TRAVEL SPECIAL
Above: A white-spotted octopus in the Canaries
Below: Diving next to a school of grunts in Gran Canaria
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The Canary Islands
Destination lowdown: Being a mainstream tourist destination means that flights to the Canary Islands are affordable, though prices fluctuate by season. There are many islands, but the key ones for divers are Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and the smaller island of El Hierro. This is a subtropical environment, so you get water that is noticeably warmer then the UK and a mixture of fish species from both climates. The Diving: Expect a temperature range of 18-24 ° C, blue water and visibility of 15-25m. The Canaries offers a mixture of wrecks, sand flats and rocky reefs bristling with life. There is coral, but it is the branching variety rather then the spectacular reef building corals of the tropics. In the cooler months of winter, you are likely to see a predator that is
otherwise very rare – the angel shark. Each of the islands has its own attraction – El Hierro has amazing rocky formations and ultra-clear water; Gran Canaria has marine parks and wrecked container ships; Lanzarote now has its own underwater sculpture park and Tenerife has a bit of everything. What they all have in common is easy-access diving, with many dives taking place from the shoreline rather then going out on boats. The price: It fluctuates throughout the year, with the lowest prices during school term time. The Canaries are generally not offered by specialist diving tour operators, so it’ s often best to book direct with the dive centres and ask them to help you get a good deal on accommodation.
Egyptian Red Sea
Destination lowdown: Simply the best value coral reef diving a UK-based diver is ever going to find. Egypt has an infrastructure set up to deal with large numbers of divers, and its Red Sea coast has something to please every diver. The principal areas are Sharm el Sheikh on the Sinai Peninsula; Hurghada in the middle and Marsa Alam in the recently expanded south. Egypt’ s dominance over the European dive market has waned recently amid downed aircraft and continuing fears over airport security, but we are including it on our list because flights are still going out to Hurghada and Marsa Alam. The Diving: The Egyptian Red Sea represents the cooler side of coral reef diving, with water temperatures as low as 23 ° C in the winter, rising to 29 ° C at the height of summer. No rivers run into the Red Sea, so there is very little run-off and the visibility is reliably excellent – anything less then 20m is a »
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