About three-quarters of the world’s known coral species are found in the Asian waters. The waters are also known to harbor a rich marine ecosystem that stretches across thousands of kilometers touching various countries. These among other reasons makes diving be one of the great activities that you can do on the Asian continent.
Among the top countries that have the best diving sites include Thailand, Malaysia, India, Indonesia, Maldives, and the Philippines.
Here are some of the places that you can consider exploring:
Similan Islands, Thailand
The Similan archipelago islands are one of the most renowned diving sites in Thailand. There are nine islands, named No.1 to No.9, which was established back in 1982 as a national park. The water temperature here ranges between 26 and 29 degree Celsius, and the visibility is ideal (about 18-25 metres) for a closer look at the coral walls. Some of the fish species that you can see in Similan Islands include dorado, wahoo, sailfish, queen fish and many others.
Pulau Sipadan, Malaysia
Sipadan is an oceanic island that offers a prime diving spot. One of the unique features around here is the underwater limestone turtle tomb that has many chambers and tunnels that contain the remains of trapped and drowned green sea turtles. You can also find millions of multi-colored reef fish, hammerhead sharks, as well as schools of barracudas.
Andaman Islands, India
Andaman, an extinct volcano off Narcondam Island is an incredible dive site in India. Since tourism was recently authorised in India, the marine life is practically undisturbed. The waters here, therefore, contain a great deal of biodiversity. Large pelagic fish, hammerheads, white tip, grey tip, and leopard sharks are some of the marine life you can enjoy watching here.
New Guinea, Sumatra, Kimondo Island, Moyo Island and Banda Aceh in Indonesia
Indonesia has about over 25 percent of the Earth’s fish species and invertebrates. It has 80,000 kilometers of coastline and 17,000 islands. The sites mentioned above are some of the best to explore the marine life in Indonesia while diving. You will be able to see eagle rays, manta rays, ornate ghost pipefish, black-tip sharks, grey reef sharks, dolphins, among others.
Soneva Fushi, Maldives
Soneva Fushi is a private island, and one of the best diving sites in the world. Its water is crystal blue because of the Indian Ocean and the vast underwater world that contains a broad array of fish. Some of the fish species you can find here include manta rays, white-tip sharks, moral eels, red snappers and tuna reef fish.
Apo Reef, Philippines
Apo Reef is one of the largest contiguous coral reefs in the world and a popular site for divers. The temperature and visibility are excellent, ranging between 25 and 29 degrees and 10-40 metres respectively. You can explore plenty of coral reefs around here, different species of fish, turtles, reef sharks, giant clams as well as dugongs.
These are just some of the many diving places that you can find in Asia. Albeit there are those that suit newbies, some of them are more suitable for expert divers due to the varying strength and movement of the water. The good thing is that most of them are accessible throughout the year, meaning that you can enjoy diving at any time you feel like. But for more information about these sites, please check these pages: AsianDivingVacation.com, SportDiver.com, and UnderwaterAsia.info.
