Top 10 Dives: Best Diving in the World

17 May 2013
Have you dived the world's top ten?

We've been publishing the list of the world's top dives since 2000 and in all that time the SS Yongala has consistently topped the list. Until now. This fantastic wreck was this year knocked off its perch by the Blue Corner Wall in Palau (Micronesia). It's a close race though: there is currently just one vote between them.

The list is fairly evenly balanced between Northern and Southern hemispheres, the North winning by 6 entries to 4.

Vote for you favourite dive sites here. You might also like the best 100 dives, best wreck dives and top dives in Europe.

1. Blue Corner Wall, Palau, Micronesia
   An upwelling means this splendid wall dive is favoured by pelagics. Expect to see sharks, barracuda, eagle rays, Napoleon wrasse, snappers, jacks...if you can tear your eyes away from the fish the wall hosts thick coral with morays, nudibranchs and mantis shrimps being just a few of the attractions.
    
   
2. The Yongala, Australia
   The Yongala is a shipwreck off the coast of Queensland. Full of life you may see manta rays, sea snakes, octopuses, turtles, bull sharks, tiger sharks, clouds of fish and spectacular coral.
    
   
3. Barracuda Point, Sipadan Island
   Wall of coral where sharks come cruising by and barracuda surround you.
    
   
4. Thistlegorm, Egyptian Red Sea
   This dive is a big wreck whose cargo includes motor bikes, train carriages and trucks.
    
   
5. Shark and Yolanda Reef, Egyptian Red Sea
   Three dives in one: anemone city, shark reef with its spectacular drop off and the wreck of the Yolanda.
    
   

6. Great Blue Hole, Belize
   Very deep, wide hole outlined by coral reef and inhabited by sharks.
    
   
7. Navy Pier, Western Australia
   Extending 300 m from the shore, packed with marine life.
    
   
8. Manta Ray Night Dive, Kailua Kona, Hawaii
   Underwater lights placed on the ocean floor attract plankton, which in turn attract the huge manta rays of Kona Hawaii. Often surrounded by wild currents, the scenary makes for some wonderful dives.
    
   
9. Big Brother, Egyptian Red Sea
   The Brothers, or El Akhawein, are two small islands in the middle of the Red Sea.
    
   
10. Elphinstone Reef, Egyptian Red Sea
    The fabulous Elphinstone features pinnacles and plateaus, sharks and nudibranchs.

How many of the top ten have you dived?

Your Top Dives

Name:             E-mail:      

Dive Site 1:      Dive Site 2: 
Dive 1 Description:             Dive 2 Description: 
     
Other Comments or Runner-Up Dives:

Country of Residence: 

How are the votes counted?
The first criteria is number of votes (weighted to favour the first choice dive site above the second). Where two dives tie for a position, priority is given to those with the most enticing descriptions and those whose area has several votes for different dives.

Compiled by Jill Studholme

Books of the World's Best Dive Sites

Dive Atlas of the World: An Illustrated Reference to the Best Sites

ed Jack Jackson, New Holland Publishers, 2008, 300 pages, Hardback
Available from UK and USA

Ultimate Diving Adventures: 100 Extraordinary Experiences Under Water

by Len Deeley and Karen Gargani, John Wiley & Sons, 2009, 218 pages, Paperback
Details some of the best dive sites around the world, with some lovely photographs. The authors have included many of the dives listed in our top 10 list.
Buy from UK or USA

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