Our oceans and seas are home to some of the most beautiful life forms on earth. For decades now, scuba divers and snorkeling enthusiasts throng to the seas not just to witness those colourful life forms but also to experience the most serene surroundings on our planet. Continuing with the list of best snorkeling and scuba diving spots across the world, here are another ten beautiful location shared by some amazing travelers.

Sea Of Cortez – Michael, The Round The World Guys
Image Credit @The Round The World Guys

The abundance of life divers see in the Sea of Cortez is often compared to the Galapagos Islands. Two years ago, a friend of ours who had been to both places told us that the Sea of Cortez is like the Galapagos without the $5000 price tag! After spending a week there on the Rocio del Mar live-aboard, we completely understand. Sea lions, whale sharks, dolphins, nudibranchs, and tons of krill – the Sea of Cortez teems with life. The highlight of our trip was when we went out looking for dolphins and ended up in the water next to a juvenile sperm whale. While the water is quite clear for the most part, there was a day when the krill was so thick we had to hold each other’s arms to ensure we didn’t get separated. But lots of krill means big animals – we snorkeled an entire half-day with a bay full of whale sharks! We recommend a live-aboard in the Sea of Cortez – either the Rocio Del Mar or the Quino el Guardian. Both offer amazing food, incredible staff, and diving that will change the way you look at diving in North America.

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Bonaire – Patricia Pagenel, Ze Wandering Frogs
Image Credit @ Ze Wandering Frogs 
Bonaire is a diving paradise. With a marine park surrounding the whole island, the coral reefs are stunning! Shore diving sites can be found all around the island, with calmer seas on the west side and rougher conditions on the east coast. A short boat ride can take you to Klein Bonaire, a small island facing Kralendijk, the main town on Bonaire. Among the top dive sites, make sure to check Salt Pier, Angel City, and for those interested in wreck diving, Hilma Hooker. In general, Bonaire sees little rainfall and features an arid climate, all of which helps with crystal-clear water. Underwater photographers will enjoy these impressive conditions to capture the abundant marine life that inhabit the colorful corals. A Marine tag is required for all water activities from snorkelers, divers, kiteboarders, and windsurfers, or even swimmers, and need to be worn at all time when in the water. The pass can be purchased at most hotels or dive shops. A no-thrill Caribbean island with plenty to offer for those looking for the perfect scuba-diving conditions, we enjoyed Bonaire as a top-notch dive destination.
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Culebra, Puerto Rico – Luke and Meagan, Two Restless Homebodies
Image Credit @ Two Restless Homebodies

If you’re choosing to snorkel in the Caribbean, it’s hard to go wrong. But one of Puerto Rico’s best kept secrets is the island of Culebra, off the east coast of the main island and full to bursting with breathtaking scenery and protected wildlife. Fly in from San Juan, or drive and take a ferry to get to the island, where you can enjoy tours led by local, registered guides. They’ll bring you to a sheltered lagoon where you can snorkel crystal-clear waters with green sea turtles and jellyfish. Some tour companies will make sure each participant gets a photo somewhat close to a turtle, as a perfect souvenir of your visit. Then, they’ll lead you by kayak over to a nearby reef, where you can get back into the water with your guides, who will dive down and show you all the local wildlife you’d miss otherwise – one of our guides even brought up starfish and urchins for us to hold. Cap off your day with empanadas, rum coconuts, and gorgeous views from Flamenco Beach, and you’ve just experienced one of the best snorkeling excursions in the Caribbean.

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Hanauma Bay, Oahu, Hawaii – Dana Sikand, Adventures With Children
Image Credit @ Adventures With Children
The reef at Hanauma Bay State Park is a world class snorkelling destination on Oahus’s windward side. Over one million visitors come to admire the 400+ species of fish and green sea turtles each year. After you’ve had your fill of swimming with the fish, stick around to enjoy the beach!
Details:
Entry is $7.50 (Kids under 12 are free). Snorkel rental gear is available for an extra fee. Everyone must watch an educational video before walking down the hill to the shoreline. It pretty much boils down to: “don’t stand on the reefs, don’t stand on the reefs, don’t touch the turtles, don’t stand on the reefs.” Inevitably, there will still be tourists standing on the reefs. Please, (i’m begging you) don’t be one of them.
Tips:
The park is closed on Tuesdays to give the fish a break from human visitors. You can avoid the hike back up to the top by paying $1.25 for the shuttle. Get there early (before 9am) for smaller crowds, more fish, and clear water.
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Galapagos, Claire Archer – Past The Potholes
Image Credit @ Past The Potholes

World renowned for its biodiversity, the Galapagos Islands are an amazing location for snorkelling. With crystal clear waters it is often not necessary to go below the surface to see a vast array of wildlife. You don’t need to book an expensive tour to see amazing underwater life. We encountered turtles, marine iguanas, sea lions, rays and even sharks just walking in from beaches and rocks. If you are looking for a tour, the 360º Tour on San Cristobal took us to 3 different snorkelling locations including the highly regarded Kicker Rock. Through this tour alone we snorkelled with turtles, sea lions, manta rays, sting rays and sharks! Don’t worry though, they say the sharks in the Galapagos are vegetarian; they have so much food they aren’t interested in humans. On Isla Isabela, tours to Los Tuneles or Las Tintoreras give you the opportunity to snorkel with many of the same creatures as well as a chance to see Galapagos penguins.
TIP: Despite the islands’ equatorial location, the water is surprisingly frigid.  Rent a wetsuit so you can fully enjoy the experience.

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Akumal, Mexico – Josie Peden, Where Jo Goes
Image Credit @ Where Jo Goes

Akumal is a small beachside town on the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico, famous for turtles grazing on the sea grass off shore. Akumal must be one of the easiest places in the world to snorkel. You don’t need a boat and you don’t need to go far out to sea or to find a reef. You simply don snorkel and flippers and walk into the water. This makes it perfect for beginners. If you haven’t got your own equipment you can hire it from the beach. Not water confident? Got kids with you? Not done much snorkelling before? Akumal is a great place to start. I took my young children – we hired a snorkel guide who towed a lifebuoy that my children held on to. This let them snorkel with us under the safe guidance of an expert. We followed the guide to the best turtle spots. Within an hour we’d seen a dozen sea turtles, huge rays and plenty of fish including barracuda. Snorkelling alone I saw a similar array of marine life. Clear warm waters, plentiful sea life and easy snorkelling make this a great place to start your snorkelling adventures.

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Chuuk, Micronesia – Mar Pages, Once in a lifetime journey
Image Credit @ Once in a lifetime journey 
The state of Chuuk is of the four Federated States of Micronesia and is located in the north pacific, south of Guam. The state is made of a 50 by 30 mile barrier reef enclosing a few sizeable islands and this protective reef is the reason why Chuuk was chosen as the main Japanese naval base in the Pacific following WWI. Because of its small size, there is not much to do in Chuuk but the island is very famous for the wreck diving opportunities inside the reef area where over 70 wrecks are found. These wrecks are planes and ships of the Japanese Pacific fleet who sank there during WWII after they were attacked by the US troops. As fewer than 5,000 people visit Chuuk every year, you are likely one of the very few tourists diving the sites every day. While being wreck diving certified is necessary for the deeper dive sites, there are enough options for those with just the Open Water certification like me. You will however be surrounded by the most avid of the divers as this is truly a dive dream destination.
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Ayia Napa Sea Caves, Cyprus – Justine Cross, Wanderer of the World
Image Credit @ Wanderer of the World

One of the best places I’ve gone snorkelling was in the Ayia Napa sea caves in Cyprus. The water was the most crystal clear I’ve seen throughout Europe and there is a large variety of marine life to see when looking beneath the water. I’ve even heard of other travellers seeing octopuses there! As the water flows into an alcove, it’s very calm, so floating there in search of marine life is really easy to do. The only downside is how you plan on getting into the water. Adrenaline seekers choose to jump from the top of the cliffs. But for those of you who (like me) prefer a more relaxed pace, you’ll need to climb down the rocks, which is quite steep, so be sure to wear comfortable shoes when doing so. But once you’re in the water, you’ll love it!!

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Sipadan Island, Malaysia – Stingy Nomads
Image Credit @ Stingy Nomads

Diving Sipadan island close to Borneo, Malaysia is one of a handful of places that appear on every list of ‘top dive spots in the world’. This amazing island became known to the world after famous ocean explorer; Jacques Cousteau said it is one of the planet’s best places to dive. Just a couple of metres off-shore a wall of coral drops 300m into the abyss. Strong currents around the island pull you over the reef for an incredible ride, one of the most spectacular wall dives in the world. You can expect to see just about anything diving here, but the most common sites are huge green turtles, big schools of massive bumphead parrot fish, thousands of trevalleys and being surrounded by reef sharks. Sipadan is most well-known for the enormous schools of barracudas swimming around the island, if you are lucky these fish spiral around you to form a large ‘barracuda tornado’. The Malaysian government set a fantastic environmental example by banning all resorts from Sipadan Island in 2004. All resorts were relocated to nearby islands. Access is strictly controlled and only 200 divers a day are allowed to dive around the island so book in time to dive at one of the most fantastic dive sites in the world.

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Hol Chan, Belize – Stephanie Craig, Sofia Adventures
Image Credit @ Sofia Adventures
My first time snorkeling was in Hol Chan outside of San Pedro, Belize. I was nervous about the idea, and I didn’t commit to actually going until my last day in the country. However, major FOMO kicked in, and I booked it the night before. It was a great place to start snorkeling. We saw dozens of nurse sharks and lots of Manta Rays. Nurse sharks do not attack humans, but it was still an adventure jumping out of the boat right near where they were swimming. I almost accidentally kicked a moray eel, which was frightening at the time. Photographing the morae eel was thrilling though. Hol Chan is inside the UNESCO protected area of the Belize Barrier Reef System, which is the largest barrier reef in the world after Austrailia’s Great Barrier Reef. It’s also Belize’s only UNESCO World Heritage Site. The water is beautiful and clear, which is great for visibility. For scuba dive enthusiasts, there are many great opportunities for scuba diving as well. Belize is a prime scuba destination in Central America, and I hope to go back after I get certified.
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11 comments

  1. I have never done Snorkeling or Scuba Diving but one day I would surely experience such a beautiful underwater world. I loved all the tips and ideas from all the contributors.

  2. I like how you have consolidated content from multiple bloggers to come up with a really great list. I’ve always wanted to try scuba diving, but have not yet been able to do it. Your list makes figuring out a few details easier. Chuuk sounds like a dream and I would love to explore it some time.

  3. unlike the last part there are many familiar names in this part – the Galapagos, sea of cortez, micronesia. I believe the Aiya Napa Sea Caves will be the most stunning of all – a sea cave is not very common and snorkeling around it would be some experience.

  4. Interesting compilation of scuba diving and snorkelling spots around the world. Though I am not an underwater person, it was good to learn about the best sights for exploring the underwater world.

  5. Scuba diving and snorkeling is one of the best options to explore the beauty of Nature. Thank you for compiling such an amazing list of places for scuba diving and snorkeling.

  6. What do you use for underwater photography? I have my dslr and the aqua box for it costs quite a lot! I am wondering what could be the best price/quality.

  7. Wow, I really thought that i’ve seen the best spots to scuba Dive on your previous post, but there’s more. I love how you were able to gather all these amazing scuba dive spots in one blog post. If get the chance I will surely dive in each of these spots. The Sipadan Island, in Malaysia looks really amazing and would love to go there the soonest. Thank you so much for sharing this with us.

  8. Thanks for including my contribution. I really enjoyed reading this – lots of ideas for future trips!

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