Top Red Sea Liveaboards

A new generation of boats is sailing the Red Sea and there are no excuses for second-rate service

A new generation of boats is sailing the Red Sea and there are no excuses for second-rate service. DIVE finds out what’s required of a 21st-century liveaboard

The idea of cruising tropical waters in a private boat served by an attentive crew might seem an unobtainable dream to some. But divers know that in the Red Sea this type of holiday is very available. A week’s trip on a good Red Sea liveaboard costs between £750 and £1,000, and if you can get a group together the boat is effectively yours for the week. Groups can also benefit from substantial discounts.

Essentially, a Red Sea liveaboard provides you with affordable luxury – you won’t get this level of service at these prices in the UK. But what separates the run of the mill from the really good? Historically, the Red Sea had a range of good-quality boats competing with some dodgy rust buckets. Things have changed and quality has improved dramatically to the point where you should expect certain features as standard. Can the boat travel long distances? Is the food of good quality? Is there air conditioning? Does the itinerary match your needs? Is there plentyof oxygen on board? These are the typeof questions you should be asking before you book your trip.

Top tips for liveaboard diving

1 Don’t take a suitcase – use a soft bag that can be stowed under your bunk.
2 You don’t wear shoes on a boat so just take the one pair you’ll need for travelling.
3 Booze might not be available on board, so take advantage of the duty-free shops at the airports.
4 Check the itinerary – it sounds obvious but if you want beautiful reefs and you’re booked on to a week of wrecks you’ll be disappointed.
5 Be flexible – you’re on a boat in the middle of the Red Sea, the weather might change and so might your itinerary.
6 If you suffer from seasickness, are you sure a liveaboard is for you? The Red Sea can get rough.
7Stay hydrated, drink at least five litres of water a day and only have the odd glass of wine or beer.
8 Stay safe – lots of dives will be on offer but that doesn’t mean you have to dive five times a day, every day.
9 Think nitrox – it maximises your bottom time and minimises your risk of DCI.
10 Tipping – the crew rely on your tips, so ask your tour operator and other divers what’s suitable.

OTHER OPERATORS

Aquatours, tel: 020 8398 0505
http://www.aquators.com

DIVEChannel, tel: 0870 880 2848
http://DIVEChannel.co.uk

Emperor Divers, tel: 0870 2201 777
http://www.emperordivers.com

Explorers Tours, tel: 01753 681999
http://www.explorers.co.uk

Mosaic Holidays, tel: 020 8574 4000
http://www.mosaicholidays.co.uk

Red Sea Divers, tel: 0870 4430311
http://www.redseadivers.com

Scubasnacks, tel: 0870 746 1266
http://www.scubasnacks.com

has left the building.

Launched in 2003, the Fraser is 28m long and sleeps 18 people in eight twin berths (beds are side by side) and one honeymoon suite (available for a £100 supplement). Modern and stylishly decorated throughout, all rooms are en suite and air-conditioned.

There are three decks – the large upper sun deck on the first floor, the sun deck bar/barbecue deck and the dive deck with dive platform. Video and CD players are provided in the saloon.
The Fraser has two 480hp Caterpillar engines and two Caterpillar compressors, as well as two Zodiacs which drop divers off in groups of six.

Depending on the number of guests, one or two dive guides are on board. At present there are two European dive instructors, both of whom speak English. The guides can provide a full range of courses.

The boat operates in both the northern and southern Egyptian Red Sea. A typical southern Red Sea itinerary leaves from Marsa Alam and takes in the Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone. Northern itineraries leave from Hurghada and take in the wrecks of Abu Nuhas, Giftun Island and Shadwan. Although the skipper rarely sails through the night, he will do so at his discretion. Marine park fees are payable on board and range between $45 and $80, depending on the itinerary.

Trips are offered on a full-board basis and include three meals a day, snacks between dives, soft drinks, mineral water, tea and coffee. Special dietary requirements and vegetarians are catered for. Alcohol is available for sale on board.

Nitrox is available at $5 per tank. Free tuition is provided for those who wish to learn to use nitrox. Course materials cost €99 Euros, paid locally.

Need to know
Flights: direct flights from Gatwick to Hurghada or Marsa Alam, depending on itinerary.
Cost: a weeks charter costs between £779 and £849, depending on itinerary and time of year, including flights and transfers. On group bookings, for every 11 and 14 paying customers one goes free.
Extras: nitrox is $5 per fill
Contact: Regaldive, tel: 0870 2201 777
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website: http://www.regaldive.co.uk

READER'S VERDICT
Marelane Thrower,
Experienced diver,

'The boat is clean and smells new,’ says Marelane Thrower who dived from the Fraser in December 2003. ‘She looks a really smart boat and the crew is excellent, especially the chef who served us beautiful three-course meals at the table, including lots of vegetarian options. The cabins were were well laid out and there was a separate room for our bags. We went to Elphinstone, the Brothers and Daedalus and the dive guides were very professional and extremely organised. There was a bit of a problem with the nitrox system not filling properly, but it didn’t affect us too much and I understand it’s been fixed now. The diving itself was amazing. At Little Brother there were no other boats and we saw lots of sharks – oceanic white-tips, grey reefs and silkies. But, best of all was Daedalus, where there were 18 hammerheads on the northeast tip – it doesn’t get much better than that.’

The Juliet and Panorama while slightly smaller than some of the new luxury generation of boats are both extremely comfortable and offer a very high standard of service with the added advantage of less divers aboard each trip.

They are both 25m long and provide accommodation for 14 guests. There is one master cabin with kingsize bed (these cabins cost extra) on each boat, and six other cabins comprised of a double bed below and a single bunk on top. All cabins are ensuite. MY Juliet also offers an internal phone, TV and video in every cabin

Air conditioning is provided throughout the boats which were refurbished in 2003 and finished with panelled mahogany

Both boats have large dive decks, particularly the Panorama Sharm which offers one of the most spacious dive decks in the Red Sea, as well as two sun decks, one on top and one on the first level, with shade. In the saloons there are TV, DVD and stereo systems

The Panorama Sharm has two 525hp Mercedes engines and two Bauer 230-litre compressors with silencer. MY Juliet has two 330hp Scania engines and two 408-litre Bauer compressors.
There is one English-speaking European dive guide on each boat, who can offer a number of standard diving courses such as nitrox. Diving is from the one RIB on each boat which have capacity for eight divers. Larger dive groups will be ferried to the dive site in two waves.

All trips leave from Sharm El Sheikh and a typical itinerary takes in the Gulf of Suez, the wrecks of the Dunraven, Thistlegorm and Rosalie Möller, the walls of the Straits of Tiran, Shark Reef at Ras Mohammed and Abu Nuhas, depending on the weather. Although rarely necessary on northern itineraries, the skippers will sail overnight depending on the weather.

Accommodation is provided on a full-board basis and includes all meals, soft drinks, tea, coffee and mineral water. Special dietary requirements and vegetarians are catered for and the chef will rustle up celebration cakes. Alcohol is not for sale on board, but you can stock up at the duty-free at Sharm airport

Nitrox is available and there are a number of courses on offer. MY Panorama Sharm has a wreck workshop with wreck expert Mike Ward and MY Juliet offers a video workshop with Bob Johnson, who worked on the filming of underwater sequences for the James Bond and Harry Potter films.

Need to know
Flights: direct flights to Sharm El Sheikh every Sunday from Gatwick or Manchester.
Cost: depending on itinerary and time of year, a week’s charter on either boat costs approximately £725 to £795, including flights and transfers. Back-to-back trips are also available, price on request. GROUPS: for every sixth, twelfth and fourteenth diver booked as a group, half a place is free.
Extras: nitrox is £5 per fill.

CONTACT: Oonasdivers, tel: 01323 648924,
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READER'S VERDICT
Jane morgan,
Experienced diver,

'The crew were exceptional, says Jane Morgan, who went on a trip on the Panorama Sharm in June 2004. They couldn't do enough for you – they even wanted to put your fins on for you! Although the décor was a bit chintzy, the boat was clean and spacious, and the dive deck was the biggest I've seen on a Red Sea liveaboard. The sundeck on the first floor was also very large, with lots of mats to sit on. The food was good, although the vegetarian options were limited. It was my birthday while we were on board and the chef made me a beautiful cake. As a group of photographers, we were quite specific about where we wanted to dive and the crew were happy to take us. I've dived Ras Mohammed several times, but on this trip it was even better than usual, we saw large schools of snapper, batfish and surgeonfish. One one dive a huge school of barracuda was passing by while I was changing my camera settings, but as the school was so big I still had time to take some shots. All in all, it was a great trip.'

thinking big

At 37m-long, the Blue Pearl is one of the larger liveaboards operating in the Red Sea and offers accommodation for 20 guests. The ten cabins are all en suite and are divided into two staterooms with double beds on the upper deck and eight 4m by 3m side-by-side twins.

The boat was completed in September 2003 and is fitted out with mahogany and other precious woods. There is air conditioning throughout and like virtually all Red Sea boats, inside areas are non-smoking.

The Blue Pearl has twin-950hp engines, as well as three compressors and three generators. These were all brand-new in September 2003 and all made from new rather than recycled materials, which explains why the engines are so quiet and also the lack of vibration.

Diving takes place from a spacious dive deck, and two Zodiacs, each with a 40hp engine, are used on every dive. As well as the bridge and main deck there is an upper sundeck for sunbathing.

There are two dive guides on board, one Egyptian and the other Swedish and between them they can speak English, Egyptian, French and Swedish. Both of them are instructors and can offer a variety of courses.

Most trips are seven nights’ long leaving from Port Ghaleb, the marina at Marsa Alam. There are two main itineraries, the first taking in the Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone and the second one Elphinstone, Daedalus, Zabargad, Rocky and St John’s. The skipper will sail through the night in order to make sure you reach as many of the dive sites as is possible.

Ten-day and two-week itineraries are also available, as are special wreck weeks. All marine park fees – the Brothers, Daedalus, Zabargad and Rocky – are included in the overall price.
A number of extra facilities are available for the more technically minded, including rebreathers and nitrox. E6 processing and laptops for digital photographers are also provided.

Trips are offered on a full-board basis and include three meals a day, snacks between dives, soft drinks, mineral water, tea and coffee. Special dietary requirements and vegetarians are catered for and the chef will go that extra mile to prepare something for any special celebrations such as birthdays or anniversaries. Alcohol is available on board or you can bring duty-free with you.

Need to know
Flights: five–hour flights direct from Gatwick to Marsa Alam. Flights to Marsa Alam run until 25 November 04, then resume on 17 March 2005. In between this period flights are to Hurghada, when Blue Pearl concentrates on seven-night itineraries diving the northern wrecks.Cost: a week’s charter on the Blue Pearl costs approximately £999 including flights and transfers. On group bookings, depending on the season, every fourth person is free.
Extras: rebreathers $30 per dive, nitrox $7 per fill or $60 for unlimited dives per week, E6 processing $10 per film and laptop use $10.

Contact: Diving World, tel: 020 7407 0019
email:  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

READER'S VERDICT
david pemberton,
Experienced diver,

‘She’s the best Red Sea liveaboard I’ve been on,’ says David Pemberton who has enjoyed trips on 13 Red Sea liveaboards and spent a week on the Blue Pearl in April 2004. ‘The boat is beautifully presented throughout and there were no signs of flaking paint or loose handrails. The cabins are extremely roomy, with big single beds. The decks were well laid out especially the dive deck where there was plenty of room to kit up without clanging tanks with your buddy. The crew treated us like kings and as for the food… well it was so good that some people were even taking photos of it.

My only criticism would be of the dive guide, who could have been more enthusiastic. Having said that he did get us on some good sites. The skipper did a great job – even though the weather was rough he managed to sail overnight from Marsa Alam to Daedalus. Although I’d heard good things about Daedalus, whenever I’d been there in the past I’d always been disappointed. But this time it was stupendous. We saw 12 schooling hammerheads, and manta rays were sweeping around us.’

making life a breeze

There’s an arms race going on with Red Sea liveaboards. The owners and managers want your custom, and increasingly luxurious vessels are being constructed to win you over. MV Hurricane, represented in the UK by Tony Backhurst Scuba Travel, is the current benchmark for top-end liveaboard service in the Red Sea.

This steel-hulled 36m vessel is extremely stable in the water. It has all the features you would expect of a liveaboard in this class. If you’re paying around £1,000 for a week’s cruise and flights, you shouldn’t even have to ask if you get things such as air conditioning, en-suite cabins and superior RIBs – they should be regarded as standard.

It’s not all about creature comforts: the Hurricane’s owners are looking to the future of Red Sea diving and have invested in cutting-edge technical diving facilities, including eight sets of Buddy Inspiration cylinders and vast quantities of Sofnolime, as well as a Haskel booster pump and blending panel. Dive guide Grant Searancke owns an Inspiration and has helped locate several deep wrecks in southern Egypt. Drägar rebreather courses are also available.

The boat’s managers are able to offer a luxury-class service at a relatively low price by making their boats bigger and getting more paying punters on board. This is the payoff, but it doesn’t necessarily follow that your dive site will be crowded, as the RIBs depart in waves to space out the divers.

An important point – there’s no such thing as the perfect liveaboard. Even the best ones suffer from niggles, and the Hurricane is no exception: Its in-cabin air conditioning system has a tendency to generate high levels of condensation. The problem is being worked on as we go to press.

Nevertheless, the Hurricane is the Red Sea liveaboard by which all others must be judged. And, even larger, more advanced vessels are in the pipeline. Ultimately, the consumer will be left with a simple choice – go big for comfort, stability and style, or book a smaller liveaboard if you want to keep it intimate.

Dive deck
Space is the big issue on dive decks, and the guy who designed the Hurricane worked with one word in mind: oodles. There’s not just room for everyone on the kit benches – there’s elbow room. Every diver has the standard kit crate, and cylinders are held in place by extremely secure clamps. Emulating the top-end American style liveaboards, a big camera table is situated centrally and the roomy dip tank has a lid to prevent direct sunlight hitting camera housings within. The dive platform is spacious and low, with easy access to the RIBs.

Gas facilities
Cylinders are filled by top-end Bauer compressors. A membrane system proves nitrox up to 36 per cent, and gas blending to 100 per cent oxygen. The Hurricane is one of only two Red Sea liveaboards with full trimix facilities, including a Haskel booster pump, blending panel and a large helium reservoir.

Upper saloon
A surround-sound entertainment system is based around a 42-inch plasma screen where post-dive video and digital photographs are often viewed. There’s a well-stocked bar and the usual tea-making facilities, as well as chilled orange squash on tap. A small criticism – the DVD and book libraries are a bit limited. Outside, there are two sun decks and recharging station. On the top deck, a Jacuzzi has just been installed .

Dining room
On nearly all other Red Sea liveaboards, the saloon doubles as a dining room. The Hurricane has a dedicated dining area with three large tables. Meals are served buffet-style, and there’s more than enough room for 22 hungry divers to manoeuvre.

DIve guides
Kiwi Grant Searancke and Swiss national Sonia Goggel have been introducing Brits to the Red Sea for eight years, and have built up a reputation as easy-going, adaptable guides. They offer a range of technical, photographic and video courses on board.

Cabins
Seven twin cabins below, and four more on the upper deck – the latter have larger beds, suitable for couples. Each cabin has a working fridge (there’s no minibar – it’s for your own goodies, so feel free to bring chocolate!), television and DVD player. There’s also a facility for piped music!

Support boats
Two 4.5m RIBs with 85hp outboards ferry divers on the usually short journeys between the liveaboard and the site. To avoid crowding, Grant and Sonia send divers out in two waves – two RIB-loads, then one. The crew were about to start using walkie-talkies during DIVE’s visit.

Engines and generators
The vessel is powered by two 750hp Caterpillar engines, and has a cruising speed of 10 knots (max 12 knots). Where most Red Sea liveaboards have two generators, the Hurricane has three – two 110 kilowatt monsters, and an 85kw for night time. This surfeit of generators means the boat can run its kitchen, compressors, air conditioning and still allow 22 divers to recharge their batteries at the same time.

Bridge
In addition to the flying bridge on the top deck, the skipper has a modern bridge fitted with all the latest electronic gizmos, including GPS and chartplotter, depthsounder, joystick steering, radar and three different types of radio. There’s also a closed-circuit television system with cameras on the dive deck and in the engine room. A satellite telephone is available, and there are plans to link it to a computer for email and fax. The skipper will be asking for a paddling pool next!

CONTACT
Tony Backhurst Scuba Travel, tel 0800 0728221, http://www.scuba.co.uk.

READER'S VERDICT
Paul Flander, Reading BSAC
We asked to change the Hurricane’s itinerary to find less busy sites and wrecks. They listened to what we wanted to do, and delivered. The boat was very nice but it’s still in its third month at sea and needs a few finishing touches. The food was excellent, it was very comfortable and the crew were superb. The problem is that we’re spoiled now! We’d definitely come back.