5 sites · down to 60 m · 5 suitable for an intro team
Cave diving in Dahab
- Sites5
- Max depth60 m
- Water temperature22–30 °C
- Dive centres3
Diving and fills
Dive here with
Fills nearby
- Circle Divers (Dahab)Air and nitrox 32% (free in a 12-litre cylinder for nitrox divers; 15 litres at extra cost); trimix blended for certified technical divers, request it in advance
- H2O Divers Dahab (Masbat)Nitrox and trimix blended with a booster and analysers; blending panels for helium and oxygen and Sofnolime for CCR
Why come here
Dahab, on the Gulf of Aqaba, has no cave diving in the usual sense, but it does have shore dives on the reef with chimneys, cracks and overhangs: the Bells, The Canyon, The Caves and Abu Helal. The water is ~22 °C in January and February and ~30 °C in July and August. The Blue Hole's Arch is not a cavern dive but a technical deep dive beyond 50 m, on trimix and with deco; according to Aquarius Red Sea (April 2026) the CDWS requires a certified local guide for every dive in the Blue Hole and at least Tec 60 for the Arch, so check the current rules with your dive centre. The Blue Hole's outer wall drops beyond 100 m: take the depth seriously here.
Don't miss
- The Bells (Blue Hole, Dahab): a narrow chimney that fits one diver at a time, coming out on a wall with overhangs full of black coral.
- The Canyon (Dahab): a crack in the reef with glassfish in the gaps.
- The Caves (Dahab): large overhangs with soft and black corals, the right-hand one the prettiest.
On a rest day
- Saint Catherine's Monastery: The World Heritage monastery at the foot of Mount Sinai, built between 548 and 565 and the world's oldest continuously inhabited Christian monastery.
- Mount Sinai: Climb to the 2,285 m summit with a mandatory guide, by the gentler path or the thousands of steps behind the monastery, often at night for the sunrise.
- Coloured Canyon: Near Nuweiba, about 90 km north of Dahab, walk through a canyon almost 800 m long with coloured rock walls up to about 40 m high.
All 5 sites
| Site | Max depth | Type | Certification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abu Helal (Tiger Canyon, Dahab)Backmount · Cavern | 60 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Blue Hole Arch (Dahab)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | 60 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| The Bells (Blue Hole, Dahab)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 30 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| The Canyon (Dahab)Backmount · Open water / no overhead | 55 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| The Caves (Dahab)Backmount · Open water / no overhead | 30 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
Certification requirements, configurations and trimix depths are estimates for planning. Always check them locally and dive within your training.
Map
Dive centres and fill stations
3 dive centres, fill stations and instructors
Circle Divers (Dahab)
Jaz Dahabeya Hotel, Lagoona, Dahab
Air and nitrox 32% (free in a 12-litre cylinder for nitrox divers; 15 litres at extra cost); trimix blended for certified technical divers, request it in advance
Ask
Training: Sidemount, Trimix · PADI, TDI
Guided dives: The Bells (Blue Hole, Dahab), The Canyon (Dahab), The Caves (Dahab), Abu Helal (Tiger Canyon, Dahab)
Rental: Rental gear and 8, 10, 12 and 15-litre aluminium cylinders with DIN valves, for backmount and sidemount
PADI 5★ dive centre in the Jaz Dahabeya Hotel in Lagoona (south-west Dahab), with free transfers to the sites. Tec training from TDI (nitrox up to Advanced Trimix to 100 m, and Sidemount) and PADI Tec 40–50. Describes the Bells, the Blue Hole, The Canyon, The Caves and Abu Helal on its own website; it calls the Arch a dive for trimix-trained technical divers only.
H2O Divers Dahab (Masbat)
Masbat Bay, Dahab
Nitrox and trimix blended with a booster and analysers; blending panels for helium and oxygen and Sofnolime for CCR
Centre open daily 8:30–17:30; ask about fills
CCR support: oxygen, booster and sorb
Training: Trimix, CCR · TDI, SDI, PADI
Guided dives: The Bells (Blue Hole, Dahab), Blue Hole Arch (Dahab), The Canyon (Dahab)
TDI 5* Professional Development Centre on Masbat Bay, also SDI and PADI. TDI training from Intro to Tech to Advanced Trimix and CCR courses (air diluent up to advanced mixed gas); calls itself 'CCR friendly' and offers storage for your own CCR, twinset or sidemount kit. Per its own website the Blue Hole Arch starts at 54 m and you can exit The Canyon at 52 m.
Scuba Seekers (Dahab)
Dahab
Training: Sidemount, CCR · SSI, TDI, GUE
Guided dives: Blue Hole Arch (Dahab), The Canyon (Dahab)
Small team focused on technical diving: an SSI, TDI and GUE training facility (TDI Extended Range, SSI XR, GUE Tech 1 and GUE CCR among others) and sidemount; twinsets, rebreathers and sidemount are welcome. Per its own website the Arch (27 m long, at 55 m) needs TDI Extended Range or GUE Tech 2 at least. Fills and rental are not on its website: ask.
Order: partners first, clearly marked as partner; then dive centres by distance from Dahab and independent instructors by name. Not a recommendation: check what they offer yourself.
On this list, or should you be? Get a free partner card →Where to stay
Find a place near Dahab
Villages that work well as a base for the caves in this region. Find a place for your team:
- DahabBooking.com ↗
The links to Booking.com are affiliate links: if you book through one, DiveTripPlanner earns a small commission. You pay the same.
Practical info: rules, fills and emergency numbers
Emergencies
- Ambulance 123. Chamber at the Hyperbaric Medical Center in Sharm el-Sheikh (since 1993; in 2013 two chambers, the larger for 12 patients); per DAN Europe a Hyperbaric Medical Centre opened in Dahab too in 2006. Whether it works now is not confirmed: have your dive centre or DAN Europe (+39 06 4211 5685) check.
Access and rules
- Access and rules: the dive centres drive you to the sites and guide the dives. According to Aquarius Red Sea (April 2026) the CDWS (Egypt's diving chamber) requires a certified local guide for every dive in the Blue Hole and Tec 60 at least for the Arch; check the current rules with your dive centre. In The Canyon the Fish Bowl has been closed since late 2007.
Fees and opening hours
- Fees: for the Blue Hole you pay a checkpoint and entrance fee in cash on the road; per Wego (July 2026) ~USD 25 together for foreigners, older sources give less. The Canyon has no entrance fee according to Wikivoyage.
Gas and fills
- Gas: Circle Divers fills nitrox 32% and blends trimix on request; H2O Divers blends nitrox and trimix with a booster and has Sofnolime for CCR. Ask in advance about helium and oxygen.
Water and season
- Water: ~22 °C in January and February to ~30 °C in July and August (SSI, Circle Divers). The Blue Hole's outer wall drops to more than 100 m.
Getting around
- Travel: Sharm el-Sheikh airport (SSH), just over an hour by taxi to Dahab; book it in advance, airport taxis cost more. Don't fly within 24 hours after diving.
Good to know
- Read this first: Dahab has no cave diving in the usual sense. You dive from the shore on the reef: the chimney of the Bells, the crack of The Canyon, the overhangs of The Caves and the canyon of Abu Helal. The Blue Hole's Arch is a technical deep dive at more than 50 m, on trimix and with deco; not a cavern dive.
News
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