Dive Sites in the Jordan Red Sea

25 March 2023
The coral in Jordan is terrific and you will often see turtles and napoleon wrasse. It's not the place to go to see sharks and other pelagic species though. Many of the dives can be done as shore dives. See also our list of diving centres in Jordan, with reviews.

Red Sea Clownfish in Magnificent anemone
Red Sea Clownfish in Magnificent anemone. Photo copyright Tim Nicholson

Dive Sites of Jordan Further Reading Your Comments Rest of the Red Sea

"Really happy to see how healthy corals they still have here!"
Nina, Finland, 2017

Coved-19

All passengers (except children under the age of 5) arriving in Jordan require a negative PCR test within 72hrs of departure to Jordan and must complete a health declaration and passenger locator form. You also need to register on the visitjordan web site before travelling and follow instructions to either book a second PCR test on arrival, or claim a waiver for testing on arrival by uploading evidence that you are fully vaccinated.


Dive Sites of Aqaba and Jordan

20 m
Japanese Garden

Red Sea coral reef
Photo copyright Tim Nicholson

Reviews: 5 Star Rating: Recommended

"Cool amazing we started see coral from 2 m we saw turtle and sea horse "
Angela, Spain, 2020

"Lots of morays and nudis! "
Anne Smith, UK, 2014

"The coral here is stunning and appears to go on forever, the visibility is fantastic. "
Tajna D, 2012

"Fantastic dive with lots of pinnacled coral reefs "
Orlando J. Luis, Portugal

"Beauuuuutiful dive just as you imagine the Red Sea to be...trigger fishes, magnificent corals, a very nice spot. Easy access even for beginners - by a little walk as we dive from the beach, very pleasant, haven't done this since cayo tortuga in Los Roques Venezuela (awesome). Very nice! "
Thais Melo, Brazil

"Located just to the south of the shipwreck. Very good condition for snorkelling. The reef begins in shallow water with some fire corals and then gently slopes to the magnificent colourful reef. Large coral heads, cabbage corals, black coral, lionfish, angelfish, cornetfish, Grey moray, groupers, schooling of snappers, lunar fusiliers and the butterflies fish of the reef. "
Gorge

Eel Garden - the Pinnacle

Reviews: 5 Star Rating: Recommended

"The One spot where I have ever seen so much marine animal biodiversity and beauty "
Orlando J. Luis, Portugal

18 m
Gorgone I

Red Sea gorgonia
Photo copyright Tim Nicholson

Reviews: 3 Star Rating: Recommended (3)

"Named after the huge Gorgonia fan coral at 16m. After a zigzag entrance thru' fringing reef you are confronted with a huge Cabbage coral, the size of a house. There are 3 pinnacles each supporting a huge variety of life, including a Arabian Angel and Yellow Mouth Moray. Max depth 17 m, a good easy, shallow dive. "
Gabi

16 m
Seven Sisters

Seven pinacles with loads of life - coral, fan worms, shoals of small fish, octopus, turtle. An easy shore dive.

Reviews: 5 Star Rating: Recommended

"Lovely dive site it's really good if you are the first time for diving try this dive site and also for professional "
Angela, Spain, 19 March 2020

"Seven towers covered in beautiful coral with many different fish both tiny with brilliant colours to larger spectacular specimens. "
Roy Sundholm, 28 January 2019

The Tank

Very close to the Seven Sisters, this US M40 tank was deliberately sunk for divers. It is now home to a diversity of invertebrates: starfish, crabs, shrimps, corals.

Reviews: 3 stars

"Easy entry over grass to where reef starts at 2-3 m. Lots of interesting invertebrate life in the shallows... Swim through the pinnacles and then turn in towards the shore to another set of pinnacles "the Fairy Ring". Continue south at 8 m where patchy coral makes way for grass and sand till you will see in 6 m an M40 anti aircraft tracked vehicle ("The Tank") scuttled in September 1999 to create an artificial reef. Play around it, but not on it as corals are beginning to colonise and Seastar is recording the colonisation process. From here make your way to the safety stop and out. "
Gabi, 2008

7-40 m
Power Station

A wall often done as a drift dive. You may see sharks and moray eels. So-called because the dive site is near a power station, 5 km south of Aqaba.

Reviews: 3 stars

"Wall dive. "
Carine Ghazzi, Netherlands, 2015

40 m
Saudi Border

Reviews: 5 Star Rating: Recommended

"Located near to the Saudi Arabia border, 4 km south of The Royal Diving Club. One of the most popular dive sites. Drop off reef with a very long wall extend up to 850 m distance. "
Gorge, France, 2007

" The best dive site is on the Saudi border. "
Matthew Moore

26 m
Cedar Pride

The MV Cedar Pride was a 74 m Lebanese cargo ship built in 1964. In 1982 she caught fire whilst at anchor in Aqaba. Two of the crew died in the blaze. She remained afloat for the next three years. Then, on 16th November 1985, she was sunk as a diving attraction. She lies between 10 and 27 m.

Reviews: 5 Star Rating: Recommended (10)

"Very nice nice dive site really interesting "
Angela, Spain, 19 March 2020

"Amazing site from 8 to 24mt"
Rikki, UK, 8 July 2019

"Diving on the wreck of a Lebanese Coaster. 12-30 metres. Crystal clear water, huge variety of sea life."
Roy Sundholm, UK, 28 January 2019

"I don't like wrecks but this one was worth it"
Anne Smith, UK, 2014

"Big ship wreck with a lot of corals."
Racquel, 2014

"This wreck, which is about 8 5m long, is resting on two reefs, I saw three huge Napoleon fish!"
Tajna D, 2012

"Visbilty 25 m, water temperature 25 oC, easy for beginners. Good value for money."
Trecy, Australia, 2012

"Cedar Pride is amazing, really big ship lying on the side facing the deep. Very colourful and breathtaking"
Inon Moshkowitz, 2012

"A little further down the coast, towards Saudi, lies the wreck of the Cedar Pride. This 1,161 tonne freighter, while not a huge ship, is the only diveable wreck in Jordan and is a spectacular dive. "
Gabi, 2008

"The wreck of Lebanese freighter (760 tons, length 81m and 20m wide) was purposely sunk in 1986. The wreck is marked by a surface marker buoy less than 150m offshore. She lies on her port site, bridging two reefs, so you can swim underneath her at about 25m. Near the stern is a life boat in 20.5m of depth. The Ship is in good condition, tank area can be swum inside. Very good soft corals, magnificent garden of sea fans covering the wreck inside and outside. Fish Life: Lionfish and angelfish, large snappers, school of double bar break, barracuda, and the smaller reef species such as damsels are well represented."
Gorge, 2008

"Very good wreck. 26 m depth, 80 m long, 15 m width."
Gorge, France, 2007

5-40 m
Rainbow Reef

Reviews: 5 Star Rating: Recommended

"Nice reef, I saw a turtle. "
Raquel, 2014

"This reef is also amazing, its not too deep over most of it (5-40 m) and so the colours are very vivid. "
Tajna D, 2012

Golden Reef, Aqaba

Reviews: 5 Star Rating: Recommended

"This dive site is characterized by shallow waters and coral reefs which are very amazing and wonderful to explore. There are sometimes hawksbill turtles. Additionally, if you look at the coral reefs there is a great chance that you will find many Moray Eels. "
Rashed, 28 March 2022

Aqaba South Beach

Reviews: 5 Star Rating: Recommended

"Located south of the shipwreck. Great for snorkelling. The reef begins in shallow water with some fire corals and then gently slopes to the magnificent colourful reef. Large coral heads, cabbage corals, black coral, lionfish, angelfish, cornetfish, Grey moray, groupers, schooling of snappers, lunar fusiliers and the butterflies fish of the reef. "
Nazek Bdour, 3 June 2015

Royal Jordanian Dive

"Incredibly easy entry and exit right from the dive center dock. They have several very old wrecks that have the wildlife living and growing within the protected areas. Current has never been a problem, visibility spectacular. "
Stephen E. Barger

Tristar

"Diving on and in a large passenger plane! It is really a cool experience. This is Aqaba's newest dive site."
Cathy Hoelzer, Deep Blue Dive Center, USA, 21 January 2022

Underwater Military Museum

"Amazing dive site filled with 19 pieces of old military equipment. There are helicopters, tanks, armed personnel carriers, an ambulance, and jeeps. The site is also attracting a lot of marine life such as turtles, frogfish, anthias, bannerfish, and pufferfishes."
Cathy Hoelzer, Deep Blue Dive Center, USA, 21 January 2022

Tanks in underwater military museum
Tanks in the Military Museum. Photo credit: Deep Blue Dive Center

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Kiwi Reef, Tala Bay

"This is the house reef. It is full of life! So much to see from macro to big green sea turtles."
Cathy Hoelzer, Deep Blue Dive Center, USA, 21 January 2022


Further Reading

Coral Reef Guide Red Sea
by Ewald Lieske and Robert Myers, Collins, 384 Pages, Paperback (2012)
Coral Reef Guide Red Sea covers all common species of underwater life of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, you are likely to see while diving or snorkelling. Each species is illustrated with a full-colour photograph and the text gives details of range and characteristic behaviour. A map of good dive sites appears on the inside front cover. Includes jellyfish, corals, nudibranchs, starfish, sea urchins, fishes and turtles. An excellent sea life guide which I always take to the Red Sea
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Rest of the Red Sea

Diving Egypt

Diving Saudi Arabia

Diving the Red Sea

Diving Jordan

Diving Djibouti

Diving Sudan

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