I am organizing a dive trip to Israel

[decompresion 2]

Hello all,
Background:
I am organizing a trip to Israel for certified SCUBA divers. The red sea in Eilat is diveable year-round. Almost all dive sites can be accessed from the shore and that makes it very cheap. The slope is pretty much a dead drop and you can readily do a 60m(200ft) dive with your buddy. I am not affiliated with any shop or organization and I am not doing this for the money (If you don't believe me: ask me how I intend to prove it)
The bureaucracy:
The bureaucracy is relatively heavy as diving is regulated by a government organisation. There are SCUBA diving inspectors and training for safety is taken seriously. Instructors must be affiliated with a legitimate dive shop and have government permits so there are no freelancers. While they make it hard on dive shops to operate they give the divers a wide freedom to operate.
I will coordinate all of this for everyone in the group. You really only need three things: A certification card or proof of certification that can be found online. Dive insurance (not just regular health insurance) and you it can be bought on the spot. Proof that you have dived in the past 6 months. Without proof of the last dive you will need to do a refresher dive that takes about 1.5 hours. Most dive shops require payment for dive services after you are done, like a restaurant. There is usually no need to pre-pay and you only pay for what you use.
Traveling to Israel:
US and Canadian passport holders only need a valid passport with 6 moth left on the expiration. You get 3 month on every entry.

Duration: 4-5 days of diving in Eilat (red sea)
Dates: TBA but March - May 2016 time frame
Number of slots: 10
Requirements:
--OW certification
--Signed logbook with a dive at least 6 month prior to the trip.(Refresher dives will be required if you can't show a signed logbook)
--Diving Insurance. This is a requirement by Israeli law. Certified divers who are tourists can buy one month diving insurance on the spot that works in Israel, Jordan and Egypt.
--Emergency air source is required of all divers. Diving without and octopus is strictly forbidden
Recommendation:
--Advanced or deep diving certification. The slope in the red sea means that there are many dive sites deeper than 20m(60ft). You can do the certification in English while in Israel and it takes 2 days. You will be diving for those 2 days. If you have ever wanted to get your advanced certification this is an excellent time for it.
--Wreck diving. There are 4 wrecks in Eilat:
---The missile boat is probably the most famous one. There are tons of pictures if you google "Satil Eilat". "Satil" is the acronym for "missile boat" and true to it's name it is a decommissioned Navy boat that was sunk as a dive site. It sits upright in 24m at the lowest point if you bring a shovel. It is a shore dive with an extremely short swim (less than a minute). There are a couple of swim-thrus and four rooms to do "penetration" dive. Most people don't bother with that.
---The "Yatush" yacht gets its nickname from being so small that it is like a mosquito or "Yatush" in Hebrew (That is actually a lie but I like this version of the story better). It lies at 30m and requires zero technical skill. it is a shore dive with a very short swim (3 minutes). Google "Yatush Eliat" for images.
---The "Yeelat" glass bottom boat hit a reef and quickly sank to 50m. It is only accessible by a short boat ride or a long swim because the shore entry point is in a nature preserve. The boat itself can be seen in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cm3ZSDQxgOY
---The "Sunboat" is a 30m(100ft) long boat that was sunk as a dive site in the northern part of the Eilat bay. It is 30m long and here is a video of it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyu4D9JuWxI. this site is a bit less accessible but on this trip I intend to dive it.
To summarize the wreck diving: easy and non technical.
---
Technical diving:
--Eilat is a technical diving dream. If you have a technical certification you will love this place. Any Nitrox mix is easy to get since there are at least two dive shops that mix gasses on the spot. Pony bottles are available for rent along with full tech gear. You need a Nitrox approved and clean regulator (With a service date sleeve) to dive a Nitrox tank but they are available for rent if you don't have one.
If you want to get Nitrox certified on this trip just let me know and I will set it up. The certification involves you doing some homework before the trip, a short classroom portion and 2 dives.
--DPVs are available for rent in a couple of shops but you need to be certified. Certification classes are available by appointment and include two dives. If you want to get your DPV certification I can set it up ahead of time or you can decide on the spot.
--Trimix and Heliox can be arranged fairly easily with a couple of days of heads up. Let me know in advance if you are going to do Trimix dives and the dive shop will have everything set up for you before you arrive. There are doubles, pony bottles, down lines, safety divers and surface supplied 100% Oxygen trapeze from a boat if you want it. At 75m there is still plenty of light penetration so you don't even need a flashlight. The bay bottoms out at 1,000m so it is plenty deep.
--Extra insurance (costly) may be needed for serious tech diving.
--Night dives are easy and you can dive all night. There is a recommendation to keep night dives shallower than 9 meters and to have dived that site during on the same day. I intend to do a night dive every night on the trip.
---
Underwater Photography:
--Most dive shops have GoPros for rent by the dive or by the day. There are also full photography lab services available. If you are bringing your fancy camera and housing I can probably arrange a professional underwater photographer for some training.
--There is much to see. Octopus, blue spotted stingray, tons of coral, urchins, morays, lion fish, crocodile fish, turtles and many more. It is rare to see sharks or any really large fish.
Accommodations:
--It really depends on the group. There are places to stay from $30-$300 per night. Some dive shops have a diver's deal but the group can decide whatever.
--The dive sites are a 10 minute ride from the center of the small city. There is a movie theater, a hospital with a hyperbaric chamber, tons of shops and restaurants and plenty of beach activities. There are also off-road jeep tours, camel rides and hiking tours. There is an excellent underwater observatory with a shark pool and a turtle hatchery.

If you have read this far, let me know if you want to do this.

There are no dangerous dives
Only dangerous divers

[decompresion 2]

I have not been to Cuba.
Roatan, Florida, Costa Rica, Playa del Carmen (and cenotes), some Australia.

I am doing a trip to Palau in October You can join in. Next year is Israel and Cocos Islands but I can do a short one to Cuba if you need a partner in crime.

There are no dangerous dives
Only dangerous divers

[TriGirl 276]

I find that location easier to dive from Aqaba, Jordan. You can see Eilat right across the water, and you don't need special insurance. Back when I dove there, it was also reasonably priced. Just a suggestion.

See the upside, and always wear your parachute! -- Christopher Titus

Shut Up & Jump!

[decompresion 2]

I would love to go diving in Jordan, Sinai and points south. There are better dive sites and more shoreline. Excellent suggestion.
I would recommend to anyone on this trip to stay a few extra days in the region. You can easily cross over to Aqaba from Eilat and go diving or go to Petra and Wadi Rum (Totally BASE-worthy). You can also go south to Egypt and dive in Taba, Nuweibaa, Dahab, Sharm-al-Sheikh or Ras Muhammad.
Jerusalem is fairly close and Tel-Aviv also.

There are no dangerous dives
Only dangerous divers

[nigel99 144]

decompresion

I would love to go diving in Jordan, Sinai and points south. There are better dive sites and more shoreline. Excellent suggestion.
I would recommend to anyone on this trip to stay a few extra days in the region. You can easily cross over to Aqaba from Eilat and go diving or go to Petra and Wadi Rum (Totally BASE-worthy). You can also go south to Egypt and dive in Taba, Nuweibaa, Dahab, Sharm-al-Sheikh or Ras Muhammad.
Jerusalem is fairly close and Tel-Aviv also.

I'm a strong maybe. I will be doing my OW as soon as it warms up here in the next month or two!

Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

[decompresion 2]

Iago

I've never been to the ME and this would be a good opportunity.

I'd like to hear more.

Are you certified? Advanced? Technical?

I am thinking we meet up at the Tel-Aviv international airport and either rent cars or a van to drive down to Eilat. It's about 3-4 hours to get there on easy roads. There are charter flights that go directly to the Eilat airport but I am not sure how reliable they are.
If we have 10 divers we might be able to get a cheaper ride by renting a driver and a van. Once we are in Eilat, most of it is walking distance or short cab rides. Most diveshops have a deal to pick up divers at the hotel every morning and drop them off at the end of the day if you are diving with them.
There are many hotels, motels, hostels and AirBnb type places in Eilat. Our group can decide where to stay.

What other information would you like to know?

There are no dangerous dives
Only dangerous divers

[decompresion 2]

I am bumping my own thread.

There are no dangerous dives
Only dangerous divers