Safaga · Egypt · Pinnacle
Tobia Arbaa
Coral pillars rising from sand at 12 m almost to the surface
Area photo: Thomei08 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Tobia Arbaa, also called the Seven Pillars, is a group of coral towers standing on a sandy bottom within easy reach of Safaga. The pillars rise from sand at 10 to 12 metres almost to the surface, the maximum depth is 16 metres and there is little current, which keeps the whole site inside entry-level limits.
Also known as Seven Pillars, Tobia Arba.
Where it is and how deep
26.8366° N, 33.9913° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The pillars are the dive. They stand on a sandy bottom at 10 to 12 metres and rise almost to the surface, so once you are down the whole site is in front of you and the profile stays shallow, 16 metres at the most. Current is usually light, which means you can work around each tower in turn, cross the sand to the next, and navigate by the pillars themselves rather than by compass.
The coral heads hold moray eels, scorpionfish, butterflyfish, snappers, angelfish and clownfish, and napoleon wrasse come through as well. The sand between them deserves as much attention: blue-spotted rays sit half-buried on the open bottom and crocodilefish lie motionless where you would otherwise swim straight past. With a shallow ceiling and little current to fight, the dive can be run long and slow.
Marine life and season
- Stingrays
- Napoleon wrasse
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair |
Season follows Safaga: Apr–Jun and Sep–Nov are the most comfortable windows; in every month the wind decides whether the offshore reefs can be reached.
Dive videos
🐠 Tobia Arbaa Coral Reef Dive (Egypt, Red Sea) | Stingray, Octopus, Stonefish Encounter! · Surface & Submerge on YouTube
Tobia Arbaa Night Diving - Egypt, Safaga, October 2014 · Michal Ra on YouTube
Questions divers ask
Is Tobia Arbaa good for beginners?+
Yes. The pillars stand on sand at 10 to 12 metres, the maximum depth is 16 metres and there is little current, and the site is described as suitable for entry-level and experienced divers alike.
Sources
In The Logbook
- Cheapest places to scuba dive, and the catchTrip planning · 15 min read
More dive sites in Safaga
Drift
A current-swept ridge where grey reef sharks hold out in the blue
Reef
A drift-free reef with south-side blocks, 90 minutes offshore
Reef
Shallow 16 m reef, 25 minutes out, divable when the wind is up
Reef
Main reef to 14 m, with the south side dropping to 20 m
A mushroom-shaped reef with a labyrinth of caves along its south side
Reef
An anemone garden of 40-plus anemonefish above a 35 m plateau
A 115 m ferry lost in 1991, dived as a memorial without entry
Bottom depths from 14 m to 30 m on the reef's western side
Similar dives elsewhere
A calm lagoon of pinnacles sheltered when the outer reef is pounded
Two pinnacles on a 16-metre plateau, with a wall dropping to 60 metres
An anemone field from 2 m down to the bottom at 17 m
Soft-coral peaks where moray eels swim with napoleon wrasse