Beauty awaits travelers heading to Tobago and for divers the country is truly paradise.
Tobago is home to nutrient-rich waters, which are fed year-round by the Guyana current. This creates a strong and vibrant coral system and brings more than 700 species of reef fish, which include barracudas, tarpons, turtles, nurse sharks and manta rays. The area is also home to the world’s largest-known brain coral--a sight to behold.
The seas that surround Tobago feature more than 50 well-established dive sites ready for visitors to explore. The sites offer depth and diversity to suit every level of diver from beginners to advanced.
Toboago's rich marine biodiversity comes to life in places such as London Bridge, which has a depth of 100 feet in places and is one of the most famous dive sites Charlotteville. Suitable for those at an advanced level, here divers can swim through the middle of the arch from which the site gets its name. It's home to large schools of tarpon, lobsters, turtles and porcupine fish and rewards visitors with a unique experience time and again.
(Courtesy of Tobago Tourism Agency) (Photo Credit: Tobago Dive Guide)
Like London Bridge, Cardinal Rocks is also one of Tobago's well-known northern dive sites. It's an ideal spot for beginners and is teeming with colorful fish. It is a spawning ground for many species. The reef slopes to a sand-covered sea bed where divers will find Southern stingrays, spiny lobsters, yellowhead sawfish, small snake eels and of course cardinal fish.
In the eastern part of Tobago, divers will want to head to Kelleston Drain. This location is great for intermediate divers and can be found off of the southern end of Little Tobago. Here divers will find magnificent brain coral and a reef covered with sea rods, sea plumes, stony coral and more. There can be a strong current and as divers ride it, they have the chance to spot mutton snappers, creole fish, black durgon, Caribbean butterflies and angel fish.
Also ideal for the intermediate diver is Black Jack Hole, which is named for the large blackjack fish population that comes to the area between May and July. Blackjacks aren't the only thing to spy here, however. Look under the reef's ledges and you may find spiny lobsters, green moray eels, large Nassau groupers, barracuda, tarpons, spotted eagle rays and blacktip sharks.
In the south of Tobago, there are even more dive sites, including the beginner-friendly Dutchman's Reef. The site, with a depth between 24 and 45 feet, is easily reachable from Mount Irvine Beach and divers can even see a piece of history as well as an abundance of sea life. Two cannons from a ship belonging to the Dutch East India Company reside on the seafloor now surrounded by spiny lobsters, nurse sharks, electric rays and more.
These are just a few of the many sites travelers can check out when they plan a dive trip to Tobago. Learn about all the best dive sites, dive shops and dive tips at Visit Tobago.
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