Hurghada: Red Sea Diving Trip for Beginners & Certified Divers

4.95

(542 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

The first thing I noticed wasn’t the water — it was the sound of everyone’s laughter echoing off the deck as we fumbled into our wetsuits. The Red Sea looked almost too blue, like someone had turned up the color just for us. Our instructor, Mahmoud, handed me my mask and grinned, “You’ll see more colors down there.” I didn’t really believe him until I slid off the side of the boat and felt that cool rush close over my head. Salt on my lips, a weird mix of nerves and excitement in my stomach.

We stopped at two different dive sites — can’t remember their names, but honestly, it didn’t matter. At the first spot, Mahmoud kept close to us beginners while some folks with more experience drifted deeper. There was this moment when a school of tiny silver fish zipped past my face and I almost forgot to breathe (in a good way). Everything felt slower underwater; even time seemed to pause. Lunch back on deck tasted better than it probably was — maybe because we were all starving and salty-skinned, passing plates around while someone tried to explain how to say “thank you” in Arabic (I still get it wrong).

The second dive was easier. Sunlight made patterns on the sand below and I caught myself just floating there, not thinking about anything except how quiet it was. Mahmoud pointed out a shy little lionfish under a rock — he whispered through his regulator, which made us all laugh bubbles. On the ride back toward Hurghada, people stretched out in patches of sun or sipped tea quietly. It’s funny how you can feel totally at home with strangers after sharing something like that.