Aqaba Marine Reserve

I went scuba diving in the Aqaba Marine Reserve during my trip to Jordan in August 2023, through a local dive center.

Being a scuba diving enthusiast, this was the best way for me to experience this TWHS, however, since the marine reserve is located a few kilometers south of downtown Aqaba, near Tala Bay (where most of the beach resorts are located), the site is easily reached by private car as well and it's also a great spot for snorkeling from the shore if you are not a fan of going too deep underwater in areas such as the so-called Japanese garden or Berenice reef.

The reef, although not very extensive, seems to be quite healthy, compared to other reefs around the world and with a good amount of underwater life. There are lots of corals and small juvenile fish, which is always a good sign. I also saw turtles and other larger fish such as groupers and I was told that also some larger pelagic fish, such as tuna, sharks (even whale sharks) and manta rays can be spotted sometimes, even though I haven't had the luck to see any during my dives.

Something interesting is that King Abdullah II of Jordan is a scuba diver himself and decided to improve the diving spots in the area by sinking a few objects to act as foundation for artificial reefs. Among them are 2 airplanes (one of them, the passenger aircraft Lockheed L-1011 Tristar, is actually …