Bella 2 — a compact, dive-first Red Sea liveaboard

Bella 2 suits divers who want the northern Red Sea without committing to a large, formal vessel. Its smaller layout keeps the group close, while the programme reaches the places that justify a liveaboard: Ras Mohammed’s current-swept reefs, Tiran’s walls and the wrecks of the Thistlegorm and Dunraven. This is not a floating resort built around elaborate public spaces. It is a compact base for short Mini Safaris, with the practical comforts that matter after several dives: air-conditioning, shade on deck, hot water and a dive area arranged for straightforward entry into the water. The crew is the reason the boat scores better for people than for the hull itself. Passengers describe a clean boat, very good food and guides who make safety clear without making the trip feel stiff. Choose Bella 2 when the diving should stay at the centre and the boat should feel easy to understand from the first evening.

Boarding takes place in Sharm El Sheikh, where Bella 2 presents a compact, practical profile rather than the scale of a large week-long yacht. Inside, the air-conditioned salon and dining area give the group a clear place to gather; outside, shaded seating and sun loungers keep people close to the sea without forcing everyone into the sun. The layout is easy to read, which matters when divers are moving between cabin, salon and dive deck with wet gear. Bella 2 has been renovated every year since it was built, so its character is less about old-boat nostalgia than about a working vessel kept ready for repeated short safaris. Once aboard, the useful impression is simple: the spaces are arranged around eating, resting and diving, not around ceremony.

Bella 2 is built for a close group. On a short Mini Safari, the same people appear at breakfast, on the dive deck, in the tender and around the evening table, so names and habits become familiar quickly. The crew’s role is visible in the small transitions: helping the boat feel orderly, keeping the diving moving and making space for questions without turning the trip into a performance. Passengers come back to the food as much as the service, describing generous meals and a crew that remains helpful without hovering. The guides are also remembered for clear, professional briefings. By evening, the atmosphere is social but not forced: divers trade wreck stories, compare photographs and settle into the next day’s plan.

Bella 2’s northern Red Sea programmes run as 4-day/3-night Mini Safaris, including Ras Mohammed & Thistlegorm, Sinai Classic, and Dunraven, Ras Mohammed & Tiran routes. The diving moves between wrecks, walls, plateaus and current-running reefs. Ulysses is a merchant wreck down to 27 metres; Rosalie Moller lies between 30 and 50 metres in the Straits of Gubal, where barracudas, tuna, trevally and groupers can gather around the preserved ship. Thistlegorm reaches 32 metres and puts wartime cargo and marine life in the same frame. In Tiran, Thomas Reef drops to 90 metres beyond the recreational profile, while Gordon Reef offers a drift from the Loullia wreck toward its southern plateau, down to 30 metres. Ras Nasrani reaches 60 metres and brings gorgonian fans and mushroom corals into the current. Rocky Island adds stronger currents and the chance of oceanic sharks, barracudas and manta rays. Weather and conditions decide which sites are made on a particular departure.

Ulysses →

Max. depth · 27 m

Rosalie Moller →

Max. depth · 50 m

Straits of Gubal →

Max. depth · 50 m

Thomas Reef →

Max. depth · 90 m

Gordon Reef →

Max. depth · 30 m

Ras Nasrani →

Max. depth · 60 m

Rocky Island →

The route is rich in the animals that make Red Sea diving work even when the headline encounter does not appear: reef sharks, groupers, barracudas, morays, trevallies, scorpionfish, lionfish, soft corals and clouds of glassfish recur across many sites. Manta rays and turtles are also recorded at several locations, while Napoleon wrasse and tuna add size to the reef scenes. The particular sightings give each stop its own reason. Rosalie Moller is the place for the bigeye trevally; Ras Nasrani is the only listed site for an oceanic whitetip shark and a gorgonian. At Woodhouse Reef, a green turtle is the distinctive possibility. Gordon Reef is where garden eels, stonefish and trumpetfish appear in the records. Thistlegorm is the site associated with dolphins, batfish, rays and hawksbill turtles. Currents at Rocky Island, Ras Nasrani and the Tiran reefs can bring the larger animals into view, but none of these encounters is guaranteed.

Manta Ray →

Mobula birostris

Lionfish →

Pterois volitans

Napoleon Wrasse →

Cheilinus undulatus

Oceanic Whitetip Shark →

Carcharhinus longimanus

Hawksbill Turtle →

Eretmochelys imbricata

Dive groups are organised with a maximum ratio of eight divers to one certified dive guide. Briefings cover the dive plan and safety procedures, with the guide matching the dive to the group’s experience rather than treating every diver as if they wanted the same profile. Bella Liveaboards recommends Advanced Open Water certification and 20 logged dives for most itineraries, particularly those involving deeper wrecks or strong currents. PADI courses can be completed on board, including Open Water, Advanced Open Water, Enriched Air Nitrox, Drift, Deep, Night and Wreck specialties. The crew speaks English, Spanish, Russian and Italian. Oxygen, first-aid kits, emergency rafts, life jackets, fire equipment, GPS, radar, VHF/DSC/SSB radio and mobile and satellite phones are carried on board.

The dive deck is shaded and designed for diving rather than sightseeing. It has a dedicated platform, organised working space and DIN adaptors, with two tenders supporting the transfers to and from the sites. Divers can use Nitrox, and Nitrox is included in the dive package; a Nitrox certification course is available separately for those who need it. Rental equipment is available as an optional extra. The boat also provides charging stations, outside showers and towels for the deck and beach, useful details when several dives are packed into a day. The published setup does not give tank material or volume, compressor type, camera table, rinse-tank arrangement, SMB provision or a brand list, so those are not presented as features here.

Between dives, Bella 2 gives people three useful choices: the air-conditioned salon, shaded deck seating or the sun loungers. The salon and dining area are where divers can cool down, charge a device and compare notes without shouting over the heat. Outside, the shaded area keeps the sea in view while giving wet gear and tired bodies time to settle. Snorkelers and non-divers are welcome, so not every quiet hour has to follow the dive group’s pace. There is also Wi-Fi, though the better use of the gap may be simpler: dry off, eat something, watch the next site approach and be ready when the tender takes the group back to the reef.

A day begins with the dive plan, then the first entry into the water while the light is still low or the boat is moving toward the next site. Breakfast follows the first dive, with lunch and snacks placed around the later dives rather than treated as separate events. The usual shape is several daytime dives, with the exact number and timing set by the route, conditions and the guides; Bella 2 also includes night dives. Between entries, divers return to the shaded deck or the air-conditioned salon, eat, refill, dry out and listen to the next briefing. The tender carries the group to the reef and brings it back after the drift or wreck dive. Dinner closes the working part of the day, though the boat’s evening may continue with photographs, site talk and the quiet preparation of gear for tomorrow.

The galley serves full-board meals, with breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks through the day. Food combines local Egyptian cooking with international dishes, and meals can be served buffet-style or as an à la carte dinner. Vegetarian and vegan options are available, so dietary needs can be handled without turning every meal into a negotiation. Non-alcoholic drinks, drinking water, tea and coffee are included, along with all-day snacks and a welcome cocktail. That matters on a short safari: after a current dive or a wreck penetration, the table is where the trip resets. Eat, talk through what was seen, then get ready to dive again.

The cabin choice is straightforward: twin cabins on the lower or middle deck, or a bunk-bed cabin on the lower deck. Cabins are air-conditioned, non-smoking and equipped with hot-water showers, with sea-view accommodation and panoramic windows listed for the boat. That gives the nights a practical shape: cool the cabin after a day in the Red Sea, rinse off salt, then retreat from the salon when the last conversation has run its course. Bella 2 is compact, so the appeal is not apartment-sized living. It is having a private place to close the door, dry out and sleep before the next dive. Daily housekeeping, cabin towels and beach towels are provided, while free Wi-Fi is available for the moments when the boat is connected.

Bella 2 departs from and returns to Sharm El Sheikh. Airport or hotel transfers in Sharm El Sheikh can be arranged as an optional service; guests who travel independently receive the marina location, boarding time and crew contact details in advance. Check-in begins at 18:00 on departure day, and check-out is after lunch on the final day, usually around 13:00. Arriving in Sharm El Sheikh the night before is the sensible choice, leaving a margin for flight or road delays.