Red Sea Holiday Apartment

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Diving in Sharm El Sheikh was not at all what I expected                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  There is such an amazing world to explore in Egypt’s Red Sea safari. I must admit, only 3 years ago I was entirely oblivious to this wondrous underwater world, but my desire to buy a holiday home in warmer climes brought me to Egypt’s Sharm El Sheikh and the Red Sea.

 The Red Sea, with its abundant marine life and coral reefs, offers unrivaled beauty anywhere else in the sea world. It is world famous for it’s spectacular dive and snorkeling sites. So whether you’re a novice or a dive enthusiast, then the Red Sea and it’s numerous dive sites: Ras Mohammed National Park, Jackson and Gordon Reef, to name but a few, will enthrall you with the most diverse and wondrous underwater adventure.

 If it’s your first time in Sharm El Sheikh and you are staying in a hotel, then it will - along with the majority of hotels - have information of various trips and tours that Sharm El Sheikh has to offer. This information can usually be gleaned from the hotels resident tour rep or even found in the hotel reception area. This is the easy option, although not necessarily the cheapest, because if you do book your trip through the hotel then the cost of the trip will be slightly inflated, as the hotel adds a small commission to the cost of the trip with the tour operator. A better deal could be had if you were to purchase your trip externally at one of the busy resorts like Old Sharm Market, Naama Bay or Nabq, where numerous tour operators can be found competing for your business and which offer more competitive prices.

 It really makes no difference. Whether you’ve encountered the odd wetsuit or two, or whether you’re an absolute novice. If, for example, you’ve decided on the last couple days of your holiday, that you would like to experience one of the many dive trips on offer, but obviously haven’t the time left to do your padi (a basic certificate of competence for divers), then there are some outfits which will take you diving even if you’ve had no previous experience at all. This is not something that I would personally recommend, but the option is there for you if you’ve inadvertently left things a little late.

 Now if you do decide to book a diving trip, but have had no previous or relevant diving experience, don’t forget to tell the tour operator with whom you book. In most cases this will not be a problem. You can book a diving trip, which can include up to three dives at separate sites. All that would be required of you is that you would have to dive with one of the operators qualified divers, who would briefly explain some basic procedures and give you a little information on the dive kit you would be using. Once in the water the instructor would also regulate your ballast (a little jacket that inflates and deflates which aids you to rise and fall beneath the water).

 Most trips will offer you the opportunity to try your hand at snorkeling before you go diving for the first time.  You’ll be taken to places such as Yolanda Reef where you will be part of a group of up to 13 people who will be able to (with a guide), explore the surrounding coral reefs for around 40 minutes. I’m sure you’ll find it to be such an amazing experience, with the colours and abundance of marine life truly breathtaking.  If your not the best of swimmers and don’t have your own flippers, don’t panic! Some tours will provide flippers (remember to check when booking), making the experience that much more enjoyable.

 When diving there are various types of wetsuits that should be used, depending on the water temp for the time of year. In the summer months (June – August) when the water temp is much warmer – about 26’C – you can do anything from skin to a 3mm thick wetsuit and in the winter months (December – March) when the water temp is a little cooler – about 21’C – it is advisable to wear a suit anything from 5mm – 7mm thick.

Before long it will be time for your first dive. If you’ve never dived before, then your first thoughts whilst you try to get to grips with this near strange sense of panic whilst trying to breathe through this thing in your mouth is, “this is such a weird thing to do and feels so unnatural, how will I be able to breathe underwater? And If God had wanted us to breathe underwater wouldn’t he of given us gills instead of lungs?

So will your first experience of diving in Sharm El Sheikh be all that you could of hoped for? I think I can almost guarantee that it won’t be, diving in Sharm will not be at all what you had expected…it would be so much more. This will almost certainly prove to be one of the most surreal activities that you’d experienced in your life and one that you can’t wait to repeat.

2009 Frank Martin Folkes is the author and owner of Self Catering Apartments and associate to africano group Car Hire and trip organiser in Sharm El Sheikh, and can provide more information about Trips, Tours, and advice in Sharm El Sheikh Egypt, visit my website at http://www.redseaholidayapartment.co.uk