Also known as: Shark & Jolanda Reefs, Shark & Yolanda Reef, Toilet Seat Reef, Yolanda Reef and Shark Reef
World-ranked drift dive at Sinai's tip combining an 800 m vertical wall, coral plateau, and scattered cargo from the 1980 Yolanda wreck.
Last updated April 2026
Two detached reef formations rise from the deep off Sinai's southern tip, connected by a current-swept saddle that turns every descent into an unpredictable journey. The standard route begins at Shark Reef's corner with a negative entry from the live boat. Speed matters. Hesitate on the surface and the current carries you past the wall.
The descent along Shark Reef is vertical and immediate. Soft corals and gorgonians cover the face, and dense clouds of orange anthias pulse against the blue. Barracuda hold formation in the open water. In summer, the blue erupts with hundreds of bohar snapper cruising in spawning schools, grey reef sharks patrolling their edges.
The saddle crossing is where the current hits hardest. You drift from deep blue water onto Yolanda Reef's wide plateau, dotted with coral pinnacles that function as cleaning stations. Then the wreck cargo appears: porcelain toilets, bathtubs, and pipes sitting on sand at 12-25 m, increasingly colonized by fire coral. The safety stop happens in open blue water, SMB deployed, watching the reef fall away beneath you.
No other dive site on earth combines these three elements in a single descent. The wall is sheer to 800 m, adorned with some of the finest soft coral growth in the Red Sea. The wreck cargo creates a surreal tableau that decades of coral colonization have only made stranger. And the pelagic convergence at Sinai's tip, where the Gulf of Aqaba meets the Gulf of Suez, fuels a density of marine life that changes with every season.
Repeat visitors come back for the variability. Slack tide dives feel meditative. Strong current dives feel like a ride. Summer brings the snapper spectacle. Winter brings 50 m visibility and quiet reefs. The site never repeats itself.
Currents here range from zero to raging within the same day. Your boat captain and guide will choose the entry point and drift direction based on conditions. Expect a negative entry and plan for a blue-water ascent. Reef hooks cannot be used.
Do not touch the wreck cargo. The toilet bowls are encrusted with fire coral, and gloves are prohibited throughout the national park. Wide-angle photography gear is the right choice for this site. Stay shallow on the wall: the best marine life concentrates in the top 15-20 m, not in the depths below.
What makes this dive site stand out.
Shark Reef drops sheer from the surface into the abyss, draped in soft corals and anthias
Porcelain toilets and bathtubs from the 1980 shipwreck scattered across a coral plateau
Resident barracuda and batfish schools with seasonal snapper aggregations in summer
Live boat drop and pickup, with currents ranging from slack to raging
Consistently listed among the best dive sites in the world
27.7247°N, 34.2584°E
Summary
Strong unpredictable currents, negative entry, blue-water ascent with SMB, and vertical drop-offs
Safety considerations
What can go wrong here, and what divers do about it. Conditions change - take the briefing from the operator on the day.
Multi-day safari boats with this site on their itinerary.
41m, 26-guest wooden liveaboard running Master Liveaboards' full Egyptian Red Sea catalogue from Hurghada and Port Ghalib, from northern wrecks and Tiran through the offshore Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone to the far-south Rocky, Zabargad and St John's reefs.
38m, 26-guest wooden sister to Blue Horizon running the identical Master Liveaboards Egyptian Red Sea catalogue, from northern wrecks and Tiran through the offshore Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone to the Deep South, from Hurghada and Port Ghalib.
26-guest sister of Superior with Junior and Executive suites, ranging across Emperor's Egypt catalogue from northern wrecks and offshore Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone to the Deep South.
13-cabin, 26-guest wooden liveaboard running Emperor's northern Red Sea wreck-and-reef weeks from Hurghada, plus offshore Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone.
Red Sea Explorers' largest liveaboard: 37.5m, 28 guests across 14 cabins, running the same GUE-leaning offshore and deep-south Egypt route catalogue.
36m, 22-guest steel liveaboard with a dedicated camera room and gas-blending deck, running the Brothers, Daedalus, Deep South and Fury Shoal weeks.
Red Sea Explorers' tech flagship: a 37m, 22-guest steel liveaboard with a full trimix/CCR fill station and scooters for offshore and deep-south Egypt safaris.
43m, 24-guest liveaboard built 2016, running Blue Planet's named Egypt routes from Hurghada and Port Ghalib, from northern wrecks and Tiran through Brothers, Daedalus and the Zabargad-Rocky Deep South, with free nitrox.
Park fee most recently EUR 7/day, with a rise to $15 USD/day announced for June 2026 - confirm current. Fees typically paid at the dive centre. No touching corals, marine life, or wreck cargo. No gloves. Good buoyancy mandatory. No fishing, feeding, collecting, or dumping. Must leave by sunset.
The recreational dive ranges from 5 to 30 m. Yolanda wreck cargo sits at 12-25 m on a coral plateau. The wall of Shark Reef drops to charted depths of 700-900 m, but there is little value in going below 15-20 m where the marine life is densest.
Advanced Open Water or equivalent is strongly recommended. The dive involves strong currents, negative entry, and a blue-water ascent with SMB deployment. Open Water divers may be accepted on calm days by experienced guides, though operators commonly require at least 20 logged dives.
March to May and September to November offer the best balance of calm seas, warm water, and visibility. For the massive bohar snapper spawning aggregation, visit in late June and July. Winter brings fewer crowds and visibility that can exceed 50 m.
Grey reef sharks patrol the wall and blue water year-round, with more frequent sightings in summer. Blacktip reef sharks appear within the snapper schools. Silky sharks are occasional visitors. Tiger sharks have been mentioned by operators but are extremely rare.
The MV Yolanda, a Greek Cypriot merchant vessel carrying bathroom supplies, grounded on the reef on 1 April 1980. The intact wreck was a popular dive from 1981 to 1985 before a severe storm in March 1987 sent the hull sliding into the abyss. Only the scattered cargo remains on the plateau, now colonized by fire coral. Technical divers rediscovered the main hull at 145-160 m in 2005.
It is not ideal for newly certified divers. Strong and unpredictable currents, negative entry from a live boat, and the drift dive format require solid buoyancy skills and open-water experience. Most operators require Advanced Open Water certification or equivalent experience.
Yes, an SMB is essential. The dive ends with a blue-water ascent and live boat pickup. Your guide will also carry one, but bringing your own is standard practice for this site.
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