Daymaniyat Islands

Experience the jewels of Oman on this spectacular liveaboard itinerary. Focused on northern Oman, and the Daymaniyat Islands in particular, highlights include huge shoals of fish, barracuda, jacks, turtles, leopard shark and possible whale shark sightings in season. Expect to see plenty of larger marine life including rays, honeycomb moray eels, cuttlefish and reef sharks. In addition, keep an eye out for the smaller marine life on the reef and wrecks.

ITINERARY HIGHLIGHTS

• Explore the vibrant coral reefs of the Daymaniyat Islands, home to 280 fish species.
• Discover abundant marine life at Fahal Island, including sharks, stingrays, and diverse corals.
• Encounter whale sharks, dolphins, and manta rays in their natural habitat.
• Dive the wreck of Al Munassir at Bandar Khayran, teeming with moray eels and nudibranchs.

On the trip you'll discover an abundance of marine life, including whale sharks (seasonally), dolphins, manta rays, sharks, sea turtles, moray eels, angelfish, stingrays, king mackerel, tuna, lobster, crayfish, and nudibranchs. More than 1,000 different types of fish and shellfish call the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman home. Strict fishing conditions and large marine parks ensure that this valuable treasure is protected.

These itineraries start and end in Sifah. A seven night itinerary will typically spend three days at the popular Daymaniyat Islands, one day in Fahal and one and a half days in Bandar Khayran.

Up to 4 dives are offered each day, most from Zodiacs.

Fahal Island: Located approximately 4 km off the coast of Muscat, Fahal is a top dive site offering diverse marine life. Its bays are home to a wide variety of hard and soft corals, while the sandy bottom provides opportunities to spot sharks and stingrays. Another must-see on this trip is the wreck of Al Munassir at Bandar Khayran, where divers can encounter moray eels, lobsters, numerous nudibranchs, and large schools of fish.

Daymaniyat Islands: The Daymaniyat Islands are the jewels for diving in the Gulf of Oman. This string of small, rocky islands north of Muscat are full of coral reefs down to 30m, with an abundance of marine life. Coral reefs cover up to 70% of the dive sites, with more than 100 different species of soft and hard coral, many of which are unique to Oman’s waters. Marine life is abundant with 280 different species of fish, varying from sting rays, turtles, moray eels, leopard sharks whale shark. Green sea turtles & hawksbill turtles are common residents of the Daymaniyat Islands. Bottlenose dolphins, spinner dolphins and sometimes humpback whales can also be encountered. The islands are a nature reserve and an important turtle nesting site as well as a sanctuary for migrating birds.

Commonly visited dive sites in the Daymaniyat Islands include:

Aquarium: The Pearl of the Daymaniyat Islands where you can see everything. Fish in their thousands; schools of jacks, snappers, batfish, barracuda, red-toothed triggerfish. The variety of species is large; huge stingrays and eagle rays, turtles, leopard sharks, endless moray eels, scorpion fish, seahorses and numerous nudibranchs, cuttlefish, squid, and whale sharks can be seen.

3 Sisters: Abundant soft corals, stingrays, moray eels, turtles, mola mola and sometimes leopard sharks pass by.

Garden of Eden: An idyllic landscape with huge blocks spangled with soft orange, purple and yellow soft corals.

June: Table corals, soft corals, colorful fish in the thousands.

Tito's Run: Shallow coral gardens where turtles and leopard sharks are often encountered.

Hayut:  A wall sloping down to 20m and a very good drift dive.  Honeycomb moray eels, stingrays, lion fish, turtles and barracuda are often seen.

EXPERIENCE REQUIRED: You must be an Advanced Open Water diver or equivalent and have logged a minimum of 30 dives to join this safari.