Lighthouse

Overview

Lighthouse is Dahab's home reef — the easy-access shore dive at the northern end of Assalah Bay, in the Masbat district, that doubles as the town's training ground and its favourite easy day-and-night dive. A gently sloping sandy bottom, a reef wall studded with coral towers, and reliable shelter from the wind make it the spot where most Dahab divers take their first breaths underwater and where everyone else comes for a relaxed cruise.

The Dive

Entry and exit are about as friendly as diving gets: you walk in off the bay and head out over a sandy slope that drops away gradually, reaching about 25–30m at the far end of the bay. The early part of the dive crosses seagrass-covered sand — slow down here and hunt for the seahorses and seamoths that live in pairs among the blades. Reaching the reef wall, you can follow it northward at a comfortable depth, or drop a little deeper to the large coral "bommies" — towers crusted in coral and ringed with fish — that give the site its structure.

The gentle profile and sheltered water are what make Lighthouse so versatile. It is the default site for Open Water and refresher training, an easy first dive of a Dahab trip, and one of the best night dives in town, when the reef wakes up with hunters and the sand comes alive. There is no demanding current and no penetration — just a relaxed reef-and-sand dive you can tailor shallow or a little deeper as you like.

Marine Life

The seagrass shallows are the headline for macro lovers: seahorses and seamoths in pairs, plus the small, well-camouflaged residents of the sand. The reef wall and bommies hold unicornfish, scorpionfish and crocodilefish, with turtles, large napoleon wrasse, moray eels and eagle rays seen regularly. After dark the cast changes — Spanish dancers, nudibranchs, octopus and free-swimming morays make the night dive a Dahab favourite.

Good to Know

Dived year-round and almost always sheltered from the wind, which is part of its appeal; visibility typically runs 10–30m. Lighthouse is a shore dive in the heart of Dahab — no boat required — which makes it endlessly repeatable. The easy entry, gentle slope and absence of current make it genuinely all-levels, ideal for training, refreshers and a first or last dive of the day, as well as one of the area's standout night dives.