A small fishing boat lies abandoned in front of the clear blue waters of Shoaiba Beach, about 150 km south of Jeddah. Shoaiba has a beautiful open beach area and a reef with huge table corals. The reef, which is easily accessible from the shore, shelves away in a steep underwater cliff face about 150 feet deep encrusted with coral formations and teeming with myriads of exotic fish in every color shape and size. There is also a half sunken 3-deck ship in the area at N 2048150, E 03925550 that has become an attractive diving site. Shoaiba is also the home to the world's largest $1.6 billion water desalination plant.
