Located just 40km south of Marsa Alam airport, Marsa Shagra Village is Red Sea Diving Safari’s main base of operations. It has an outstanding house reef and is opposite the famous Elphinstone reef. Hurghada airport is 253km north and Marsa Alam is only 20km South of the village. The village comprises 25 huts, 61 chalets and 40 tents.
Full board is provided including late afternoon cake, the meal times are coordinated with the dive schedule. Included free, are a range of soft drinks including tea, coffee, hot chocolate, and mineral water, Pepsi, Sprite and Fanta. Available at extra cost is Egyptian beer. Meals are served in the restaurant which has an open sea view.
Accommodation:
Tents
Standard tents are (3.5 x 3.5 meters) and have two beds, electricity is available for lighting, recharging batteries and operating a computer. Royal tents are available, these are twice the size of standard tents and include a double bed, ideal for couples, or twin beds. Additionally they also include a wardrobe, bean bag table with chairs, a mini fridge and fan. Communal showers and toilets with hot and cold running water are provided for use by all guests using tents.
Huts
The huts or Mandarahs are 3.5m X 3.5m, they have a domed roof and two windows; this style of architecture is ideally suited to desert conditions and keeps the interior cool without the need of air conditioning. Each hut has two beds with bedside table and lamp, a clothes cupboard and fan.Communal showers and toilets with hot and cold running water are provided for use by all guests using the huts.
Chalets
The chalet or Madyafah is similar in shape to the huts and is a stone building, 24m², with a domed roof and like the huts the architectural style is very effective keeping it cool enough without air-conditioning. Chalets are furnished with two beds, wardrobe, side table, dressing table with a mirror and a fan, bathroom facilities (cold/hot shower, toilet) with towels are provided. 30 chalets are fitted with air conditioning, mini-refrigerator, water, cooker for tea and coffee. These chalets are non smoking.
Diving Holidays:
Marsa Shagra is situated at Marsa bay, which is approximately 10 meters deep; slowly increasing to 30-40 meters as it gets to the outside walls. There are superb house reefs with many varieties of hard coral and species of fish. The diving program has been tailored to be suitable for all divers and the standard packages all offer unlimited diving day or night on the house reef and include two daily guided dives, transport by rib or truck is included. Additional boat dives to other reefs are possible.
Day one will include a guided orientation dive around the bay. Following this and depending on experience and ability guests are free to use the unlimited dive set-up as they wish. Up to 6 different patterns using the Zodiac’s within the house reef are possible. The freedom to dive in buddy pairs, where and when desired, makes this one of the most flexible and enjoyable aspects of Red Sea Diving Safari, go at your own pace when you want. Individuals always seem to find someone else to join them on a particular dive.
Transport to the Sharms, Marsas and reef walls along the coastline run twice a day adding shore based diving to the facilities; these dives are all guided, with briefings when reaching the site. An excursion to Elphinstone Reef is only 30-40 minutes. This is only available to experienced divers with a minimum level of Advanced Open Water Diver or Two Star CMAS and 50 logged dives due to the strong currents and depth.
Red Sea Diving also offer courses to CMAS Diving Courses from 1 to 3-star and Discover Scuba Diving and PADI Diving courses from Scuba Diver to Assistant Instructor.
