Best of Brothers

Itinerary Highlights:

Brother Islands
The northernmost part of Egypt's offshore marine park is made up of two islands 60km away from the coast and 140km south from Hurghada. The larger island (complete with a lighthouse from 1883) is 400 metre long with a spectacular plateau on the south east corner which is dotted with coral mountains and famous for thresher and grey reef shark sightings. The western side of the island has two impressive wrecks which both lie almost vertical on the side of the reef. The most spectacular is the Numidia, a large cargo steamer which sank in 1901 and now lies on the tip of the island between 10 and 80 metres covered in soft corals and frequented by large pelagic predators. The smaller wreck of the Aida (sitting between 30 and 65 metres) was a lighthouse authority supply vessel which sank in bad weather in 1957.

The smaller island, whilst only a little over 200 metres long, hosts an incredible concentration and variety of marine life. There is a pristine fan coral forest, a massive collection of hard and soft corals and compelling overhangs to explore. The highlight is the fish life; with regular seasonal sightings of hammerhead, thresher, grey reef and oceanic whitetip sharks.

Safaga
Filled with a variety of stunning drop offs, shallow coral gardens and interesting wrecks, Safaga has something for everyone. The most famous wreck is of the Salem Express, a large ferry which sank in 1991 with massive loss of life. There are also the large ferry wrecks of El Arish El Tor and Al Kafain which both sank without any lives lost. The famous finger shaped reefs of Abu Kafan and Panorama offer stunning drop-offs with plentiful fan corals and incredible plateaus encrusted with soft and hard corals. Shallower reefs (such as Torbia Arbaa) are full of critters and make a perfect afternoon or night dive.

With the majority of the week spent at the legendary Brother Islands, this thrilling itinerary with spectacular drop offs gives divers the chance to really get to know this world famous marine park!

QUALIFICATION NEEDED: The currents at these fantastic dive sites are what make its sightings so exciting but also means that this itinerary is not suitable for inexperienced divers. For your safety, we ask that divers must be a PADI Open Water diver or equivalent and have logged a minimum of 30 dives to join this safari. Please note that night diving and snorkelling is prohibited in the marine park where you will normally spend three days of the trip depending on the route. To get the most out of these superb dive sites, many dives will be from a RIB.

Itinerary Checklist:

Common sightings:	Large fish and pelagics
Reefs:	Deep drop-offs and exposed plateaus
Wrecks:	Two at Brothers, options in the Safaga area
Night dives:	Normally two during the week but not guaranteed
Experience required:	Moderate
Amount of travelling:	Maximum of two overnight journeys