Sanganeb Marine National Park

Sanganeb is a ring-shaped atoll rising from deep water about 25 km northeast of Port Sudan, crowned by a British-built lighthouse and declared a marine national park in 1990; in 2016 UNESCO inscribed it together with Dungonab Bay and Mukkawar Island. Its plunging outer walls and plateaus are classic central Red Sea at full wattage — dense soft and hard coral, gray reef and silvertip sharks patrolling the north and southwest points, schooling hammerheads in the cooler months, barracuda, and bumphead parrotfish — with almost no dive traffic. Access has always been by liveaboard from Port Sudan; Sudan's civil war, which began in April 2023, has effectively suspended dive tourism, and the park's practical status should be checked against current conditions.

The rules that bind divers

On paper the park bans fishing, collecting, and anchor damage, with liveaboards using moorings at the atoll and permits arranged through Sudanese authorities as part of vessel clearance; lighthouse visits were traditionally allowed with keeper permission. In practice, tourism access depends entirely on Sudan's security situation — since the 2023 outbreak of war, liveaboard operations from Port Sudan have largely ceased and government services are disrupted. Any future visit means verifying operator status, insurance validity, and government travel advisories first; the diving rules themselves (no-take, respectful distance from sharks, mooring use) are standard Red Sea practice.

Fees & permits: Historically a park/permit fee bundled into liveaboard clearance costs; current fee administration is uncertain given the conflict.