Scuba diving in Curaçao – Unveiling an underwater bliss

If you are an ocean lover and seek exhilarating adventures beneath the waves, then scuba diving in Curaçao is an experience not to be missed. Curaçao is a tiny hidden gem in the Caribbean. The beautiful island offers scuba diving to first-time divers, certified and more experienced divers. Scuba diving can be done easily and comfortably from shore, but there are also a few boat dive sites you do not want to miss. With its turquoise, crystal-clear water and abundance of small and larger marine life, it is THE perfect destination for any aquaholic!

All photos by Tobias Friedrich – BELOW SURFACE

Curaçao is one of the most underrated and unknown scuba diving & non-diving destinations to travellers around the world. Most people will know Curaçao only for the famous blue liquor or that one catchy song. But the name Curaçao is actually borrowed from the Portuguese word Curação, which means “curing”. This is quite fitting as the air and water quality are excellent and have great health benefits. Contrary to most people’s expectations, Curaçao is not a tropical island. You may be surprised to find it more desert-like, dry and windy with cacti & thorny bushes being the dominant vegetation. The palm trees surrounding the accommodation of your choice are all non-native.

ABC islands – scuba diving in Curaçao vs Bonaire and Aruba

If you are looking for the best dive destination in the Caribbean you might find yourself a bit overwhelmed with information. Curaçao, Aruba and Bonaire all offer awesome scuba diving, yet are very different. Aruba is known to most Americans, and possibly the wealthiest island of these the. It has long sandy beaches, some stretching out for a couple of miles! Geographically it is totally different from Curaçao or Bonaire, its main coastal structure being some sort of granite, while Cur and Bon have glass sharp North coasts consisting of limestone and fossilised coral rock formations. In Aruba it is mostly boat diving because the wide lagoons make the reefs fairly far to reach from shore.

Bonaire is great for shore diving as you can easily walk in at point A and drift out anywhere you prefer to exit. Most naturally formed beaches and dives sites in both Curaçao and Bonaire are rocky, with coral stone and sand being the main adhesive. Curaçao has the best of both worlds! The largest stretching beach is probably Mambo Beach (artificial) or Playa Grote Knip (natural), reaching about 150 m/ 300 ft in width.

Why pick Curaçao, you might ask? In our opinion, it is most authentic. Bonaire offers great diving and protection of their marine life, but besides the windsurfing it has not much else to offer on land. Aruba is great on customer service, but perhaps quite Americanised. Which is not a bad thing if that is what you are looking for. Curaçao can let you experience the Caribbean almost with a “travelling back in time” feeling. Island time is a real thing, so sit back, relax and enjoy your vacation!

Biodiversity – What marine life can you see scuba diving in Curaçao?

Curaçao has incredible coral reef structures, famous dive sites and a wide variety of marine life. The Caribbean is home to 10% of the world’s coral reef structures and has over 1400 fish and marine mammal species. 

It is common for scuba divers to encounter larger marine life such as green sea turtles, hawksbills and sometimes even loggerheads. You can see grey stingrays and spotted eagle rays occasionally. These encounters always get the local dive guides quite excited as Curaçao is not the destination for shark diving, manta ray or whale shark spotting. Pelagic animals do pass by but encounters are extremely rare!

In general Curaçao is known for colourful parrotfish, angelfish, flounders, trumpetfish, barracuda, butterflyfish and many more! It is also famous for small critters such as banded shrimp, arrow crabs, various nudibranches, frogfish and longsnout seahorses! This is why Curaçao is a beloved macro photographer’s paradise. 

Capturing your best moments

Attention all underwater adventurers and photo enthusiasts! We have some exciting news to share that will elevate your dive experiences to a whole new level. Say hello to the revolutionary DIVEVOLK SeaTouch 4 Max housing, designed to make your smartphone a reliable companion in the depths of the ocean. This innovative housing is compatible with any smartphone brand and model, allowing you to capture stunning photos and videos while exploring underwater wonders. With a waterproof capability of up to 60m/200ft, you can confidently take your phone on your dives without worrying about water damage.

What sets the SeaTouch 4 Max apart is its full touchscreen functionality, granting you easy access to all your apps even while submerged. Imagine the creative possibilities, especially when paired with powerful photography apps like FilmicPro. No need to transfer files from an action camera, as your footage is instantly accessible on your phone. To delve deeper into the capabilities of this game-changing accessory, read our comprehensive review here! Get ready to dive in and capture unforgettable moments like never before!

Diving season and what is the best time to go?

Curaçao has really fair and comfortable weather all year round. Temperatures shift slightly between 23-25°C (75°F) in December – February, to a humid 27-31°C (85°F) in July – October. December is usually the most rainy month, but if you want to see the island in its full green lush, this is your time! Keep high season (prices) in mind! We would recommend a 3 to 5mm wetsuit. March to April is often dry and windy, but there are lots of mating rituals going on leading to many frogfish, seahorse, green moray eel and porcupine puffer encounters! September is the hottest month, with the wind dropping completely in preparation of potential hurricanes in the upper wind islands. Water temperatures can get as high as 29°C (82°F) making a rash guard or 2mm wetsuit sufficient for most divers.

Curaçao is basically safe from hurricanes but in November the storms’ tails sometimes cause more wave action and thus reduced water visibility. 

What scuba certification do you need? Can beginners dive in Curaçao? Can you scuba dive without a certification?

Curaçao is a perfect location for beginner and more advanced scuba divers since shore diving is the way to go here. There are a few dive sites that require you to be advanced in terms of depth, but most are accessible even for non-certified divers.

Introduction dives are basically always offered from shore and can be done by anyone with a valid scuba medical statement. Your dive shop/guide will provide this for you. It might be advised to discuss any back issues or asthma with your physician back home before trying scuba diving for a first time. 

Snorkelling in Curaçao

If you have always wanted to try snorkelling, Curaçao is the place! You can still encounter all sorts of colourful fish right from shore, in a safe way. Most activity based operators also offer snorkelling from a boat. Though, you don’t have to in order to see something cool. Parrotfish can sometimes be observed even from outside the water, needle fish are right under the crystal clear surface and the all-time favourite, adorable spotted and smooth polkadot trunkfish might curiously just swim up to you. 

You can now capture all your encounters directly on your phone, with the waterproof smartphone case by DIVEVOLK, which now also comes with a dome port, allowing you to take split shots on the surface and ultra-wide angle photos and videos underwater!

Remember, whether you’re scuba diving or snorkelling, always protect your skin from harmful solar damage. Wearing a UW-protective shirt is the easiest way to go, but if you still wish to tan make sure you use a reef-safe sunscreen. 

How to get to Curaçao?

Unless you have your own sailboat, you can reach beautiful sunny Curaçao only by aeroplane. American Airlines offer direct flights from Miami and from Europe, you can fly directly to Curaçao from The Netherlands and Germany.

Where to stay on Curaçao?

How does 5* all-inclusive diving sound? Combine it with an adults-only luxurious resort and you will have an unforgettable vacation experience! The Sandals Royal Curaçao boasts an idyllic location that will take your breath away. Each room is thoughtfully designed with modern amenities, plush bedding, and stunning views, ensuring your comfort and tranquility throughout your stay.

Prepare your taste buds for an unparalleled culinary journey. With eight world-class restaurants serving up a fusion of international flavours, Sandals Royal Curaçao Resort offers a gastronomic experience like no other.

The PADI 5* dive center offers free daily scuba diving for certified divers with top-of-the-line equipment on custom-made speedboats. Highly experienced and knowledgable staff will guide you to the best dive sites around the island.

Can you dive Curaçao from a liveaboard?

There are no liveaboard options in Curaçao. This is mainly due to the fact that most dive sites are so easily accessible and close to shore. Only the far West and East parts of the island are interesting for boat diving, but it’s not necessarily to turn this into a 3-4 day boat trip.

Scuba diving from a cruise ship

Generally, all dive operators offer pick-up & drop-off service, if not for a small fee. If you are visiting Curaçao with a cruise ship you can easily join in for a couple of dives (certified or not!). Taxis are available too but are not cheap. You can expect to dock in Curaçao around 7:30am, be picked up around 8am, and be back at your cruise around 11 or 1pm, depending on the number of dives you want to log. This leaves you some time in the afternoon to stroll through the island’s colourful city Willemstad. 

Shore diving in Curaçao

Shore diving in Curaçao is just crazy beautiful and too easy! Diving from shore in Curaçao offers great advantages since you will not need to swim out far to find your dive site. If long surface swims aren’t really your thing, you would love diving here. For all shore diving in Curaçao you can usually descend at 2 m/5 ft and start your dive right away. The coral reef is often just a few fin kicks away and this helps people who often encounter ear problems. Following the bottom definitely aids most divers with equalisation, as well as with easy navigation.

Shore diving in Curacao gives you the same chances of seeing something marvellous as diving from a boat. The island has great coral reefs you can easily admire from shore. They provide housing for many of the Caribbean favourites: parrotfish, butterflyfish, flounders, gobies, blennies and angelfish. If you’re lucky, you can even encounter large rays, sea turtles or sometimes even reef sharks right from shore.

Best dive sites

Here are the very best dive sites we recommend! You can dive all the shore dive sites listed below comfortably by boat from the Sandals Royal Curaçao resort.

From shore

Tugboat Beach 

Beginners, 2 – 30 m/5 – 100ft

The dive site is mostly sand with awesome boulder coral and soft sea fans as you progress further towards Directors Bay. There is a small sunken tug wreck at just 5 meters/15ft and a pier for large ship maintenance. The pier is home to frogfishes and seahorses. Trumpetfish and angelfish are common in this bay. 

Directors Bay

Beginners to intermediate, 2 – 30 m/5 – 100ft

There is a stone staircase down to the beach which can be a hassle with back problems, but your dive shop can surely help you out. Great variety in hard and soft corals, lots of finger coral and staghorn coral, rare species such as Atlantic spadefish have been observed here, but also larger life such as stingrays, hawksbills and nurse sharks.

Mari Pampoen 

Beginners, 2 – 40 m/5 – 130ft

This is a cute Fisherman’s Bay often used by the locals for water therapy and teaching swimming classes. In the shallows you will find huge builder and braincoral formations, and deeper there is the famous car pile, which is a sort of underwater junkyard of boat, car and construction parts, beautifully overgrown with marine life. Tarpon and sea turtles are found here as well as rare batfish!

MV Superior Producer 

Advanced, 5 – 33 m/15 – 110ft

This site is right underneath the second mega pier, the newest cruise port of Curaçao and therefore only diveable on non-cruise days. You will acces the water doing a giant stride, and exit using a metal staircase on the side, or will be dropped off in the blue from your dive boat. The Superior is Curaçao’s largest shipwreck and home to many Tarpons and barracudas. Often green moray eels and lobsters have been seen on the shipwreck. 

Double Reef

Advanced, 2 – 35 m/5 – 120ft,

This reef is right next to Corendon hotel and does not look like much at first. But the underwater world is stunning! You will enter after walking about 50 m/150 feet past the famous Tula monument. As the name suggests, there is a shallower reef, divided by a sandy channel, followed by a deeper reef where the occasional green sea turtle naps in the barrel sponges. The channel crossover is market by a pile of sunken debris, you will see a STOP sign, some pipelines and a shopping cart. This makes navigation easier. The Tarpons from the Superior often hang around here too. Great location for seeing endangered pillar corals in the shallows on the far right.

PortoMari Beach

Beginners, 2 – 35 m/5 – 120ft

Excellent for both beginners as well as advanced divers since there is a double reef barrier here as well. Easy access from the beach and plenty activities on land for non-scuba lovers. Underwater you will find trunkfish everywhere, lots of parrotfish and often frogfish scattered around the reef. Portomari has about 30-40 reef balls circling the 2 – 6 m area/5 – 18ft. This provides habitat for butterflyfish, sergeant majors and even octopi!

Playa Lagun

Beginners to intermediate, 2 – 25 m/5 – 80ft,

Playa Lagun is one of the most photogenic beaches as it lies between two cliffs. Walk in from shore and stay shallow following the left coastline to find a small cavern often hosting green moray eels, Spanish slipper lobsters and even seahorses. Staying in open water level you will see multiple mountain coral formations hiding invasive lionfish and cute sapphire-eyed balloon fish.

Playa Piskado 

Beginners, 2 – 25 m/5 – 80ft

Playa Piskado  is a busy fishermen’s beach so we recommend to dive it early! This beach is guaranteed to have you encounter dozens of green sea turtles! Remember to keep a respectful distance and not to touch the turtles, even if they will almost bump into you. There is also a Neptune statue in the shallows with a beautiful sponge forming its crown. Sharks have also been sighted occasionally on this dive site. 

Playa Kalki 

Beginners, 2 – 30 m/5 – 100ft

Playa Kalki is known as one the the seven most beautiful beaches in the world. A stone staircase will take you down to the beach where entry is easy and so is navigation using multiple buoy lines. Mountainous star coral is abundant here, as well as great builder formations. Angelfish and spotted eagle rays have made the area their home and larger life is seen occasionally as Playa Piskado is very near. There are two statues here as well: a saxophone & and a life-size Chichi (see land activities). Well worth checking out!

By boat

Watamula

Advanced, 5 – 20 m/15 – 75ft

You will dive this site by boat often leaving from Playa Kalki. It’s a short ride, and the guides will tell you about the impressive North coast as you are riding towards your destination. This is one of the best kept coral reefs on the island. Coral crabs, porcupine fish and sea turtles are often found here. The current can be rough but is usually manageable with experienced guides.

East Point

Advanced, 2 – 30 m/5 – 100ft

A must dive if you are visiting Curaçao! East Point is the best protected marine park with corals over 300 years old! Most manta sightings were here. You will feel like in a national Geographic documentary gliding over elegant seafans, seawhips, elkhorn, staghorn, and basically any coral & sponge species known in Curaçao. It is a decently short 45min boat ride from Sandals Royal Curaçao.

What to pack? How to prepare for the trip?

You might wonder what you will need during your vacation in Curaçao. Generally, you can get anything you forget on the island – expect prices dollar prices . We would definitely recommend to bring your own dive gear for your personal comfort, but if you prefer to travel light, you can minimise that to your mask, fins and dive computer. In any case, brand new rental dive gear is included in your package at the Sandals resort. Although you can get that on the island as well, we would recommend brining your reusable water bottle, a rash guard and a hat! 

If you are planning on taking your own dive gear along, we also have a great packing checklist for you on the blog!

What other things can you do apart from scuba diving in Curaçao? 

• Mangrove Park

• Curaçao Hato Caves

• Christoffel National Park

• Buggy / ATV touring

• Painting workshops (Chichi)

• City mural Walk tour

• Abseiling

• Signature restaurants

How much does scuba diving in Curaçao cost?

The price of scuba diving depends a bit per dive facility/independent dive instructor. A 1 tank guided dive is usually between USD 40 and 60. Rental gear is around USD 35 – 40 per day. A discover scuba dive is pretty steady around USD 99,-. With these prices Curaçao can be cheaper than Aruba or Bonaire. 

At the Sandals Royal Curaçao resort, diving is all-inclusive and you can log two dives a day 🙂

If you want to discover more diving destinations in the Caribbean, check out the blog post on Cozumel and the best reef diving in Mexico!