Best Snorkeling in Red Sea for underwater photography

Lahami Bay - Egypt - The Red Sea

Recommended for the 'mature'/ dedicated snorkeling photographer who wants a quiet, isolated resort

banner - Santa Cruz in Curacao
Lahami Bay - East coast of Egypt on the Red Sea.
picture - Plate fire coral
Right down south, not far from North Sudan.   Two hours by car/ taxi - from Marsa Alam airport.

Perhaps for the more 'mature' snorkelling photographer.   Is little nightlife.   Mainly couples.

Didn't meet another Brit.   Italians and Germans got here first.

Seems it is the topography which sets this bay apart.   The coral reefs are quite steep sided.   In some places are nearly vertical, but end in a gently sloping coral sand bottom.
So, you can choose your depth.   Whatever suits you.   1 metre, 2 meres, 5 metres or considerably deeper for scuba.

Can dive down and can even lie on the bottom to photograph whatever you have spotted.   So, you are totally still to focus and compose, shots.

In many parts of the world you can't lie on the bottom, it's either too deep or is living coral.

One reason why this fits the bill as a 'best snorkeling in the Red Sea' holiday destination.

Map and description of snorkelling spots

Entry - is easy from the gently sloping, sandy North beach (marked in yellow).

Entry can't be made over the shallow corals shown in dark red.

Most of the coral reefs have shallow flat tops, so snorkelling over them is not recommended due to risk of coral damage.

Most of the coral reef walls are near-vertical and drop off to flat sandy bottoms.

Visibility improves with depth (except on a calm day when it is good anywhere).   Even in 2M - a good number and range of corals and fish.

Big reef - the Southern inshore tip is only a metre or so deep.   This gently increases to about 12M at the outer Northerly tip.
Lahami Bay resort map

Weather - hardly ever rains; very hot during Northern summer.   Very comfortable over Christmas and the New Year even in the water.

It's the reefs that set it apart and do they ever in terms of coral!   Best corals I've seen plus good, numerous and varied fish.   My focus is now much more on corals than it was prior to this resort.

Current more often from the North but not strong anytime during my December/ January fortnight.

Visibility is very good when no or little wind - (unfortunately I hit a bit of wind).  Visibility usually excellent on deeper, outer reef 'fronts'.
Warning.   Dive centre will not issue weights without your producing a certificate they accept.   Get confirmation in writing BEFORE booking.

Is only one, isolated, fairly expensive resort.   Lahami Bay is a big resort- several pools, nice gardens, good sized rooms, nice beds and noisy mosquitoes to eat you alive.   Take repellant.

You are 'captive', not one shop, no obvious evening bar.

Food - is there anywhere in Egypt without obligatory dysentery ?   Overall the resort isn't quite up to the reefs but go for the coral reefs.
various fish and corals

Resort pool
Access is as easy as it gets off the sandy beach - couldn't be simpler.

But, here's the rub... spacer access decisions,
decisions ...

Do you go -
1- fractionally left for the Big reef?
2 - slightly right for Banana reef
spacer(3 - and if so - which side?)
4 - hard right for the Baby reef?
Resort_gardens

Mangrove_cafe
To the left - Mangrove Cafe - right beside
the dive hut and North 'entry' beach.

Contrast with the gardens on right.

From the resort to the Cafe is about a couple of hundred metres or so.

Link to Lahami Bay Resort.
Resort_gardens


P3 of 20 - Next
Best snorkeling in Red Sea
Sharm El Sheik
(captions below needn't be read as you will have seen them with the gallery pictures - repeated below so are visible to Google/ search engines)
captions to Lahami Bay 'coral' gallery pictures

captions to Lahami Bay 'fish and critters' gallery pictures