The Temple - Dive site - Egypt

A guide to scuba diving at the Temple

Dive site: The Temple

Location: Egypt, South Sinai

Dive type: Reef dive, boat dive, shore dive

Skill level: Beginner

Visibility: The underwater visibility at the Temple average at 20 m / 65 ft.

Depth: The average depth at the Temple is 15 m / 50 ft and the maximum depth is below 35 m / 115 ft.

Water temperature: The water temperatures at the Temple changes depending on time of year. In February the temperatures generally stay around 20° C / 68°F. In September they have risen to around 27° C / 81° F.

Dive site information: The Temple is a cluster of three pinnacles rising up from 65 feet / 20 meters. They are located north of the Sharm El Sheikh Harbour which makes them a popular night dive due to the short travelling distance from the city. The Temple dive site has a flat, sloping reef with two larger and several smaller pinnacles. The biggest pinnacle is known as “The Tower” and its bulk has been divided by to significant fissures. One of them can be penetrated. There are sandy channels connecting the pinnacles.

Marine life: The Temple has healthy and unharmed coral growth compared to many other dive sites in the area. All the pinnacles attract reef species and are covered in soft corals, hard corals and fan corals. The second fissure in “The Tower” should not be pierced by scuba divers since they risk harming the sensitive gorgonians. Fish life at the Temple includes lionfish, stonefish and schools of glass sweepers. During a night dive you can see basket stars withdrawing into a ball when noticing dive lights, and slowly expanding when the light disappears. However, don’t stress or tease them. Feather stars are also particularly stunning during night dives.