First time diver

I am a first time diver and would like to dive in the Red Sea while I am in Egypt. It looks like Dahab is the best place to start. Does anyone recommend a certain dive school? I am assuming a 4-day open water PADI certification course is best? Is there any benefit to doing the classroom portion online, or does it just add cost? Thanks!

I couldn't really recommend a school but finding a teacher you like is more imprtant. Every major organisation is recognised worldwide so they're all as good as each other. Doing the thing online seems like a really good idea to save time out there.

"Every major organisation is recognised worldwide so they're all as good as each other"
Not really.. the major Diving Organisation is PADI (but there are others) and each PADI diveshop is rated according to the services it offers and the rating it has achieved from PADI itself. Also the experience of the Diving Instructors varies immensely, some have a few weeks experience, some have 20 years experience! Best thing is just to go and talk with them first and find one who suits you.

I just came from Dahab and did four dives with a group called 'Big Blue Dahab'. They were very professional, and the dive instructor had done over 10,000 dives, so there was no lack of experience! They have a 5 star rating on trip advisor as well.

http://www.bigbluedahab.com/