Eritrea — Dahlak Archipelago

The Dahlak Archipelago is a scatter of more than 200 islands in the southern Red Sea, part of Eritrea, and among the least dived reef systems anywhere on earth. Decades of political isolation combined with limited dive infrastructure have left the walls, drop-offs, and seagrass beds almost entirely untouched. Hammerhead sharks, sea turtles, and bottlenose dolphins move through with no fishing pressure to push them away. Scattered across the shallows are the rusting hulks of Italian naval and merchant vessels sunk during World War II, colonised now by dense coral growth and resident fish populations. Getting here requires a live-aboard or special permit, but for divers willing to make the effort, the Dahlak Archipelago delivers a glimpse of what Red Sea reefs looked like before mass tourism.