2. Umm Gammar is the jewel in the crown of Hurghada diving, offering a whole range of sites. Napoleons, turtles and morays live on the plateau in the south, while the three small neighbouring ergs are almost completely covered in glassfish. The island’s northern tip is only accessible during extremely good weather, but its beautiful coral garden is worth seeing, while the east and west of Umm Gammar offer great drift dives along the wall and caves, with white tips often swimming by.

3. The Wreck of El Minya is just one of several wrecks that sit in the Red Sea near Hurghada, but the Egyptian minesweeper, which was sunk by Israeli fighter planes in 1969, is a massive 70m long artificial reef system offering a huge variety of marine life. Lying close to the harbour at a depth of around 30m, unfortunately, visibility can be quite poor because of the strong currents. The blast hole on the ship’s starboard can be penetrated from where glass fish jacks and even small barracudas can be seen.

4. Turtle Bay is quite a simple dive that can be enjoyed by all levels, but that in no way diminishes from the site’s beauty. Divers should make for the channel and follow it to the reef wall, which they can cross at a depth of around 3m. Following the outside of the wall a little further, cross over once again and you’ll find yourself in a stunning lagoon full of barracudas, morays, groupers and turtles.

5. Fanadir Island’s prime spot is its long reef which spans from the surface to 12m below. The sandy slope running into it doesn’t offer too much in terms of marine life, but the 50m drop off attracts the occasional manta or hammerhead. The reef here is the real lure, however, as it holds almost all the Red Sea’s small fish and marine flora and fauna.