Thailand is best known as the “land of smiles”. You will get to know the answer once you visit there. It has its unique Thai Culture, Beautiful nature, Mouth-watering foods, and moreover pleasing beaches with many best Scuba Diving places in Thailand.
Thailand is a well-developed country which provides all the comforts and easement for tourism. If you are going to visit Thailand for scuba diving there’s so much you need to know first. We have tried to gather all pre-requisite information for your ease.
There are some of the best scuba diving places you must visit to dive in Thailand 2023.
1- Koh Tao
scuba diving in Thailand Koh Tao. Koh Tao is an Island and most admired place by tourism. This place is prominent for Scuba Diving, Snorkeling, hiking, or climbing on rocks. It is an ideal place for Scuba Divers and the cheapest place for enjoying vacations.
Kah Tao is not very deep which means snorkelers may also get the advantage of this place as most of the area is covered by coral reefs. It is a neighbouring place to Koh Samui and is reachable from Chumphon or Surat Thani.
Diving here is amazing, you see many tropical reef fishes as well as drift diving, deep diving, and wall diving. There is also a good shark population off the southwest coast of Koh Tao, so you may want to consider diving with sharks there.
Depth: Around 40 meter
Visibility: 30-35 meters
Water Temperature: 26 – 30 degrees Celsius
Dive Seasons: March to September
Location: Chumphon Archipelago on the western shore of the Gulf of Thailand
2- Koh Phi Phi
Koh Phi Phi which is located in the Andaman Sea on the West Coast of Thailand consists of 6 small Islands. It is one of the most beautiful Islands where you can also get SSI or Padi Scuba diving certificates while diving.
Keeping the environment safe and ensuring a great dive experience is our top priority, we limit beginner groups to two customers per instructor and qualified dive groups to no more than four divers per divemaster.
This place is full of marine life. You can easily find mantis shrimp, Triggerfish, Sea-horses, Reef Sharks, Nurse Sharks, blue-spotted stingrays, and banded sea snakes.
Depth: 15-28 meters
Visibility: 10-22 meters
Water Temperature: 29.6 Celsius
Dive Seasons: All year around
Location: 43 km west of the coast of Krabi
3- Koh Lipe
Koh Lipe is heaven in Thailand. It is a famous place for a relaxed atmosphere, stunning beaches, and unforgettable dive sites for beginners and experts too. Some of the dive sites are only reserved for the Expert in Koh Lipe but snorkelers may also get benefits from this mesmerizing site.
The dive site also features soft coral reefs, rock formations, marine species like barracudas, eagle rays swimming past, and coral catsharks hiding in the dark. Seahorses, shrimps, pipefish, nudibranchs, and nudibranch shells are among the macro items to discover here.
Depth: Maximum 30 meters
Visibility: 20-25 meters
Water Temperature: 29.67° C
Dive Seasons: All year around
Location: Satun Province of southwest Thailand, close to the Malaysian border.
4- Surin Island
Scuba Diving on Surin Island is outstanding. This site offers a good chance to see schools of manta rays, whales, sharks, and sometimes seahorses, pipefish, and frogfish.
If you are planning to visit Surin Island make sure to get safety insurance first as a good take-care gesture because incidents may happen to avoid them it is better to have a scuba diver instructor or safety insurance for enjoying and capturing this site’s marine reserves.
Depth: 15-18 meters
Visibility: 10-12 meters
Water Temperature: 29 Celsius
Dive Seasons: February to April
Location: in the Andaman Sea, 60 km from the Thai mainland.
5- Similan Island
Diving in Similan Island is one you are not going to forget in your life. Recently, This place has been acknowledged as the No 1 dive place in Thailand. This place is spread with hard coral reefs and strong currents with wild rocks. Tourists from all over the world who visit Thailand must visit Similan Island to see fantastic diving places.
Depth: 15-18 meters
Visibility: 12-15 meters
Water Temperature: 25-30 Celsius
Dive Seasons: November to April
Location: southern Thailand, 50 km west of Khao Lak
6- Phuket
Phuket Island is located on the southern side of the Adamnan sea. This is the biggest island in Thailand. Phuket is loved for a number of reasons including Beautiful beaches, Vibrant Nightlife and seafood are among the top choices of tourists.
Globally recognized place Phuket is the hub of marine life. Here, you may find hundreds of dive centers who are always ready to take you wherever you want to scuba dive. It is a recommended place for all scuba divers of all levels. Luckily you may see whale sharks, Tuna, Manta rays, seahorses, harlequin shrimp, ghost pipefish, etc.
Depth: Max 30 meters
Visibility: 10-20 meters
Water Temperature: 29 Celsius
Dive Seasons: October to April
Location: west coast of mainland Thailand in the Andaman Sea
7- Koh Lanta
Koh Lanta dive place competes with other scuba diving places in Thailand. Here, you may easily find soft coral reefs, light currents, Manta rays, and whale sharks.
Koh Lanta has 70+ islands surrounding and giving the most importance to Hin Daeng (Red Rock) and Hin Muang (Purple Rock) which are the favorite dive sites in Koh Lanta.
You may need to use a boat to reach Koh Lanta as there is no direct route to go to this place. This site is much appreciated by many photographers.
Depth: not measured
Visibility: not measured
Water Temperature: 29 Celsius
Dive Seasons: March to September
Location: between the Phi Phi Island
8- Richelieu Rock
Around 10 KM east of Surin Island you will reach Richelieu Rock. This rocky place stands at top of the list of scuba diving in Thailand. It is located 10km from Surin Island. The shape of Richelieu Rock is similar to a horseshoe and it consists of several caves, pinnacles, and rocks.
This site is also famous for “White Sharks” which are rarely seen nevertheless you can still meet with the great creatures like Manta rays, ghost pipefish, seahorses, tomato clownfish, frogfish, Harlequin Shrimp and a great variety of Nudibranch!. Many Photographers love this place for its small and wide range. So, do not forget to bring an underwater camera with you.
Depth: Maximum 35 meters
Visibility: 20-25 meters
Water Temperature: 29 Celsius
Dive Seasons: October to May
Location: in the Andaman Sea, about 80 km northwest of Khao Lak off Thailand’s Phang Nga Province, very near to the provincial border of Ranong and about 18 km east of Surin island.
9- Pattaya
If you are a wreck diver then Pattaya is the top choice for you. You could stay 7-8 here and daily enjoy a new wreck place in Pattaya. Many dive centers offer training for scuba diving and a great chance to get a diving license here.
Aside from the wrecks, Pattaya has some of the best scuba diving. In the bluish waters of the sea, turtles swim alongside you, batfish shimmer, trevallies school, and barracuda stalk the surface. Be on the lookout for porcelain crabs and whip coral shrimp as you encounter blacktip, nurse, and tawny sharks.
Depth: Max 18 meters
Visibility: 10 meters
Water Temperature: 29 Celsius
Dive Seasons: September to February
Location: on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand
10- Koh Samui
Koh Samui is in the Gulf of Thailand. Scuba Divers across the world visit Koh Samui to get the experience of the underwater world.
As you go deeper inside this blue water you notice whale sharks prominently also turtles, barracuda, and black corals with soft carols making scuba dive in Koh Samui a more notable place in Thailand.
Depth: Max 4 meters
Visibility: Clear
Water Temperature: 30 Celsius
Dive Seasons: March to September
Location: Surat Thani Province, Thailand
Best time to dive in Thailand
Tourists visit Thailand all-around the year but if you are going for scuba diving then October to May is the best time for you regardless of the winter season you still get the advantage of warm water of Thailand.
8 Tips for Scuba diving in Thailand
No matter, how well prepared you are but you will always need to have assistance from a liveaboard. Whether you are looking for cheap places or expensive dive sites. Liveaboard has all the necessary facilities which every tourist or scuba diver may need during their visit to Thailand.
Following things, you may consider before diving.
| 1- Dive with proper dive certifications |
| 2- Before diving check your physical and mental health too |
| 3- Remaining with the group or your partner while diving. |
| 4- Check all the equipment well before diving into the water. |
| 5- In underwater diving, you are responsible for your safety and make sure to be safe all the time. |
| 6- Keeping an eye on your gas reserve. |
| 7- Take care of underwater creatures, respect them, and do not try to harm any of them. |
| 8- Take an underwater camera with you for capturing eye-catchy views. |
Scuba Diving Safety in Thailand
Scuba diving in Thailand is safe and sound; however, staying underwater for a long time without any proper instruction may cause damage. For this sake, you must get proper guidance from your instructor before diving into the water.
Most people use liveaboard tour guides which provide a 100% safe and enjoyable environment.
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Final Thoughts
Thailand which is famous for tourism and its unique culture with unforgettable beauty of beaches welcomes around 60 million tourists each year. Scuba Divers across the world visit this country and enjoy diving underwater with different species of marine life. Do not forget to add Thailand to your list if you are planning to enjoy your vacations with the most loved places or if you have already visited. Please, share your diving experience in Thailand with us.