Best Scuba Diving in Grenada | Joe's Scuba Shack

Purple Rain - Grenada — Purple Rain – Grenada

Japanese Gardens - Grenada — Japanese Gardens – Grenada

Updated April 21, 2022

This is the twenty-first in a series of reviews of the best scuba diving destinations around the world. In this post, the focus is on Grenada.

In addition to this series on dive resort locations, the best worldwide liveaboard dive 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 Grenada? 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 in Grenada

Background

Set northwest of Trinidad and Tobago, northeast of Venezuela, and southwest of St. Vincent and the Grenadines is the nation of Grenada. The former French and more recently British colony, known for its production of nutmeg and mace, today has a population of 107,000 people and is a member of the British Commonwealth. In addition to the main island of Grenada, there are many smaller islands including Carriacou and Petite Martinique.

For more demographic, geographical, and cultural information on Grenada, click here: Wikipedia-Grenada

Undersea World

Situated with the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Caribbean Sea to the west, most of the dive sites are on the Caribbean side south, and west coasts.

The seascape is characterized by a rich coral reef with large tube and barrel sponges, sea fans, and whip corals on the topography of sloping shelves, plateaus, sand chutes, pinnacles, canyons, drop-offs, and steep walls.

Macro life is diverse and represented by octopus, squid, jawfish, scorpionfish, seahorses, frogfish, lobster, lettuce sea slugs, scorpionfish, banded jawfish, pipefish, and moray eels. There are a lot of reef fish like butterflyfish, sergeant majors, triggerfish, creole wrasse, and grey angelfish with wide-angle attractions that include green, hawksbill and leatherback turtles, southern stingrays, nurse, and bull sharks, yellowtail snapper, bar, and horse-eye jacks, grouper, great barracuda, Atlantic spadefish, spotted drums, rainbow runners, eagle rays, dolphins and the occasional manta ray or whale (15 species in Grenada’s waters).

To top it off there are many shipwrecks that went down due to accidents or acts of nature and some that were scuttled to create artificial reefs. Beyond that, Jason De Caires created 50 sculptures that were placed in a shallow site that has become a sort of fantastic, surreal undersea art gallery encrusted with invertebrates that help form the foundation for an abundance of life.

Seasons and Conditions

Diving is possible year-round and as you would expect at that latitude, it is always warm, with winter temperatures averaging 27°C (81°F) and summer temperatures at 30°C (86°F). There is always a breeze to moderate.

Water temperature is likewise warm with the winter temperature at 26°C (80°F) and summer at 28°C (82°F).

The dry season is from January to May and the rainy season, which encompasses the hurricane season, is from June to December.

The visibility is generally quite good ranging from 15-30 meters (50-100 feet).

Liveaboard Diving

Grenada is not an area renowned for liveaboard diving, but there are many cruises in other nearby areas around the Caribbean. Below are several great yachts to check out:

Avalon II, Jardines de la Reina Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price & Details

Turks & Caicos Explorer II, Turks & Caicos Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price & Details

Bahamas Master, Bahamas Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price & Details

Belize Aggressor III, Belize Liveaboard Diving – Check the Price & Details

For reviews of diving in eastern Florida and other Caribbean locations, please check out these posts:

Dive Sites

Selected Grenada Dive Sites

Flamingo Bay: to 90 feet (27 meters), part of Grenada Marine Park, a wall with copious fish life, shoals of Creole wrasses, yellow chromis, jackknife fish, grunts, grouper, jacks, rays, sponges, sea fans, seahorses, experienced level

Dragon Bay: 25-90 feet (8-27 meters), Marine Park site, sandy descent on a steep slope south to Molinere Point, volcanic rock with sand channels, hard coral, gorgonians, black coral, rich fish life with groupers, French angelfish, chromis, moray eels, beginner to advanced level and snorkelers

Whibble Reef: 60-100 feet (18-30 meters), could use as the shallower portion of multi-level dive on the Bianca C wreck, jacks, grouper, rainbow runners, blackhead and creole wrasses, lobsters, turtles, eagle rays, nurse sharks, beginner to experienced level

Purple Rain Reef: 35-100 feet (10-30 meters): runs parallel to the coastline with large schools of Creole wrasse, which are violet, angelfish, queen triggerfish, grunts, trunkfish, filefish, turtles, rays, barracuda, nurse sharks, moray eels, sea worms, colorful sponges, some current, beginner to experienced level

Selected Carriacou Island Dive Sites

The Deep Blue: 30-130 feet (9-40 meters), a wall with a strong current, second drop off at 65 feet (20 meters) to a rock garden, black coral, lobsters, nurse sharks, barracuda, turtles, experienced level

Sharky’s Hideaway: 75 feet (23 meters): rock garden, canyons, caves, overhangs, purple vase sponges, grey angelfish, porcupinefish, nurse sharks, giant green moray eels, schools of copper sweepers, beginner and experienced levels

Selected Wrecks

Bianca C: divable at 100-130 feet (30-39 meters), 600-foot (180-meter) cruise liner sitting upright on a 165-foot (65-meter) bottom, sunk in 1961, pelagics, spotted eagle rays, reef sharks, great barracuda, current, advanced level

Buccaneer: 80 feet (24 meters), near Molinere Reef, sloop on the starboard side, retained superstructure, swim through, octopus, barracuda, experienced level

MV Veronica: 45 feet (14 meters), 83-foot (25-meter) cargo ship with open hold, crane, moray eels, frogfish, seahorses, all levels

MV Shakem: 100 feet (30 meters), 180-foot (54-meter) cargo ship filled with cement, sunk in 2001 near St. George harbor, bridge, Captain’s quarters, engine room intact, sea fans, soft corals, experienced level

MV Hema I: 100 feet (30 meters), coastal freighter 3 miles off the south coast, nurse and reef sharks, spotted eagle rays, current, advanced level

MV Hildur: 115 feet (35 meters), cargo ship scuttled to create an artificial reef in 2007, in Grand Mal Bay near St. Georges, large groupers, barracuda, school of Atlantic spadefish, advanced level

Grenada Transportation, Lodging, & Dive Shops

Transportation

The Grenada Maurice Bishop International Airport provides service to 10 different airlines from the US, Canada, Britain, Europe, and other countries in the Caribbean.

There are also boats and ferry services from several nearby islands.

Lodging & Dive Shops

In Grenada, there are dozens of hotels and resorts. Pricing runs from around $65/night on up.

As for diving, there are 10 or more dive shops in operation on Grenada and Carriacou islands.

This website is a good source for the available housing options and can arrange a booking:

Grenada Hotels, Resorts

Grenada Things To Do (aside from scuba diving)

There is a myriad of interesting activities and events in Grenada to round out a vacation there: wildlife tours, St. Georges city, restaurant, BBQ and bar scene, sailing, island hopping, and other water activities, Hash House Harriers, Friday Bonfire, Fort George tour, Belmont Estate cocoa processing tour, River Antoine Rum Distillery tour, Levera National Park hiking, cycling, and many, many others.

Grenada Photo Opportunities

With the macro life, beautiful, diverse coral reef, and lots of fish, there are many excellent photo opportunities. For information and reviews of diving cameras, click here:

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 Grenada 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 there. If there is no comments section directly below, click here: >>comments<<

Comments

Steve says

at 11:08 am

Wow! Grenada seems like an amazing part of the ocean to explore! The diversity of sea life as well as the different wrecks to explore leave the possibilities for diving seemingly endless. I personally have never been scuba diving, but have always been interested. Would a place like Grenada be good for a beginner, or is there a better place to go when just learning?

- Joe says
  
  at 1:23 pm
  
  Hi Steve,
  
  Grenada is pretty special. Thanks for your comments.
  
  There is a lot of wreck and reef diving to be done there. Grenada is a good setting for beginners. They have many qualified dive shops and instructors and sites suitable for beginners. The open water diver course can be accomplished in 3-4 days. It includes some reading and classwork, 5 shallow water training sessions to learn the basic diving skills, and then 4 open water dives to practice and firm up the skills in the real ocean environment. Then you’ll be set to go diving just about anywhere.
  
  Most of the places I review on my site are suitable for this training. I can suggest you look over the various places of interest and give them some consideration. You could also probably do the diver training near your home. If you would like any advice, please let me know. I hope to hear you have gotten started with it.
  
  Best regards,
  
  Joe
  
Jayde Butcher says

at 11:10 am

This looks like such a beautiful experience, to get to truly see what the undersea is really like, to see if it compares to what you see in movies or not. The photos you’ve posted are beautiful, the strong colours and all. This review makes me want to do this so much, so thank you, this is on my bucket list now.

- Joe says
  
  at 1:08 pm
  
  Hi Jayde,
  
  Thanks a lot for your kind comments.
  
  I hope you get a chance to do some diving and see the colours and beauty of the undersea world live. It is not difficult to arrange. A discover scuba diving experience takes up only a few hours. You get a little bit of theory and practice in the swimming pool and then go for an open water dive under very close supervision by an instructor. For a full certification course it takes 3-4 days and has considerably more study and class work, 5 pool training sessions and 4 open water dives. It’s all a lot of fun. That is the way to go if you plan to continue diving. Most of the places and liveaboards that I review on my site can do the course with you.
  
  If you have any questions or would like some advice about where to go diving, please let me know. There is probably a good place for training not far from where you live, as well.
  
  Best regards,
  
  Joe
  
charles39 says

at 11:18 am

That might the most beautiful place on earth. I actually have never done any scuba diving but that place is surely beautiful and enticing. Apart from diving it can be very nice to relax on top of a coral reef like that.

Well done article with a lot good info and motivation to work harder and one day take a vacation there.

- Joe says
  
  at 1:14 pm
  
  Hi Charles,
  
  Thanks for your kind comments. I’m glad Grenada impressed you so much.
  
  The diving is great and it is a wonderful place just to lay back and enjoy the atmosphere, including diving, if you would like to try it. In a reply to another commenter today, Jayde, I give a few details of what it takes have a scuba experience or take the full certification course. Why don’t you take a look at that? If you have any questions or further comments, I’d be happy to hear them.
  
  Best regards,
  
  Joe
  
MMA Store-Warrior Spirit says

at 11:34 am

Beautiful landscapes, amazing underwater world, my experience with diving was in the Aegean Sea, I was not impressed by the area,before I go on vacation I always look at such incredible footage and videos and I expect something like that, I hope that in the near future I will finally choose the right destination. Thank you !

Best regards,

MMA Store-Warrior Spirit

- Joe says
  
  at 12:59 pm
  
  Hi,
  
  Thanks a lot for your comments and enthusiasm. I have not done any diving in the Aegean Sea, but from the videos there is not nearly as much wildlife as there is in Grenada.
  
  When you settle into choosing a place to go, I invite you to take a look at my other posts. I have reviewed dozens of great places to dive and continue to add several per week. If you have any questions or additional comments, please get in touch.
  
  Best regards,
  
  Joe
  
Juliet says

at 11:39 am

Thank you Joe, I have enjoyed reading your post about diving. The life under there is very fascinating. It has its own unique vegetation. I love history and I am particularly interested in the shipwrecks down there and the art work. It’s so good that the Grenada has a warm temperature and one can dive there all year round. I might be visiting around the year end to escape a cold winter!

- Joe says
  
  at 12:53 pm
  
  Hi Juliet,
  
  I appreciate you kind comments.
  
  It is very beautiful and historic there in Grenada. It would be a great place to go to escape the cold. I hope you get a chance. If you do, why not go for a dive. If you are not certified, it only takes 3-4 days. What a perfect place. If you want any advice or have any questions, please let me know. I’d be happy to fill you in on all the details and get you started.
  
  Best regards,
  
  Joe