Divers swim inside giant mushroom-shaped chapeirão coral pinnacles found only here.
24–28°C · vis 30mintermediate
All 304 destinations
Every dive destination, one list
Destinations
Four ships wrecked on one reef, all between 4 m and 27 m
21–29°C · vis 30mintermediateAtlantic
Algarve — Ocean Revival
Portugal
Four Portuguese Navy ships scuttled together on one sand plain
15–23°C · vis 25mintermediateRagged-tooth sharks hang in mid-water over the offshore reefs each summer
14–24°C · vis 20mintermediateRagged-tooth sharks pack Cathedral cave through the southern winter.
18–26°C · vis 25madvancedFour thousand Classical amphorae still stacked on the seabed at 25 m
15–26°C · vis 40mintermediateStrong straits sweep past pristine coral cover between remote volcanic islands.
22–29°C · vis 30madvancedEast Asia
Amami Ōshima
Japan
Pufferfish sculpt two-metre geometric nests into the sand at 25 m
21–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerThe endemic psychedelic frogfish lives on Ambon's harbour slopes
27–30°C · vis 25mbeginnerA limestone wall the length of the coast, dived by almost nobody
27–30°C · vis 35mbeginnerBarracuda schools circle Barren Island, home to India's only active volcano
26–30°C · vis 30mbeginnerRubble slopes near Manila hold an outsized range of nudibranchs and seahorses.
26–29°C · vis 20mbeginnerDive beneath icebergs alongside penguins and leopard seals
-1–2°C · vis 35madvancedThe world's second-largest contiguous coral reef, closed to fishing
27–30°C · vis 40mintermediateThe Cedar Pride wreck and a scuttled tank sit an easy shore swim from Aqaba's beach.
21–27°C · vis 30mbeginnerCold upwelling packs granite walls with fish an hour from Rio
14–26°C · vis 30mintermediateGranite reefs where tropical and temperate species overlap
16–26°C · vis 25mintermediateAtlantic
Ascension Island
United Kingdom
Black triggerfish swarm thick enough to block out the light
22–28°C · vis 40mintermediateA 2016 survey found the world's highest average reef fish count per site here.
26–29°C · vis 30mintermediateOpen-water mobula ray carousels at Princess Alice Bank each summer
16–25°C · vis 30madvancedUp to two hundred reef mantas barrel-roll inside a 200 m bay
27–30°C · vis 30mintermediateHumpback song fills every dive from July through October
26–29°C · vis 20mintermediateSeamounts off a still-active volcano occasionally draw hammerheads into open water.
26–29°C · vis 35madvancedSoft coral grows so thick on Sahaung's pinnacles the rock disappears
27–30°C · vis 30mintermediateEastern Pacific
Bat Islands
Costa Rica
Bull sharks cruise past divers settled on the bottom at the Big Scare
19–29°C · vis 25madvancedThe scuttled Rainbow Warrior under a coat of jewel anemones at 26 m
14–22°C · vis 30mintermediateEast Africa's last viable dugong population, in a 1971 national park
22–29°C · vis 30mintermediateDescend into the Great Blue Hole, then hunt whale sharks at a spring snapper spawn
26–29°C · vis 30mintermediateFour ore carriers torpedoed at their pier in 1942, still lying at 27–40 m
0–15°C · vis 30madvancedBull sharks gather year-round at a managed feeding site in Shark Reef.
24–29°C · vis 30mintermediatePink granite caves and tunnels in cold Atlantic swell off Peniche
14–20°C · vis 25mintermediateAround three hundred charted wrecks, most of them shallower than 20 m
18–29°C · vis 45mbeginnerSunken WWII battleships and a US carrier lie deep in a former nuclear test lagoon.
27–30°C · vis 40madvancedGreat hammerhead sharks patrol sandy shallows within sight of shore each winter
24–28°C · vis 30mintermediatePacific Islands
A pinnacle rising 900 m from the seabed to within metres of the surface
24–29°C · vis 40mintermediateNorth America
Blue Heron Bridge
United States
Critter-dense muck diving in 5 m of water beneath a Florida road bridge
21–30°C · vis 20mbeginnerA hot spring vents into the sea off Karaada's caves
16–27°C · vis 35mbeginnerSweden's only cold-water coral reefs, inside its first marine national park
2–18°C · vis 20mintermediateDrive-up shore diving on a coral slope, unlimited air fills, no boat required
26–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerAbseil 72 m into a cave lake to dive among submerged cones at Abismo Anhumas
21–24°C · vis 50mintermediateCold Water
Bornholm
Denmark
Granite walls and boulder fields — Denmark's only true rock diving
2–19°C · vis 20mintermediateGiant Pacific octopus and anemone-covered walls in the 'Emerald Sea'
7–13°C · vis 20madvancedNineteenth-century wrecks dived as drifts in a hard freshwater current
4–22°C · vis 25mintermediateOceanic whitetips patrol Big Brother's sheer walls year-round beside two historic wrecks.
24–29°C · vis 40madvancedCoral Triangle
Brunei Wrecks
Brunei
A minesweeper, a cement carrier and two ships nobody can firmly identify
28–30°C · vis 25mintermediateSheer walls drop from the surface, patrolled by turtles and napoleon wrasse.
27–29°C · vis 30mintermediateDusky groupers the size of car doors patrol two submerged mountains
14–27°C · vis 40madvancedA recovered coral reef with dense jack schools and seasonal bull sharks.
20–30°C · vis 20mbeginnerNurse sharks rest in Regona's volcanic cavern maze off Santa Maria
22–28°C · vis 30mintermediateNineteen uninhabited islands and light-filled caves off Mallorca
14–27°C · vis 40mintermediateSchist walls, tunnels and red gorgonian fans at the Pyrenees' end
12–24°C · vis 30mintermediateCape fur seals and sevengill sharks weave through towering kelp canopies.
8–20°C · vis 15mintermediateThe Mediterranean's largest sea cave, with entrances from 8 m to 33 m
14–26°C · vis 40mintermediateGranite seamounts rising to the surface off Sardinia's south-east corner
14–26°C · vis 40mbeginnerCaribbean
Cat Island
Bahamas
One of the few reliable places on earth to dive with oceanic whitetips
24–29°C · vis 40madvancedWalk down the stairs at Casino Point straight into a giant kelp forest
13–21°C · vis 30mintermediateA Soviet frigate lies broken in two between 15 and 30 m
26–30°C · vis 40mintermediateCoral Triangle
Cenderawasih Bay
Indonesia
Whale sharks feed under fishing platforms for one of diving's most reliable encounters.
27–30°C · vis 30mintermediatePlayful sea lions and towering kelp forests around rocky island pinnacles.
12–19°C · vis 20mintermediateIndian Ocean
Christmas Island
Australia
Reef ends 30 m from shore and drops into 40 m visibility over 5,000 m of blue
26–29°C · vis 50mintermediateDozens of intact WWII wrecks rest in one sheltered lagoon.
28–30°C · vis 25mintermediateDrift out on the falling tide as an entire atoll empties past you
26–29°C · vis 45mintermediateScalloped hammerhead schools circle Bajo Alcyone's cleaning station in the current
23–28°C · vis 30madvancedHumpback whale song carries underwater during the mid-year migration season
20–29°C · vis 25mintermediateThousands of green turtles nest on one protected stretch of coast
25–29°C · vis 30mintermediateOne of Vietnam's last dugong refuges with protected turtle nesting beaches
26–29°C · vis 20mbeginnerWWII Japanese wrecks sit largely intact in a limestone-karst bay.
27–30°C · vis 20mintermediateAt Mérouville, habituated dusky groupers stay with divers all dive
14–26°C · vis 40mintermediateDrift along sponge-covered walls with 20–40 m visibility on the sheltered leeward coast
26–29°C · vis 40mintermediateFossil elephant tusks inside a cave whose entrance is now at 10 m
16–27°C · vis 40mbeginnerThe only place in the US where you may legally swim with manatees
22–23°C · vis 30mbeginnerShore-dive a mushroom-shaped coral garden, then a harbor-mouth cargo wreck
26–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerThe Blue Hole's infamous Arch passage drops to roughly 55 metres just offshore.
21–27°C · vis 30mbeginnerRed Sea & Gulf of Aden
Dahlak Archipelago
Eritrea
Dugongs graze seagrass beds among 200 untouched desert islands
26–33°C · vis 20mintermediateSnapper shoals and barracuda swirl over basalt at Africa's westernmost point
17–28°C · vis 20mintermediateA community-run sanctuary since the 1980s now teems with turtles and coral.
26–29°C · vis 25mbeginnerOman's first marine reserve, with whale sharks arriving each late summer
22–31°C · vis 30mbeginnerTurtles nest on Derawan's beaches; mantas cycle through Sangalaki's cleaning station.
27–30°C · vis 25mbeginnerJuvenile whale sharks gather in the Gulf of Tadjoura through the winter plankton bloom.
24–30°C · vis 20mintermediateDive through a field of warm volcanic bubbles at Champagne Reef, named for the effect
26–29°C · vis 30mintermediateCommunity-run whale shark tourism, and mantas queueing in Ticao Pass
26–30°C · vis 25mintermediateWeedy seadragons drift through cold-water kelp forests off the Tasman Peninsula.
12–18°C · vis 20mintermediateA shore-entry reef and a scuttled missile boat inside a 12 km coastline
21–27°C · vis 30mbeginnerLava arches, canyons and tunnels reachable from a rocky beach entry
18–24°C · vis 30mbeginnerVolcanic walls dropping past 100 m beside a volcano that erupted in 2011
18–24°C · vis 40mintermediatePacific Islands
Espiritu Santo — SS Coolidge
Vanuatu
A 200-meter troopship wreck is entered straight from the beach.
24–29°C · vis 30madvancedWobbegongs stacked on the ledges of a permit-only naval pier
21–29°C · vis 20mintermediateDescend into Angelfish Blue Hole, a vertical shaft opening onto a coral-rimmed cavern
24–28°C · vis 30mbeginnerHundreds of grey reef sharks pack South Pass during the June grouper spawn.
26–29°C · vis 40madvancedRed Sea & Gulf of Aden
Farasan Banks & Al Lith
Saudi Arabia
Whale sharks gather each spring on a reef almost nobody dives
25–33°C · vis 35mintermediateCurious grey seals routinely approach and play with divers
6–15°C · vis 15mintermediateBasalt cliffs continuing underwater into surprisingly clear Atlantic water
6–12°C · vis 30madvancedHundreds of spinner dolphins gather daily in Baía dos Golfinhos.
26–29°C · vis 45mintermediateTannin-darkened water tricks deep-water black coral into growing at diveable depths.
8–16°C · vis 15madvancedWarm shallow reefs and famous wrecks stretching from Key Largo to Key West.
23–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerHealthy coral reef caps 100 miles offshore, famous for August coral spawning.
20–29°C · vis 40madvancedTiger sharks cruise a cleaning station a few meters off the harbor wall
26–29°C · vis 35madvancedMassive hammerhead schools and giant whale sharks patrol Darwin's submerged pillars
16–28°C · vis 20madvancedEighty human figures stand in a ring on the sand off Gili Meno
26–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerNew Zealand's first marine reserve, and the snapper have stopped running
14–22°C · vis 20mbeginnerHundreds of whitetip reef sharks pile up in the shallows at El Remolino
25–29°C · vis 20mintermediateHand-feed wild stingrays in chest-deep water, then drop over a sheer wall the same day
26–29°C · vis 40mbeginnerDwarf minke whales approach divers on the Ribbon Reefs each June and July.
23–29°C · vis 30mintermediateKuroshio-fed reefs with resident green turtles off Taiwan's volcanic isle
22–29°C · vis 30mintermediateAn underwater sculpture garden of coral-encrusted human figures in shallow water
26–29°C · vis 30mintermediateA bronze Cousteau sits at 12 m in the reserve he made famous
26–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerTouch a First and a Second World War wreck at the same time
27–30°C · vis 40mintermediateHannibal Bank rises from 400 m and pulls in billfish and tuna
24–29°C · vis 25mintermediateBrackish water means three-hundred-year-old ships still stand with masts up
1–18°C · vis 15madvancedSheer purple-coral wall with manta rays and occasional whale sharks
27–29°C · vis 30madvancedFour wrecked cargo ships cluster on the Abu Nuhas reef, an hour's crossing offshore.
21–29°C · vis 25mbeginnerThe tug Pinguino sits upright at 22 m in a bay of 300 islands
18–28°C · vis 15mbeginnerKelp and granite in cold Atlantic water at the mouth of the Ría de Vigo
12–19°C · vis 20mintermediateCoral Triangle
Iron Bottom Sound
Solomon Islands
Wade off a Honiara roadside onto a Japanese transport from 1942
28–30°C · vis 30mintermediateReef manta rays circle shallow cleaning stations in Kabira Bay most of the year.
21–29°C · vis 25mintermediateThe world's largest known aggregation of oceanic manta rays
19–27°C · vis 20mintermediateWhitetip reef sharks stack up by the dozen on volcanic pinnacles
26–29°C · vis 25mintermediateHundreds of whale sharks feed shoulder to shoulder in open blue water
24–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerA drowned volcanic crater 50 km offshore, with permit-limited diving
14–26°C · vis 40mintermediateJapan's macro heartland on a sand slope three hours from Tokyo
13–27°C · vis 25mbeginnerSnorkel with American crocodiles, then dive reefs thick with unwary reef sharks
26–29°C · vis 35mintermediateProtected soft coral forests on volcanic rock off southern Jeju
14–27°C · vis 25mintermediateWhite quartz sand lifts the light over temperate sponge gardens
14–22°C · vis 30mintermediateTropical and temperate species overlap on one rock 2.5 km offshore
19–26°C · vis 30mbeginnerPacific Islands
A hundred kilometres of barrier reef with almost no divers on it
24–29°C · vis 40mintermediateA thousand-metre canyon reaches to within metres of the shore
10–17°C · vis 20mintermediateA sunken DC-3 and a replica Bronze Age ship on the Lycian coast
16–28°C · vis 40mintermediateShore-entry coral slopes at the warm southern tip of Taiwan
22–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerKerama Blue visibility over coral gardens with turtles on nearly every dive.
20–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerA single bay holds roughly half the world's recorded coral species.
27–30°C · vis 35mbeginnerFour hours offshore to Koh Tang, where the water finally clears
27–31°C · vis 20mbeginnerGulf of Thailand training hub with deeper pinnacles for whale sharks
27–30°C · vis 25mbeginnerCold upwellings feed current-swept pinnacles thick with sharks and schooling trevally.
20–29°C · vis 30madvancedManta rays glide through diver spotlights on Kona's nightly manta dive.
24–27°C · vis 40mintermediateSheer limestone crowns dropping past 80 m into the open Adriatic
13–25°C · vis 40mintermediatePacific Islands
Kosrae
Micronesia
Unbroken hard coral on an island that sees a few hundred divers a year
27–30°C · vis 45mbeginnerThe world's northernmost table coral reef, growing at 33° north
16–28°C · vis 25mbeginnerMarket squid spawn in their millions over the sand on winter nights
13–22°C · vis 15mbeginnerThe highest reef manta density on the Great Barrier Reef, year-round
21–27°C · vis 30mbeginnerGiant manta rays glide over an offshore granite reef from March through September.
18–27°C · vis 35mintermediateClose to a thousand endemic cichlid species over granite boulder slopes
22–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerPermit-only Indian atolls with 30 m visibility and almost no divers
27–30°C · vis 40mbeginnerKuroshio-swept volcanic drop-offs with 30 m visibility and big fish
24–30°C · vis 40mintermediateThree hundred concrete figures stand at 14 m in Europe's underwater museum
18–24°C · vis 40mbeginnerA 172 m ferry on her side, lorries still chained to the car decks
17–28°C · vis 30mintermediateScalloped hammerheads school along a wall that drops 2,000 m
27–30°C · vis 45madvancedSlow scans over black sand reveal mimic octopus and hairy frogfish.
26–29°C · vis 20mbeginnerA wall that starts at 6 meters and vanishes into blue, minutes from an undeveloped shore
26–29°C · vis 45mintermediateThe world's southernmost coral reef, with advanced diving at Balls Pyramid offshore.
18–26°C · vis 30mintermediateA 350-cay national park atoll with walls and almost no other divers
25–29°C · vis 35mbeginnerCold Water
Lundy Island
United Kingdom
England's first marine reserve, and its grey seals follow divers around
8–17°C · vis 20mintermediateJetty pilings and sand slopes turn up ghost pipefish and mandarinfish at dusk.
27–30°C · vis 20mbeginnerBoulder swim-throughs at Garajau, monk seals and mantas off the Desertas
19–24°C · vis 40mintermediateJuvenile whale sharks feed in shallow water off Mafia most of the year.
25–29°C · vis 30mintermediateNorth America
Magdalena Bay
Mexico
Striped marlin lance through sardine baitballs in open ocean
20–26°C · vis 30madvancedPacific Islands
Majuro & Mili
Marshall Islands
Ride a channel that flushes a forty-kilometre lagoon on the tide
28–30°C · vis 40mintermediatePelagic thresher sharks rise from the deep to a pre-dawn cleaning station.
26–29°C · vis 30mintermediateManta feeding frenzies sweep into Hanifaru Bay when plankton blooms
26–30°C · vis 30mintermediateSherman tanks lie on the seabed beside the SS Empire Heritage
8–15°C · vis 30madvancedEastern Pacific
Malpelo
Colombia
Hammerhead schools of 200-plus circle La Nevera's cold-water cleaning station
17–28°C · vis 30madvancedShore-entry wrecks and a rock-tunnel sinkhole dive at Gozo's Blue Hole
15–28°C · vis 40mintermediateCaribbean
María la Gorda
Cuba
Forests of black coral in a bay that is flat calm nearly every day
25–29°C · vis 40mbeginnerStep off a jetty into the world's largest lagoon, or cross to open ocean
28–30°C · vis 40mintermediateResident dugongs graze seagrass in shallow Abu Dabbab Bay year-round.
23–30°C · vis 35mintermediateWhere Cousteau ran the first underwater archaeological dig in 1952
13–25°C · vis 35mintermediateHumpback song carries through every dive from December to April
23–27°C · vis 45mintermediateSunken wrecks and a cavern swim-through sit minutes from the Flic en Flac shore
22–28°C · vis 30mintermediateResident manta rays clean daily at Passe en S inside the barrier reef lagoon
25–29°C · vis 25mbeginnerDusky grouper by the dozen inside a Costa Brava marine reserve
13–25°C · vis 25mintermediateBali's best walls, sheltered enough to dive in almost any weather
26–29°C · vis 35mbeginnerRemote liveaboard-only archipelago with the shark-rich Burma Banks seamount
26–29°C · vis 25mintermediateMainland Japan's only reliable schooling hammerhead dive
16–28°C · vis 30madvancedSheltered volcanic-sand bays where modern muck diving first took hold.
27–30°C · vis 25mintermediateLimestone arches and chambers with light shafts through the roof
22–29°C · vis 40mintermediateAn atoll wall and easy coral slopes off Zanzibar's north-east corner
25–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerMillions of sardines form a shifting baitball reachable straight from shore.
26–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerA thousand fur seals, and the juveniles come out to play with divers
14–22°C · vis 30mintermediateExceptional nudibranch diversity in cold-water kelp forests off Monastery Beach.
9–16°C · vis 15mintermediateSicklefin lemon sharks patrol the outer reef passes year-round.
26–29°C · vis 30mintermediateGreen, plankton-rich water and huge fish schools in the fjords of Arabia
22–32°C · vis 25mintermediateA German destroyer's bow rises to 10 m where she was run aground in 1940
3–12°C · vis 30madvancedTwo dozen reef sharks circle a baited arena in 12 m of water
23–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerWeedy seadragons over temperate sponge gardens, entered from a car park
15–24°C · vis 20mbeginnerCage dive with great white sharks over a resident Australian sea lion colony.
14–21°C · vis 20mintermediateA 38 m chimney built by freshwater springs venting inside the lagoon
21–27°C · vis 40mintermediateHigh nudibranch diversity in granite boulder fields off the Vietnamese coast
24–30°C · vis 25mbeginnerWhale sharks gather along the reef edge every autumn after coral spawning.
21–29°C · vis 25mbeginnerBanded sea kraits are seen resting in caves on nearly every dive.
25–28°C · vis 70mintermediateNorth America
North Carolina Wrecks
United States
Sand tiger sharks aggregate around WWII wrecks in the Graveyard of the Atlantic.
14–27°C · vis 30madvancedSpring water at a constant 21°C leads into mapped underwater cave systems.
20–23°C · vis 45mintermediateIndian Ocean
Nosy Be
Madagascar
Whale sharks feed in the channel toward Nosy Iranja each October through December
24–29°C · vis 25mbeginnerMola mola surface from the deep to cleaning stations each dry season.
18–28°C · vis 30mintermediateWild dolphin encounters in Bonin Blue water 1,000 km from the nearest city.
20–28°C · vis 35madvancedEast Asia
Japan's most-dived site, a limestone cavern lit blue from below
21–29°C · vis 35mbeginnerSheer Coral Sea walls with reef shark numbers rarely seen inshore.
24–29°C · vis 40madvancedAn atoll wall dropping into open ocean, 400 km from the nearest island
26–30°C · vis 40mintermediateHooked into the reef at Blue Corner while grey reef sharks patrol the current
27–30°C · vis 30mintermediateGoliath groupers over 200 kg mass on the wrecks to spawn each August
22–30°C · vis 30mintermediateThousands of sea lions crowd bare granite an hour from Lima
14–19°C · vis 12mintermediateA permanent tornado of jacks and barracuda on a wall from 6 m
27–30°C · vis 35mintermediateTidal gaps flush an 800 m channel past sheer coral walls
25–29°C · vis 40madvancedAn 85 m car ferry upright at 12–30 m beside the reef that sank her
27–30°C · vis 30mintermediateShallow granite and sand macro in Vietnam's south-western gulf
27–30°C · vis 20mbeginnerHammerheads and grey reef sharks hold in Palikir Pass's blue water.
27–29°C · vis 25mintermediatePermit-limited giant kelp forest with sea otters working the shallows
10–16°C · vis 20mintermediateA resident bottlenose dolphin pod makes for near-daily encounters.
21–28°C · vis 30mintermediateMassive fish schools swirl through archways at one of the world's largest sea caves.
15–23°C · vis 30mintermediateThousands of spider crabs mass under a Melbourne pier each winter
11–20°C · vis 20mintermediateDozens of dusky groupers hold station on the rock face at La Gabinière
13–25°C · vis 30mintermediateRed gorgonian forests below 25 m and a bronze Christ at 17 m
13–25°C · vis 30mintermediateMediterranean
Premuda
Croatia
Limestone chimneys lit from above, and a 1918 battleship at 66 m
12–25°C · vis 40mintermediateGreat hammerhead schools cruise the pinnacles from November through May.
16–25°C · vis 30madvancedThe western hemisphere's third-largest barrier reef, 700 km from anywhere
26–29°C · vis 40mbeginnerA narrow strait holds one of the highest recorded densities of shore fish on Earth.
26–29°C · vis 25mintermediateYoung sea lions spiral around divers at the Punta Loma colony
9–18°C · vis 15mintermediateGiant Pacific octopus over 4 m across, and wolf eels paired in rock dens
7–13°C · vis 25madvancedVolcanic gas bubbles through the sand off a current-swept island
27–30°C · vis 35mintermediateSoft corals turn ghostly white along the current-fed Great White Wall.
24–29°C · vis 30madvancedManta rays hold at cleaning stations in the world's most biodiverse reef system.
27–30°C · vis 25mintermediateDolphins ride the tidal current alongside sharks in Tiputa Pass.
26–29°C · vis 40madvancedVolcanic arches and lava tunnels sit in some of the clearest water on Earth.
21–25°C · vis 55mintermediateLeafy seadragons drift among century-old jetty pylons a short swim from shore.
12–20°C · vis 10mintermediateForty-metre visibility over lava caves and canyons, straight off the reef
24–28°C · vis 50mbeginnerDozens of wrecks on flat sand, including the 1887 steamer Pirapama
25–28°C · vis 25mintermediateTurtle-nesting beaches and a shallow wreck on Malaysia's calm northeast coast
27–30°C · vis 20mbeginnerIndian Ocean
Réunion
France
A recovering fringing reef and two easy wrecks on the sheltered west coast
22–28°C · vis 30mintermediateHabituated giant oceanic manta rays circle divers at open-water cleaning stations.
21–28°C · vis 30madvancedThailand's top-rated pinnacle dive, prime whale shark season Feb-Apr
27–30°C · vis 30mintermediateA hydrogen-sulphide cloud hangs at 30 m inside Cenote Angelita
24–26°C · vis 80mintermediateAn 1867 mail steamer split between 9 m and 27 m off Salt Island
26–29°C · vis 30mintermediateWalk in from a beach resort and be on a coral wall within a five-minute swim
26–29°C · vis 40mbeginnerA lagoon twice the island's size, with passes that flush it twice a day
22–28°C · vis 40mintermediateNew species are described from these slopes with unusual regularity
27–30°C · vis 25mbeginnerTidal channels through pristine atolls draw dense schools of sharks and pelagics.
24–29°C · vis 40madvancedPinnacles rising from deep water, current-fed and thick with black coral and sponges
25–28°C · vis 35mintermediatePanorama Reef's plateau drops away on every side into soft coral walls
21–29°C · vis 35mintermediateA vertical chimney runs up through the rock from 18 m to 6 m
28–30°C · vis 30mintermediateSwim out of a collapsed limestone cavern into the open Pacific
27–30°C · vis 50madvancedDive the slack-tide window of the world's strongest maelstrom
4–14°C · vis 15madvancedHot gas vents stream through the reef from an active submarine volcano
27–30°C · vis 35mintermediateCold upwelling makes Colombia's Caribbean coast unexpectedly productive
20–29°C · vis 25mbeginnerEquatorial volcanic pinnacles almost nobody has dived
25–29°C · vis 25mintermediatePacific Islands
Savai'i & Upolu
Samoa
Lava tubes and drop-offs, with a marine reserve walkable from Apia
27–30°C · vis 35mintermediateDive intact WWI German battleships scuttled in 1919
7–13°C · vis 15madvancedSea lion pups play with divers at Los Islotes while hammerheads school at El Bajo.
19–30°C · vis 25mintermediateIndian Ocean
Seychelles — Inner Islands
Seychelles
Granite boulders stack into swim-throughs found nowhere else in the ocean
26–29°C · vis 25mbeginnerThe Thistlegorm's holds still stacked with motorcycles, trucks and rail cars
21–29°C · vis 30mintermediateSwim beneath drifting sea ice searching for tiny 'sea angel' clione
-1–4°C · vis 20mintermediateCold Water
Silfra
Iceland
Visibility measured in tens of metres inside a rift between two tectonic plates
2–4°C · vis 80mintermediateGranite boulder swim-throughs with seasonal manta and whale shark passes
27–30°C · vis 30mintermediateA tornado of barracuda spirals over a wall dropping straight from the beach.
27–30°C · vis 30mintermediateShore-accessible walls from 5 m into blue, dived one boat at a time
27–30°C · vis 35mbeginnerSnorkel alongside orca pods hunting herring baitballs in Arctic fjords
4–13°C · vis 20mintermediateRed Sea, Arabian and Indian Ocean species overlap on unsurveyed reefs
23–29°C · vis 30madvancedSouthernmost coral reefs on Earth, reached by ski-boat surf launch.
21–28°C · vis 30mintermediateWWII aircraft wrecks rest near lightly dived, pristine barrier reefs.
27–30°C · vis 30mintermediateThe Rondo stands almost vertical, stern at 15 m and bow at 50
7–14°C · vis 20madvancedAustralia & New Zealand
South West Rocks — Fish Rock
Australia
A 125 m ocean through-cave, and grey nurse sharks in the gutters
17–25°C · vis 30madvancedEquatorial channels with stacked grey reef sharks and a wartime tanker
27–30°C · vis 40madvancedWhale sharks in the shallows and a sanctuary wall almost nobody dives
27–30°C · vis 35mintermediateA single century-old wreck packed with fish life on an otherwise bare seabed.
22–29°C · vis 20madvancedJewel anemones and grey seals on a Berwickshire volcanic coast
6–15°C · vis 20mintermediateAdult male and female whale sharks gather together, seen nowhere else
20–26°C · vis 40mintermediateLight shafts cut through shallow coral caves at Umm Kharārīm
22–30°C · vis 40madvancedSwim off a beach onto a wall that drops past three thousand metres
26–29°C · vis 35mbeginnerSwim over the ballast blocks of a drowned eighteenth-century port
26–29°C · vis 35mbeginnerSoft-coral walls beneath the Pitons, with a beach entry straight onto the reef
26–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerGreat whites in the Foveaux Strait, cage-dived under permit at 47° south
8–16°C · vis 20madvancedCold Water
Strýtan
Iceland
A shallow hydrothermal vent cone rising to 15 m in a cold Arctic fjord
3–10°C · vis 20madvancedRed Sea & Gulf of Aden
Sudanese Red Sea
Sudan
Cousteau's 1963 Conshelf II habitat frames still rest on the sand at Shaab Rumi.
26–30°C · vis 40madvancedThailand's best shallow hard-coral gardens, in five to twelve metres
27–30°C · vis 30mbeginnerWalrus swim out to inspect divers at 78° north
-2–6°C · vis 25madvancedDusky groupers patrol coral-lined tunnels beneath a Genoese fort
14–26°C · vis 30mintermediateThe world's third-largest atoll, and a wall running the length of Selayar
27–30°C · vis 40mintermediateAtlantic
Tenerife
Spain
Black sand and lava arches metres from shore, with resident pilot whales
18–25°C · vis 35mbeginnerA hundred wrecks in Shipwreck Alley, some shallow enough to snorkel
2–18°C · vis 30mintermediateKneel on open sand in 6 meters of water while tiger sharks cruise past at arm's length
24–28°C · vis 30mintermediatePacific Islands
Tikehau
French Polynesia
A pass so packed with fish Cousteau's team singled it out
26–29°C · vis 45mintermediateSheltered South China Sea reefs popular with Singapore and KL divers
26–30°C · vis 20mbeginnerNineteenth-century schooners preserved intact in cold fresh water
4–18°C · vis 30mintermediateGiant oceanic mantas circle a cleaning station at Manta Reef year-round.
22–29°C · vis 30mintermediateCoral Triangle
Togian Islands
Indonesia
A B-24 Liberator at 22 m and a lake full of stingless jellyfish
28–30°C · vis 35mbeginnerA bronze Padre Pio stands on a submerged rock at 14 m
13–26°C · vis 35mbeginnerCoral gardens, a sunken aircraft carrier, and sperm whale superpods
27–30°C · vis 30mintermediateWhale sharks hang under fishing platforms year-round in Papuan soft coral
27–30°C · vis 20mintermediateSheer mid-ocean walls hold schooling hammerheads and grey reef sharks.
27–29°C · vis 35madvancedCoral Triangle
Tufi
Papua New Guinea
Muck diving in drowned volcanic valleys with rainforest on the walls
27–30°C · vis 35mintermediateThe USAT Liberty wreck lies coral-encrusted just off a black-sand beach.
26–29°C · vis 25mbeginnerA wall off Grand Turk where migrating humpback whales pass within earshot each winter
25–29°C · vis 40mintermediateKorea's clearest water over black volcanic arches and caves
10–26°C · vis 30mintermediateGrouper on nearly every dive inside Italy's oldest marine reserve
15–26°C · vis 30mintermediateBudget certifications on an island with realistic year-round whale shark odds
26–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerMariner's Cave hides an air pocket behind a submerged limestone entrance.
24–28°C · vis 30mintermediateThe Gulf of Mexico's largest reef complex, off a working port
22–29°C · vis 20mbeginnerSnowmelt so clear you can see the trees from the riverbed
6–14°C · vis 50mintermediateA WWII dive bomber wreck found in 2014, still remarkably intact
14–24°C · vis 35madvancedA community-protected house reef drops straight off the jetty into dense coral.
26–29°C · vis 35mbeginnerHalf a century of protection on one of Africa's oldest marine reserves
25–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerTame Maori wrasse inshore, and the outer barrier sixty kilometres out
22–28°C · vis 30mbeginnerBronze whalers and common dolphins tear through sardine baitballs in open water.
16–24°C · vis 20madvancedHundreds of resident green turtles around a six-kilometre island
24–29°C · vis 30mbeginnerResident manta rays cruise cleaning stations on nearly every dive.
27–30°C · vis 25mintermediateWinter hammerhead schools stack over pinnacles beside the disputed sunken Monument.
21–29°C · vis 30madvancedCuttlefish arrive by the hundred each spring to court in the shallows
4–20°C · vis 12mintermediate
