Which are the best places for scuba diving?

How we chose, and what is left out

Two criteria applied to every pick. First, a marine area that an official body names: a UNESCO inscription, a national marine park or coral partnership statement, or a government advisory that refers to diving. Second, a sea-temperature range we could compute from NOAA Coral Reef Watch's CoralTemp monthly product, which covers the globe on a 5 km grid. Where we found an official statement on the local storm season (US National Hurricane Center, Australia's Bureau of Meteorology or a government advisory page) we cite it; for several areas we read none, and the table says so.

This leaves out many places. The Galapagos, Socorro, the Azores' deep sites and many others were not checked, and a dive site can be excellent without an official page. The sea figures describe an area of open water, not a reef: visibility, current, depth and local upwelling are not in the data. Water-temperature ranges here come from a satellite-derived analysis (NOAA lists the product as derived from a level 4 satellite sea-surface analysis), so a thermometer on the day will differ.

Red Sea: warm air, dry coast, wide seasonal sea swing

Egypt's Red Sea coast has a clear seasonal sea swing. Our calculation from NOAA data for one 5 km cell off Hurghada gives a mean sea surface of 22.3 C in March and 28.8 C in August, a range of about 6.5 C. A cell near Sharm El-Sheikh gives 22.5 C in March and 29.1 C in August. The Egyptian Meteorological Authority's 1981-2010 normals, listed by the WMO, show Hurghada's mean daily maximum at 21.7 C in January and 35.1 C in August, and Sharm El-Sheikh's at 38.8 C in August. Rainfall is close to nil: no month has more than 2.6 mm at either station.

The US rated Egypt Level 2 on 14 July 2025 and names terrorism risk in Northern and Middle Sinai. The UK page, updated on 4 August 2026, advises against all travel to North Sinai and against all but essential travel to the northern part of South Sinai beyond the St Catherine-Nuweibaa road, except for the coastal areas along the west and east of the peninsula. On diving, it says there have been recent incidents involving British nationals on diving boats in the Red Sea, that safety standards of resort operators and boats vary considerably, and that you should check that your insurance covers air or sea rescue. Read both pages before any booking. Our pages cover Hurghada and the country hub.

Indo-Pacific and the Coral Triangle: steady warmth, long storm seasons

The Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security is an intergovernmental partnership of six countries, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste, launched in 2009 with a secretariat in Manado, Indonesia. Its own page states that around 95 per cent of the region's coral reef ecosystems are at risk. For a diver that is a reminder to read what a given marine area asks of visitors.

Our NOAA calculation for a point in the Raja Ampat area gives a sea surface that barely moves, from 28.7 C in August (February is almost identical) to 29.3 C in November. Off Nusa Penida in Bali it varies more, from 26.9 C in August to 29.1 C in April. Denpasar's 1961-1990 normals in the WMO list show 345 mm of rain in January against 25 mm in August. In the Philippines, Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park was first inscribed by UNESCO in 1993, extended in 2009, and covers 96,828 hectares; the UK page, updated on 15 July 2026, says around 20 typhoons hit the country each year, mostly between June and November. Our NOAA point at Tubbataha runs from 27.3 C in February to 29.8 C in May.

In the Maldives, a point in the central atolls gives 28.1 C in January up to 29.9 C in April. Malé's 1981-2000 normals show 38.1 mm in February against 231.1 mm in November. The UK page, updated on 12 August 2026, notes that many resort islands are more than an hour from the nearest hyperbaric chamber and that there are three chambers in the islands. The US rated Maldives Level 2 on 6 October 2025. Indonesia carries Level 2 (6 July 2026) and the UK says diving school standards are not always as high as in the UK; Malaysia is Level 1 (21 February 2026) but the UK advises against all but essential travel to islands and dive sites off eastern Sabah. See Bali and our best time to visit Bali page.

Pacific: Australia, Palau, Fiji and Okinawa

UNESCO inscribed the Great Barrier Reef in 1981 and describes an area of about 348,000 square kilometres. The Bureau of Meteorology puts the Australian cyclone season at 1 November to 30 April, with about 10 cyclones a season on average since 1980-81 and three or four making landfall. Our NOAA point off Cairns gives a mean sea surface of 24.1 C in July and August and 29.0 C in February. Cairns's 1981-2010 normals from the Bureau show February as the wettest month at 448.0 mm and August the driest at 28.9 mm. The US rated Australia Level 1 on 17 August 2026, and the UK page mentions a legal medical declaration for resort diving or snorkelling. See Cairns.

Palau is Level 1 with the US (6 January 2026). The UK page, updated on 10 December 2025, says Palau has over 60 vertical drop-offs in its dive areas, some for experienced divers only, that there is one hyperbaric chamber in the country, and that it is illegal to bring or use reef-toxic sunscreen. Our NOAA point gives 28.2 C in February to 29.5 C in May and June. Fiji, Level 1 on 1 December 2024, has a point ranging from 25.8 C in August to 29.0 C in March; the UK page (10 August 2026) puts cyclone season at November to April, with cyclones possible in any month. At Okinawa, the Japan Meteorological Agency's 1991-2020 normals for Naha, via the WMO, show a mean daily maximum of 19.8 C in January and 31.9 C in July, and our point gives a sea surface from 21.5 C in February to 29.0 C in August.

Caribbean and Atlantic coast of Central America: a defined hurricane season

The US National Hurricane Center says the Atlantic season runs from June 1 to November 30 and peaks around September 10, and that the eastern Pacific season runs from May 15 to November 30. The UK pages for Belize, Mexico and the Bahamas give the same Atlantic window or June to November and point to the NHC.

The Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System was inscribed by UNESCO in 1996 with seven protected areas, was placed on the Danger List in 2009, and removed in 2018 after progress on mangrove protection. A NOAA point at Lighthouse Reef gives 26.5 C in February to 29.4 C in September. The US rated Belize Level 2 on 11 March 2026, and the UK page (12 June 2026) mentions injuries and fatalities from adventure activities including snorkelling and diving. A point near Grand Cayman gives 26.6 C in February and March to 29.8 C in September; the US rated Cayman Islands Level 1 on 20 May 2026. In the Bahamas, a point near New Providence runs from 24.0 C in February to 29.6 C in August; Nassau's 1971-2000 normals show 235.5 mm of rain in August. The US rated The Bahamas Level 2 on 27 July 2026 and the UK page warns about shark-feeding encounters held close to where fishermen gut fish. Cancun's 1971-2000 normals show September as the wettest month at 224.6 mm of rain on the Mexican side. The US rated Mexico Level 2 on 28 May 2026, with regions of higher risk. See Cancun.

Mediterranean and Atlantic islands: cooler water and a wide seasonal swing

Malta shows the widest sea-temperature swing in this selection. Our NOAA calculation for one 5 km cell off Malta gives a mean sea surface of 15.2 C in March and 26.7 C in August, a range of about 11.4 C. Luqa's 1961-1990 normals, listed by the WMO, show a mean daily maximum of 15.2 C in January and 30.7 C in July, with 0.4 mm of rain in July. The US rated Malta Level 1 on 8 July 2026 and notes riptide drownings at local beaches. The UK page (11 August 2026) advises against jumping or diving into unknown water, which concerns head-first entry from the shore, not scuba.

In the Azores, Ponta Delgada's 1961-1990 normals give a mean daily maximum of 25.6 C in August and 17.0 C in January. We could not compute a NOAA value for the Azores because the grid cell we tried (near Ponta Delgada) returned no data, so there is no sea range for them.

The areas side by side

Sea figures are our own means of NOAA CoralTemp monthly values for 1991-2020 at one 5 km grid cell per area, not dive-site readings; air figures are WMO station normals for the period shown. Do not compare air and sea columns.

Dive safety: what the non-profit and health bodies say

Divers Alert Network is a non-profit, and its published guidance on flying after diving sets minimum preflight surface intervals of 12 hours after a single no-decompression dive and 18 hours after multiple dives in a day or over multiple days. For dives that required decompression stops it gives no exact figure and says an interval substantially longer than 18 hours appears prudent. The page attributes the figures to a 2002 workshop consensus and is not dated. Read the current DAN pages and speak to a doctor trained in dive medicine about your own case; this page cannot advise on it.

The CDC asks travellers to see a health provider or travel health specialist roughly four to six weeks before leaving and to say which activities they plan. Several UK pages also ask divers to check that insurance covers diving and medical evacuation, to ask a dive operator about oxygen on board and how a diver would reach a recompression chamber, and to stay within insurance depth limits.

Practical notes for a longer dive trip

Dive trips often run for a week or more, with early starts and wet equipment. A flat with a kitchen and laundry facilities can suit that rhythm, and our long-stay accommodation checklist lists what to confirm before booking. Leave the day before your flight free of diving if you follow the DAN preflight guidance, and read each country's official immigration page for entry rules; this page gives no visa advice.