Lyra — a spacious steel liveaboard for Red Sea diving charters

Lyra suits divers who want more than a compact boat running a fixed week after week. She is a large steel liveaboard designed for private groups, clubs and charters, with enough room for a northern wreck-and-reef trip or a longer passage towards Egypt’s offshore sites. The operator’s routes include the Classic North, Brothers, Elphinstone and Daedalus, with departures from Hurghada or Port Ghalib depending on the itinerary. That range is the reason to choose her: the boat can carry a group beyond one familiar circuit, while the broad common areas make the long crossings easier to live with. She is also a practical choice for mixed groups, since non-divers and snorkelers are welcome and main-deck cabins can accommodate guests with limited mobility.

Lyra makes the impression of a purpose-built modern liveaboard rather than a converted vessel. Completed in late 2020, she has a steel hull, three decks and enough interior and exterior space for a full charter to avoid gathering in one bottleneck. The stern is arranged for boarding and diving, while the upper levels open into a large saloon, bars and outdoor areas. The engine package is substantial, but the generators are specified as silent units, which matters when the boat is running at night or divers are trying to sleep. The layout is the main point on arrival: guests can move from the dive area to the dining room, saloon or sun deck without the boat feeling built around one narrow passage.

Lyra is most convincing when the whole boat is taken by one club, group of friends or diving organisation. Full charters let the group shape the trip around its interests, whether that means a reef-heavy route, wreck diving or a wider Egyptian itinerary. The English-speaking crew combines navigation, hospitality, kitchen work and dive operations, while the owners are closely involved in the food. Passenger feedback consistently highlights the spacious cabins, careful service, strong cooking and professional crew. That does not turn Lyra into a small, intimate boat; it gives a larger vessel a more personal centre. Evenings can move from the dining room to the upper saloon or the open deck, with the group still able to divide into smaller conversations.

The crew speaks English and is responsible for putting divers into the water and running the boat’s dive operations. The available information does not give guide numbers, group ratios, instructor qualifications, course availability or a minimum logged-dive requirement, so those points should not be assumed. Safety equipment includes an ENOS system, life rafts, life jackets, fire equipment and emergency beacons. Lyra is equipped for standard recreational diving, not technical diving.

The dive deck is large and arranged for the practical work of a liveaboard: dressing, handling tanks and returning from the tenders without forcing every diver into the same small space. Lyra carries 40 aluminium 12-litre tanks. Larger tanks can be rented for an additional charge, while personal gear rental is also charged separately. Three Coltri compressors fill at 315 litres per minute, and a membrane system produces nitrox, which is included. The boat is not intended for technical diving. Two 7.5-metre zodiacs with Yamaha 75 hp engines take divers to the sites and back to the stern, where the dive area and charging rack are located. The setup is straightforward and suited to repeated recreational dives, with no claims made here for DIN or yoke fittings, camera facilities, rinse tanks or a hot-water shower.

Between dives, Lyra gives guests several different ways to be out of the way. The air-conditioned saloon and indoor restaurant provide shade and a quieter place to sit, while the upper saloon and sun deck open the boat to the sea. Sun loungers, bars on the decks and the Jacuzzi create the more social side of the boat; the broad layout also makes it possible to find a corner away from the main group. On a charter, that separation is useful. Divers can talk through the last dive, read, sleep or simply watch the crossing without every hour becoming a group activity.

Meals are served buffet-style, with Western and local dishes prepared on board by the owners. Dietary restrictions can be catered for, and the kitchen is set up for the appetite that comes with repeated dives rather than a single restaurant sitting. Hot and cold soft drinks are available, with snacks throughout the day. The buffet suits liveaboard diving because guests can eat when they are ready instead of waiting for one formal table service. After a dive, a plate can be taken into the saloon or outside, then left behind when the next briefing or entry is due.

The cabins are the quiet, functional part of Lyra rather than an attempt to imitate a hotel. Twin cabins, double cabins and lower-deck cabins with a double bed plus a single bed cover different pairings, while two main-deck twin cabins can be converted to doubles. Each cabin has a private flush toilet and shower, individual air conditioning, a television and a fridge. Main-deck cabins are suitable for guests with limited mobility. After a day of diving, that private bathroom and individual air conditioning matter more than decoration: the cabin lets each diver control the temperature, shut the door and recover without sharing the boat’s common noise.

Lyra embarks and returns from Hurghada or Port Ghalib, with the port determined by the itinerary linked to the surrounding cruises. Transfer arrangements are settled with the booking rather than presented as a fixed onboard service. Arriving in Egypt the night before boarding is the sensible way to protect the first day at sea from flight delays.