7 Bali dive sites not to miss + Top tips from an expat

The Bali dive sites are some of the most exquisite in the world. This Indonesian island has it all – wrecks, drift diving, rare macro critters, pelagic, volcanic sandy bottom excellent for muck diving, coral reefs and wall diving. You will find stunning biodiversity here. No wonder the dive spots are on the bucket lists of many scuba divers.

Photo by Gonzalo Apesteguía

 

Thanks to tourism, Bali is the most popular island of Indonesia. Many tourists come and go on a honeymoon, on a backpacking trip, on a yoga trip, and often on a scuba diving trip. The island of the gods has a lot to offer!

Photo by Claudine Daigneault

 

Travellers come here mainly for the cultural and culinary experiences as well as for the white sand beaches. Another major reason for travellers to visit Bali is to enjoy some world-class diving. But the diversity is huge, so where do you start?!

 

Which area should you visit?

The island of Bali is quite big and deciding where to go might be a bit overwhelming. In this article, we would like to give you an overview of the types of diving around the island and what you can expect to see in the different areas. Many of the dive sites around Bali are world-famous. Here you will find a comprehensive guide to the best spots (the well-known and also some hidden gems). Our guest author Claudine has been living and diving in Bali and all over Indonesia for more than 12 years. Here she shares some top insider tips so you can make the most of your time in Bali.

Photo by Gonzalo Apesteguía

 

North-West of Bali: Pemuteran and Menjangan Island offer wall diving, coral reefs, drift diving, and macro diving.

Photo by Claudine Daigneault

 

Northeast of Bali: Tulamben and Amed offer black sand world-class macro diving, coral reef diving, drift diving and wreck diving.

Photo by Gonzalo Apesteguía

 

Central-East of Bali: Candidasa and Padang Bay offer coral reef, muck diving and pelagic sighting. You can see reef sharks, mola mola and the occasional whale shark or manta ray.

Photo by Claudine Daigneault

 

Southeast of Bali: Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Penida offer drift diving, coral reefs and pelagic sighting. You can spot oceanic manta rays, sunfish (mola mola), reef sharks, bamboo sharks and the occasional thresher shark.

 

The top 7 Bali dive sites you mustn’t miss

 

1. Eel Garden, Menjangan Island

If you want to be raving about a dive site and to dive over and over the same spot, then Eel Garden is for you. This dive site gives us the “Raja Ampat” feeling on a rising or falling tide. The schooling fish, turtles and reef sharks cruising on top of the reef make us all love this site. Resident frogfish and pygmy seahorses can also be spotted on the wall. 

If you like wall diving, drift diving, colourful reefs and ambiance dive, do not miss Eel Garden.

Depth: 8 to 40 meters

Photo by Gonzalo Apesteguía

 

2. Puri Jati, Seririt

The North of Bali is known for its muck dive sites. It isn’t easy to choose between Secret Bay, Pemuteran Jetty, and Puri Jati (PJ) to incorporate into our top Bali dive sites list. 

Looking for that Lembeh feel of being surrounded by black sand and only black sand? Then PJ is the place to be. Make sure to dive with an experienced critter spotter. The macro marine life here is easy to miss. Here you can spot wonderpus, ghost pipefish, Ambon scorpionfish, sapsucking slugs, pegasus and seahorses. 

Depth: 6 to 12 meters

Bonus tip: Dive early in the morning and wake up to the sounds of dolphins swimming along the coast of Lovina.

Photo by Gonzalo Apesteguía

 

3. USAT Liberty Wreck, Tulamben

The USAT Liberty wreck is, without a doubt, the most popular dive site in Bali. This cargo ship was built in 1918, torpedoed in 1948 and made an official wreck by a volcano eruption in 1963. Check out the original story behind the Liberty wreck in our blog here.

Tulamben’s most famous wreck is covered by soft coral and is the perfect shelter for bumphead parrotfish as well as small schooling of sweetlips, and snappers. Diving the USAT Liberty wreck will be an unforgettable experience, stay assured.

Why is it so popular? The ambiance and the easy access from shore to all levels of divers make it the most popular dive site in Bali.

Depth: 6 to 30 meters

Photo by Mike Sinner

 

4. Seraya Secret, Tulamben

Seraya Secret is not a secret anymore. Along with other similar dive sites in Tulamben, Seraya is THE place to encounter cool things. When we say cool we mean harlequin shrimp, rhinopias, tiger shrimps, doto nudibranch to only name a few. Once again, make sure to dive with a dive guide with lynx-eyes.

Depth: 3 to 35 meters

Photo by Gonzalo Apesteguía

 

5. Pyramid, Amed

Diving this dive site will give you hope for our Blue Planet. Not too far from Jemeluk Bay, a few pyramids enhance the natural small reef formations. In 1995, the Bali Diving Association sank cement blocks and created pyramids underwater. Twenty-five years later, they are completely covered with coral and thrive with life. You can often spot schooling snappers between the pyramids. Other highlights of the site include juvenile boxfish, nudibranch, and leaf scorpionfish.

Depth: 5 to 28 meters

Bonus tip: If you can dive Pyramid with Nitrox, do it! The reason being that a lot of pyramids are situated at the 20 meters mark. As they are thriving with life, you will want to spend time searching for critters on each of them. Doing so will then require a longer bottom time. Diving with EANx is perfect for a longer bottom time at depth and you will enjoy the search.

Photo by Gonzalo Apesteguía

 

6. Jetty, Amuk Bay

Hello, spooky ambiance! The jetty of Amuk Bay is a must-dive site in Bali. The project to create this famous cruise ship jetty was abandoned. It is now an ideal spot for muck divers and fishermen. Twenty meters high pillars support the jetty and create a perfect artificial reef. The sandy bottom, and much debris, make it an incredible muck dive site. Frogfish, pipefish, stonefish, flying gurnard, nudibranch and dragonets roam the floor. Schooling batfish, pufferfish, and sardines swim happily between the pillars.

Depth: 10 to 16 meters

Bonus tip: Try to dive at a slack high or slack low tide. This dive site is subject to current and poor visibility.

Photo by Gonzalo Apesteguía

 

7. Manta Point, Nusa Penida

Snorkeling, freediving, or diving, you WANT to visit Manta Point. There are few places in the world where, with a short boat ride, you can have access to a manta cleaning station. This is a shallow dive site with a constant surge and can be part of an Open Water Course as the third or fourth dive of the course. 

Depth: 6 to 30 + meters

Bonus tip: To escape the crowd, get your guide to take you along the wall in the deeper section (16 meters). You may have the chance to encounter more mantas and more pelagics, like the famous mola-mola in this area. 

Photo by Gonzalo Apesteguía

 

A few world-class dive sites in Bali, which are not world-famous yet

We hope you have enjoyed our top 7 Bali dive sites. As you may have noticed, this list was a mix of different types of dive sites. The ones mentioned above definitely had a fair share of media coverage. However, there are a few other dive sites that deserve a mention on the top list.

 

North West of Bali

Nudi Beach – Macro lovers, hold on tight! This white sandy slope is always full of surprises. Hunt for juvenile frogfish, harlequin shrimps, ghost pipefish, but mostly for uncommon nudibranch. No joke, we discover a new family of nudibranch, unknown to this area, every time we dive there.

Deep Reef – Once again for macro lovers, this little seamount is a 5-minute boat ride from the beach. A chubby pinnacle sticks out from 35 meters to 12 meters and is once again a beautiful dive site for those who like looking for small critters. Highlights include electric clams, nudibranch of all kinds and the occasional octopus or frogfish at the top of the reef.

Photo by Claudine Daigneault

 

Northeast of Bali

Batu Belah and Batu Ringgit are two splendid dive sites in Tulamben. They consist of only black sand and rubbles. Both dive sites are for avid underwater photographers who love shooting small subjects. If you are all about colourful corals, currents and big fish, do not bother. For macro lovers, once again, these dive sites are the bomb. Chances to encounter rhipopias, frogfish, and special nudibranch (doto, thecacera, and flabellina, too only name a few) are high.

Photo by Claudine Daigneault

 

Central-East of Bali

Blue Lagoon is a short boat ride from Padang Bay harbour and is a stunning dive site. The site is big enough to dive it twice. On one side you have small bummies and a hard coral reef. This area often inhabits giant cuttlefish and turtles. On the other side there is a white sandy slope which ends with a steep wall. Here you can spot reef sharks, octopus and leaf scorpionfish. Be aware of the currents when diving on the wall. It is at the corner between the lagoon and Amuk Bay, which means the current sometimes splits in the area.

Photo by Gonzalo Apesteguía

 

Southeast of Bali

Crystal Bay in Nusa Penida is another dive site worth mentioning. This dive site is known for its famous sunfish sighting. The topography of Crystal Bay is complex and stunning all at once. Why complex? Because it has a protected lagoon, a bummy, a hill, a wall, and a lot of currents. The kind of current you aren’t expecting. The kind of current which isn’t unilateral but that can be up, down, sideways, or non-existent.

Why dive such a site then? For the potential adrenaline rush. To get the chance to see up close the giant mola mola. To dive into crystal clear water and see beautiful coral. I would suggest diving this site only if you are an experienced diver (100 dives at least). Diving with a dive center which doesn’t take more than 4 divers per dive guide, would be a good idea for diving in Nusa Penida in general. One important rule I always follow: stay one arm distance from the reef – AT ALL TIME! Like this you will be protected from the unexpected currents by the reef.

 

Discover the best Bali dive sites by indulging into a Nomadic Dive Safari

Our extensive guide to the best dive sites around Bali has hopefully given you a good idea of what you can expect from the area. For those who prefer traveling at their own pace, we hope we have helped you plan your itinerary so you have an amazing time diving!

For those of you, who want to max it out and be sure to experience all the best spots, we would recommend going on a Nomadic Dive Safari! But wait, what?! What is a Nomadic Dive Safari? Well, you travel by land, experience the cultural highlights of Bali and dive the most amazing places. It is a truly unique experience you won’t forget anytime soon. Here is one of the sample routes:

Abyss Ocean World is a team of locals and expats, who have been living on the island for over a decade. Their passion is to meet curious and avid divers and showcase the marvels of Bali below and above water. You can indulge yourself in a 12-nights, all inclusive (transport, accommodation, food and diving) with this funny and experienced bunch of divers. At the same time you will discover the Balinese culture through their eyes and have the most incredible holiday.

The readers of Dive into Life get a special offer when you book directly with Abyss Ocean World – 5% off on all Bali Dive safaris and at the dive center in Pemuteran. Check out the different routes and itineraries here and get your discount code below!

 

 

 

About the author

Claudine Daigneault is a real driven individual both owning a social media marketing company and being the co-founder of Abyss Ocean World in Bali. She has proven her worth in the tourism industry, traveling all around the Indonesian archipelago, learning about the culture of a country she has called home for now 12 years. She is an expert tour leader for avid scuba divers and loves sharing her passion with like-minded people. Her motto has always been to bring together the rich experience of everyone. If that was not enough, she is also an advocate for living in a plastic-free environment. She and her team participate in weekly underwater clean-ups and try their best to educate their surroundings about single-use pollution.