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Scuba diving in Havelock Island in Andaman is the best adventure you can indulge in, on your trip to Andamans. This island is considered a paradise on earth due to its perfect mix of evergreen forests, turquoise blue waters surrounding it, and glowing white-sand beaches. The diving sites here are exploding with rich marine life. It has sheltered bays and a swimming-friendly landscape, making it a perfect destination for scuba diving for both beginners and certified divers. This place offers a variety of dive sites each having diversified marine life including sharks, manta rays, turtles, dugongs, and many more.
Factors That Affect Scuba Diving
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While choosing a dive site for scuba diving on Havelock Island, it is important to understand that some factors affect this activity.
- Water Current
- Weather
- Water Clarity
- Water Depth
- Safety
- Coral and fish population
Suggested Read: Water Sports In Havelock Island
Levels Of Scuba Diving
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Depending on the depth of scuba diving in Havelock Island, there are three levels of scuba diving – beginner, Intermediate, and Expert. Tourists visiting this island can also enrol for a scuba diving certification course, whether it is a beginner or an expert. The prerequisite for this is that the diver must be in good physical and mental condition.
Beginner Level: Up to 12 meters and 2 dives
Intermediate Level: Up to 18 meters and 4 dives
Advanced Level: Up to 30 meters and 5 dives
Scuba Diving Spots In Havelock Island
Havelock Island has some of the best scuba diving sites that offer a thrilling and fulfilling experience to divers.
1. Lighthouse
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The Lighthouse on Havelock Island has shallow water and extensive marine life. It is one of the top 5 diving sites in Havelock. It has hard and soft corals, and the water depth increases on going away from the shore. Not only that, but it is also considered to be the best place for night diving due to its good visibility underwater. This place has a perfect balance of corals and aquatic life like octopuses, lionfish, lobsters, humpback parrot fish, fusiliers, etc.
Depth: 6–20 meters
Ideal For: Beginners and experts
Suggested Read: Water Sports In Andaman
2. Turtle Bay
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Turtle Bay is an ideal place for scuba diving in Havelock Island owing to its decent coral population and rays. As the name suggests, there are abundant sea turtles here. The water here has low currents and is ideal for diving and spotting majestic sea creatures like green job fish, clownfish, rays, and turtles.
Depth: 14 meters
Ideal For: Beginners
3. White House Rock
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The reef in White House Rock is circular and water currents are ideal for a great diving experience. The marine life here is very charming and divers can spot various creatures. There are also hard and soft corals like Gorgonian soft corals, branch-like whip corals, and fan corals in beautiful hues. It is easy to spot barracudas, trevally, and large schools of tuna swimming around.
Depth: 8–50 meters
Ideal For: Beginners and experts
Suggested Read: Adventure Sports In Andaman
4. The Wall
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The Wall is one of the best sites for scuba diving in Havelock Island for certified divers. With soft corals and rich marine life, there is a big underwater rock that drops deep in parts. The ridges from the slope form more wall-like structures and offer a majestic site to the divers. The divers can spot groupers, marble rays, jackfish, and other small creatures.
Depth: 56 meters
Ideal For: Experts
5. The Slope
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The Slope is one of the most fun and exciting diving sites in Havelock. It is one of Andaman’s best shallow dive sites and has a fascinating topography. It looks like a theatre with parallel sandy ridges. Divers can spot molluscs, damselfish, fusiliers, cardinal fish, oysters, batfish, peacock mantis shrimps, lionfish, and more.
Depth: 7–18 meters
Ideal For: Beginners and Experts
Suggested Read: Places To Visit In Andaman And Nicobar In 5 Days
6. Seduction Point
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Seduction Point has a huge underwater rock inhabiting rich marine life around it. This unique diving spot has a dense population of hard staghorn corals and Napoleons. Due to the shallow waters here, divers will see colourful schools of fish and other marine creatures swimming along. It’s a perfect site to dive into the underwater world and get mesmerised by its beauty.
Depth: Shallow
Ideal For: Beginners and Intermediates
7. Red Pillar
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Red Pillar is a beautiful spot for scuba diving in Havelock Island. It has a shallow reef which is a part of the fringing running reef that crosses the north-eastern coast of Havelock. There are very strong currents in the waters despite being a small area because it is located in the channel. This place offers a very energetic dive amidst the beautiful marine creatures – clownfish, tiger fish, angelfish, dolphins, crustaceans, jellyfish, seahorses, sharks, rays, and saltwater fishes. The exciting part is that the fish hide around old scuba tanks, sunken scooters, compressor frames, etc., which adds to the fun.
Depth: 8 meters
Ideal For: Beginners
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8. Pilot Reef
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Pilot Reef is a huge and gorgeous dive site in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It is a long strip of underwater canyon with a rocky reef, that looks like a standing fortress from the sand bed. The divers can explore the many crevices and small caves inside the water and may be surprised by the hidden marine creatures there. Due to its depth, water currents, and topography, this place has a unique marine life – Leopard fish, white tip sharks, lobsters, soldier fish, orange-spine unicorn fish, giant and white-eyed moray eels, sweepers, trumpet fish, hard corals, and long nose butterfly fish.
Depth: 12 – 25 meters
Ideal For: Experts
9. Mac Point
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Mac Point is one of the top 10 scuba diving sites in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, as it offers an unforgettable diving experience of the underwater world. The majestic charm of its hard corals attracts all the divers. There is a dense ecosystem of corals and it is a rare place where divers can spot Dugongs, the capital animal of the Andaman Islands and sea cows, a Sirenian-tusked mammal.
Depth: 10–14 meters
Ideal For: Beginners
Suggested Read: Little Andaman Island
10. Johnny’s Gorge
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Johnny’s Gorge is named after a local dive master, Johnny. This place is full of life and activity around, surrounded by sand from everywhere. Its topography consists of low-lying rocky outcrops. Its sea bed is dotted by multicoloured and Gorgonian soft corals. Divers can spot a variety of marine life here – tuna, unicorn fish, batfish, barracuda Andaman sweetlips, mackerel, trevally, snapper, giant grouper, queen fish, sting ray, eagle ray, and more.
Depth: 30–40 meters
Ideal For: Advanced CMAS2 certified divers
Best Time To Visit
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The best time for scuba diving in Havelock Island is from November to April, when the weather is pleasant and the visibility underwater is at its best. The sea is also calm at this time and is perfect for beginners who want to explore the exotic underwater life.
Suggested Read: Scuba Diving In Andaman Islands
Price Of Scuba Diving
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The price of scuba diving in Havelock Island is ₹3500 for 1 dive and ₹6500 for 2 dives. This price includes the rental of the diving gear, boat fees, service tax, and snacks served on the boat. Tourists wishing to undergo scuba diving certification in Havelock Island will need to pay around, ₹25000 to 30,000.
The underwater world of Andaman is an incredible world waiting to be explored. Scuba diving in Havelock Island offers a great opportunity for adventure enthusiasts and tourists who wish to explore the marine life. Plan a trip to Havelock Islands with TripXL and explore the marine world of this gorgeous island.
Cover Photo: Kishlay singh / Wikimedia Commons
