El Quseir, Red Sea, Egypt

Little Brother Island

Little Brother is the southern, smaller islet of the Brothers pair, 1 km south of Big Brother. A submerged reef extending from the islet south for 200 metres ends in two large gorgonian-covered plateaus at the southern point — the 'Gorgonian Forest', considered by many one of the most beautiful single dives in the Red Sea. Walls drop past 100 metres on all sides. Pelagic encounters are reliable year-round: thresher sharks at first light at the southern point (the Brothers are among the few sites where thresher sightings are predictable, especially May–July), hammerhead schools, silvertip sharks, grey reef sharks, oceanic whitetips and silkies. Tuna, jacks and trevally pass continuously. Walls are coated with the densest soft coral and red gorgonian growth in the central Red Sea. Currents are strong and unpredictable; surface marker buoy mandatory. Advanced and self-sufficient divers only. Visibility 30–40 metres. Inside the Brothers MPA.