Divers with disabilities

Nemo has specially trained instructors...

Diving with limitations Nemo has specially trained instructors…

Enjoy Safaga’s underwater life. Even with a disability.

Divers with disabilities can enjoy the fantastic underwater world that Safaga offers. Divers must be able to provide a medical certificate as proof that they are fit. Please contact us in advance so that we can meet your individual wishes.

Our boat Dory is suitable

Our daily boat “Dory” is 27 meters long, 4.5 meters wide and approved for transporting up to 35 divers and their equipment. There is an extra wide toilet on board, easily accessible for wheelchair users. We have a motorized lift, which provides a diver with all equipment, can be lifted safely and quickly in and out of the water. (within 1 minute!) Our pick-up can be used for transport from the hotel to the boat. Bert Biemans is an IAHD instructor (International Association for Handicapped Divers)

Diving with Bart,

written by Bart

Diving with Nemo is truly an amazing experience. I can only move my thumb, so diving with a new team is always a challenge. At Nemo this is handled carefully. They listen well and come up with the craziest solutions when necessary. And the Red Sea is of course one of the most beautiful diving spots in the world, so that is certainly a great pleasure!

See Bart’s film below:

Bart from the Dory (film)

Friendly hotel for people with disabilities

The hotel is completely adapted for divers and guests. The hotel has an elevator and we have specially furnished rooms. The rooms are extra spacious and the bathroom and toilet have wide doors and are barrier-free.

Our boat Dory is suitable

Our daily boat “Dory” is 28 meters long, 4.5 meters wide and approved to carry up to 35 divers and their equipment. We have an extra wide ramp so wheelchairs can easily be driven on board. On board is an extra wide toilet, easily accessible for wheelchair users. We have a motorized lift, so that a diver with all their equipment can be safely and quickly hoisted from the water (within 1 minute!) For transportation from the hotel to the boat our pick-up can be used. Bert Biemans is also an instructor IAHD and thus qualified in dealing with disabled divers.

Diving with Sebastiaan

Sebastiaan has Down syndrome and needs guidance and care. With the help that suits him, he can continue to develop, including diving.

see Sebastiaan’s film below:

Sebastiaan has Down syndrome but goes diving with Nemodive. (film)

 

Friendly diving hotel for people with disabilities,

written by Liesbet Lenaers,

What an experience! The water was so clear, you could see so far, really impressive! The corals were so beautiful, the tropical fish so funny. I eagerly listened to more experienced divers or browsed the onboard dive books to discover their names. And above all: the crew was so friendly, the employees were so hospitable, I felt so welcome! I will definitely go back!

As a diver with a disability, I thought my travel options would also be limited. I quickly heard that there are some places with adapted facilities. Several suggestions for Nemo in Safaga, that’s it, I booked together with a friend and buddy, who came along for my peace of mind and (self) confidence, but especially for the fun.

Our flight arrived late in Egypt, and we were promptly picked up by the hotel. On the way, evening fell and it became dark. We arrived at the hotel tired. I needed help on the slope in front of the hotel, and on the slope to the lift, not that accessible after all? Or was it fatigue? We put our suitcases in the room, and then went upstairs: the guys from the kitchen had been waiting for us, how that first Egyptian meal tasted. It was really dark already, so we didn’t see the sea yet. Only in the morning at breakfast did we realize how close Nemo is to the sea: what a sight! We were going to discover that underwater world….

We were able to go for a day of boat diving on the first day: efficient and flexible organization, which strengthened my confidence. Diving instructor Mustafa asked the right questions, he did not ask about my “medical disability” (an L4 spinal cord injury, paralyzed from the waist down) but about my diving skills and how they could assist me: so inclusive, heartwarming! The crew kept a close eye on me during the first dives, I felt safe. And when I had enough confidence to stay a little further behind the guide with my buddy Ronnie (to get a better look at a stonefish), they also gave me that space. From dive day two, Captain Hamada helped me with my equipment. Every dive I wanted to get into the water quickly and impatiently, at my request, after checking my equipment, Hamada threw me into the water with a graceful wave. Back on board: I did that leisurely, very satisfied in the chair, which was hoisted on board with a pulley system. I never felt like the needy diver, I was helped without many words and with a big smile.

There were quite a few people on the Dory, and yet it was never busy. The men made sure that all the material was always neatly put aside, I could easily get in even with the wheelchair, for lunch or for a game. We were lucky to have exceptionally nice people on board, which made the dives and the whole holiday even more fantastic!

The hotel is definitely recommended, although not everything is absolutely accessible without assistance, the smile of the crew, who were always ready to lend a hand, more than compensated for that. I couldn’t take a sharp slope to get from the street to the hotel entrance alone, my buddy often helped me, and if he wasn’t there, there was always someone from the staff to give me a push. The slope behind the reception to get to the elevator was also too steep for me. But even there I never waited more than a minute. And I never had the feeling that I was a burden, that I could not continue, that I would rather be able to do it myself and independently. The sympathetic smile of the employees, the listening ear of the owners to small suggestions, the warm and cozy hospitality opened doors, minds and hearts!

The Dory has an ingenious and at the same time simple system for getting to and from the boat. A comfortable chair can go from the deck to the water and back with a pulley system, calmly, controlled and safe. And for the impatient enthusiastic divers, like me, upon request the captain will swing you into the water with a smile. I did go back on board with the chair lift: wonderfully comfortable.

A pulley system on the boat and a solution-oriented, smiling attitude of all employees makes Nemo an absolute winner, also for divers with disabilities!

see Liesbet’s film below:


Diving with Liesbet, at Nemodive (film)
Liebet with friends bij Nemo Dive Club & Hotel (film)

Above and below water: limitations do not matter, assistance and attention compensate where necessary, caring but not overprotective, truly all-inclusive (as in: completely inclusive, also for people with disabilities)

Diving with a disability is possible indefinitely @ Nemo dive and hotel!