Wow! This is one of the best places in the world to interact with whales. Gray whales migrate into the bay every year to mate, and give birth and guests can pet them and kiss them. We were not chasing the whales. We simply motored next to them, cut the engine, and they chose to swim over to us and stick their heads out of the water looking to interact with us. This is a great trip for the whole family. We are not allowed in the water so non-divers can enjoy this trip as much as divers.

This is a new and very nice boat sailing in the Red Sea southern itinerary. There are 5 different levels to the boat and lots of space for all the guests to spread out. Most of the diving is done from zodiacs, but some times from the mothership. There is no camera room, but there are 2 camera tables on the dive deck and cubbies holes for the photographers to store all their electronics. There lots of electrical outlets all over the boat for charging electronics, and there is plenty of space in the lounge area, dining area or bar area to set up camera systems.
The cruise director and crew are excellent. They are very experienced and professional. The menu changes daily and the food is tasty. Divers with dietary restrictions will have no problems on the boat.
Nice warm towels are draped over your shoulders once your BCD is off your back. What a treat! The crew on the dive deck are really helpful with getting your gear on and off. Air and Nitrox fills are good and consistent. There are also robes in each cabin which is nice to put on in between dives.
We also have the flexibility to dive with the divemaster or buddy up and go do our own dives. The dive briefings are very detailed so it gave us a lot of confidence to separate from the group and go off on our own to explore. For divers who prefer to dive with the divemaster, the groups are smaller because some divers would rather plan and do their own dive. Everyone wins!
Overall great boat, excellent service and highly recommend.

The Red Sea Aggressor II does the northern Red Sea itinerary which is great for wreck diving enthusiasts. The boat itself isn’t new, but it is well maintained and we did not envy other boats that were anchored next to us. Everything worked exceptionally well on the boat and no one encountered any issues on the boat.
There is no camera room, but there are two camera tables on the dive deck and lots of cubby holes for photographers to put their electronics in. There are lots of electrical outlets all over the boat for charging as well.
The best thing about this boat is the crew. They really made the trip for us. The cruise director is one of the best that I have encountered (I’ve done over 20 liveaboards) and he makes the trip really fun for everyone, including his crew. The guests and the crew were all having fun during the week. It is. It only really fun, but there is also a strong focus on safety. The dive crew are all very experienced divers in the Red Sea and excellent at what they do.
We also have the flexibility to dive with the divemaster or buddy up and go do our own dives. The dive briefings are very detailed so it gave us a lot of confidence to separate from the group and go off on our own to explore. For divers who prefer to dive with the divemaster, the groups are smaller because some divers would rather plan and do their own dive. Everyone wins!
Overall the crew really made the trip for us and we had a really good time on the boat. Highly recommend!

This is my 2nd trip to the Red Sea and it didn’t disappoint again. I did both the southern itinerary for reefs and big animals and the northern itinerary for wrecks and it was one of the best 2 weeks of diving I’ve done.
We did not see many sharks, or any mantas or whale sharks this time, but the reefs of the southern itinerary are some of the healthiest and most colorful in the world. Lots of massive soft coral gardens inhabited with all kinds of tropical reef fish. The best reefs are Brothers, Daedalus and Elphinstone and these can only be accessed via liveaboard.
In the northern itinerary, there are so many wrecks that any wreck diving enthusiast will be very happy. The famous Thistlegorm wreck is the highlight, and the best way to dive it is from a liveaboard so you can plan the dives around the arrival of the multitude of day boats. The reefs in the north are also really nice with a mix of soft and hard corals and large gorgonian fans.
Because most sites in the northern itinerary can also be dived from land-based resorts, the sites are more crowded than the southern itineraries.