Australia has more than 25,000 kilometres of stunning, natural coastline to explore and some of the most beautiful reefs in the world right on our doorstep.
With so many special dive sites, to ask us to pick our favourite spot is a big ask. But that’s exactly what Bupa Travel Insurance did for their recent article, ‘Scuba Diving Adventures Around Australia’.
As keen eco-warriors, we believe that the key to conservation of the world’s fragile underwater ecosystems is to help people experience the beauty first hand. We thought hard about a diving destination that clearly illustrates a balanced eco-system in play. It gives clear insights into why you see what you see, and so we eventually settled on Christmas Island.
What makes Christmas Island unique is that it sits on top of an extinct, steep-sided volcano that rises from the sea floor 6,000 metres below. This exceptional geographical phenomena means that many deep ocean marine animals like dolphins, manta rays, whale sharks and tiger sharks often come in very close to the reef. So when diving Christmas Island you might be admiring a host of surgeonfish nibbling the algae from the reef, only to turn towards the deep blue and see a manta ray or whale shark cruising by.
Christmas Island has two dive centres: Wet n Dry Adventures and Extra Divers Australia, and can be dived any time of the year. The waters are warm, and as there is no urban run-off or human induced pollution, the waters are exceptional clear. The very best time to dive Christmas Island is around November and December during the annual red crab migration, when the abundance of crab larvae in the water attracts whale sharks to the island. Seeing one of these magnificent creatures up close is an experience that will stay with you for the rest of your life.
We’re very pleased to read that some of our other favourite spots like Lady Elliot Island and Lord Howe Island were chosen by others for similar reasons – even our local shore dive at Cabbage Tree Bay Aquatic Reserve made the list.
You’ll definitely enjoy the article and hopefully will be inspired to go and check out some of Australia’s other little gems.
If you liked this post, you might also like The Best Places to Dive with grey Nurse Sharks in NSW.
