With a luxury charter vacation, you can experience some of the top dive sites in the Caribbean. Let the warm crystal clear water invite you in to see what lies beneath. Enjoy finding unusual marine life and diverse underwater attractions when you charter a luxury vessel.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re a professional or amateur diver, explore fascinating shipwrecks and stunning coral reefs diving from a luxury yacht. To get you buzzing, here are ten dive hot spots to visit as part of your Caribbean yacht charter vacation.
- Tiger Beach in the Bahamas
There’s no better place to see stunning marine life than here at Tiger Beach in the Bahamas. For an exciting adventure while on a luxury charter yacht, if you’re brave enough, get up close t
o tiger and lemon sharks. The soft white sandy beaches provide a perfect escape to unwind after an adventurous day under water.
You can go to Tiger Beach any time of the year, however October and January are the months tiger sharks breed. This will give you the opportunity to see more of them when you go diving. It’s a very popular diving site with its clear waters, reefs and diverse marine life.
- Salt Island, British Virgin Islands
This is the site of the infamous shipwreck RMS Rhone in the BVIs which sank due to a hurricane in 1867 It’s a great dive site and popular with holidaymakers who charter superyachts. The movie, “The Deep” featured this old Royal Mail Steamer which is now home to coral and exotic marine life. Salt Island
Salt Island gives divers, whether professional or amateur, the opportunity to explore the area at their leisure. Why not try this interesting dive site yourself?
- St George’s, Grenada
Here at St George’s in Grenada lies the ancient shipwreck of the Bianca C. This 600ft cruise liner was once a very popular ship with holidaymakers. Watch this awesome shipwreck come into view beneath the waves, what an experience for diving enthusiasts. Make St George’s in Grenada a must-see dive site as part of your charter itinerary.
One of the most spectacular sights to see here are the incredible underwater sculptures by Jason DeCaires Taylor. Book a tour and you may even encounter lobsters and manta rays too.
- Mary’s Place, Honduras
Mary’s Place is one of the Caribbean’s best diving spots. Get your luxury yacht charter captain to navigate the waters from Utila to Guanaja to visit this fabulous location. Here you’ll find plenty of tropical fish and a diver’s dream, a drop off wall. Add Mary’s Place to your bucket list for the ultimate diving experience during your charter yacht vacation.
This well-known dive site is on the south side of Honduras near French Harbour. With many ancient volcanic vertical crevices, fissures and narrow cracks, you can dive in depths of 36m (120ft). See if you can spot feather-like bushy black coral, blue vase sponges, gorgonians and large bearded fire worms on your dive along with spotted drum fish.
- Eye of the Needle, Saba
The Eye of the Needle is a structure found off the Third Encounter seamount in Saba. It’s approximately 180 feet tall and has a diameter of 25 feet so it’s quite easy to navigate around it. The tower is covered in lovely coral and is a great place to see schools of unusual fish. Have your underwater camera ready. If you’re lucky, you may even see a nurse shark or two.
Keep your eyes open for other interesting marine life like humpback whales, orcas, yellowtail snappers and manta rays. From your superyacht charter vessel, explore this pinnacle with its encrusted barrel sponges and stunning corals.
- Antigua, Pillars of Hercules
Antigua is well known for its historic mainland and beautiful, secluded beaches. Did you know it also has some amazing diving spots like the Pillars of Hercules? The Pillars of Hercules dive spot can be reached from English Harbour. It is a fantastic intro to diving or as a refresher course. There’s lots to explore around the Pillars of Hercules and colourful, tropical fish to see.
Having a huge diversity of underwater life here you will come across massive sponges, coral reefs, lobsters, barracuda, moray eels and maybe even dolphins.
- The Prince Albert Wreck, Honduras
This particular wreck can be found close to an abandoned fuselage of a DC-3 aircraft. Experienced divers are best suited to explore the Prince Albert Wreck, it’s quite a challenge. PADI divers are allowed to swim inside this 165ft freighter to get up close and personal to the wreck. Check out the splendid coral reefs which have attached themselves to the bedrooms and corridors of this ancient wreck, what an eerie sight!
The Prince Albert was a cargo ship, 50m long and sank in 1985 in Honduras. Amateur divers can take a tour of the hull, around the bridge and on the main deck. You might spot stingrays, squid and eagle rays.
8. The Lesleen M, St Lucia
There is an interesting story about the Lesleen M in St Lucia. The ship was sunk on purpose to create an artificial reef north of the famous Pitons in 1985. With lots of marine life in these clear waters and good visible access, it’s a diver’s dream. This is a fantastic place for new divers to start off in before setting out onto more adventurous underwater dives.
You can explore the Lesleen M in its entirety as it lies in an upright position. There are swim-through channels along walkways and a ladder which leads to the cabin decks. Keep your underwater camera handy to take photographs of the interesting marine life, the magic fire coral and amazing sea anemones.
9. The Indians, British Virgin Islands
For a more relaxing dive take a short cruise from Little Harbour to The Indians dive site. There’s a naturally lit cave here that provides a fabulous place to start off. The Indians were named after an Indian Headdress which they looked like with four rocks protruding making it easy for divers to follow. The waters are shallow so it’s ideal for young or older divers to enjoy a dive as part of their luxury yacht charter holiday.
Expect a kaleidoscope of colour when you dive here. The Indians are just north of Norman Island so plan your itinerary to include a visit to these amazing rocky pinnacles that are half submerged.
10. The Great Blue Hole, Belize
If it’s sheer excitement you’re looking for, then the Great Blue Hole dive site in Belize won’t disappoint. This popular dive site is about 60 miles from Belize itself. The Blue Hole drops down to an awesome 125 metres where angel fish and parrot fish swim. There are a few nurse sharks here too but don’t worry it’s quite safe for divers.
This circular sink hole is located in the centre of Lighthouse Reef, an atoll that has shallow waters. It was originally a limestone cave when the sea levels were lower but as the ocean rose the cave flooded and collapsed which in turn created a vertical cave.
