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The Alternatives
Egypt · reef · beginner
0–15 mbeginnerOWboat entry
The Alternatives
Saba Erg, the seven pinnacles: a chain of flat-topped ergs on a shallow sandy lagoon three miles west of Ras Mohammed, dived on the days the open sea is not divable.
Max depth0–15 m
Required levelbeginner
Entry typeboat
Visibilitynot sourced
The dive
The Alternatives is a chain of coral pinnacles running east to west for about 1.5 miles along the southern edge of Sha'ab el-Utaf, roughly three miles west of Ras Mohammed, flanking a large sandy lagoon with an average depth of about 10 m. A published position for the site, 27 degrees 43.748 minutes north by 34 degrees 11.903 minutes east, lands within a few hundred metres of our pin. Local fishermen call it Saba Erg, the seven pinnacles; divers renamed it Alternatives because it is sheltered enough to offer an alternative when conditions in the open sea are prohibitive. Sharm operators file it under Sha'ab Mahmoud rather than Ras Mohammed. One point worth clearing up: this is not the Thistlegorm's reef. The wreck lies at Sha'ab Ali some 30 km to the north-west, and the two only share a page because Sharm boats run out past both on the same trip.
The standard dive circles the two middle ergs, which line up with a fixed mooring. There are three mooring points along the chain, so the site yields several different dives depending on which way the current is running, or a single drift along the whole thing; one operator's advice is to dive around the third or fourth formation from the east, where the current sweeps through. The ergs are flat-topped and the whole chain is quoted at a maximum of 15 m, shallow enough that you can swim from one to the next. Two named features sit at the western end: Stingray Station, a large roughly quadrangular outcrop at 27 degrees 43.845 minutes north by 34 degrees 11.241 minutes east, and Lonely Mushroom, a single circular tower rising from the sand about 1.7 miles further west, marked by a surface buoy that can be hard to find.
Conditions here are governed by tide rather than weather. When the current comes from the south, particularly with wind and waves behind it, visibility can drop away badly and the published advice is not to dive; when the sea is calm and the current is absent or coming from the north, the site is full of fish. The animals people come for are on the sand as much as on the coral: large groupers, including greasy grouper, bluespotted stingrays that gather at Stingray Station in numbers in March and April, squid, nudibranchs and leopard sharks reported on the seabed in spring. The occurrence records around this position back the smaller half of that list and add humphead wrasse, giant moray, sea goldie, the pyjama nudibranch Chromodoris quadricolor, orchid dottyback and bluespotted ribbontail ray.
- A chain of flat-topped ergs you can swim between, with a quoted maximum of 15 m over the whole site
- Stingray Station at the western end, where bluespotted stingrays gather in March and April
- Three mooring points, so the dive is chosen from the direction of the current, or run as one long drift
- The site Sharm boats fall back on when the open sea will not allow Ras Mohammed
Please note before you go
- Visibility can collapse when the current runs from the south with wind and sea behind it; the published advice is not to dive when the water is rough and visibility is poor
- Night dives here are only done in optimal conditions, and the guidance is to carry two torches
- The surface buoy on Lonely Mushroom at the western end is reported as sometimes hard to locate
Access & rules
Mandatory requirementsGetting there
Boat from Sharm el Sheikh, about 30 minutes north-west of Ras Mohammed and three miles west of it, on the route Sharm day boats take towards Sha'ab Mahmoud and the Strait of Gubal. There are three fixed moorings along the chain and a surface buoy on Lonely Mushroom at the western end; the dive is chosen from the mooring the boat can take.
Operator
Access to the site runs through a local operator.
Rules and permits
One published guide places the Alternatives around the tip of Ras Mohammed and outside the National Park boundary, but we could not confirm that against the park authority, so we make no claim about whether the Ras Mohammed ticket applies here; ask your operator before you assume it is or is not included. Recorded 2026-08-07.
Season
March and April, if the rays are the reason you are going: two Sharm sources independently put the bluespotted stingray gathering at Stingray Station in the spring, one naming March and April specifically, and leopard sharks are reported on the sand in the same period. Outside that window the site has no season of its own; it is dived whenever the weather elsewhere makes it the sensible choice.
Conditions
Visibilitynot sourced
Currentmoderate
Surgenot sourced
WaterSalt water
Depth range0–15 m
Environmentreef
Coralnot sourced
Crowdsnot sourced
A shallow, sheltered field of flat-topped coral heads standing on sand, with tidal current running through the gaps. Calm water and a northerly current give a clear, fish-heavy dive; a southerly current with wind turns it into a low-visibility swim between ergs. Depth stays inside 15 m throughout.
On current: Tidal, and it decides the dive. A current from the south, especially with wind and waves, is what ruins the visibility here, and two sources agree the honest answer on those days is not to get in. A current from the north, or none at all, gives the site at its best. Between the ergs the flow sweeps through and is what keeps the coral on the middle formations in condition, so expect to be moved along rather than to hover. With three moorings on the chain the guide picks the dive from the direction the water is running that morning.
Best months: Mar, Apr
Questions & answers
How deep is the Alternatives?
Shallow throughout. A Sharm dive centre quotes a maximum of 15 m across the whole chain of ergs, and the sandy lagoon they stand on averages about 10 m. There is no wall and no deep plateau here, which is part of why the site is rated for level-one divers and used as a fallback dive.
Where exactly is the Alternatives, and is it the Thistlegorm reef?
No. The Alternatives lies about three miles west of Ras Mohammed on the southern edge of Sha'ab el-Utaf, and Sharm operators group it with Sha'ab Mahmoud. The Thistlegorm is at Sha'ab Ali, roughly 30 km further north-west. Day boats out of Sharm often run past both on the same trip, which is where the confusion comes from.
Why is it called the Alternatives?
Because divers use it as the alternative. The chain is sheltered enough to be divable when conditions in the open sea are not, so it is the site Sharm boats fall back on when Ras Mohammed or the offshore reefs are out. Local fishermen call it Saba Erg, the seven pinnacles, which is the older name.
Is the Alternatives good for beginners?
Yes. It is rated diver level 1 by Sharm operators, stays within 15 m, and the flat-topped ergs stand close enough together that you can swim from one to the next. The one thing that makes it harder is visibility rather than depth, and that depends entirely on which way the tidal current is running.
What will I see at the Alternatives?
Large groupers, bluespotted stingrays on the sand, squid and nudibranchs, and leopard sharks reported resting on the seabed in spring. The occurrence data for this position also records humphead wrasse, giant moray, sea goldie, orchid dottyback and the pyjama nudibranch. Stingray Station at the western end is where the rays gather in March and April.
Is there current at the Alternatives, and how is the visibility?
The current is tidal and it drives the visibility. When it runs from the south, especially with wind and sea behind it, visibility can drop right off and the published advice is not to dive. When the water is calm or the current comes from the north, the site is clear and full of fish. Current also sweeps between the middle ergs.
Can you night dive the Alternatives?
Yes, and Stingray Station in particular is described as a good night dive. The guidance is that night diving here only works in optimal conditions and that you should carry two torches. The shallow depth and the shelter of the reef are what make it viable, but a southerly current will cancel it.
Life recorded at The Alternatives
60 species within 2.17 km · OBISGymnothorax javanicusoccasional · 10 recordsTaeniura lymmaoccasional · 6 recordsCheilinus undulatusoccasional · 6 recordsBalistoides viridescensrare · 2 records
Pseudanthias squamipinnisoccasional · 12 records
Chlorurus sordidusoccasional · 8 records
All 60 species recorded in this area
| Species | How often | Records |
|---|---|---|
| Pseudanthias squamipinnis | occasional | 12 |
| Gymnothorax javanicus | occasional | 10 |
| Chlorurus sordidus | occasional | 8 |
| Acanthurus sohal | occasional | 7 |
| Paracirrhites forsteri | occasional | 7 |
| Taeniura lymma | occasional | 6 |
| Monotaxis grandoculis | occasional | 6 |
| Cheilinus undulatus | occasional | 6 |
| Chromodoris quadricolor | occasional | 6 |
| Parupeneus forsskali | occasional | 5 |
| Amphiprion bicinctus | occasional | 5 |
| Thalassoma rueppellii | occasional | 5 |
| Epibulus insidiator | rare | 4 |
| Pterois miles | rare | 4 |
| Heniochus intermedius | rare | 4 |
| Fistularia commersonii | rare | 4 |
| Chaetodon auriga | rare | 4 |
| Chaetodon melannotus | rare | 4 |
| Chaetodon semilarvatus | rare | 4 |
| Ctenochaetus striatus | rare | 4 |
| Pomacentrus sulfureus | rare | 4 |
| Variola louti | rare | 3 |
| Amblyglyphidodon indicus | rare | 3 |
| Arothron stellatus | rare | 3 |
| Cephalopholis argus | rare | 3 |
| Cephalopholis miniata | rare | 3 |
| Cheilinus abudjubbe | rare | 3 |
| Coris aygula | rare | 3 |
| Epinephelus tauvina | rare | 3 |
| Hipposcarus harid | rare | 3 |
| Naso elegans | rare | 3 |
| Parupeneus cyclostomus | rare | 3 |
| Pseudochromis fridmani | rare | 3 |
| Scarus ferrugineus | rare | 3 |
| Scarus frenatus | rare | 3 |
| Tridacna maxima | rare | 3 |
| Zebrasoma desjardinii | rare | 3 |
| Zebrasoma xanthurum | rare | 3 |
| Abudefduf sexfasciatus | rare | 3 |
| Myripristis murdjan | rare | 3 |
| Sargocentron caudimaculatum | rare | 2 |
| Caesio lunaris | rare | 2 |
| Hemigymnus melapterus | rare | 2 |
| Chaetodon fasciatus | rare | 2 |
| Naso hexacanthus | rare | 2 |
| Labroides dimidiatus | rare | 2 |
| Arothron diadematus | rare | 2 |
| Pseudobalistes fuscus | rare | 2 |
| Scarus niger | rare | 2 |
| Sargocentron marisrubri | rare | 2 |
| Balistoides viridescens | rare | 2 |
| Cheilinus lunulatus | rare | 2 |
| Papilloculiceps longiceps | rare | 2 |
| Pastinachus sephen | rare | 2 |
| Platax orbicularis | rare | 2 |
| Platax teira | rare | 2 |
| Lutjanus bohar | rare | 2 |
| Chlorurus gibbus | rare | 2 |
| Pterocaesio chrysozona | rare | 2 |
| Grampus griseus | rare | 2 |
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