Lahami Bay, Hamata July 2004
Hotel:
Lahami Bay Beach Resort & Gardens
Diving Centre:
Ocean Pro Divers
Duration:
7 days
Diving experience:
Advanced Open Water Certificate, Dive 90 - 103
Assessment:
Hotel
Satisfaction in %
Comments
Overall impression
80
Room
70
toilet separatly
Meals
85
Buffet, pasta prepared freshly when ordered
Atmosphere of restaurant
85
Service at restaurant
80
Ratio of price/ performance
70
Resort
70
Pool
85
Cleanliness/ hygiene
85
Beach
60
Diving
Satisfaction in %
Comments
Variety of diving spots
80
Quality of diving spots
70
Quality of boat
80
2 toilets, clean, spacious
Service on board
65
transfer on board by truck throught staff
Meals on board
50
Service at diving cenre
80
Print-out of dive spots with dive profile at check-
out
Quality of diving cenre
85
Ratio of price/ performance
60
Nitrox charged extra
Equipment
70
Briefings/ Safety
65
decompression chamber in Marsa Alam
Location
Satisfaction in %
Comments
Accessibility/ transport connection
40
Flight via Munic or Düsseldorf (update: now
directly from Frankfurt)
Nightlife
20
sitting in tent of beduins
Shopping facilities
10
Other activities
20
At a glance travelling to the hotel furthest south in Egypt seems a hassle: Going by train from Frankfurt to Munich in the evening,
getting up at 4 in the morning to catch a cab to go to the airport, landing in Marsa Alam and spending another 2:20 transfer to the
hotel.... but it is worth it!
Hotel:
The hotel was the best by far that we had seen in Egypt. A room that does not have to stand back in international comparison of
4-star hotels (against all odds), breakfast and dinner that are full in variety and quality, especially considering that all ingredients
had to be shipped through the desert.
But why flying to Egypt in July when there are 40 degrees in the shade in the first place? Situation at work forced us to take our
vacation in July and we were pleasantly surprised: An almost empty hotel without any quarrel in the restaurants or on the diving
boats to get best seating. Very pleasant.
The hotel ist very quiet, we did not hear a thing which we appreciated a lot, taking a break from the big city and work, enjoying
the silence. There was not much of a nightlife, the usual waterpipe bars, but we did not come for nightlife in the first place.
Diving:
The diving centre of ocean-pro seemed very professional, equipped to cope with masses of divers but nothing is for free -
meaning everything is charged extra: Each boat trip, even for the night dive which was a four minute trip into the bay and
additional charges for the night dive... that is adding up! But then again it has been the only diving centre we know in Egypt
offering charts of the dive sites for the dives conducted at check-out including diving duration and depth. Considering that the
oxygyn for the Nitrox has to be shipped from Kairo, the additional nitrox charge is reasonable.
The diving boats have been excellent!!!. Not even the two bathrooms/ toilets reaked. A lot of space to set up and undo the gear,
to lay out in the sun and to eat. The port for the boats is approximately in 800 metres (1/2 a mile) distance. That has the
advantage that the sun worshipper lying at the beach are not disturbed by the boats. The transfer from the diving centre to the
port is organised with a truck, seating all divers on wooden bars in the back of the truck.
A controversal subject - at least on web pages - are the safety standards of a dive centre.
We personally thought its critical that
a) there were no flashing/ bolting lights were offered for night dives and
b) that after dives the presence of each diver was not checked on a list. The diving instructor Bernhard did a good job knowing
the names of all divers pretty fast and probably would have noticed if one of us was missing. Nontheless, we would have felt
more secure knowing that our names are put on a list and checked after the dive. In principle it is a flaw that no safety jacket or
buoy were on board (even if we had our dive jackets). The boat had oxygyn on board but in case of hitting a reef.... well, there is
always something amiss...
We addressed the story of the propeller and the terminally injured member of the boat crew: We were told that during the time of
the accident it was Ramadan and staff was not really concentrating on work. Most accidents happen during and because of (?)
the Ramadan. We were not present but certainly accidents happen.
The diving itself was really nice. Especially the canyon reefs were unique - not only because of the inhabitants but alos because
of the rays of light from above, a "light show". We saw the oceanic whitetip after diving. Even though the crew warned about not
going in the water, most divers jumped in with their snorkels and masks to get a closer glimpse of the shark. We also went in,
staying close to the boat and keeping enough other divers in between us and the shark. The oceanic whitetip was cruising
around the boat patiently and it was a great joy to watch this fantastic swimmer in the water. Unfortunately, we missed the Manta
but if you are lucky, you have a chance of seeing them. There is no guarantee but we really enjoyed most of the dives. The house
reef is ok, nothing out of the ordinary but definitely worth one dive. We dived at the house reef starting from the beach but the
reef itself is a lot larger and it would probably be a good idea to also make a trip with the boat to a spot further out. We made the
dive at the house reef right after we had arrived and checked in, so it was really nice to "get used" to diving again.
But see for yourself:
Lahami Bay, Hamata July 2004
Hotel:
Lahami Bay Beach Resort & Gardens
Diving Centre:
Ocean Pro Divers
Duration:
7 days
Diving experience:
Advanced Open Water Certificate, Dive 90 - 103
Assessment:
Hotel
Satisfaction in %
Comments
Overall impression
80
Room
70
toilet separatly
Meals
85
Buffet, pasta prepared freshly when ordered
Atmosphere of restaurant
85
Service at restaurant
80
Ratio of price/ performance
70
Resort
70
Pool
85
Cleanliness/ hygiene
85
Beach
60
Diving
Satisfaction in %
Comments
Variety of diving spots
80
Quality of diving spots
70
Quality of boat
80
2 toilets, clean, spacious
Service on board
65
transfer on board by truck throught staff
Meals on board
50
Service at diving cenre
80
Print-out of dive spots with dive profile at check-
out
Quality of diving cenre
85
Ratio of price/ performance
60
Nitrox charged extra
Equipment
70
Briefings/ Safety
65
decompression chamber in Marsa Alam
Location
Satisfaction in %
Comments
Accessibility/ transport connection
40
Flight via Munic or Düsseldorf (update: now
directly from Frankfurt)
Nightlife
20
sitting in tent of beduins
Shopping facilities
10
Other activities
20
At a glance travelling to the hotel furthest south in Egypt seems a hassle: Going by train from Frankfurt to Munich in the evening,
getting up at 4 in the morning to catch a cab to go to the airport, landing in Marsa Alam and spending another 2:20 transfer to the
hotel.... but it is worth it!
Hotel:
The hotel was the best by far that we had seen in Egypt. A room that does not have to stand back in international comparison of
4-star hotels (against all odds), breakfast and dinner that are full in variety and quality, especially considering that all ingredients
had to be shipped through the desert.
But why flying to Egypt in July when there are 40 degrees in the shade in the first place? Situation at work forced us to take our
vacation in July and we were pleasantly surprised: An almost empty hotel without any quarrel in the restaurants or on the diving
boats to get best seating. Very pleasant.
The hotel ist very quiet, we did not hear a thing which we appreciated a lot, taking a break from the big city and work, enjoying
the silence. There was not much of a nightlife, the usual waterpipe bars, but we did not come for nightlife in the first place.
Diving:
The diving centre of ocean-pro seemed very professional, equipped to cope with masses of divers but nothing is for free -
meaning everything is charged extra: Each boat trip, even for the night dive which was a four minute trip into the bay and
additional charges for the night dive... that is adding up! But then again it has been the only diving centre we know in Egypt
offering charts of the dive sites for the dives conducted at check-out including diving duration and depth. Considering that the
oxygyn for the Nitrox has to be shipped from Kairo, the additional nitrox charge is reasonable.
The diving boats have been excellent!!!. Not even the two bathrooms/ toilets reaked. A lot of space to set up and undo the gear,
to lay out in the sun and to eat. The port for the boats is approximately in 800 metres (1/2 a mile) distance. That has the
advantage that the sun worshipper lying at the beach are not disturbed by the boats. The transfer from the diving centre to the
port is organised with a truck, seating all divers on wooden bars in the back of the truck.
A controversal subject - at least on web pages - are the safety standards of a dive centre.
We personally thought its critical that
a) there were no flashing/ bolting lights were offered for night dives and
b) that after dives the presence of each diver was not checked on a list. The diving instructor Bernhard did a good job knowing
the names of all divers pretty fast and probably would have noticed if one of us was missing. Nontheless, we would have felt
more secure knowing that our names are put on a list and checked after the dive. In principle it is a flaw that no safety jacket or
buoy were on board (even if we had our dive jackets). The boat had oxygyn on board but in case of hitting a reef.... well, there is
always something amiss...
We addressed the story of the propeller and the terminally injured member of the boat crew: We were told that during the time of
the accident it was Ramadan and staff was not really concentrating on work. Most accidents happen during and because of (?)
the Ramadan. We were not present but certainly accidents happen.
The diving itself was really nice. Especially the canyon reefs were unique - not only because of the inhabitants but alos because
of the rays of light from above, a "light show". We saw the oceanic whitetip after diving. Even though the crew warned about not
going in the water, most divers jumped in with their snorkels and masks to get a closer glimpse of the shark. We also went in,
staying close to the boat and keeping enough other divers in between us and the shark. The oceanic whitetip was cruising
around the boat patiently and it was a great joy to watch this fantastic swimmer in the water. Unfortunately, we missed the Manta
but if you are lucky, you have a chance of seeing them. There is no guarantee but we really enjoyed most of the dives. The house
reef is ok, nothing out of the ordinary but definitely worth one dive. We dived at the house reef starting from the beach but the
reef itself is a lot larger and it would probably be a good idea to also make a trip with the boat to a spot further out. We made the
dive at the house reef right after we had arrived and checked in, so it was really nice to "get used" to diving again.
But see for yourself:
