Ras Zaatar

Overview

Ras Za'atar, "head of thyme" in Arabic, is a dramatic wall dive on the northern tip of the Ras Mohammed peninsula, guarding the southern entrance to Marsa Bareika bay. It is a site of caverns, light beams and a vertical chimney, with soft-coral-cloaked pinnacles and the chance of pelagics off the wall. Wilder and quieter than the busy local Sharm reefs, it belongs to the Ras Mohammed National Park and is reached by boat.

The Dive

The dive follows a sloping wall that drops to around 45m, best worked in the 15 to 18m range where the structure is richest. The wall is riddled with open caverns and caves, many pierced by striking shafts of light that pour through gaps in the reef plate and illuminate the interiors. Around half an hour in, divers reach the signature feature: a vertical chimney where sunbeams filter down and reflect off the cliff walls for a genuinely moody, cathedral-like scene. Current is generally moderate but can strengthen at the point, and the depth and topography make this a site for intermediate-to-advanced divers and underwater photographers rather than novices.

Marine Life

Overhangs along the wall shelter resting potato groupers, while the soft-coral pinnacles, in purples, pinks and greens, host nudibranchs and pipefish. In the darker caves, look for schools of long-nose hawkfish. Off the wall and at the point, the park's pelagic traffic passes through: black-tip reef sharks, barracuda, the occasional manta and eagle rays cruising the blue.

Good to Know

Best dived April to November when the surface is calmest, with visibility commonly 20 to 30m. As a National Park site it is boat-access only from Sharm El Sheikh and carries the usual park conservation rules. The caverns, chimney and exposed wall make Advanced certification and solid buoyancy the sensible minimum.