Dive Deep, Sleep Cool, Sip Cocktails

Red Sea Aggressor V – Deep South – Elba Reef
June 21–28, 2025 - Done and back 
Deep South • Epic Diving • Limited Access

Review
Aggressor Red Sea V
Yes, This Review Is Long. Yes, We’re American. Your expectations and ours are probably not the same.
We’ve broken this into sections so you can skip what you don’t care about. You’re welcome.
The Ship – The Reef – The Staff – The Food – The Overall - Final Verdict
The Ship
We sailed the brand-new Red Sea Aggressor V (launched March 2025, our trip was June 2025), and as first-time Aggressor guests with several liveaboards under our belts, we expected something great. Spoiler: it wasn’t quite there yet.
Let’s start with the dive deck—big, efficient, and clearly built for diving. Two deck showers that doubled as scalding water experiments (much hotter than anything in the cabins). A solid camera table, 16 charging cubbies for 26 divers (though four required NBA height to access), and oddly, none on the opposite side of the table where they’d be useful. Nitrox was available (and reliable), but we feel it really should be included in the price on every liveaboard—it’s hard to do four dives a day without skirting Deco after Day 2. Water stations with 5-gallon jugs were well placed... until Thursday morning, when the desalination system failed and we ran out of water. Yes—on a brand-new ship. We didn’t shower until we begged water from a neighboring boat that afternoon. Refreshing!
Our cabin was spacious with what we assume was a queen bed—but only one side was accessible, so someone had to climb over the other for midnight bathroom runs. The twins on the main deck were advertised as joinable, but instead were bolted to the walls. The shower was roomy with a rain-style head, but could use grab bars or a bench when the sea starts salsa dancing which seemed to happen a lot right after the last dive. Cabin 4’s (our cabin) water took at least 10 minutes just to turn lukewarm. So much for saving water. The towels were soft and new-looking but didn’t absorb water so much as redistribute it. The two included bathrobes, though—rough terry cloth, highly absorbent, and a surprise MVP. No in-room safes, just one shared safe for all guests. Not comforting.
AC was a recurring issue. (Metal boat. Egypt. Summer. You get the picture.) One guest slept in the upper lounge (which sometimes doubled as a meat locker) the first night just to stay cool. While temperatures, for Egypt, weren’t extreme outside (mid to upper-80s), the AC struggled all week. The ship showed signs of a rushed launch: dining room chairs were gouging up floor trim, the in-room TVs worked—but doesn't connect to wifi—and Wi-Fi vanished after Day 2. We hear satellite internet is coming fleet-wide. Hurry, please.
The Reef
We dove Elba Reef. It’s not Brothers, Daedalus, or Elphinstone—but it WAS peaceful and beautifully untouched. Coral was healthy, colorful, and vibrant. Many of dives had no other boats nearby, which is a rarity in Egypt.
Marine life? Clownfish galore, nudibranchs everywhere, a few blue-spotted rays. Sharks were scarce, and as for mantas or hammerheads? Nada—except for one alleged hammerhead sighting with zero photographic evidence (cue the X-Files theme).
The dive schedule was... flexible. Breakfast sometimes crept toward 10 a.m., and dinner slid to 9:30 p.m. some nights. It felt like the itinerary was based on mood.
The Staff
The deck crew? Energetic, helpful, and solid. Dive guides? Competent but uninspiring. They rarely looked back to check on the group—even with a mix of newbies and experienced divers onboard. Because of that, we passed on the night dives. We’re confident divers, but we still prefer a DM who makes occasional eye contact and ensures no one drifts to Sudan. Ours were more focused on pointing out yet another nudibranch.
The Food
Food is a big deal on a liveaboard—it fuels the whole “dive, eat, nap, repeat” cycle. Unfortunately, the bar here was set low.
Breakfast included made-to-order eggs (a win!), but also frozen fries (a crime). No one ever asked about food allergies, despite them being in our GIS forms.
Lunch was buffet-style: usually two meats, starches, and veggies that blurred into one bland, overcooked medley. The salads were mysterious. The meats came drenched in mystery sauces. Possibly the same sauce every time—we’re still unsure.
Dinner was plated, no choices, and often uneaten—not because we’re picky (okay, maybe a little), but because we’ve had far better meals on other liveaboards. Snacks—humorously labeled as “Snakes”—offered some redemption: usually fried, always amusing. Fresh fruit was frequent, and we didn’t go hungry... but we may go home a few pounds lighter, which is a liveaboard first.
The Overall
Would we book the Red Sea Aggressor V again? Probably not. For a new flagship yacht, it felt more like a soft launch than a grand debut.
Would we return to Elba Reef? Unlikely. It was lovely but lacking in the big marine life we chase—and we’ve had our fill of clownfish and nudis for now.
Final verdict?
If this is your first liveaboard, you might be impressed. But if you've been around the dive deck a few times—especially with better food, better AC, and more attentive DMs—you’ll likely leave thinking:
"Well… at least the robes were okay.”

Note: All photos on this page is from our trip to the Red Sea 2024.