The history of Red Sea diving takes centre stage in this episode of Scuba Diving Industry Magazine’s Marketing Minutes, featuring Fantasea Line’s Howard Rosenstein.
Widely recognised as a pioneer of Red Sea diving, Howard is an author, a NOGI Award winner, an International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame inductee, and an instrumental early figure who helped introduce the Sinai and Sharm el-Sheikh regions to the global dive community.
During the episode, Howard explains how unexpectedly finding Roman coins whilst snorkelling kick-started his career in diving, eventually leading him to open one of Sharm el-Sheikh’s first dive operations in 1972. Britain Cline and William Cline speak with Howard about the formative years of Red Sea diving history—a time when dive tourism was still in its infancy, roads were unpaved, equipment was rudimentary, and operators had to build the market entirely from the ground up.
Howard also reflects on the expansion of Sharm el-Sheikh, the emergence of liveaboards, the difficulties of running a business in a politically complicated area, and the evolution of a former battlefield into one of the world’s premier scuba diving destinations.
The discussion additionally explores Howard’s book, Treasures, Shipwrecks and the Dawn of Red Sea Diving, encompassing tales of renowned divers, discovered shipwrecks, Ras Mohammed, Dr. Eugenie Clark, David Doubilet, Sylvia Earle, and a truly memorable dive into the well at St. Catherine’s Monastery near Mount Sinai.
For dive retailers, instructors, travel professionals, and anyone passionate about Red Sea diving, this episode provides a rare and fascinating look into the locations, individuals, and events that forged modern dive tourism.
