Ultimate Red Sea Adventure: 11 Day / 10 Night Liveaboard + 4 Day / 3 Night Pre and Post Trip Excursions!

This September 2026, Salem Scuba trip promises to be an EPIC adventure! Here’s what you can expect to do, see, and experience … and you can opt to join one, two, or all three of the trip options!

When: Red Sea, 4 Days / 3 Nights, Pre-Diving Tour: SEP 09 – SEP 12, 2026

Day 1: 09/09/2026 – Welcome to Cairo, Egypt…

Let’s start our Cairo city break! Our tour manager will meet, and assist, us at Cairo International Airport (Arrival procedures). Next, we will be escorted to the hotel by exclusive air-conditioned deluxe vehicle(s). At the hotel, the tour manager will assist us for a smooth check-in, and will then review our tour itinerary; confirming pick-up times for each tour. Overnight in Cairo.

Day 2: 09/10/2026 – Pyramids and GEM…

After enjoying a delicious breakfast at the hotel, our guide will take us to the Giza Plateau, where we start our journey by marveling at one of the Seven Wonders of the World: the Great Pyramids of Giza. Visit the iconic Sphinx and Valley Temple. After our pyramid visit, we will have lunch at an authentic Egyptian restaurant, before heading over to the New, Grand Egyptian Museum (also known as the Giza Museum). This is an archaeological museum in Giza, Egypt, around 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from the Giza pyramid complex. From there, we will return back to our hotel.

Day 3: 09/11/2026 – Museum of Egyptian Civilization, Old Cairo & Salah El-Din Citadel…

After a hearty Egyptian breakfast, our guide will take us to the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization; home to the royal mummies, as well as a remarkable collection showcasing the diverse history of Egypt. From there, we’ll head to Old Cairo, where we’ll explore some of the oldest churches in the country. After a delicious lunch at a local restaurant, we will continue our journey through history with a visit to the impressive Salah El-Din Citadel, where we’ll explore the grand Mohammed Ali Mosque and take in panoramic views of Cairo. From there, we will return back to our hotel.

Day 4: 09/12/2026 – Fly to Hurghada…

After breakfast at the hotel, our tour guide will collect us (plus all of our luggage), and take us to the Cairo Domestic Airport; for our flight to Hurghada. Once we arrive in Hurghada, we will be met at the airport and then taken to the dive boat.

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When: Red Sea Liveaboard Dates: SEP 12 – SEP 22, 2026

SEP 12th: Embarkation from Marriott Resort Marina, Hurghada at 6:00PM

Guests arriving in Hurghada in the morning* or early afternoon on embarkation day will be transferred to the Marriott Resort (approximately 15 minutes from the airport), where they can wait until embarkation at 6:00PM. If the waiting time is more than 1 hour, guests need to pay to use the Marriott’s facilities, which costs 25 USD and is payable directly to the hotel.

Number of scheduled dives: Up to 28

While Master Liveaboards endeavors to ensure the number of dives indicated above is fulfilled, this is only indicative and not guaranteed. Various factors can hinder the vessel’s ability to reach, or remain, at a specific area and may impact the number of dives possible.

DAY 1: Embarkation at 6:00PM, followed by dinner and orientation briefings. The boat will remain in the marina overnight; enabling guests to relax, get to know each other, and set up equipment in preparation for diving the following day.

DAY 2: For your first full day on board, there will be 3 scheduled dives (a check out dive, a practice zodiac dive and a night dive), all of them happening close to the embarkation port.

DAYS 3-9: You will have the opportunity to dive the reefs and wrecks around Abu Nuhas and the Strait of Tiran, including the world-famous SS Thistlegorm, the Safaga area including the Salem Express, and the Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone marine park areas.

PLEASE NOTE: Night dives are NOT permitted at Brothers, Daedalus or Elphinstone.

The following is an example of the day-to-day itinerary. Our boat’s diving director will schedule up to 4 dives a day, typically organized as follows.
● Briefing & Dive 1
● Breakfast, relaxation period, briefing & Dive 2
● Lunch, relaxation period, briefing & Dive 3
● Snack, relaxation period, briefing & Dive 4 (where permitted)*
● Dinner

Where night dives are not permitted or are not possible for other reasons, the diving schedule will be adjusted and may only include 3 dives.

DAY 10: 2 morning dives, local to the disembarkation area, before cruising into harbor in the early afternoon. You will be able to take advantage of an evening ashore, to purchase souvenirs and enjoy Egypt’s famous hospitality before your disembarkation the next day.

DAY 11: Following breakfast on board, Embarkation from Marriott Resort Marina, Hurghada: 9:00 – 10:00AM.

DISCLAIMER: The below, dive site, information is only a general indication of the main areas covered on this itinerary. The inclusion of specifically named dive sites is not guaranteed. Additionally, there may be dives at other locations along the itinerary route that are not listed below.

The amount of time and number of dives in each area depends on the itinerary route, park authority restrictions, season and the presence, or lack of specific marine life.

Sha’ab El Erg

Famous for its dolphin sightings (therefore also known as Dolphin House), this shallow, horseshoe-shaped reef features stunning hard corals and a huge variety of moray eels, blue spotted stingrays, crocodile fish and napoleon wrasse.

Also located at Sh’aab El Erg, the reef and pinnacles of Poseidon Garden are covered with abundant large corals and clams of all sizes and colours. Masked pufferfish, large shoals of bannerfish and butterfly fish, and trevally are just a few of the many fish species found here.

Abu Nuhas

Also known as the ‘Ship’s Graveyard’, Abu Nuhas is positioned dangerously close to the busy shipping lanes of the Gulf of Suez and has claimed more ships than any other in the area. On the north side of the triangle-shaped plateau, four wrecks lay on the sandy sea floor at the bottom of a steep sloping reef layered with table corals. Wrecks here include the Ghiannis D, Carnatic (Wine Wreck), Chrisoula K (Tile Wreck) and Kimon M (Lentil Wreck). On the south side, there is a safe anchorage for liveaboards and two ergs, known as Yellow Fish Reef.

S.S. Thistlegorm

Probably the most famous of the Red Sea wrecks, the 129m English freighter was bombed by German aviation on 6 October 1941 and sank as a result. Today she rests, listing to her port side, on the sandy seabed at a maximum depth of 32 metres. Not only does she hold a treasure trove of WWII munitions and military vehicles but, as an artificial reef, she has also become home to a large variety of marine life and is especially popular with large schooling fish, as well as divers.

PLEASE NOTE: CDWS regulations stipulate that divers must have a minimum of 20 logged dives and good buoyancy skills to dive on the Thistlegorm.

Ras Mohamed – Shark & Yolanda Reefs

This world-renowned dive site is situated at the tip of the Sinai Peninsula. Two small ergs are joined by a vertical wall dropping into the abyss. At Shark Reef, the current allows you to drift along the wall, rich with colourful corals. Moving towards Yolanda Reef you reach a plateau scattered with small ergs and coral outcrops. Continuing around the reef you will come upon the scattered remains of the wreck ‘Yolanda’ complete with its cargo of toilets and baths. The entire area is big fish territory so keep an eye on the blue!

Strait of Tiran

Only accessible by boat, this dive area is situated at the entrance to the Gulf of Aqaba and comprises four main reefs that form the top of an underwater bridge. Named after British cartographers (Jackson, Woodhouse, Thomas and Gordon), the reefs are world-famous for their extraordinarily diverse corals and strong southwesterly currents which make them home to many large pelagic fish.

Jackson Reef

The most northerly of the four reefs, on its northern shore the wreck of Lara, a cargo ship, breaks the surface serving as a stark warning to ships in the narrow straits. Diving is usually along the southern side which is sheltered from the currents and swells and where there are fixed moorings. The reef slopes steeply to the 45-metre-deep sandy sea floor and features sandy ridges and splits, a spectacular Gorgonian forest and an abundance of fish. A variety of sharks are commonly seen here, especially during late summer.

Woodhouse Reef

The longest reef of the four in the Strait of Tiran, Woodhouse is usually dived as a drift on the east side going south to north. The southern part of the reef features a 30-metre deep wall covered with coral from top to bottom. A canyon running parallel to the wall leads to a sandy ledge that expands northwards to a depth of 14 metres. Multifarious hard and soft corals adorn the route, including clusters of black corals at a depth of around 25 meters. Marine life includes jacks, turtles, sharks and eagle rays.

Thomas Reef

The smallest reef in the strait, diving here is governed by sea conditions as the currents can potentially be very strong. The ends of the reef are vertical walls with a large plateau at about 25 meters on the southeastern side which is covered in colorful corals and has a fence of gorgonian fans where you can find the longnose hawkfish.

Gordon Reef

The most southerly reef of the four, Gordon has a different topography from the others offering both a shallow plateau area and vast drop-offs. There is a huge variety of reef fish and the chance to see whitetip reef sharks sleeping on the sandy patches. The top of the reef, with its lighthouse, is the final resting place of the Louilla wreck, which sits almost parallel to the wreck on Jackson Reef.

Safaga

Filled with a variety of stunning drop-offs, shallow coral gardens and interesting wrecks, Safaga offers something for everyone. The most famous wreck is ‘Salem Express’ , a 115 meter long, 18 meter wide passenger ferry, which sank in 1991 with massive loss of life. There are also the wrecks of two other large ferries, El Arish (El Tor) and Al Kahfain, which both sank without any lives lost following engine room fires. The famous finger-shaped reefs of Abu Kafan and Panorama offer plentiful corals and incredible plateaus; Shallower reefs (such as Torbia Arbaa) are full of critters and make a perfect afternoon or night dive.

Brothers

The northernmost part of Egypt’s offshore marine park comprises two islands 60 km from the coast and 140 km south of Hurghada. Big Brother, the larger island, (complete with a lighthouse from 1883) is 400 metres long with a spectacular plateau on the southeast corner, dotted with coral mountains and famous for thresher and grey reef shark sightings.

On the western side of Big Brother are two impressive wrecks both positioned almost vertically beside the reef. The most spectacular is the Numidia, a large cargo steamer that sank in 1901 and now lies at the northern tip of the island between 10-80 meters, is covered in soft corals and frequented by large pelagic predators. The smaller wreck of the Aida was a lighthouse authority supply vessel which sank in bad weather in 1957 and now rests on the northwest side of the island between 28-60 meters.

Small Brother Island is a little over 200 meters long but 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 main attraction is the abundant pelagic marine life with regular, seasonal sightings of hammerhead, thresher, grey reef and oceanic whitetip sharks.

Daedalus Reef

This huge tear-drop-shaped reef rises from the sea bed in the middle of the Red Sea, 80km offshore and more than 300km south of Hurghada. Easily recognised by its zebra-striped lighthouse, this reef offers some of the most amazing dives in the Red Sea. The sheer walls are covered in overgrown hard coral formations and a variety of reef fish. Napoleon wrasses and turtles are often seen cruising by, but be sure to keep your eyes on the blue too! Daedalus is one of those places where anything can happen…

Oceanic white tip, grey reef and thresher sharks are often spotted here, but Daedalus is most famous for the scalloped hammerhead sharks which can often be seen in large schools out in the blue during the summer months. The sheer size of this reef means that you can do several dives here and never get bored!

Elphinstone

A Red Sea legend, this isolated, long, finger-shaped reef, lies in open ocean 12 kilometres offshore between Port Ghalib and Marsa Alam. Due to its location and exposed nature currents are to be expected, which are often strong and can be unpredictable, but with them come rich rewards.

With north and south plateaus covered in hard and soft corals and stunning walls reaching depths of 40+ meters, diving here can be challenging and exhilarating. Grey reef sharks and Napoleon wrasses are regularly spotted in the summer, and occasionally Scalloped Hammerheads and oceanic whitetip sharks often congregate in vast numbers during late autumn.

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When: Red Sea, 5 Days / 4 Nights, Post-Sailing Tour: SEP 22 – SEP 26, 2026

Day 1: 09/22/2026 – Hurghada to Luxor, where we will embark on our Nile Cruise, Luxor East Bank Tour…

Once we disembark the Blue Horizon, we will be picked up from the port in Hurghada and taken to Luxor, where we will begin our Nile cruise. Lunch will be on the boat and then our first stop will be at the East Bank, so we can visit the Karnak Temple and also the Luxor Temple. Afterward, we will have dinner on board the boat.

Day 2: 09/23/2026 – Valley of the Kings and Temple of Hatshepsut…

Day two of our Nile cruise, will begin with breakfast on board. After breakfast, we will stop at the West Bank, where we will visit the Valley of the Kings and the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut. Once finished with our West Bank tours, we will return to the boat and enjoy the Nile views while we sail to Edfu via Esna. Lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner will all be aboard the boat and we will overnight (on the boat), in Edfu.

Day 3: 09/24/2026 – Edfu and Kom Ombo…

Welcome to day three! After having breakfast on board, we will disembark and visit the Horus Temple in Edfu. Lunch will be onboard the boat, and afternoon tea can be enjoyed as we sail to Kom Ombo. Upon arrival into Kom Ombo, we will visit a Temple shared by the two Gods, Sobek and Haeroris. The evening, including dinner, will be spent on the boat as we will be sailing to Aswan.

Day 4: 09/25/2026 – Aswan Sightseeing…

We will start our 4th day with breakfast on board. From there, we will disembark and head into Aswan to visit the Philae Temple and also the Unfinished Obelisk. Afterward, we will return to the boat, where we will have time throughout the afternoon, and evening, to begin packing our items for the following day’s departure. Lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner will be onboard and we will, once again, overnight (on the boat), in Aswan.

Day 5: 09/26/2026 – Disembarkation in Aswan / Fly to Cairo for Final Departure…

We will have our final breakfast onboard, before our disembarkation. We will be transferred to the Aswan Airport, where we will fly to Cairo for our final departure. In Cairo, we will have one final transfer from domestic to international air travel location.

Please note: if you’d like to overnight in Cairo on September 26th, in order to catch a better/easier/less expensive flight on September 27th, please let me know as soon as possible. I have asked our trip contact to please reserve about 10 rooms in the hotel near the Cairo airport, just in case.

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TRIP COSTS…

COMBINED, PRE AND POST DIVING TOURS: $2500 Per Person; Based on Double Hotel Room Occupancy

PRE AND POST DIVING TOUR INCLUSIONS:

• Meet and greet service by our representatives at airports
• Assistance of our guest relations during your stay
• Domestic flight Cairo to Hurghada & Aswan to Cairo 
• All transfers by a private air-conditioned coach
• Accommodation in Cairo for 3 nights including bed and breakfast
• Accommodation … Nights on board 5 stars Nile Cruise 
• All sightseeing tours are strictly private tours
• Private English speaking guide
• Entrance fees to all sites as indicated on the itinerary
• Meals as indicated in the above itinerary
• Bottled water during the trip’s portage when needed
• All service charges and taxes

PRE AND POST DIVING TOUR EXCLUSIONS:

• Entry visa to Egypt
• Personal spendings 
• Optional activities
• Tipping

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NOTE: The event details for this trip are still being added.