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Gotha Abu Galawa
Egypt · reef · beginner
5–16 mbeginnerOWboat entry
Gotha Abu Galawa
A small round gota on the Abu Galawa reef south of El Gouna: shallow coral banks in the northeast, stony-coral canyons through the middle, and free-standing ergs on sand to the southwest.
Max depth5–16 m
Required levelbeginner
Entry typeboat
Visibility20 m
The dive
Gota Abu Galawa is one dive on the Abu Galawa reef, a shallow reef complex lying a few kilometres south of El Gouna and north of Hurghada. The reef carries several named dives, listed by different operators as four or as six: Marsa Abu Galawa with its lagoon and seagrass, Sakhwa Abu Galawa at the north end, Erg Abu Galawa outside, and this one, the gota itself. Spellings wander between Gota, Gotta and Gotha, and the site is unrelated to Abu Galawa Soraya and Abu Galawa Kebir in Fury Shoals, several hundred kilometres to the south, which are different reefs with a different reputation.
The gota is a small circular reef standing on flat ground, with a sandy bottom on one side and coral pinnacles on the other. Tauchen unter Freunden gives it a maximum of 16 m and describes the standard run as a drift from the northeast toward the south, starting among shallow coral banks and finishing in canyons of stony coral, with several free-standing ergs on the sand off the southwest. Ilios Dive Club gives 9 to 16 m and says plainly that the ergs outside the reef are the better part of the dive.
Current here is mild by Red Sea standards. Divers Guide records the Abu Galawa reef as a limited-current site and, more usefully, as the place Hurghada boats go when the wind has closed everything else. That is the site's real function: a sheltered, shallow, all-levels reef rather than a headline dive. Erg Abu Galawa, out on the same reef, is the exception, needing windless conditions and carrying stronger flow.
What you see is small-reef material: glassfish around the pinnacles, groupers and angelfish, and Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins recorded on this reef often enough that operators mention them. Divers Guide's logged sightings for the area add garden eels, rays and turtles, along with scorpionfish, stonefish and morays, and one logged dive there also reports a lot of dead coral, which is worth knowing before you decide this is a coral dive.
- Free-standing ergs on the sand off the southwest, rated by one operator as better than the reef itself
- Canyons of stony coral at the south end of the drift
- Shallow coral banks in the northeast where the dive starts
- Bottlenose dolphins recorded on this reef
- Works when wind has closed the exposed sites
Please note before you go
- Stonefish and scorpionfish reported on the reef, so watch where you put a hand on the sand and the coral banks
- Drift profile means the boat has to follow you from the northeast drop
Access & rules
Mandatory requirementsGetting there
Day boat. Tauchen unter Freunden gives roughly 30 minutes to Gota Abu Galawa and 35 to the small reef block north of it, and Divers Guide gives about an hour from Hurghada, the difference being where the boat leaves from; El Gouna is the closer port. The dive is usually dropped at the northeast end and run south with the boat following.
Operator
Access to the site runs through a local operator.
Season
No months are recorded as best here, and that is the point of the site rather than a gap in the sources. Abu Galawa's sheltered position means it stays divable when weather closes the exposed reefs, so it is used year round as the fallback option. Water ranges from about 22 C in winter to 29 C in the warm months.
Conditions
Visibility20 m
Currentlight
Surgelight
WaterSalt water
Depth range5–16 m
Environmentreef
Coralnot sourced
Crowdsmoderate
Visibility across the Abu Galawa reef is given as 15 to 30 m, averaging around 20 m, with the northern part clearer than the southern. Water runs roughly 22 to 29 C over the year. Current is usually limited, which is exactly why boats come here when the wind is up.
On current: Described as a limited-current site, which is why it works as a weather fallback when the exposed reefs are unworkable. The standard profile is still a gentle drift from the northeast toward the south, so the boat normally follows. Sources broadly agree on the shallow reading: Tauchen unter Freunden gives a maximum of 16 m and Ilios Dive Club 9 to 16 m, while Divers Guide lists 40 m as the deepest sand in the wider Abu Galawa area, which is the ground outside the reef rather than the dive. Erg Abu Galawa, a separate dive on the same reef, is the one with stronger current, and it is only run in windless conditions.
Questions & answers
Is Gota Abu Galawa the same as Abu Galawa Soraya in Fury Shoals?
No, and they are not close. Gota Abu Galawa is a shallow reef a few kilometres south of El Gouna, north of Hurghada, dived on day boats in half an hour. Abu Galawa Soraya and Abu Galawa Kebir are in Fury Shoals in the far south, hundreds of kilometres away, reached by liveaboard, and have a wreck the northern site does not. The shared name is a coincidence of Arabic naming, not a shared place.
How deep is Gota Abu Galawa?
Shallow. Tauchen unter Freunden gives a maximum of 16 m and Ilios Dive Club gives 9 to 16 m, with the drift starting among shallow coral banks in the northeast. Divers Guide lists 40 m as the deepest sand anywhere in the wider Abu Galawa area, but that is the ground outside the reef and not the dive. Plan on 5 to 16 m.
How do you dive Gota Abu Galawa?
As a drift from the northeast toward the south. You are dropped among shallow coral banks, work through canyons of stony coral, and finish near the ergs standing on the sand off the southwest corner. Ilios Dive Club rates those outer ergs as the better part of the dive, so it is worth asking the guide to include them rather than staying on the reef.
Is Gota Abu Galawa good for beginners?
Yes. It is a shallow reef with limited current, rated for all levels, and Open Water is enough. The drift is gentle and the maximum depth is around 16 m, so it works as a first drift dive or as an easy second dive. The one site on this reef that is not beginner-friendly is Erg Abu Galawa, which is only run in windless conditions and has stronger current.
What will I see at Gota Abu Galawa?
Glassfish around the pinnacles, groupers and angelfish, and Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins, which are both recorded at this pin and mentioned by the operators. Logged sightings for the reef also include garden eels, rays, turtles, scorpionfish, stonefish and morays. The records here run to reef-scale life rather than pelagics: twoband anemonefish, sea goldies, lionfish, giant moray, blue-spotted ribbontail rays, cardinalfish and giant clams.
When is the best time to dive Gota Abu Galawa?
There is no season that stands out, which is the useful fact about this site rather than a missing one. Its sheltered position on the Abu Galawa reef means boats come here specifically when wind has closed the exposed offshore sites, so it works year round. Water sits between about 22 C in winter and 29 C in the warm months.
Can you snorkel Gota Abu Galawa?
From a boat, yes, over the shallow coral banks at the northeast end and across the top of the gota, since nothing here is deeper than about 16 m. There is no shore access and no operator sells it as a snorkelling trip. The part of the dive that operators rate highest, the ergs standing on the sand to the southwest, is too deep to read from the surface.
How good is the coral at Gota Abu Galawa?
Mixed, and the honest answer is that the sources do not agree. Operators describe coral towers and hard coral gardens, and the neighbouring Erg Abu Galawa is noted for large table corals. Against that, one logged dive on this reef reports a lot of dead coral. No source gives a dated reef survey, so treat it as a topography dive rather than a coral showcase and judge it on the day.
Life recorded at Gotha Abu Galawa
60 species within 1.5 km · OBISTaeniura lymmarare · 4 recordsGymnothorax javanicusrare · 2 records
Amphiprion bicinctusoccasional · 10 records
Pseudanthias squamipinnisoccasional · 5 records
Pterois milesoccasional · 5 records
Tursiops aduncusrare · 4 records
All 60 species recorded in this area
| Species | How often | Records |
|---|---|---|
| Amphiprion bicinctus | occasional | 10 |
| Pseudanthias squamipinnis | occasional | 5 |
| Pterois miles | occasional | 5 |
| Taeniura lymma | rare | 4 |
| Tursiops aduncus | rare | 4 |
| Hipposcarus harid | rare | 3 |
| Arothron hispidus | rare | 3 |
| Naso unicornis | rare | 3 |
| Scarus ferrugineus | rare | 3 |
| Ostorhinchus cyanosoma | rare | 3 |
| Cheilodipterus quinquelineatus | rare | 3 |
| Cheilinus abudjubbe | rare | 3 |
| Dascyllus abudafur | rare | 3 |
| Amblygobius albimaculatus | rare | 2 |
| Gymnothorax javanicus | rare | 2 |
| Chaetodon auriga | rare | 2 |
| Tridacna maxima | rare | 2 |
| Parapercis hexophtalma | rare | 2 |
| Stylissa carteri | rare | 2 |
| Amblyeleotris steinitzi | rare | 2 |
| Anyperodon leucogrammicus | rare | 2 |
| Arothron diadematus | rare | 2 |
| Chaetodon larvatus | rare | 2 |
| Chaetodon paucifasciatus | rare | 2 |
| Chlorurus sordidus | rare | 2 |
| Coris aygula | rare | 2 |
| Flavocaranx bajad | rare | 2 |
| Epibulus insidiator | rare | 2 |
| Gobiodon citrinus | rare | 2 |
| Halichoeres hortulanus | rare | 2 |
| Pomacentrus sulfureus | rare | 2 |
| Mulloidichthys flavolineatus | rare | 2 |
| Pomacentrus trilineatus | rare | 2 |
| Paracirrhites forsteri | rare | 2 |
| Parupeneus cyclostomus | rare | 2 |
| Plesiops nigricans | rare | 2 |
| Scarus niger | rare | 2 |
| Scorpaenopsis diabolus | rare | 2 |
| Synodus dermatogenys | rare | 2 |
| Taeniamia fucata | rare | 2 |
| Siganus luridus | rare | 1 |
| Hemimycale arabica | rare | 1 |
| Ircinia echinata | rare | 1 |
| Fromia ghardaqana | rare | 1 |
| Abudefduf vaigiensis | rare | 1 |
| Alpheus djeddensis | rare | 1 |
| Amanses scopas | rare | 1 |
| Apogonichthyoides taeniatus | rare | 1 |
| Calcinus rosaceus | rare | 1 |
| Callyspongia (Callyspongia) siphonella | rare | 1 |
| Callyspongia crassa | rare | 1 |
| Centropyge multispinis | rare | 1 |
| Cheilodipterus novemstriatus | rare | 1 |
| Dascyllus aruanus | rare | 1 |
| Lethrinus mahsena | rare | 1 |
| Neoniphon sammara | rare | 1 |
| Pseudocheilinus hexataenia | rare | 1 |
| Pygoplites diacanthus | rare | 1 |
| Rhinoclavis aspera | rare | 1 |
| Stenopus hispidus | rare | 1 |
Nearby sites in El Gouna
Explore all sitesMarsa Abu Galawa1.2 km
El GounaThe bay dive on the Abu Galawa reef: a seagrass lagoon at 5 m behind a coral drop-off, worked slowly for small camouflaged things.
El Sakhwa1.4 km
El GounaThe northernmost of the named dives on the Abu Galawa reef: a drift along the wall onto a small plateau, with glassfish and anthias packed onto the coral towers.
El Fanadir, North4.5 km
HurghadaThe exposed northern end of Fanadir's long offshore reef: a coral wall to a sand shelf at 12 m, then a slope that runs parallel to it from 18 m past 30 m.
Shaab Iris4.6 km
El GounaA shallow sand plateau studded with coral ergs in the Abu Nugar complex, swum slowly between 9 and 16 m.
El Fanadir, South5.4 km
HurghadaThe southern end of the long El Fanadir reef, where the sandy plateau widens out before the second wall drops away.
Poseidon Reef10.3 km
HurghadaThe coral garden on the southern side of Sha'ab El Erg: two ergs, brain-coral fields and a sand bottom at about 11 m, moored inside the horseshoe.
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