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Poseidon Reef
Egypt · reef · beginner
0–15 mbeginnerOWboat entry
Poseidon Reef
The 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.
Max depth0–15 m
Required levelbeginner
Entry typeboat
Visibility20 m
The dive
Poseidon — most operators write it Poseidon Garden — is one of the named routes on Sha'ab El Erg, the horseshoe reef between Hurghada and El Gouna that our catalogue already holds under three separate pins. Dive Trek places it inside the inner curve of the reef with the mooring line on the southern section, and the sand under the boat at roughly 11 m; Divers-Guide puts the dive at about 15 m on sand and describes two coral towers, or ergs, with large fields of brain coral that show best in the shallower part. Depth is capped by the ground itself rather than by a rule, which is why every source that grades it calls it beginner ground.
The dive is a slow circuit of the ergs and the sand between them. Dive Trek singles out one block standing off the main reef that works as a cleaning station, and reports masked puffer and giant clams in numbers; it also notes that the shallow, sheltered position is why the corals here are as large and as varied as they are. Divers-Guide records visibility of 15 to 30 m with 20 m typical, current limited to none, and big schools of snapper and bannerfish over the garden, with grouper and triggerfish resident. It carries an explicit warning that the triggerfish here are territorial and will not tolerate divers close to their nests, which is the one real hazard on an otherwise undemanding dive.
One naming problem is worth stating plainly, because it decides what this page is. Scuba Diver Life's 2014 article treats "Poseidon Reef" as simply another name for Sha'ab El Erg as a whole, and describes the entire horseshoe: one main reef, satellite pinnacles on white sand, about 15 m maximum, mild currents, anthias and sergeant majors, and the dolphins the reef is famous for. The two operator-facing sources do not agree with that: both treat Poseidon as a specific garden on the southern part of the reef, distinct from the lagoon dive our catalogue calls Dolphin House and from the northern point it calls Manta Point. We have followed the operator reading, kept this pin as the southern garden, and flagged the conflict rather than averaging it.
The occurrence records around this pin fit that reading. Sea goldies, Red Sea bannerfish, bigeye trevally, giant moray, blue-spotted ribbontail rays, royal and yellowbar angelfish, hooded and crown butterflyfish, devil firefish and Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins are all recorded within 1.5 km — the mixed hard-coral and sand community the sources describe, plus the dolphins that use the reef.
- Two ergs and large brain-coral fields on white sand
- A detached block off the main reef working as a cleaning station
- Schools of snapper and bannerfish over the garden
- Shallow enough that the whole dive stays in good light
Please note before you go
- Territorial triggerfish — Divers-Guide warns specifically that they will not tolerate divers near them
- The site is inside a reef system heavily used by day boats and liveaboards; watch for boat traffic on ascent
Access & rules
Mandatory requirementsGetting there
Boat only. Divers-Guide gives about 40 minutes by boat from El Gouna; Sha'ab El Erg is also a standard day-boat run north out of Hurghada and a common first stop for liveaboards leaving Hurghada. The mooring line is on the southern part of the reef, inside the horseshoe.
Operator
Access to the site runs through a local operator.
Conditions
Visibility20 m
Currentlight
Surgenot sourced
WaterSalt water
Depth range0–15 m
Environmentreef
Coralnot sourced
Crowdsnot sourced
Sheltered water inside the southern curve of the horseshoe, sand at 11 to 15 m, visibility usually around 20 m and reported between 15 and 30 m, current limited or absent. Boats pick up the mooring on the southern section of the reef.
On current: Divers-Guide records current as limited to none and rates the site suitable for all levels; Scuba Diver Life, writing about Sha'ab El Erg as a whole, says currents are typically mild and that the shape of the reef lets you duck out of them when they pick up. The two agree, so light is the figure we carry. Depth is quoted as about 15 m by Divers-Guide and as a sand bottom near 11 m with a 14 m limit by Dive Trek; we carry 15 m.
Questions & answers
How deep is Poseidon Reef?
About 15 m. Divers-Guide puts the dive at roughly 15 m on sand; Dive Trek gives the sand under the boat at about 11 m with a working limit near 14 m. There is no deep section here — the ground itself caps the dive, which is why it is used for checkout and course dives.
Is Poseidon Reef the same as Sha'ab El Erg?
Not quite, and sources disagree. A 2014 Scuba Diver Life article calls Poseidon Reef another name for Sha'ab El Erg as a whole. Dive Trek and Divers-Guide instead place Poseidon Garden specifically on the southern part of that reef, separate from the lagoon dive sold as Dolphin House and from Manta Point at the north end. We follow the operator reading.
How do you get to Poseidon Reef?
By boat only. Divers-Guide gives about 40 minutes from El Gouna, and Sha'ab El Erg is a standard day-boat run north out of Hurghada as well as a common first stop for liveaboards leaving the port. Boats pick up a mooring on the southern section of the reef.
Is Poseidon Reef good for beginners?
Yes. Both operator sources grade it beginner or all-levels: the maximum depth is around 15 m, the current is limited to none, and the mooring sits in the sheltered inner curve of the horseshoe. Scuba Diver Life describes the wider reef as a standard first dive of a liveaboard trip for the same reasons.
What will I see at Poseidon Reef?
Two coral ergs and large brain-coral fields on white sand, with schools of snapper and bannerfish over the garden and grouper and triggerfish resident. Dive Trek reports masked puffer and giant clams in numbers and a detached block that functions as a cleaning station. Sea goldies, bigeye trevally, giant moray, blue-spotted ribbontail rays and bottlenose dolphins are all recorded near this pin.
Is there current at Poseidon Reef?
Usually little or none. Divers-Guide records the current as limited to none; Scuba Diver Life describes currents across Sha'ab El Erg as typically mild, and notes that the reef's shape lets divers get out of the flow when it does pick up. Nobody publishes a measured rating, so plan for a benign dive but brief for drift anyway.
Can you snorkel at Poseidon Reef?
You can look at it from the surface, since the garden sits in 11 to 15 m of clear water, but no source sells Poseidon as a snorkelling stop. On this reef the part operators actually run for snorkellers is the sheltered lagoon inside the horseshoe, the site our catalogue holds as Dolphin House.
Are the triggerfish at Poseidon Reef dangerous?
Divers-Guide carries an explicit warning that the triggerfish here are very territorial and will not tolerate intruders, including divers. That is the one documented hazard on the site. Give any triggerfish sitting over a patch of sand a wide berth and leave upwards and sideways rather than straight up if one comes at you.
Life recorded at Poseidon Reef
60 species within 1.5 km · OBISGymnothorax javanicusrare · 1 recordsTaeniura lymmarare · 1 records
Tursiops aduncusoccasional · 6 records
Pomacanthus maculosusrare · 4 records
Pomacentrus trichrourusrare · 3 records
Pseudanthias squamipinnisrare · 3 records
All 60 species recorded in this area
| Species | How often | Records |
|---|---|---|
| Tursiops aduncus | occasional | 6 |
| Pomacanthus maculosus | rare | 4 |
| Pomacentrus trichrourus | rare | 3 |
| Pseudanthias squamipinnis | rare | 3 |
| Dascyllus abudafur | rare | 3 |
| Parupeneus forsskali | rare | 2 |
| Pedum spondyloideum | rare | 2 |
| Pseudochromis flavivertex | rare | 2 |
| Pterois miles | rare | 2 |
| Chaetodon larvatus | rare | 2 |
| Chlorurus sordidus | rare | 2 |
| Chaetodon paucifasciatus | rare | 2 |
| Amphiprion bicinctus | rare | 2 |
| Chaetodon austriacus | rare | 1 |
| Chaetodon fasciatus | rare | 1 |
| Chaetodon semilarvatus | rare | 1 |
| Cheilinus abudjubbe | rare | 1 |
| Cheilinus lunulatus | rare | 1 |
| Chlorurus gibbus | rare | 1 |
| Coris aygula | rare | 1 |
| Coris caudimacula | rare | 1 |
| Dascyllus marginatus | rare | 1 |
| Ecsenius gravieri | rare | 1 |
| Gymnothorax javanicus | rare | 1 |
| Hemigymnus melapterus | rare | 1 |
| Heniochus intermedius | rare | 1 |
| Hipposcarus harid | rare | 1 |
| Monotaxis grandoculis | rare | 1 |
| Neopomacentrus miryae | rare | 1 |
| Oxymeris maculata | rare | 1 |
| Paracheilinus octotaenia | rare | 1 |
| Parapriacanthus guentheri | rare | 1 |
| Parupeneus cyclostomus | rare | 1 |
| Pempheris rhomboidea | rare | 1 |
| Plagiotremus tapeinosoma | rare | 1 |
| Plectorhinchus gaterinus | rare | 1 |
| Pomacanthus asfur | rare | 1 |
| Pygoplites diacanthus | rare | 1 |
| Rhinecanthus assasi | rare | 1 |
| Scorpaenopsis diabolus | rare | 1 |
| Siganus stellatus | rare | 1 |
| Sousa chinensis | rare | 1 |
| Sousa plumbea | rare | 1 |
| Taeniura lymma | rare | 1 |
| Abudefduf vaigiensis | rare | 1 |
| Epinephelus fasciatus | rare | 1 |
| Turritella maculata | rare | 1 |
| Tridacna maxima | rare | 1 |
| Amblyglyphidodon flavilatus | rare | 1 |
| Bodianus anthioides | rare | 1 |
| Acanthurus sohal | rare | 1 |
| Cellana eucosmia | rare | 1 |
| Charonia tritonis | rare | 1 |
| Cheilodipterus macrodon | rare | 1 |
| Chromodoris quadricolor | rare | 1 |
| Neoniphon sammara | rare | 1 |
| Callechelys marmorata | rare | 1 |
| Canthigaster margaritata | rare | 1 |
| Caranx sexfasciatus | rare | 1 |
| Cephalopholis argus | rare | 1 |
Nearby sites in Hurghada
Explore all sitesManta Point2.7 km
HurghadaThe north point of Shaab El Erg: shallow sand and coral heads inside 16 m, named for the reef mantas that turn up there in February and March.
Dolphin House2.7 km
HurghadaThe sheltered lagoon inside Sha'ab El Erg's horseshoe, where a resident pod of Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins rests out the daylight hours.
Shaab El Erg3.4 km
HurghadaThe horseshoe reef between Hurghada and El Gouna; this pin is the whole reef, not one of the named moorings on it.
Umm Gamar5.6 km
HurghadaThe crescent island north of Hurghada: moorings on a 14 to 24 m south plateau, three chimneyed pinnacles packed with glassfish, and a wall down the eastern side.
Shaab Iris5.9 km
El GounaA shallow sand plateau studded with coral ergs in the Abu Nugar complex, swum slowly between 9 and 16 m.
Shaabruhr Umm Gamar7.8 km
HurghadaThe submerged reef south of Umm Gamar island, dived for the scattered Egyptian patrol boat on its southeastern slope.
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