It seems as if the open-waters of the worlds oceans are so addictive to many people who have taken up scuba diving as a hobby. The thrill of diving to some awesome depths to explore wrecks and spot an amazing array of sea life is just a couple of the reasons why so many people are starting to book taster sessions in the local pool to completing a PADI Scuba diving course.
Once you become a certified diver, you may start looking for holidays where you can live out your dreams. So where in the world are the best dive sites? We have compiled the worlds top dive sites to give you a glimpse into the world of scuba diving.
Discover the best dive sites in the world with us.
Costa Rica
Cocos Island
Situated in the Golden Triangle, 550 kilometres off the coastline of Costa Rica. It comprises of fourteen dive sites.
Viking Rock is one of them this is a submerged reef. On the northwest corner of Wafer Bay. The surfaces are staircase like so it is easy to see the different marine life on the different levels.
Depth – 50-130ft
Visibility – 65 ft
Marine Life – Marlin, rays, sharks and turtles.
Type of dive – Reef
Skill Level – Advanced
Hawaii
Moloka’i is Hawaii’s longest reef (thirty miles) it has forty different dive sites. Two of our favourites are Fish Rain and Hole In The Wall.
Fish Rain
On the far eastern side of Molokai near Mokuhooniki Rock. You will see many different types of fish on this dive.
Depth – 100ft
Visibility – 80-100ft
Marine Life – Hammerhead sharks, monk seals, Mahi-Mahi
Type of Dive – Drift
Skill Level – Advanced
Hole In The Wall
The apex of this dive is huge and can reach depths up to 100ft at the base. A few small military missiles act as reefs and there is also a massive one that attracts attention too.
Depth – 20-130 ft
Visibility – 50-100ft
Marine Life – Tinker’s butterfly fish, slipper lobsters, Mahi-Mahi, sharks and Manta ray .
Wrecks – Old military missile at 100ft
Skill Level – Advanced
Belize
The Elbow Turneffe Atoll.
Turneffe Atoll has been a designated marine reserve since 2012. The Elbow is the best place to dive in Belize. Large schools of fish are seen here.
Depth – 60ft
Visibility – 100ft
Type of Dive – Reef
Marine Life – Snappers, cubera, shark, king fish
Skill Level – Advanced
Egypt – Red Sea
If you are having a holiday in one of the resorts along Egypt’s Red Sea then you will be thrilled at the amount of dive sites there are here. Here are our three favourites.
Thistlegorm – Sharm El Sheikh
40 kilometres from Sharm and the most popular wreck dive. Thistlegorm was a British army freighter that sank in 1941 on her way to Alexandria. She had on board with her war time supplies including aircrafts, vehicles and tanks.
Depth – 50ft-108ft
Visibility – 50ft-80ft
Marine life – lionfish, batfish, hawksbill turtles
Type of Dive – Wreck
Skill Level – Intermediate – advanced
Shark and Yolanda Reef- Ras Mohammed
Located in Ras Mohammed National Park. Dive in Shark Reef and finish at Yolanda wreck. Yolanda was a Cypriot cargo ship that ran to ground in 1980. This is noted to be the best diving spot in Ras Mohammed.
Depth 65ft – 164ft
Visibility 30ft-90ft
Marine Life – stone fish, tuna, barracuda, turtles
Type of Dive – Reef, drift,wreck
Skill Level – Intermediate
The Blue Hole
Located at East Sinai a few kilometres north of Dahab. This site is frequented by divers every day. However it does have the title of being the worlds most dangerous dive site. This is because despite warnings some divers cannot resist the urge to try and find the tunnel through the reef, which then takes them beyond the maximum advanced diving limit. If they miss the tunnel, divers continue descending deeper but then suffer the consequences of Nitrogen narcosis which causes unconsciousness. For those who do resist this lethal temptation the danger is no greater here than that of any other Red Sea dive.
Depth to bottom of hole 656ft
Visibility – 98-130ft
Marine Life – sharks, manta rays
Type of dive – Reef, shore
Skill level – Advanced
Australia
Australia has no shortage of dive sites, and has some of the most best known ones in the world. These dives sites will offer you some of the most fantastic diving of all.
Cod Hole – The Great Barrier Reef
This is one of the best known dive sites in the world. Located about 60 miles north from Cairns. Divers enjoy feeding the 60kg potato cods that come to nibble from the palm of your hand.
Depth- 30ft – 80ft
Visibility – 65ft +
Marine Life – Potato cods, Maori Wrasses, Whitetip Reef Sharks
Type of Dive – Reef
Skill Level – Advanced
The Yongala – The Great Barrier Reef
One of the world’s top dive sites the SS Yongala was a passenger ship that sank in 1911. The wreck became a dive site and was found in 1958. More than 10000 divers visit every year.
Depth – 80ft-130ft
Visiibility – 30ft-60ft +
Marine Life – Sharks, batfish, rays
Type of Dive – Wreck
Skill Level – Advanced
All these dive sites are special in their own way, and we hope this blog will inspire you for your next diving adventure. We welcome any feedback that you may have regarding sites that you would recommend.