bay, but once underwater the dive had a completely different character.
Currents moved along the reef, the wall dropped away beneath us and there was deep blue water everywhere you looked.
It was the sort of dive where I kept finding myself turning away from the reef to check what might be out in the blue.
Then I spotted it.
A hammerhead.
It was some distance away and disappeared into deeper water before I could get anything remotely resembling the photograph I wanted.
But I didn’t really care. I’d seen one.
It was brief, but that glimpse was enough to make the dive memorable. There is something about seeing a shark appear out of the blue that instantly changes the whole feel of a dive.
After surfacing, we headed back towards Abu Dabbab for the second dive, hoping to find another dugong. And we did.
However, the experience was completely different from November 2022.
The bay was much busier, with far more divers and snorkellers in the water. Some people swam much closer to the dugong than I was comfortable with, while cameras and bright lights were being used right beside it.
The dive masters were trying to manage the situation, but with that many people in the water it wasn’t easy.
Eventually, the dugong moved away.
I was still incredibly pleased to see one again, but it reinforced something I’d already started to appreciate through diving.
Wildlife encounters are at their best when we let the animal decide how close it wants to be. One of the simplest rules in diving is also one of the most important: observe, give wildlife space and never touch.
Both of my trips were organised through Just Dive Marsa Alam, run by Mahmoud.
I was originally introduced to him through the team at Hurghada Diving, and after that first trip he became my first contact when I returned to Marsa Alam.
Everything from transfers and equipment to the dive planning itself ran smoothly. The atmosphere was relaxed, but the diving was handled professionally, briefings were clear and I never felt as though we were simply being pushed through a timetable.
That flexibility is something I really appreciated.
When wildlife is involved, plans sometimes have to change. Dugongs certainly do not work to a schedule, sharks even less so, and sometimes the best thing you can do is see what the conditions give you on the day.
Mahmoud knows the area well and has always been quick to reply when arranging dives.
Just Dive Marsa Alam does not currently have an official website, but the team can be contacted through Facebook and WhatsApp.
Based on both of my trips, I’d happily dive with Just Dive Marsa Alam again.
What I like most about scuba diving in Marsa Alam is just how different one dive can feel from the next.
At Abu Dabbab, you can spend a relaxed dive slowly watching the seagrass for a turtle or dugong, while still having plenty of reef life to explore if neither decides to appear.
Then there is Elphinstone Reef.
One minute you are drifting beside a wall with deep blue water beneath you, and the next you are looking away from the reef wondering whether a shark might suddenly appear out of nowhere.
Neither style of diving is better than the other. They are simply very different, and for me that variety is one of Marsa Alam’s biggest strengths.
It is also why I think Marsa Alam offers much more than somewhere to visit purely for a dugong encounter. There are coral reefs, turtles, smaller marine life, offshore diving, seasonal shark encounters and plenty more sites to explore further along the coast.
And, as usual with diving, some of the best moments are the ones you cannot really plan.
A dugong appearing after we had already given up looking for it is probably the perfect example.
A selection of photographs from my dives in Marsa Alam, including some memorable dugong encounters at Abu Dabbab and other marine life from the area.
These photographs were taken using a GoPro, and a small number have since been carefully digitally improved for colour, clarity and detail.
I’ve since upgraded my underwater camera setup, which gives me much more flexibility for both wide-angle scenes and the smaller marine life that is so easy to swim straight past.
