DestinationsWant to check out the top 10 dive sites worldwide rated by Divezone.net?
These best spots are ranked according to the beauty, fish life, visibility and overall dive experience.
If you have any feedback on this list, please leave a comment below!
The SS Yongala Wreck might just be THE Best Wreck dive in the World! This 110m long steamer called the Yongala was sunk in 1911 near Townsville during a cyclone. It was only re-discovered in 1958 and is now the most famous dive site in Australia. It is home to an amazing array of marine life which includes barracudas, Giant Trevallies Turtles and Sea Snakes. You might even spot the rare Bull Shark and the mighty Tiger Shark!!
» Australia
Barracuda Point is the best dive site of the World Famous Sipadan Islands. Here you could watch a huge shoal of thousands of Barracudas pass by underwater, making it a dream spot for underwater photography. Various reef Sharks and many pelagic fishes are also patrolling the area! Hammerhead sharks are a possible encounter too…
» Sipadan
North Horn is located on the Osprey Reef only reachable by Liveaboards. It is a natural underwater amphitheatre where you can spot plenty of Grey Reef Sharks, Silvertip Sharks and even some Hammerhead sharks! A feeding frenzy of sharks is an impressive thing to watch which will certainly get your adrenaline pumping!
»
The World famous Richelieu Rock is located near the Surin Islands in Thailand. Regarded as one of the best spots to have a chance of spotting the gentle giant Whale Shark underwater, this spot has been described as a “Whale Shark magnet”! It is also an excellent place to spot big pelagic fishes and for macro photography with a very intriguing critter life to discover.
» Surin Islands
This fascinating huge wreck dive site is a 130m long armed cargo ship which was hit by a Japanese torpedo during World War 2 and then pushed back into the water in 1963 by a volcano eruption! It is a very easy dive but with a whole lot of things to see such as Garden Eels, a nice swim-through inside the wreck and big schools of fishes. This spot offers spectacular opportunities for underwater photography so don’t forget your camera!
» Tulamben
Cod Hole is a very famous dive site of the Great Barrier Reef, much like North Horn. It is an easy reef dive where you can observe and also feed huge friendly Potato Groupers. There are also harmless Whitetip Reef Sharks and Napoleon fishes swimming about. The visibility is fantastic and the diving conditions are usually ideal making it the perfect place for underwater photography!
» Great Barrier Reef
This is a rather unusual dive site beneath an Australian Navy Pier in Exmouth in Western Australia. The conditions are not great here with poor visibility but the fish life is just astonishing with an incredible biodiversity in such a tiny place. Here you can see Nurse Sharks, the bizarre looking Wobbegong Shark and many strange small creatures such as Flat Worms, Nudibranchs, and Frog fishes. This makes it one of the best shore dives in the world and a real dream for any underwater macro photographer!
» Ningaloo Reef
The spot itself at Crystal Bay is great but not amazing but what makes it so special is that this is THE place to spot the giant, strange looking, rare and mysterious Mola Mola Oceanic Sunfish… You also have good chances to spot these around Nusa Penida and Nusa Lembongan from August to October too, so good luck!
» Nusa Penida / Nusa Lembongan
Batu Bolong has a huge underwater rock featuring amazing coral and a teeming reef life. In fact, there are so many fishes that you have to take care to not lose your dive buddy! All around, there are Giant Trevallies, Dogtooth Tuna and Barracudas patrolling the area, as well as huge Napoleon Wrasses and Whitetip Reef Sharks sleeping in the cracks. A truly beautiful dive site!
» Komodo Island
It is hard to decide which dive site is the best in the Similan Islands as they are all so amazing. However Elephant head Rock has something special with a very particular underwater topography with arches and swim-through worth to explore! In addition the fish life is really great with Leopard Sharks and Blacktip Reef Sharks swimming around. This is a must dive in any liveaboard trip to the Similan Islands!
» Similan Islands
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nice place but karachi is amazing as well would love to dive there
Hi, These locations mention are all spectacular and some are now definitely on my list of “TO DO’S ” I recently went to a lodge in Mozambique that also has amazing diving areas in their location. so trust me I had lots of fun with my family and I could sneak out for a few hours to do what I love most.
Hello,
I would Like to communicate with your office via Email, may i know the Email Add please?
Cheers
Hi!
Please contact me here : myryame @ divezone.net
Looking forward to hear from you!
Hi!
I’m from Palau! I now live in Alaska. I never stopped admiring of how beautiful Palau ocean and its sealife was. Compared to the other islands in micronesia, Palau is considered an ultimate diving experience. Please spread the word! I h
Thanks,
Lee
This is so helpful! I am planning to go to scuba next year and, as usual, I always research in advance everything that there is to know. I heard Australia is amazing and also expensive, that’s why I’m taking a few months in advance to save some money in order for the experience to be truly amazing.
Hi Monica!
Glad to hear this article is helping! Feel free to check our page about Australia, where you will find both diving and travel related information!
https://divezone.net/diving/australia
Indeed, Aus can be expensive, but if you plan wise, there are many ways to save money! Couchsurfing and hostels, hop-on-hop off bus pass (& take night segments of bus to save on accommodation) etc.
Safe bubbles, always!
I know this is an old post but several sites in Egypts Red Sea are top 10 worthy. Liveaboard from marsa alam that goes south to Sudan truly spectacular. Pristine reefs and no bleaching corals. Wakatobi Indonesia also very nice. Maybe time for a poll and make a new top 10.
Hi Carsten!
First, I’d like to thank you for reading Divezone! We work hard to keep the blog and site up to date but indeed this page is on our list for a little make over! Follow us on Facebook, when we will start a poll it’ll probably go on our Facebook page!
Also, if you want to read about more recent posts about the best diving destination, we’ve got a few blog post here that might catch your attention https://divezone.net/blog
Best bubbles, always!
This is an awesome list. Can’t wait to plan for my next travel adventure. I will surely consider taking one from this list. Thanks for this article.
Hi!
I’m from Palau! I now live in Alaska. I never stopped admiring of how beautiful Palau ocean and its sealife was. Compared to the other islands in micronesia, Palau is considered an ultimate diving experience. Please spread the word! I h
Thanks,
Lee
Thanks for the list , i have not been to any of the dive sites mentioned on the list , am interested in checking out USS Liberty Wreck , i love exploring old wrecks , is Jan a good time to dive in Bali ?
We have dived some of these and not others. But they are on our very long to do list% Wolf Rock off Rainbow Beach in Qld , Lady Elliot Island is stunning all the time, we go every 6 mths) Heron Island . The list goes on and on. If I may I do a blog with our dives up at theandme123.com. It gives our perspective of dives and sites over the last 5 yrs in Australia and o/S.
We need sites like Dive zone to give us ideas.
We have heard Lemberg is awesome so it is on our list. Timor, LEI, shark diving in Fiji this year so far but working on the list. Thanks Divezone for your ideas and thoughts.
The best dive site I have been so far to is the Madivaru channel. The channel offers everything from a wide array of fish species to hammerhead sharks.
i have been there for the first time really i recommend Shehab boat and diving center we went with them diving in different places all with those amazing corals and amazing pictures we took it was a well spent holiday and very nice stuff supported us
in Hurghada Egypt i just forget to mention but really it was amazing
My wife and I are now in a position, albeit late in life, to enjoy snorkeling around the world. We’ve only been to two locations, which when compared to the world’s best seem insignificant. But for us they were a lot of fun – Dominican Republic and Aruba. Now we are ready to experience what reef snorkeling truly is. If you’ve never experienced great snorkeling before, where would you put your finger on a map? And we would want to stay at an ocean side resort.
The first thing that I have to say about this ranking is … WTF ?????
I know that it is difficult to make a ranking but here … you missed some dive sites that are impossible to forget …
My comments about your ranking (not about the ranking itself, only about its elements) :
3) The best thing that you can see in north horn is a large number of grey reef sharks and some silvertips but it is not always the case and there is frequently some feedings. In Fakarava South Pass (French Polynesia) there are always HUNDREDS of grey reef without any feedings and depending on the season, you can also spot thousand of groupers, so this place is juste … better.
7) The main attraction of this site seem to be sharks (especially sand tiger). Aliwal shoal in South Africa is a much better place for that and you have a lot of other species of sharks in bonus.
10) The biodiversity in Elephant head rock seems incredible but probably two order of magnitude below Richelieu Rock or Raja Ampat …
My ranking (just the 10 best dive sites, not ranked) :
1) Darwin’s arch (Galapagos)
Roca Partida (Socorro Islands, Mexico)
2) Fakarava South pass (French Polynesia)
3) Bajo Alcyone (Cocos Island)
4) Richelieu Rock ( Thailand)
5) Cape Kri, Raja Ampat (indonesia)
6) SS Yongala (Australia)
7) Sardine Run (South Africa)
9) USS Liberty (Bali)
10) Cenotes (Yucatan, Mexico)
Other possible incredible dive sites
– Code hole (Australia)
– Beqa lagoon (Fiji)
– Manta night dive (Hawai)
-Mellow Yellow (Fiji)
– SS Thistelgorm Egypt
– Brothers Islands (Egypt)
– Barracuda Point (Sipadan)
This is for me a better ranking, but you cannot do one without Darwin’s Arch, Fakarava South pass and Raja Ampat