Resort Diving

Updated September 27, 2022

This is the ninety-sixth in a series of reviews of the best dive resort locations around the world.  In this post, the focus is on Raja Ampat, Indonesia. In addition to this series on dive resort locations, the best worldwide liveaboard diving locations and services are reviewed in their own series.  To check them out, or others in this series, click on Liveaboards/Resorts on the menu at the top and choose a title from the list.

Have you been diving in Raja Ampat before?  If so, I’d love to know about your experience.  What dive shop did you use?  Which dive spots are the best and what are the conditions there regarding the visibility, current, water temperature, sealife attractions, etc.?  Please post your response in the comments section at the bottom and we’ll all learn something we can use.

Scuba Diving Raja Ampat Indonesia

Background

Raja Ampat, which means four kings, is an archipelago of more than 1,500 islands, shoals, and cays just off the northwest tip of Bird’s Head Peninsula, New Guinea, a part of West Papua Province, Indonesia.  The four kings in the name are the islands of Misool, Salawati, Batanta, and Waigeo.  This area known for the richest biodiversity in the world is situated around the equator with only a few of the northern islands in the northern hemisphere.  The population of 49,000 leads primarily a traditional lifestyle based on fishing, although they are known for a welcoming attitude which is great for scuba divers and eco-tourists.

Undersea World

Raja Ampat sits in the middle of the area with the greatest biodiversity in the world which hosts more than 1,500 species of fish, 500 species of coral, and 700 mollusks.

A nice drift and a variety of subsea terrains enhance this diversity of wildlife.  There are shallow coral gardens, grass beds, mangrove forests, and some sites that are especially rich in soft coral with huge gorgonians.  Other sites have more hard coral.  White sand, black sand, rocky slopes, steep drop-offs, and caves are all possibilities.  There are lots of fish, macro critters, and pelagics like giant trevallies, dogtooth tuna, or mackerel on every dive.  Macro attractions include a multitude of nudibranchs, frogfish, scorpionfish, pygmy seahorses, crustaceans, octopuses, and cuttlefish, to name but a few.  Reef tropicals like angelfish, parrotfish, sweetlips, and butterflyfish are often accompanied by the more spectacular bumphead parrotfish, Maori wrasse, white and blacktip reef sharks, wobbegongs, green turtles, and manta rays.

On top of those attractions, there are several intriguing wrecks.

If you are lucky you may find a pod of dolphins, whales, orcas, or perhaps a dugong.

Seasons and Conditions

Diving is possible year-round in Raja Ampat.

• With such close proximity to the equator, air temperature is always warm with an average daily range from 25-32°C (78-91°F).
• Water temperature consistently stays from 26-30°C (79-86°F).
• There are two rainy seasons, one from October through May considered the preferable time to dive, and the second in July and August.  Plankton blooms from October to April which attracts large numbers of manta rays.
• Surface conditions tend to be a little rougher due to monsoon winds in July and August, although many locations have a degree of protection from the winds.
• Currents in many locations are moderate to strong, making for exciting drift diving.
• Visibility has a range of 10-40 meters (33-130 feet).  Rains and plankton blooms push it to the lower end of the range.
• With the possible moderate to strong current, it is generally considered that most of the sites are suitable for at least intermediate-level divers.  There are advanced and technical level sites available.  At least 23 dive shops operate on the islands and can offer a full range of diving coursework, equipment rental, guiding, and boat cruises.  More than two dozen liveaboard yachts also cruise Raja Ampat.

Raja Ampat Liveaboards

More than 60 liveaboard yachts run dive safaris in Raja Ampat. Here are my review and links to several Raja Ampat liveaboard yachts:

• Raja Ampat Liveaboard Diving

MSY Seahorse, Raja Ampat Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price

La Galigo, Raja Ampat Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price

MV Damai I, Raja Ampat Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price

Selected Raja Ampat Dive Sites

Cape Kri: 40 meters (130 feet) maximum depth, famous site where Dr. Gerry Allen counted a record 374 species on one dive, beautiful coral topped reef, current-swept channel between Kri and Koh islands, steep drop-off, nudibranchs, pygmy seahorse, scorpionfish, big schools of barracuda, snapper, and jacks, at the base of the drop-off at 38 meters (125 feet) is an old anchor and coral head with a school of glassfish and sweetlips, black and whitetip reef sharks, hawksbill turtles, and huge groupers, experienced level

Sardine Reef: 5-30 meters (16-100 feet), offshore site on a 200-meter long pinnacle, to the east of Kri Island, massive schools of fish (but no sardines) including bannerfish, fusiliers, rainbow runners, jacks, tuna,  batfish, surgeonfish, and bumphead parrotfish, white, blacktip, and grey reef sharks often prowl amongst them, also big sea fans with pygmy sea horses, strong current possible, experienced level

Boo Window: on the eastern side of Misool, barrel sponges, macro critters including mantis shrimp, nudibranchs, ghost pipefish, and pygmy seahorses, Napoleon wrasse, sweetlips, large swim-through in gaps in a coral wall in shallow water, to a steep drop-off with a strong current, large table corals, schools of fusiliers and batfish, reef sharks and wobbegongs, and a pinnacle further out in open water, great photo opportunities, experienced level

Manta Ridge: 6-40 meters (20-130 feet), between Mansuar and Airborei Islands, sloping reef to a sandy bottom at 40 meters (130 feet) that then slopes on down from there, large 4-meter (12-foot) wing-span mantas as shallow as 6 meters (20 feet), but often much deeper, looking for a cleaning station of cleaner and other wrasse species,  they come year-round, but October and April have the best conditions for them, other marine life in the vicinity are butterflyfish, bumphead parrotfish, trevallies, and turtles, often there are strong currents,  experienced level

Manta Sandy: 5-20 meters (16-68 feet), near Manta Ridge, moderate to strong current, cleaning station for mantas in a narrow channel of coral heads, at 15 meters (50 feet) 10 or more mantas often linger there hoping for cleaning from a wrasse, all levels.

Happy Ending: near Batanta, shallow dark sand slope with lots of macro critters including crocodile fish, snake eels, wonderpus and mimic octopus, Phyllodesmium nudibranchs, all levels

Melissa’s Garden: near Batanta, large coral garden with hard and soft corals, sponges, and anemones, great macro photography site, nudibranchs, lots of colorful reef tropicals, rabbitfish, lionfish, angelfish, sea kraits, pygmy seahorses, deeper there are barracuda, occasional mantas, and wobbegongs, little current, all levels

The Passage: 10 meters (35 feet) average maximum depth, a channel between Waigeo and Gam falls to about 35 meters (116 feet), tidal flows create a current through the channel bringing nutrients, many passages, tunnels, nooks, and crannies to explore, orange sea fans, purple sponges, archerfish, cuttlefish, flatworms, octopus, cuttlefish, resident turtles, and schools of jacks, barracuda, and tuna, wobbegongs, all levels

Magic Mountain: near Misool Resort, submerged pinnacle reaching 7 meters (22 feet) in depth, oceanic currents, sometimes strong, bring nutrients and a chance for two species of manta ray, big schools of pelagics, Napoleon wrasse, whitetip reef sharks, experienced level

P-47D Thunderbolt Wreck: 33 meters (110 feet), ditched during WWII when it ran out of fuel, lies upside down, well encrusted, near Way Island, experienced level

Raja Ampat Photos

With the pristine coral reefs, wrecks, extreme biodiversity including mantas, wobbegongs, sea turtles, stingrays,  sharks, dolphins, whales, macro critters, reef tropicals, and interesting onshore scenery, as well, there are many excellent photo opportunities.  For information and reviews of dive cameras, click here:

• Best Underwater Cameras Compared and Reviewed

Raja Ampat Transportation, Lodging, and Dive Shops

Transportation

Dominique Edward Osok Airport in Sorong has direct daily flights from Jakarta, Manado, or Jayapura.  The airlines providing this service are Sriwijaya Air, Lion Air, Batik Air, and Garuda Indonesia.

Liveaboards generally depart from Sorong.  Most hotels can provide a speedboat to pick you up there.  Be sure to ask about this when booking.  Otherwise, there is a daily ferry to Waigeo.

For a few more details on transportation logistics, please click here:  Wikitravel – Raja Ampat

Lodging and Dive Shops

There are a small number of hotels, resorts, and homestays around Rajah Ampat.  At least 23 dive shops are also in operation, many associated with lodging.  They offer full services including equipment rental, dive courses, guiding, and boat dive cruises.

The website linked below has the details and can arrange the booking.  You can easily find the location on the map provided on this site.  Their rates are guaranteed to be the lowest and it is free to cancel or change dates.

• Raja Ampat Hotels

Things to Do in Raja Ampat (aside from scuba diving)

Most of the things to do relate to nature and the great biodiversity, and water activities.  Here are some things to consider:  sailing, kayaking, island tours/cruising, bird watching, visiting the Red Bird of Paradise, exploring the bat cave, visiting the Karst islands near Wayag Island, making a wood sculpture with a lesson from an Asmat artisan, fishing in the Papuan style, trek to waterfalls, watch the sea ghost.  The people where you stay will have many ideas for you.

Scuba Diving Trip Insurance

A cushion for emergencies provides peace of mind when on vacation.  I recommend this diving insurance as they have worldwide coverage and provide scuba divers quality insurance and medical assistance service.

Feedback and Comments

I hope you found this post on Raja Ampat scuba diving interesting and useful. If you have any questions or ideas, please feel free to share them in the comments section.  I’d love to know of any experience you have diving in Raja Ampat.  If there is no comments section directly below, click here:  >>comments<<

Updated April 25, 2022

This is the seventy-third in a series of reviews of the best diving destinations around the world.  In this post, the focus is on Cape Town, South Africa.

In addition to this series on diving destinations, the best worldwide liveaboard diving locations and services are reviewed in their own series.  To check them out, or others in this series, click on Liveaboards/Resorts on the menu at the top and choose a title from the list.

Have you ever been diving in Cape Town before?  If so, I’d love to know about your experience.  What dive shop or liveaboard did you use?  Which dive spots are the best and what are the conditions there regarding the visibility, current, water temperature, sealife attractions, etc.?  Please post your response in the comments section at the bottom and we’ll all learn something we can use.

Cape Town Scuba Diving

Background

Set in the Western Cape Province with Table Bay on the north and False Bay on the south, Cape Town is the oldest city in South Africa.  As a trading outpost of the Dutch East India Company, Cape Town was born when the Dutch Cape Colony was set up there in 1652.  With a Mediterranean climate, great biodiversity, and a multicultural urban scene, it is perhaps the premier tourist destination on the continent.  A broad-based economy supplemented by this tourism supports a population of 3.7 million, with 36% speaking Afrikaans as their first language, 30% speaking Xhosa, and 28% speaking English.

Undersea World

False Bay is pretty sizable and there is some variability in the underwater terrain.  On the west side, the bottom is rockier and there are more steep drop-offs, whereas on the east side generally there are more sandy bottom areas.

The reefs offer very little in the way of hard corals, but it is made up for by the rich variety and bright colors of the soft corals, sponges, sea fans, other encrusting invertebrates, and kelp.  There are crinoids, brittle stars, sea stars, sea pens, anemones, lobster, crabs, octopus, cuttlefish, and dozens of species of nudibranch.  Fish species include horsefish, strepies, pufferfish, Roman fish, Hottentot seabream, stumpnoses, and a large number of sharks like puffadder shysharks, leopard catsharks, pyjama sharks, and gully sharks, all very small, and the much larger seven-gill sharks.

A large colony of African penguins (jack-ass penguins) stays near Simon’s Town, and Cape fur seals are abundant, especially at Seal Island where up to 60,000 at a time can be seen and smelled, along with great white sharks who like to eat them.

Some operators run shark cage dives outside of False Bay and quite a few do it inside near Seal Island.  Many dive sites are also accessible from shore.  In addition, several wrecks are in a range mostly for advanced-level divers.

Liveaboard Diving

None of the major liveaboard yachts travel to Cape Town.  However, there are quite a few that cruise the relatively nearby Madagascar and Seychelles dive sites.  Please click here for my reviews:

• Best Diving Vacations – Madagascar Liveaboards
• Seychelles Best Scuba Diving Holidays

SY Sea Bird, Seychelles Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price

MV Galatea, Madagascar Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price

For my reviews of some other Southwest Indian Ocean resort diving areas, please check these posts:

• Shark Cage Diving Gansbaai South Africa
• Shark Diving in Mossel Bay South Africa
• South Africa Scuba Diving Port Elizabeth
• Protea Banks Diving South Africa
• Aliwal Shoal Scuba Diving South Africa
• Diving Sodwana Bay South Africa
• Best Diving Mozambique Reviewed
• Scuba Diving Mombasa Kenya
• Zanzibar Scuba Diving Review
• Scuba Diving Mauritius Review
• Scuba Diving Reunion Island

Seasons and Conditions

Diving is possible year-round in our primary area of interest, False Bay.

Air temperatures are mild with average daily highs peaking in February at 26.5°C (79.7°F) and bottoming out in July with average daily highs then at 17.5°C (63.5°F).

Rain is not a major hindrance with only 20 inches (515 mm) annually, however, the rainiest months are from May to August.

The annual range of water temperature is 12-16°C (53.6-60.8°F) on the surface.  At depth, it can be 1-3°C cooler.  A heavy wetsuit, hood, and gloves may suffice for some, but a drysuit is the best bet.

In the winter with northeasterly winds, visibility is often from 5-10 meters (16-35 feet) but can extend to 20 meters (68 feet) or beyond.  In the summer months, the southeasterly winds can cause some surface chop and influence visibility taking it below 5 meters (16 feet).  At the same time on the east side, the dirty surface water can be blown out actually creating better visibility there.

Current is not much of a factor inside the bay.

Generally, there are dive sites and conditions suitable for all levels of divers.

Of the at least 59 dive shops around metropolitan Cape Town, there are many right on False Bay.  They are fully equipped to provide a range of training, equipment rental, guiding, and boat tours with some also doing shark cage diving.

For information on cold water scuba gear, please check my post:

• Best Cold Water Scuba Diving Equipment

Selected Cape Town False Bay Dive Sites

A-Frame: 12 meters (40 feet), shore entry, 5 kilometers (3 miles) from Simon’s Town in the Oatland’s area, A-frame tripod visible from the road, entry through a flat rocky area, kelp forest and huge boulders, holes, overhangs, and swim-throughs, cave, colorful sponges, soft coral, sea anemones, mussels, abalone, all levels

Boat Rock: 21 meters (70 feet), boat dive, rocky area, gullies and overhangs, lots of colorful sponges, gorgonians, sea fans, and other encrusting invertebrates, all levels

Smits Reef: 8-30 meters (25-100 feet), boat dive, big boulders, shysharks, pyjama sharks, nudibranchs, colorful sea fans, all levels

SAS Pietermaritzburg or PMB: 25 meters (82 feet), boat dive, originally an Algerine class minesweeper commissioned in Scotland in 1943, participated in D-Day, scuttled to become an artificial reef in 1994, just north of Miller’s point, well encrusted, lots of life, the structure has collapsed precluding safe penetration, experienced level

Clan Stuart: 8 meters (25 feet), shore entry, British turret steamer that went down in a storm in 1914, 4 km (2.5 miles) from Fish Hoek traffic circle on Simon’s Town Road, dense marine growth, big variety of fish, engine block sticks out of the water, all levels and snorkelers

Lusitania: 42 meters (140 feet), boat dive, a famous Portuguese passenger liner that sank when it hit Bellows Rock in a storm in 1911, strong surge near the surface, big fish, lots of encrusting life and invertebrates, advanced level

Castle Rock: 15 meters (50 feet), shore dive in the marine reserve, rocky area, rich corals and sponges, lots of fish including red Romans, stumpnose, and Hottentot sea bream, all levels

Outer Castle: 21 meters (70 feet), boat dive, numerous big boulders, one breaking the surface at low tide, swim-throughs, a highlight is large rays, all levels

Partridge Point: 21 meters (70 feet), boat dive, near a fur seal colony, boulders with swim-throughs and caverns, soft corals and sponges, crinoids, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, pipefish, anemones, large janbruin, and galjoen, all levels

Seal Island: less than 2 meters (6 feet), white shark cage dive conducted by authorized operators, up to 60,000 fur seals may be on the island simultaneously, white sharks lurk for feeding opportunities, bait ball is used to lure sharks, the cage is lowered and divers watch sharks from the protection of the cage, often done using a snorkel, all levels

Cape Town Photos

With the interesting undersea terrain, colorful coral reefs and vegetation, a variety of fish, sharks, seals, and scenic coastal landscapes, and historic landmarks, as well, there are many excellent photo opportunities.  For information and reviews of dive cameras, click here:

• Best Underwater Cameras Compared and Reviewed

Cape Town Transportation, Dive Shops, and Lodging

Transportation

Cape Town International Airport is the second largest in the country with domestic service to most in-country airports and some international destinations.

There are two long-distance passenger rail services with daily trips to Johannesburg and weekly to Durban.

Metrorail is a commuter service with 96 stations around the metropolitan area.

There is also the IRT (Integrated Rapid Transit) which covers about 10% of the metro area.

Metered taxis, which must be called and don’t cruise for customers, and mini-bus taxis are available.

Rental cars, motorbikes, and bicycles are all available.

Dive Shops & Lodging

There are at least 672 hotels and lodges in Cape Town from $10-$1,796 per night.  59 or more major dive shops operate there.  They offer a full range of services including equipment rental, dive courses, guiding, and boat dive cruises with some also doing shark cage diving.

The website linked below is a good source for the available options and can arrange a booking for the lodging.  You can easily find the locations on the map provided on this site.  Their rates are the lowest and it is free to cancel or change dates.

• Cape Town Resorts

Things to do in Cape Town (aside from scuba diving)

Cape Town offers a unique history, culture, and scenic beauty.  A vast array of things to do and places to go are available like museums, galleries, historical sites, city tours, restaurants, nightlife, landscapes, and wildlife.  This video is an excellent introduction to the options.

Scuba Diving Trip Insurance

A cushion for emergencies provides peace of mind when on vacation.  I recommend this diving insurance as they have worldwide coverage and provide scuba divers quality insurance and medical assistance service.

Feedback and Comments

I hope you found this post on Cape Town scuba diving interesting and useful. If you have any questions or ideas, please feel free to share them in the comments section.  I’d love to know of any experience you have diving in Cape Town.  If there is no comments section directly below, click here: >>comments<<

Updated August 26, 2022

This is the one hundred and second in a series of reviews of the best dive resort locations worldwide.  In this post, the focus is on Coron, Philippines. In addition to this series on dive resort locations, the best worldwide liveaboard diving locations and services are reviewed in their own series.  To check them out, or others in this series, click on Liveaboards/Resorts on the menu at the top and choose a title from the list.

Have you ever been diving in Coron before?  If so, I’d love to know about your experience.  What dive shop or liveaboard did you use?  Which dive spots are the best and what are the conditions there regarding the visibility, current, water temperature, sealife attractions, etc.?  Please post your response in the comments section at the bottom and we’ll all learn something we can use.

Scuba Diving Coron Philippines

Background

The municipality of Coron is situated at the northern end of Palawan Province in the Philippines.  It occupies half of Busuanga Island and all of Coron Island.  The population of 52,000 has doubled since 1980 behind an economy of dwindling traditional fishing and increasing tourism based on beaches, scuba diving, and natural tourist spots.

Undersea World

Set on an idyllic tropical bay, Coron is thought of by many as sort of a poor man’s Truk Lagoon.  Considering the reputation Truk has for wreck diving, that has to stand as a pretty nice compliment.

On September 24, 1944, the Japanese must have been feeling pretty safe with their fleet anchored in this remote and sheltered area.  When Task Force 38 from the USS Lexington caught them by surprise the result was 24 of the ships sunk in a 15-minute raid.  12 of the wrecks have been located mostly around the smaller islands to the west of Coron near Tangat (Sangat) Island 1-2 hours from Coron town.  The majority are shallow enough for recreational divers with the deepest the Irako at 43 meters (143 feet) in depth.  Accessibility at 30 meters (100 feet) or less makes practically all of them great candidates for an extended bottom time through the use of Nitrox.

There are a lot of great penetration opportunities and the artificial reef is a pretty rich one with a thick coat of encrusting invertebrates and macro critters like shrimp, crabs, anemones, tunicates, nudibranchs, scorpionfish, lionfish, and crocodilefish, along with big grouper, schooling barracuda, sharks, turtles, and many others.

In addition to the wrecks, there are a number of other intriguing locations including Barracuda Lake in a mountain crater, and several nice reef dives for a change of pace.

Seasons and Conditions

Diving around Coron is possible year-round.

• Air temperature is always nice and warm with daily highs ranging from 31 to 34°C (88 to 93°F).
• Water temperature consistently stays from 25 to 31°C (77 to 88°F).  A 3 mm wetsuit is probably the most thermal protection needed for most.
• The rainy season is from June through September which sometimes interferes with diving.  The liveaboards schedule around the wet weather.
• Currents run from mild to strong depending on the location and tidal conditions.
• Visibility is normally in a range of 5-15 meters (16-50 feet) with the best coming in the dry season from November through June.
• There are sites suitable for all levels of diver. Around 20 dive shops are in operation in Coron town and a dozen or so more not too far away at resorts that can offer a full range of diving coursework, equipment rental, guiding, and boat cruises. Some of them also arrange safaris to Apo Reef and other outlying sites.

Coron Liveaboard Diving

A number of liveaboards dive the wrecks in Coron on safaris combined with Apo Reef to the east.  Here is my review and five vessels that offer that cruise:

• Best Coron Wrecks & Apo Reef Liveaboard

MV Discovery Palawan – Check the Price & Details

MV Dolphin – Check the Price & Details

PY Atlantis Azores – Check the Price & Details

Flying Dolphin 3 – Check the Price & Details

MY Resolute – Check the Price & Details

Azalea Liveaboard – Check the Price & Details

Agos Liveaboard – Check the Price & Details

For other popular reviews of Philippine diving, please check these:

• Scuba Diving Romblon Philippines
• Scuba Diving Camiguin Philippines Review
• Scuba Diving Siquijor Island Philippines Review
• Scuba Diving Dumaguete Philippines Review
• Philippines Puerto Princesa Scuba Diving Review
• Best Liveaboard Diving – Tubbataha Reefs National Park
• Best Liveaboard Scuba Diving Philippines
• Best Scuba Diving Philippines Subic Bay Wrecks 
• Best Diving Bohol Philippines – Panglao Island Resorts
• Best Scuba Diving Puerto Galera Philippines
• Best Scuba Diving Holidays Boracay Philippines
• Best Scuba Diving Philippines Sogod Bay
• Philippines Best Diving Mactan Island
• Best Philippines Diving Bacuit Bay El Nido
• Best Diving Philippines Anilao Batangas
• Best Diving Review Anda Bohol
• Best Scuba Diving Resorts Malapascua
• Best Diving Philippines Visayas Liveaboards
• Philippines Moalboal Scuba Diving Review

Selected Coron Shipwrecks & Dive Sites

Akitsushima (near Manglet Island): 17-38 meters (57-125 feet), 118-meter (395-foot) Japanese seaplane tender, hit by a torpedo toward the stern with great damage, lying on its port side, penetration is possible into the engine room and other areas, many guns are in place as is the crane for loading the Kawanishi seaplanes, live ammo is still found in place, lots of batfish, grouper, sweetlips, lionfish, scorpionfish, yellowfin tuna, and barracudas, experienced and technical levels

Irako (mouth of Coron Bay off Tangat Island): 28-43 meters (93-143 feet), 147-meter (490-foot) refrigerated provision boat, largely intact sitting upright, the deck can be reached at 28-35 meters (93-120 feet), penetration into the engine room and cargo holds possible, two turtles in residence, grouper, schools of fusiliers, jacks, and yellowfin tuna, rays near the mast section, experienced and technical levels

Okikawa Maru (near Concepcion): deck at 10-16 meters (35-53 feet), 168-meter (560-foot) Japanese tanker, resting upright, folded near the bow, penetration opportunities through the propeller shaft and into the engine room, there is no engine but two boilers, lots of lettuce coral, soft coral, and sponges, many macro critters including nudibranchs, scorpionfish, lionfish, and pufferfish, other fish highlights are sweetlips, grouper, lionfish, surgeonfish, wrasse, and soldierfish, a strong current is possible, all levels

Skeleton (off Coron Island to the northwest): 5-22 meters (16-73 feet), 25-meter (83-foot) deteriorated wreck with only the frame remaining, opening on the starboard side at 14 meters (47 feet) allowing penetration, lots of places for macro critters like ghost pipefish, scorpionfish, and nudibranchs, lots of reef fish, angelfish, damselfish, and turtles, tuna, reef sharks and turtles possible, can also continue on the adjacent reef, all levels, and snorkeling

Tangat Wreck (near Tangat Island): 30 meters (100 feet), 160-meter (535-foot) cargo ship resting upright, masts still in place, large open cargo holds for easy penetration the length of the ship with a few tight squeezes, huge pufferfish, schools of banana fish, large turtles, experienced level

Lusong Gunboat (east of Lusong Island): 15 meters (50 feet), small submarine hunter, stern pushes through the surface at low tide, much of the main structure is missing, next to a coral reef, lots of soft corals and sponges, anemones and clownfish, pufferfish, angelfish, butterflyfish, wrasses, parrotfish, cuttlefish, and other reef tropicals, mild current, all levels and snorkeling

Kogyo Maru (north of the Irako off Tangat Island): 38 meters (127 feet), 158-meter (526-foot) Japanese freighter, fairly well intact lying on her port side, penetration is possible to all six holds, the bridge, and huge engine room, the second hold still contains a tractor, air compressor, bulldozer, and cement bags, well encrusted with hard and soft corals, marine life includes waspfish, scorpionfish, razorfish, lionfish, batfish, snapper, crocodile fish, groupers, barracuda, turtles, and rays, experienced and technical levels

Olympia Maru (west of Tangat Island): 25 meters (83 feet), 120-meter (400-foot) Japanese army cargo vessel, lying on her starboard side, intact, cargo rooms can be penetrated, divers can view the inner stern, gangways, locker rooms, boilers, and gangway, superstructure encrusted in sponges, soft coral, and black coral, pufferfish, lionfish, scorpionfish, crocodile fish, razorfish, glassfish, snappers, seahorses, ghost pipefish,  large schools of banana fish, batfish, experienced level

Barracuda Lake (on Coron Island): 35 meters (120 feet) maximum depth, mountain lake with a mix of spring water and salt water, near the surface it is fresh and gets saltier and warmer on the descent, not much marine life, interesting moonlike terrain with some limestone pinnacles around the edge, some small catfish, freshwater shrimps, and clams, a channel leads to the sea where there are snappers, pufferfish, batfish, and a 1.5-meter barracuda that resides in the lake, at the surface the water is clear and turns brownish the deeper you go,  requires a 15-minute hike with your equipment up the mountain to the crater lake

Bugor Reef (off the north shore of Culion Island): 3-35 meters (10-120 feet), a sloping reef with rich marine life, hard and soft corals, batfish, moray eels, pufferfish, and many reef tropicals, giant clams, possible leopard and guitar sharks, all levels

7 Islands Reef or Siete Picado (off Coron Island): 24 meters (80 feet) maximum depth, a marine sanctuary, variety of hard and soft corals, lots of fish and macro critters including batfish, barracuda, grouper, emperor angelfish, moray eels, mandarin fish, lobsters, seahorses, nudibranchs, cuttlefish, giant clams, turtles, stingrays, and eagle rays, a strong current is possible, all levels

Coron Things to Do (aside from scuba diving)

The best things to do in this remote island paradise involve enjoying nature, the scenery, and the hospitality of the people.  Here are some highlight attractions to consider:  Banol Beach, Barracuda Lake, Kayangan Lake, Caluit Safari Park, Black Island, Culion Island (home of the now-closed historic leper colony), Mt. Tapyas, Maquinit Hot Springs, Twin Lagoons, Bulog Island, Kingfisher Park, Banana Island, Levine’s (restaurant).

This video gives a nice view of the scenery and some options for a visitor.

Coron Transportation, Hotels, and Diving Services

• Air – There are frequent flights from Manila to Francisco B. Reyes Airport in Coron on PAL Express and Cebu Pacific Airlines.  On Tuesdays and Fridays, there are also flights from Puerto Princesa and Caticlan (Boracay) on Air Juan.  Airport-to-town transfers can be made by van at low prices.
• Boat – There are several sleeper ferries per week running between Manila and Coron and Puerto Princesa and Coron.  Fast and slow boats run between El Nido and Coron four times per day.  The fast boat takes 3.5 hours and the slow one takes 8 hours.
• Buses and Jeepneys are available at the tourist center for trips to outlying areas.
• Taxis are not in use.
• Tricycles are available at very low rates for trips around town.
• Motorcycle Rental is also an option that is useful for short trips out of town and into the mountains and countryside.

For more complete details of tourist information, please go here:  Coron – Wikitravel

Hotels and Diving

There are over 100 hotel and lodging options of all levels in Coron starting at $4 per night.  At last count, there were 20 dive shops in Coron town and another dozen or so not far away.  A number of them are located in or affiliated with resorts and offer a range of services including equipment rental, diving certification classes, dive guides, and boat tours.  Some organize safaris to Apo Reef and other outlying sites.

The website linked below has the details and can arrange the booking.  You can easily find the location on the map provided on this site.  Their rates are guaranteed to be the lowest and it is free to cancel or change dates.

• Coron Hotels, Resorts

Coron Photos

With the coral reefs, a variety of reef fish, wrecks, macro critters, and scenic shoreside targets, as well, there are many excellent photo opportunities.  For information and reviews of dive cameras, click here:

• Best Underwater Cameras Compared and Reviewed

Scuba Diving Trip Insurance

A cushion for emergencies provides peace of mind when on vacation.  I recommend this diving insurance as they have worldwide coverage and provide scuba divers quality insurance and medical assistance service.

Feedback and Comments

I hope you found this post on Coron scuba diving interesting and useful. If you have any questions or ideas, please feel free to share them in the comments section.  I’d love to know of any experience you have diving in Coron.  If there is no comments section directly below, click here:  >>comments<<

Updated November 17, 2022

This is the sixty-seventh in a series of reviews of the best diving destinations worldwide.  In this post, the focus is on Mozambique.

In addition to this series on diving destinations, the best worldwide liveaboard diving locations and services are reviewed in their own series.  To check them out, or others in this series, click on Liveaboards/Resorts on the menu at the top and choose a title from the list.

Have you ever been diving in Mozambique before?  If so, I’d love to know about your experience.  What dive shop or liveaboard did you use?  Which dive spots are the best and what are the conditions there regarding the visibility, current, water temperature, sealife attractions, etc.?  Please post your response in the comments section at the bottom and we’ll all learn something we can use.

Best Diving in Mozambique

Background

With twice the area of California and a coastline of 2,470 kilometers (1,535 miles), Mozambique is bordered on the north by Tanzania, the west by Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, and South Africa and Swaziland on the south.  It has several mountain chains, 25 rivers including the Zambezi, and a population of 29 million.

The Portuguese settled there in 1500 with spices and slaves as primary economic motivation over the years.  Independence was achieved in 1975, but that was followed by civil war and flirtations with the Soviets.  The war ended in 1992 and by 1995 Mozambique was a multiparty state and the only country never a part of the British Empire to become a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Although there is a rich countryside and coastline, and natural gas reserves recently discovered, the economy is poorly developed and in 2012 major government corruption was revealed.  The infrastructure is poor and transportation around the country is often slow and inconvenient.  However, there is quite a lot of tourism and with the natural beauty on land and at sea and increasing societal stability it will continue to grow.

Maputo in the south, with the second-largest population among Mozambique’s cities at 1.1 million, is the capital and major international port of entry.

97.8% of the population is from tribal groups making up the Bantu peoples with the rest Europeans, mostly Portuguese, mixed-race, and Indians with a small cadre of Chinese, as well.

Portuguese is the national language that people in cities speak as their #1 language.  Overall more than 50% of the population can speak Portuguese.

56% are Christian, 18% Muslim, and the rest have another religion, mostly animism, or no religion.

Undersea World

With its long coastline, offshore reefs, and islands, Mozambique offers a great number of dive sites on many near-pristine reefs with perhaps the world’s top list of big creatures to behold.

Seasonal whale sharks and manta rays appear from November through April with humpback whales coming from June through October.  There are several species of turtle including leatherbacks and schooling trevally, barracuda, tuna, and other pelagics.  The list of commonly seen sharks is astounding: silvertips, hammerheads, tiger, bull, black and whitetip reef sharks, leopard, and guitar sharks.  In addition, marble stingrays, eagle rays, dolphins, and even dugongs can be observed.

There are fringing reefs and a full array of rocks, pinnacles, walls, and arches making up the undersea terrain.  The rich coral reef with a large array of hard and soft corals, sea fans, and sponges provides excellent habitat for lionfish, snappers, sweetlips, grouper, fusiliers, moray eels, crocodile fish, leaf fish, peacock flounders, frogfish, nudibranchs, and many other of macro critters.

Seasons and Conditions

Because the Mozambique coastal diving areas cover a fairly large geographic area, conditions have some variation from place to place.

As you would expect, it is warm year-round with average daily high temperatures reaching 30°C (86°F) in December through March and getting down to 25°C (77°F) in June and July.

The rainy season runs from November through March with the driest months of the year in July and August.

Water temperature is in a range from 23-29°C (73.4- 84.2°F) but usually does not dip below 26°C (78.8°F).  A 3-5mm wetsuit will handle thermal protection when the water is at its coolest.

In some locations, the current can be strong and the visibility is excellent at 24-40 meters (80-130 feet).

Conditions are available for every level of diver.

There are at least 42 dive shops in operation in Mozambique.  Many are very sophisticated providing a range of training, equipment rental, guiding, and boat tours.

Liveaboard Diving

None of the major liveaboard yachts travel to Mozambique.  However, there are quite a few that cruise the relatively nearby Madagascar and Seychelles dive sites.  Please click here for my reviews:

• Best Diving Vacations – Madagascar Liveaboards
• Seychelles Best Scuba Diving Holidays

SY Sea Bird, Seychelles Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price

MV Galatea, Madagascar Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price

For my reviews of some other Southwest Indian Ocean resort diving areas, please check these posts:

• Shark Cage Diving Gansbaai South Africa
• Shark Diving in Mossel Bay South Africa
• Scuba Diving Cape Town South Africa
• South Africa Scuba Diving Port Elizabeth
• Protea Banks Diving South Africa
• Aliwal Shoal Scuba Diving South Africa
• Diving Sodwana Bay South Africa
• Scuba Diving Mombasa Kenya
• Zanzibar Scuba Diving Review
• Scuba Diving Mauritius Review
• Scuba Diving Reunion Island

Selected Mozambique Dive Sites

Ponta do Ouro

• Location: near the South African border at Kosi Bay
• Highlights: good variety of reef tropicals, macro critters, and big stuff including paper fish, frogfish, nudibranchs, red-toothed triggerfish schools, potato cod, reef, bull, hammerhead and whale sharks, dolphins, barracuda, eagle rays, around 20 reefs in the area, shallow and deep, some with substantial drift, all levels
• Access: 3-5 hour drive from Maputo

Inhaca Island

• Location:  35 kilometers (22 miles) offshore from Maputo
• Highlights: 150 types of  healthy coral, diverse reef life, big schools of kingfish and barracuda, dolphins, whale sharks, and manta rays from November through April, humpback whales in September and October, reefs from 18-30 meters (60-100 feet), several wrecks, all levels
• Access: 2-hour ferry once a day between Maputo to Inhaca

Pemba (not the Pemba in Zanzibar)

• Location: bay in the far north of the country (see map)
• Highlights: beautiful beaches, continental shelf drop off starts at 15 meters (50 feet), descends to 120 meters (400 feet), lots of sites at 30 meters (100 feet) and shallower, pristine corals, rich diverse marine life, good variety of corals and reef tropicals, Napoleon wrasse, reef sharks, mobula rays, mola mola, black marlin, all levels
• Access: 34-37 hour drive from Maputo, flights from Maputo once per week

Quirimbas Archipelago

• Location: 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of Pemba
• Highlights: marine protected area in 11 of the 32 islands (biggest in Africa), much unexplored, pristine coral reef, rich marine life, manta rays, and whale sharks in summer, 8 species of shark, kingfish, barracuda, dolphins, humpback whales, 5 turtle species and nesting areas (nesting November through March), sites from 14-80 meters (46-260 feet), all levels
• Access: your hotel can help you arrange transport from Pemba

Mozambique Photos

With the pristine coral reefs, rich macro life, spectacular whales, sharks, dolphins, rays, turtles, pelagics, and shipwrecks, and the world-famous African land-based wildlife and historical and cultural sites, as well, there are many excellent photo opportunities.  For information and reviews of dive cameras, click here:

• Best Underwater Cameras Compared and Reviewed

Mozambique Transportation, Dive Shops, and Lodging

Transportation

The airport near Maputo has frequent flights from South Africa, Portugal, and several other African countries.  Less frequent domestic flights can be made to Inhambane, Vilanculos, Beira, and Pemba from Maputo.

The infrastructure in Mozambique is very poor.

Taxis, if you can find them, require a negotiated price.

There is no public bus or rail service.

Private buses (machibombo), smaller transport vehicles (chapa), or trucks (camiao) can be found, but are not necessarily reliable or comfortable.

There is one main paved road that stretches from Maputo, at the southern end, to Lilongwe in the north.

Car rental is possible, but depots are only in Maputo and Beira on the central coast.

Dive Shops & Lodging – There are more than 42 dive shops, a number of which are affiliated with resorts, that operate in Mozambique.  They are in operation year-round and offer a full range of services including equipment rental, dive courses, guiding, and boat dive cruises.

In Maputo, the major entry point to Mozambique, at least 55 accommodations of every level are available from $16 to $292 per night.  The website linked below is a good source for the available options and can arrange a booking.  You can easily find the locations on the map provided on this site.  Their rates are the lowest and it is free to cancel or change dates.

• Mozambique Resorts

Things to do in Mozambique (aside from scuba diving)

There is a lot of scenic beauty at the seaside and inland and interesting culture to get acquainted with.  Here are some of the places to go:  Gorongosa National Park, Bazaruto Archipelago, Island of Mozambique, Iglesia de San Antonio de la Polona, Governor’s Palace Museum, Vamizi Island, Bilene, Portuguese Island, Feira De Artesanato, Praia do Tofo, Cahora Bassa Dam, Lake Malawi, Benguerra Island. Check the videos below for some of these and for a city tour of Maputo.

Scuba Diving Trip Insurance

A cushion for emergencies provides peace of mind when on vacation.  I recommend this diving insurance as they have worldwide coverage and provide scuba divers quality insurance and medical assistance service.

Feedback and Comments

I hope you found this post on Mozambique scuba diving interesting and useful. If you have any questions or ideas, please feel free to share them in the comments section.  I’d love to know of any experience you have diving in Mozambique.  If there is no comments section directly below, click here:  >>comments<<

Updated November 18, 2022

This is the eighty-eighth in a series of reviews of the best dive resort locations worldwide.  In this post, the focus is on Kosrae, Micronesia. In addition to this series on dive resort locations, the best worldwide liveaboard diving locations and services are reviewed in their own series.  To check them out, or others in this series, click on Liveaboards/Resorts on the menu at the top and choose a title from the list.

Have you ever been diving in Kosrae before?  If so, I’d love to know about your experience.  What dive shop or liveaboard did you use?  Which dive spots are the best and what are the conditions there regarding the visibility, current, water temperature, sealife attractions, etc.?  Please post your response in the comments section at the bottom and we’ll all learn something we can use.

Best Kosrae Scuba Diving Kosrae

Background

Kosrae is the easternmost member of the Federated States of Micronesia 550 kilometers (342 miles) from airport to airport away from its nearest neighbor to the west, Pohnpei.  The population of 6,600 inhabits the one main island and several small ones in the immediate vicinity that altogether have an area of 110 square kilometers (42 square miles).

The main island has largely undeveloped densely vegetated mountains, the tallest being Mount Finkol at 634 meters (2,080 feet).  When viewed from a distance Kosrae is said to look like the “island of the sleeping lady.”  Rivers with waterfalls come out of the mountains and the island is surrounded by white sand beaches and mangrove forest areas.

Archeological evidence indicates people were there in the first century AD.  The Spanish explorers initially sighted Kosrae in 1529, but the first contact with westerners came in 1824.  At that time it was evident that the social structure of the society was quite stratified with matrilineal linkage, nobles, and commoners.  Congregationalist missionaries arrived in 1852 and converted practically everyone to Christianity by the 1870s.  Notorious blackbirder, Bully Hayes, shipwrecked there in 1874 and there is a rumor of his treasure still on the island somewhere.  The Spanish arrived to occupy in 1885, but after defeat in the Spanish American War, they sold Kosrae to Germany.  German control lasted until WWI when the Japanese took over from 1914 to 1945.  During that stretch, the missionaries pretty much provided the administration and a more diverse economy started to develop.  In 1945 the US provided oversight until 1977 when the Federated States of Micronesia was founded.

The livelihood of most people relies on traditional subsistence farming and fishing.  Tourism is an important economic driver with scuba diving, water sports, and natural environment attractions.

Local varieties of food including taro, breadfruit, coconuts, bananas, yams, and sugarcane along with fish made up the traditional diet.  Limes, mountain apples, papayas, green tangerines, and pineapple have been added along with vegetables including eggplants, squash, cantaloupes, watermelons, cucumbers, lettuce, and Chinese cabbage which are also exported in small quantities to the Marshall Islands.

Kosraean is the national language spoken by all, though technically the language of government discourse in the FSM is English.  Most people can speak English fairly well.  Those in positions to provide tourist services mostly speak English well.

For more details on the history, geography, culture, and demographics of Kosrae, click here:  Kosrae – Wikipedia

Undersea World

Kosrae is known for pristine coral reefs of densely packed hard coral, clear water with visibility to 60 meters (200 feet), and spectacular large animals mixed with a number of intriguing macro critters, as well.

172 species of hard corals, some thousands of years old, including staghorn, table, brain, cabbage, and finger corals, 5 species of soft coral, and big barrel sponges can be found on a barrier reef that has steep drop-offs and rolling bottoms, with large bommies, and some sandy areas.

The authorities are taking care to preserve the reef by having marker buoys installed at all the dive sites and several marine protected zones.

Macro critters include cowries, nudibranchs, flatworms, anemones with popcorn shrimp, giant clams, octopus, lobster, and crabs along with a nice variety of reef tropicals.

Other highlights are schools of fusiliers, batfish, rainbow runners, barracuda, big-eye jacks, bumphead parrotfish, eagle and manta rays, blacktip, whitetip, and grey reef sharks, hammerhead sharks, turtles, giant trevallies, wahoo, and dogtooth tuna.

At Hiroshi Point is a blacktip shark nursery where you can swim with 5-25 babies.  Bottlenose and spinner dolphins frequent the area and the occasional humpback whale comes during their breeding season in the summer months.

In addition, there are several historic plane and shipwrecks.

Most of the richest areas are at 18 meters (60 feet) or less, but there are also interesting places to see at greater than 30 meters (100 feet).

Seasons and Conditions

The air and water are both very nice and warm all year.

The air temperature average is 25°C (77°F) and the water temperature is almost always around 28°C (82°F) requiring minimal thermal protection.

It rains 18-20 days a month but doesn’t usually interfere much with the diving.

Visibility is excellent, usually better than 30 meters (100 feet) and ranging out to 60 meters (200 feet).

Easterly trade winds come from November to June and can cause currents to be stronger at that time, particularly on the north and west sides of the island.  Also, the surface chop is greater and may induce the operators to go to the south and west sides for smoother conditions.  This also results in more nutrients and accompanying pelagics during that season.

There are dive sites suitable for all levels.

The two major dive operators at this time are located at the Pacific Treelodge Resort (PADI) and Kosrae Nautilus Resorts (NAUI).  They both provide a range of diving coursework, equipment rental, guiding, and boat cruises.  In respect of the local religion, there is no diving on Sundays.

Liveaboard Diving

There is not a liveaboard that directly cruises the Kosrae dive sites, but there are boats that go to nearby Palau and Chuuk (Truk).  Here are my reviews and links to those liveaboards:

• Best Scuba Diving Vacations – Truk Lagoon and Bikini Atoll Wrecks
• Best Palau Diving Liveaboard Trips

Pacific Master, Truk Lagoon Liveaboard – Check the Price

Rock Islands Aggressor, Palau Liveaboard – Check the Price

Here are my reviews of other Pacific island liveaboards and resort diving:

• Scuba Diving Samoa
• Scuba Diving Easter Island
• Scuba Diving the Cook Islands
• Best Scuba Diving Tonga
• Scuba Diving New Caledonia
• Scuba Diving Vanuatu
• Yap Scuba Diving
• Scuba Diving Guam
• Saipan Scuba Diving
• Molokai Scuba Diving Hawaii
• Best Scuba Diving Maui Hawaii
• Best Scuba Diving Kauai Hawaii
• Best Scuba Diving Oahu Hawaii
• Best Scuba Diving Hawaii Liveaboards
• Best Fiji Dive Resorts and Liveaboard Diving
• Best Diving French Polynesia Liveaboards
• Best Scuba Diving Trips, Solomon Islands Liveaboards

Selected Kosrae Diving Sites

Blue Hole:  18 meters (60 feet) maximum depth, off Lelu causeway, shore entry, stingrays, juvenile fish, big pufferfish, all levels

Split Rock: big coral head split in two, large enough to swim through, lots of macro critters, all levels

Shark Island: good variety of fish and invertebrates, strong current possible, when current is mild, an excellent night dive, all levels

Trochus Sanctuary: site with crevices running perpendicular to the shore, macro critters like nudibranchs, cowries, and flatworms in the nooks and crannies, relaxing turtles, all levels

Walung Drop-off: hard coral garden at the base of the mooring line, anemones with clownfish, and popcorn shrimp, sheer drop-off to the depths with layers of hard corals and nice macro life, big pufferfish, schools of barracuda, reef and hammerhead sharks, turtles, strong current possible, experienced level

The Jacks: steep densely layered coral wall descending to 30 meters (100 feet) to a peninsula protruding out to sea, experienced level

The Dwarf Forest: located in the Utwe Biosphere Reserve, coral underneath mangrove trees, rare nudibranchs, and other marine life a bit different from the normal reef critters, all levels

Hiroshi Point: areas of complete dense coverage of hard corals, lots of tubeworms and other invertebrates, squid, schools of big parrotfish, reef sharks, eagle rays, barracuda, blacktip shark nursery, variable current, all levels

The Leonora:  9 meters (30 feet), the wreck of the notorious 19th-century trader and scalawag, Bully Hayes, schooner sunk in a storm in 1874, a few metal objects remain, all levels

Kosrae Photos

With the interesting undersea terrain, beautiful hard corals, a variety of fish, sharks, rays, dolphins, and turtles, scenic beaches, forests, mountain waterfalls, historical ruins, and cultural sites as well, there are many excellent photo opportunities.  For information and reviews of dive cameras, click here:

• Best Underwater Cameras Compared and Reviewed

Kosrae Transportation, Lodging, and Dive Shops

Transportation

Kosrae International Airport on the northwest coast is serviced by United Airlines with numerous regular flights from Guam and Honolulu.  Taxis are available and cheap, but not entirely reliable.  Rental cars are also available at a reasonable rate and have the reputation of being fairly well maintained.  You can get them at the airport.

Lodging and Dive Shops

The Pacific Treelodge Resort and Kosrae Nautilus Resorts on the coastline just north of Tofol, the capital, are western quality resorts that each have their own in-house dive shops.  These shops are major diving operations and offer full services including equipment rental, dive courses, guiding, and boat dive cruises.

The website linked below has the details and can arrange the booking.  You can easily find the location on the map provided on this site.  Their rates are guaranteed to be the lowest and it is free to cancel or change dates.

• Kosrae Hotels

Things to do on Kosrae (aside from scuba diving)

Surfing, water sports, boating, touring, and enjoying the local culture are the main attractions.  This video is an excellent introduction to the life, culture, activities, and sights of Kosrae.

Scuba Diving Trip Insurance

A cushion for emergencies provides peace of mind when on vacation.  I recommend this diving insurance as they have worldwide coverage and provide scuba divers quality insurance and medical assistance service.

Feedback and Comments

I hope you found this post on Kosrae scuba diving interesting and useful. If you have any questions or ideas, please feel free to share them in the comments section.  I’d love to know of any experience you have diving in Kosrae.  If there is no comments section directly below, click here:  >>comments<<