Emperor Divers Hurghada is a name that still turns up in older guides and forum threads, but the company no longer runs day trips from Hurghada or El Gouna. Our verdict: a dive company with refreshingly clear pricing rules, and the wrong choice for a snorkel day on a Hurghada holiday, because there is nothing to join locally. From this coast it sells only liveaboard trips. The day trips we link on this page are comparable listings run by other companies, and we say so wherever they appear.
- Type
- Dive company with liveaboards and day centres elsewhere in Egypt
- Base
- Day centres in Sharm El Sheikh, Port Ghalib and Wadi Sabarah — none in Hurghada or El Gouna
- Boats
- Liveaboards Emperor Elite, Emperor Superior, Emperor Asmaa
- What they sell
- From the Hurghada area: liveaboard trips only; no snorkel day boats
- Where to book
- Own site
- Prices
- "No hidden extras" policy; no Hurghada day prices
- Status
- Operating, but no Hurghada day centre any more
Own website: emperordivers.com ↗ · 20 October 2026
Our scores
- Day trips from Hurghada
- 1/5None: no Hurghada or El Gouna day centre
- Transparency on extras
- 5/5Park fees, port fees, nitrox and fuel surcharges included
- Rules for snorkelers
- 4/5Clear published rules on its day boats elsewhere
- Liveaboards from the Hurghada area
- 3/5Three boats; departure port not named on the site
- Booking ease for Hurghada guests
- 2/5Own site only, and only for liveaboards
What Emperor does well
- "No hidden extras": park and port fees, nitrox and fuel surcharges included
- Clear rules for snorkelers on its day boats: flotation aid, dive guide, minimum age
- Three liveaboards with departures near Hurghada and Port Ghalib airports
Why it does not fit a Hurghada snorkel day
- No day centre in Hurghada, El Gouna or Soma Bay any more
- No snorkel day boats you can join from a Hurghada hotel
- Not sold on the booking platforms
Who Emperor Divers are
Emperor Divers is a dive company with day centres and liveaboards in Egypt and elsewhere. Its current website lists Egyptian day-diving centres in Sharm El Sheikh, Port Ghalib and Wadi Sabarah only. In its Egypt FAQ, Hurghada and El Gouna appear only as places where liveaboard guests can stay before or after a trip, with transfers included.
It was not always so. Emperor earlier had centres in Hurghada, Soma Bay and El Gouna, and its El Gouna centre was still posting about local dive days until a few years ago. Those pages are gone from the current site, and the company has not said when the Hurghada-area centres closed. The CDWS, the chamber that licenses dive centres in Egypt, lists Emperor in Sharm El Sheikh and at Wadi Sabarah near Marsa Alam, and nothing in Hurghada or El Gouna.
What Emperor sells from the Hurghada area
From this part of the coast, Emperor sells liveaboard trips: several days living and diving from a boat. Its Egyptian liveaboards are the Emperor Elite, Emperor Superior and Emperor Asmaa. The company says its departure ports in Egypt are close to Hurghada and Port Ghalib airports, without naming the port.
A liveaboard is a holiday for certified divers, not a day out from a beach hotel. If you came to Hurghada for one or two days on the water with snorkeling or a first dive, Emperor has nothing to sell you here.
How Emperor handles snorkelers on its day boats elsewhere
Its published rules are worth knowing, because they are a good standard to hold any dive-centre boat to. On Emperor's day boats in Sharm, Port Ghalib and Wadi Sabarah, snorkelers must wait until the divers are back on board before they go in, must be accompanied by a dive guide, and must wear a flotation aid. The minimum age on its day boats is generally 4, PADI's Bubblemaker programme starts at 8, and certified diving at 10.
If you join a dive-centre boat in Hurghada as a snorkeler, ask the same questions: who guides the snorkelers, when you swim, and whether a flotation vest is provided.
Emperor Divers prices and the "no hidden extras" policy
Emperor publishes no day prices for Hurghada, because it runs no day trips here. Its pricing policy is still useful as a benchmark. The company says nitrox, park fees, port fees and fuel surcharges are included across its liveaboards and Egyptian dive centres; payments are processed in Egyptian pounds, and prices carry 14 % VAT.
Compare that with a typical Hurghada day. Dive centres here add a daily reef or permit tax of €5–7 on top of their prices, and some snorkel boats ask for the national-park fee, about €5, in cash on the day. Read any Hurghada price list for its "not included" line; the cheapest headline is not always the cheapest day.
| What | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Colona Divers — mandatory reef tax | EUR 5 | Per day, on top of boat and dive prices. colona.com ↗ |
| Blue Paradise — environmental & entertainment tax | EUR 6 | Per person per day, paid on the spot; lunch (€6) is also extra on its snorkel day. blueparadise.be ↗ |
| James & Mac — permit fee | EUR 7 | Per day for non-divers and divers on its boats. james-mac.com ↗ |
Checked on 20 October 2026. Many boat trips include the island or park fee, many don't: read the listing.
What travellers say
We have no verified review themes for Emperor's Egyptian operations to report here, and old reviews of its closed Hurghada-area centres say nothing about a trip you can book today. If you are weighing up one of its liveaboards, check the departure port, which park and port fees are included, nitrox, and the minimum certification and number of logged dives required.
How to book a comparable day in Hurghada
You cannot book an Emperor day trip from Hurghada, so our pick is a comparable day run by another company: Hurghada: Full-Day Boat Trip with 2 Scuba Dives and Lunch, from $53 per person. It describes itself as run from a five-star PADI resort, with pick-up around 08:00 and return in mid-afternoon. The listing does not name the dive centre, and nothing links it to Emperor.
GetYourGuideFull day
Hurghada: Full-Day Boat Trip with 2 Scuba Dives and Lunch
4.8 (400)
from $53Check dates
GetYourGuideFull day
Hurghada: Snorkeling or Try Dive Luxury Yacht Trip
4.9 (184)
from $44Check dates
GetYourGuideFull day
Intro Diving Beginner and Discover Red Sea Underwater
4.8 (1,485)
from $52Check dates
GetYourGuideFull day
Hurghada: 2 Dives for Beginner OR Snorkeling Trip with lunch
4.8 (615)
from $30Check dates
Prices checked on 20 October 2026
All four listings are comparable trips by other companies, not Emperor Divers. Before you book a try dive, ask whether the instructor takes you alone: from a boat, Egyptian rules require one instructor per intro diver (1:1). GetYourGuide's default is free cancellation up to 24 hours before, unless the listing says otherwise.
Alternatives: dive centres in Hurghada and El Gouna
These Hurghada centres run day boats with snorkel places and publish their own prices:
- Colona Divers: Zahabia Beach, Hurghada; snorkel boat day €28 with lunch plus €5 reef tax; house reef €15; PADI Discover Scuba €90.
- James & Mac: Giftun Azur Resort; non-divers €25 plus a €7 permit; 1:1 try dive €85.
- Blue Paradise: the Corniche; snorkel day €30–33 without lunch, plus €6 tax.
If you are staying in El Gouna, the town still has several dive clubs with boats from Abu Tig Marina, and Dolphin House is about as close from there as from Hurghada; see our El Gouna guide. For the rules, ratios and flying-after-diving times, read the diving and try-dive guide, and for every company we review, the operators directory. Easy Divers, another name from older guides, has effectively closed.
Emperor Divers Hurghada: questions
Does Emperor Divers have a dive centre in Hurghada?
No. Emperor's Egyptian day centres are in Sharm El Sheikh, Port Ghalib and Wadi Sabarah. It earlier had centres in Hurghada, Soma Bay and El Gouna, but from the Hurghada area it now sells only liveaboard trips.
Is there an Emperor Divers centre in El Gouna?
Not any more. The El Gouna centre no longer appears on Emperor's site or in the CDWS directory. El Gouna has other dive clubs with boats from Abu Tig Marina.
Can snorkelers join Emperor's boats?
On its day boats in Sharm, Port Ghalib and Wadi Sabarah, yes: snorkelers go in after the divers are back on board, with a dive guide and a flotation aid; the minimum age is generally 4. There are no Emperor day boats from Hurghada.
Can you swim with dolphins in Hurghada, Egypt?
Wild dolphins, mostly bottlenose and sometimes spinners, use Dolphin House (Sha'ab El Erg), a reef north of Hurghada, as a daytime resting area, and boats there offer a chance to swim near them if they are present and calm. No operator can promise them, and swimmers must follow a code of conduct: no chasing, no touching, lifejackets on. Dolphin World in Makadi is a captive pool show, not a wild-dolphin trip. Our Dolphin House guide has the details.
What do dive trips cost in Hurghada?
Dive centres here publish their own prices: for example, two boat dives a day at Colona cost €50–60 depending on the number of days, plus a daily reef tax of €5–7 at most centres. Platform intro-dive and dive days start from about $30–53.