Hurghada & El Gouna · Egypt · Reef
Shaab Iris
A main reef and a scatter of coral blocks, averaging 14 m
Area photo: Tanya Dedyukhina · CC BY 3.0
The main reef of the Abu Nugar region north of Hurghada, made up of a central reef body and a scatter of coral blocks around it. The published average depth is 14 metres, shallow enough that the dive is about choosing which blocks to visit rather than managing a profile.
Where it is and how deep
27.3468° N, 33.8381° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
Shaab Iris is a main reef with many coral blocks around it, so the dive is a route between structures rather than a single wall or slope. With an average depth of 14 metres there is no need to trade depth for time: you can work outward across the blocks, spend as long as you like on the ones that hold fish, and still have gas for the reef body on the way back.
The site sits in the Abu Nugar region, out from the coast rather than on a house reef, so it is a boat dive. Gota Iris, the last block of this same reef, is listed separately and lies a couple of hundred metres away on the published positions. The reef is described as holding octopus, pufferfish, porcupinefish, moray eels, anthias and swarms of glassfish over soft coral. No maximum depth or current is published, so take the boat briefing as the plan for the day.
Marine life and season
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Reef fish swarms
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Fair |
Season follows Hurghada & El Gouna: Diving runs all year; the seas settle from March to November and are calmest in summer, while February brings the coolest water.
Questions divers ask
How deep is Shaab Iris?+
Only an average depth is published for the reef, 14 metres. No maximum depth is given, so treat 14 metres as the depth the dive sits around rather than a floor, and take the day's limit from the briefing on the boat.
Sources
- Shaab Iris dive site — Scubago (SSI MyDiveGuide)
More dive sites in Hurghada & El Gouna
A table-coral channel from the lagoon out to a pelagic drop-off
An anemone city where hundreds of anemonefish guard their young
A calm lagoon of pinnacles sheltered when the outer reef is pounded
Pinnacle
Two pinnacles on a 16-metre plateau, with a wall dropping to 60 metres
An 1869 P&O steamer rotted back to her iron ribs at 24 m
One big pinnacle full of glassfish and moray eels
A wall, a 20 m-wide plateau, then a drop-off past 70 m
A minesweeper on her port side, 25 minutes from the marina
Similar dives elsewhere
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