Dive Sites in Chile - Scuba Diving at its Best!

Diving Overview for Chile

Chile is a beautiful country with the magical Andes mountain range towering above one side and over 6,400km of pristine coastline on the other. These plankton-rich waters offer soft corals, sponges, colourful star fish, flower corals, crabs, playful sea-lions, ships and plenty of fish.

It is possible to dive all along the coast from Puerto Montt in the south to Arica in the north, the most popular region is from Arica to La Serena on the north coast where the waters are a little warmer and attract more colourful fish. You can dive directly off most of the beaches, with Caldera beach offering some of the best diving in the northern region.

Easter Island, 2,300 miles offshore, is a unique haven resting on an underwater volcanic ridge which supports over 100 species of tropical and pelagic fish and 144 species of algae. There are no coral reefs but several coral species do grow around the island, about 20 per cent of all marine flora and fauna is endemic to Easter Island. You can explore amazing lava tunnels and caverns and visit the awe-inspiring Maoi statutes.

Robinson Crusoe Island on the Juan Fernandez Archipelago sits outside of the cold Humboldt current in warm clear waters which attract a rich array of marine life including several endemic fish species.

Quinty, once an important whaling station and now a museum and scientific marine research centre on the central coast, has some nice dive sites with several accessible wrecks from the whaling days. Laguna Verde and Algarrobo are also popular diving areas along the central coast.

Chile is home to some of the best cold water diving in the world with visibility ranging from 10-20m and water temperatures from 11-14°C (air temperatures are generally a lot warmer). Easter Island waters average 20°C and conditions are generally calmer during winter.

Videos of Chile