The Oasis dive center - Le centre de plongée

The Oasis dive center is situated in the heart of The Oasis hotel, a quiet retreat composed of unique stone chalets built in a traditional Nubian style. This location offers a serene atmosphere for divers looking to escape the crowded complexes often found elsewhere in the Red Sea.

From your base here, you can choose between shore diving via the hotel jetty or excursions by boat and Zodiac. The centre provides access to approximately 30 different dive sites, ranging from the gentle slopes of the house reef to the high-adrenaline pelagic encounters at Elphinstone.

Managed by Kazo and Sophie, the centre operates with a multilingual team capable of instructing in English and German. The staff is certified through SSI and CMAS, ensuring a professional standard across all training and guiding services.

The centre caters to a wide range of experience levels, from those looking to take their very first breaths underwater through to technical divers. Whether you are following a structured course or looking for guided exploration, the team focuses on a calm and professional diving environment.

The training programme is comprehensive, covering all levels from Introductory Dives to advanced certifications. You can work through your Open Water Diver course or progress into specialty training including Nitrox, Deep, and Wreck diving.

For those following the CMAS path, the centre offers advanced training up to the CMAS*** level and Divecon qualifications. The instruction is provided under the SSI and CMAS frameworks, catering to both recreational and more structured certification routes.

For excursions to offshore sites, the centre utilises boats and Zodiacs to reach the most iconic spots in the area. These trips allow you to reach legendary locations like Samadai Reef or the walls of Elphinstone within a short transit time.

For those looking for more extensive exploration, 'Super-Day' excursions are available, which typically include three dives and can take you to wreck sites such as Hamada.

The centre maintains a substantial inventory of rental kit, including 50 Scubapro BCDs, 50 regulators with octopus sets, and 50 masks, snorkels, and fins. For those requiring thermal protection, 50 5mm wetsuits are available, alongside 30 dive computers and torches for night diving.

Nitrox is available for use on-site, and the centre maintains a large cylinder inventory consisting of 150 12L aluminium cylinders and 15 15L cylinders. Safety is a priority, with oxygen for first aid kept on hand and a recompression chamber located just 3 km away, operating 24 hours a day.

The house reef and surrounding areas are teeming with life, from schooling fish like fusiliers (Caesionidae) and snappers (Lutjanidae) to larger residents such as the Napoleon wrasse (Cheilinus undulatus) and various turtles. You will often see moray eels (Muraenidae) tucked into the reef structure and colourful sponges (Porifera) decorating the seabed.

On the deeper walls and offshore sites, the biodiversity increases significantly. Look out for gorgonians (Gorgonacea), various soft corals (Alcyonacea), and large sponges. In the open water, you may encounter pelagic species including Hammerhead sharks (Sphyrnidae), grey reef sharks (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos), and silky sharks (Carcharhinus falciformis).

For those with a keen eye for macro life, the reef offers plenty to discover. You can find octopus (Octopoda), various species of nudibranch, and even seahorses (Hippocampus) amongst the corals and crevices.

The ecosystem is supported by a vast array of smaller creatures, including various types of rays, triggerfish (Balistidae), and anemones, creating a complex and vibrant underwater landscape.

The accessibility of the house reef can be affected by strong winds or heavy swell, which may make the jetty entry difficult or impossible. Most other sites are reached by boat or Zodiac to mitigate these surface conditions.

For offshore sites like Elphinstone, the transit is relatively short, but local sea conditions should always be checked with the dive team before departure.