Big Blue Diving Club

Big Blue Diving Club is a long-established operation in Hurghada, managed by a Franco-Egyptian team with over two decades of local experience. The centre is fully licensed by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and the CDWS, ensuring that all operations meet regional safety and professional standards.

Located in the heart of the Red Sea, the club operates two distinct styles of diving. You can join daily trips to local reefs from the Amira, or opt for a more immersive experience on the MY Big Blue, a dedicated liveaboard vessel designed for multi-day cruises.

The centre is run by Céline and Ahmed, bringing a blend of local expertise and international perspective to the operation. This Franco-Egyptian partnership ensures that the club is well-integrated into the local diving community while maintaining a high standard of service for international divers.

The team is multilingual, with instructors and guides capable of communicating in French, English, German, and Arabic. This makes navigating course materials or receiving site briefings straightforward, regardless of your primary language.

The training programme covers the entire spectrum of scuba diving, from your first breath underwater to professional instructor training. You can start with a Discover Scuba Diving experience or work through the Open Water Diver and Advanced Open Water Diver certifications.

For divers looking to specialise, the centre offers PADI courses such as Deep Diver, Wreck Diver, and Nitrox. The professional path is also fully supported, with training available for Rescue Diver, Divemaster, and the Instructor Development Course (IDC).

The Amira is the centre's dedicated day-boat, configured to take up to 20 divers on excursions. It is equipped to handle daily trips to nearby reefs, providing a comfortable platform for two dives a day, including night diving options.

For those looking to reach more remote locations, the MY Big Blue serves as a liveaboard cruise vessel. These 6-day, 7-night cruises allow you to stay on board while exploring distant itineraries such as the Brothers Islands, Daedalus, or Elphinstone.

The centre provides a full range of rental kit for those not travelling with their own equipment. This includes regulators, BCDs, wetsuits (5mm for cooler periods or 3mm shorties), fins, masks, and snorkels. Dive computers are also available for hire.

Nitrox is available for use, and the centre maintains oxygen safety equipment on site. For those staying in Hurghada, the club can also facilitate private transfers to and from your accommodation or the marina.

The Red Sea is home to a vast array of marine life. You will frequently encounter schools of Jack (Carangidae), Great barracuda (Sphyraena barracuda), and various reef fish such as Butterflyfish (Chaetodon) and Angelfish. Larger species like Napoleon wrasse (Cheilinus undulatus), turtles, and various sharks, including Grey reef shark (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos), are regular visitors to the reefs.

In more open water or during drift dives, keep an eye out for pelagics such as Tuna (Thunnus) and various rays. At certain sites, you may also spot Spinner dolphin or bottlenose dolphins.

For those interested in the smaller details, the reefs are rich with macro life. You can find Nudibranch (Chromodoris willani), Scorpionfish (Scorpaenidae), Stonefish (Synanceia), and various species of Moray eel (Muraenidae).

The hard corals and soft corals provide the structural foundation for this ecosystem, creating a complex landscape of canyons, gardens, and walls that support the incredible biodiversity of the area.

Currents around Hurghada are generally light to moderate, making it an accessible area for many divers. However, you should be prepared for more challenging conditions at sites like Elphinstone or within the Tiran Strait, where currents can become strong and unpredictable.

Seasonal planning is important for certain encounters; for example, sea turtles are most frequently seen during the summer months. The best time for liveaboard cruises to the more southern islands is typically during the spring and autumn.