Scuba divers love to dive in new dive sites around the world and one thing that Bali does not lack even though it is small is its dive sites. The dive sites in Bali offer a chance to see the stunning underwater coral reefs, a chance to see marine life such as sea turtles, and diverse reefs. What are the best places to dive in Bali?
Diving in Bali allows you to see turtles, shipwrecks, Manta Rays, and more. The dive sites in Bali offer some great scuba dive sites that are from one side of the island to the other island. There are plenty of dive shops around the island where you can range your dive trip.
In this post, we will go through the best places to scuba dive in Bali. Let’s get started!
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Best Places To Dive In Bali
To make things easier, we have made a list of the best places for scuba diving in Bali. We have chosen them based on their beauty, dive conditions, and also the range of marine life you might see.
Here are the best places to dive in Bali.
Tulamben – USAT Liberty Wreck
Diving is always interesting but shipwreck diving is more so. One of the best shipwrecks diving on the island of Bali is located in Tulamben. There is the USAT Liberty wreck. The diving site is located 40 meters from the shore.
The 120-meter shipwreck is only submerged under 20 meters of water. The diving point is very accessible for divers from various levels, whether beginners or professionals.
Other than the location, many divers do agree that the diversity of marine life surrounded by black sand makes this diving spot unique. Most people dive during daylight but some others prefer diving at night as marine life transforms into another magical world when diving at night.
You will have the chance to see marine life such as families of parrotfish and so on. Even though the shipwreck is very beautiful, each year the wreck is gradually falling apart.
Nusa Penida – Manta Point
The Manta Point is another diving point in Bali. The question is simple, who does not want the chance to experience diving with the rare giant manta ray? The diving site location is very accessible for all levels of divers.
The manta point is the current meeting point of the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean which brings phytoplankton with it. Making it a popular place for manta rays.
You can visit the diving site all year round because the marine life is always there. The manta rays use the beautiful limestone cliffs’ water as their regular cleaning station. The giant fish will let the smaller fish pick parasites from its rough skin.
Even though you can visit the diving site at any time make sure to avoid peak season because the site can get very busy.
Padang Bai – Blue Lagoon
Just a few minutes from the Padang Bai shoreline, there is another good diving site in Bali. The Blue Lagoon, as they call it, probably is the pioneer of diving in the area. The combination of the sheltered location, colorful fish species, and good visibility is the reason why divers try to scuba dive in Padang Bai.
The place is suitable for beginner divers or for those who simply looking for a recreational diving location. Mainly because the Blue Lagoon has very good visibility, making it good for less experienced divers not to have to go deep down to see the beautiful marine life.
Also, this dive site is very calm which makes it great for beginners. If you are looking for more challenging diving, try to go at night and see the marine life transform into another world.
Nusa Penida – Crystal Bay
As the three largest islands in southeast Bali, Nusa Penida has incredible dive sites. Crystal Bay has the most wonderful marine life as you can witness the world’s rarest fish species such as whale sharks, sunfish or mola-mola, and of course giant manta rays.
If mola-mola is the reason for are planning to scuba dive in Crystal Bay, you will need to come from July to September. During this time, mola-mola will be seen at 30 meters deep and the visibility is clear.
Even though it sounds interesting to spot such rare species, you need to note that diving in Crystal Bay is not easy. The current in the area is quite strong as it directly opens to the Indian Ocean. Only advanced divers are allowed to dive in Crystal Bay.
If you are a beginner, you can try scuba diving for a chance to spot colorful reefs and other interesting marine animals.
Napoleon Reef
The Napoleon Reef could be a model aquarium. The length of the diving point is almost half of a football stadium. It is mostly used as a prime breeding ground for various fish species. The impressive various coral reefs are living proof that Bali is one of the best diving spots in the world.
You can see soft and hard corals, barrel sponges, and more.
Gili Tepekong
Another great diving spot in Bali that is filled with impressive marine life, rock formations, and soft coral is Gili Tepekong. This dive spot is located in Candidasa and is not a spot for beginners. The strong currents make it a great spot only for advanced divers and it can also force you to stay close to the walls.
You have a chance to see a huge coral reef formation that resembles a Roman Amphitheatre and is filled with various fish species including turtles, Napoleon wrasse, and even mola-mola.
Tulamben – The Drop Off
Also known as Tulamben Wall, the Drop Off was formed by a lava river due to Mount Agung Eruption in 1963. Located around 3 to 80 meters deep, the drop-off is great for underwater photography.
The visibility at this dive site is good which allows you to take a good picture as well. Plus, the drop-off is also easily accessible from shore and also for all divers from various levels. You might not see anything as dramatic as the lava river but the diversity of marine life at this site is amazing.
When To Dive in Bali?
Generally, diving in Bali is good all year round. It does be a little cooler, too around 17°C – 27°C between the month’s May to October.
Between October to April is the wet season so it is a little less touristy, this makes accommodation and scuba diving trips a little bit cheaper.
USEFUL TRAVEL RESOURCES
Book Accommodation
Booking.com has a large range of properties from hotels, hostels, guesthouses, and resorts where you will find the best deals. Airbnb and Hostelworld also have a good range of places to stay at good prices.
Booking Flight
Skyscanner is a flight search comparison website that searches millions of flights all at once. Ultimately it is the best flight comparison website online at the moment.
Booking Transportation & Things To Do
Rome2rio and 12Go are useful to plan how to get anywhere by searching train, bus, car, and ferry routes. Especially useful in countries like Vietnam or Thailand. While Klook is great for exploring things to do in each place.
Travel Insurance
Travel insurance is cheap and more than likely you will never need to use it but you will have peace of mind if something does happen, you are covered in case of an emergency. World Nomads have great customer service and competitive prices.
Check out our resource page for the best companies to use when you travel.
Wrapping Up
Finally, as you see there is a good range of dive sites around Bali. Tulamben and the Blue Lagoon properly offer the best dive sites in Bali, especially for beginners. The list above is only a few of them. Our simple tip for you, if you have limited time and cash, you need to organize your scuba diving trip extremely well.
And that’s it for now! I’d love to know if this guide on the best places to dive in Bali has helped you. Let me know if you have any questions and leave a comment if have any more places to dive in Bali.
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