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AUSTRALIAN DESTINATIONS

Diving in New South Wales

Explore 685 listed dive sites and find the local knowledge to help plan your visit.

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THE LOCAL PLANNING BRIEF

Build the trip around a coastal base

New South Wales offers a long sequence of coastal regions rather than one central dive gateway. Our directory separates Sydney areas, the north and mid-north coast, and the south coast so that you can compare a realistic local base. A Sydney stay and a Jervis Bay or Coffs Harbour trip need different transport and departure arrangements; do not treat a state-level search as a list of nearby sites.

Choose the setting, then the trip

There are 685 published site records across New South Wales. The recorded categories include reef (227), shore/rock platform (162), wreck (89), wall (70). These categories reflect the database; they are not a ranking, a conditions report or an assessment of your suitability.

Start with one of the regional pages below. State-wide totals are useful for browsing, but the actual choice should be made at the level of an operator, a site and a proposed itinerary.

Research operators in New South Wales →

Ask before booking

  1. Where does the trip meet, and is parking or a transfer needed?
  2. Which alternative itinerary might be offered?
  3. What local park or access information should we check?

Save the answers with the contact name and date. Separate confirmed arrangements from items still waiting for a reply.

Record your trip questions →

Sydney regions

Compare the harbour, northern beaches and southern Sydney records separately. Confirm the meeting point and actual entry or vessel arrangements.

North and mid-north coast

Start with a town and its operators, then ask which offshore or local trips are offered during your dates. Wildlife photographs do not guarantee an encounter.

South coast and islands

Compare Jervis Bay, Narooma and other regional bases by travel time and departure availability. Keep island travel arrangements distinct from mainland road-trip assumptions.

Questions, answered

How do I choose a dive in New South Wales?

Begin with the individual site and its source notes, then discuss the proposed trip with a local provider. The 685 published records are research options, not a list of trips available today. Match the plan to your training, recent experience and the operator’s current requirements.

When should I visit New South Wales for diving?

Choose dates with a provider who runs the activity you want, then discuss seasonal patterns, recent conditions and alternative itineraries. A generic best-month claim cannot establish the conditions at your exact site or guarantee a wildlife encounter.

Can I use these maps to enter or navigate a dive site?

No. Recorded and approximate map positions support orientation only. Confirm the exact access, permissions, meeting point and route with the responsible local provider or manager.

Regional planning context: Destination NSW — beaches and water activities ↗. Directory counts come from published YouDive records. Individual site claims remain subject to their source and review notes.

Prepare for this destination

Find your region

Ballina & Evans Head6 sitesBatemans Bay30 sitesBermagui & Tathra6 sitesCentral Coast44 sitesCoffs Harbour & Solitary Islands38 sitesEden & Green Cape21 sitesForster & Seal Rocks27 sitesJervis Bay47 sitesLord Howe Island49 sitesMerimbula9 sitesNambucca & Urunga4 sitesNarooma & Montague Island16 sitesNewcastle & Lake Macquarie35 sitesPort Macquarie & Camden Haven19 sitesPort Stephens22 sitesShoalhaven Coast10 sitesSouth West Rocks21 sitesSydney Harbour33 sitesSydney Northern Beaches52 sitesSydney South & Botany Bay113 sitesTweed & Byron Bay21 sitesUlladulla19 sitesWollongong & Kiama37 sitesYamba & Iluka6 sites

Dive sites to explore

Find local operators
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteReef

Sydney South & Botany Bay

Blue Devil Reef (Port Hacking)

Small curving wall and overhangs home to eastern blue devilfish, 1 km from the Port Hacking entrance.

BoatUp to 25 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteShore/Rock Platform

Bermagui & Tathra

Blue Pool (Bermagui)

Ocean rock pool snorkel known for nudibranchs and octopus.

ShoreUp to 2 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteFreshwater Lake/River

Wollongong & Kiama

Blue Pool (Carrington Falls)

Novel tannin-stained highland creek pool dive in Budderoo National Park with an adjoining campground.

ShoreUp to 4 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteReef

Central Coast

Bonito Reef

A narrow east-west ridge off Crackneck Point with excellent structure and a strong nudibranch reputation.

BoatUp to 25 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteReef

Port Macquarie & Camden Haven

Bonnie's Reef & Cathie Wall (Camden Haven)

A moderate-depth reef and wall complex with strong hard and soft coral cover, good nudibranch diversity and confident resident…

BoatUp to 20 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteIsland

Port Stephens

Boondelbah Island

A versatile island offering both a sheltered training bay (Safety Bay) and more demanding wall, swim-through and cave diving on…

BoatUp to 30 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteReef

Port Stephens

Broughton Island – Cod Rock

A reef with a distinctive volcanic lava tube swim-through, home to resident cod.

BoatUp to 18 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteWall

Port Stephens

Broughton Island – Looking Glass Wall

A 40 m boulder wall beside the Looking Glass, with caves holding the rare eastern blue devil fish and dense sponge growth.

BoatUp to 40 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteReef

Port Stephens

Broughton Island – North Rock

A kelp-and-sponge bommie site increasingly used for grey nurse shark encounters to spread pressure away from the main Shark…

BoatUp to 22 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteCave/Cavern

Port Stephens

Broughton Island – Spider Cave & Bubble Cave

Two adjoining caves — a documented grey nurse shark breeding site and a chamber with an internal air pocket and resident cod.

BoatUp to 14 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteIsland

Batemans Bay

Broulee Island

Island sanctuary zone with a seaward boulder reef to 20 m and sheltered seagrass snorkelling on the north side.

Shore or BoatUp to 20 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteCave/Cavern

Narooma & Montague Island

Bubble Cave (Montague Island)

An air-pocket cave on Montague's northern headland, with seals often joining the dive.

Boat (day trip)Up to 30 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteWall

Sydney South & Botany Bay

Bypass Reef (Cape Banks)

Sheer walls, boulder swim-throughs and cave after cave at 26–31 m, blanketed in gorgonians and sea squirts with 30 m visibility…

BoatUp to 33 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteShore/Rock Platform

Central Coast

Cabbage Tree Bay (Norah Head)

A sheltered, easy bay dive beside the Norah Head boat ramp — ideal for training and beginners.

ShoreUp to 9 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteIsland

Port Stephens

Cabbage Tree Island (Port Stephens)

A safer, more sheltered island wall dive close to Nelson Bay, popular for training and intermediate-level diving with a genuine…

BoatUp to 40 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteReef

Sydney South & Botany Bay

Cape Banks Bridge

A 15 m vertical wall rising to 10 m of pitted rock above a kelp reef and 28 m sand, found by chasing a hoax shark cave in 2000.

BoatUp to 28 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteShore/Rock Platform

Newcastle & Lake Macquarie

Catherine Hill Bay shore dives

A whole coastline of informal rock-platform entries — good for exploring and macro life, best with local guidance on the first…

ShoreUp to 9 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteJetty/Pier

Sydney Harbour

Chowder Bay Wharf (naval wharf and mooring chains)

Warship mooring chains, a naval wharf, two small wrecks and a Land Rover in 10–12 m – the structured outer half of Sydney's…

ShoreUp to 12 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteIsland

Tweed & Byron Bay

Cook Island – Northern Ledge

Turtle-rich aquatic reserve minutes from Tweed Heads/Coolangatta with multiple moorings so it can be dived in almost any swell;…

BoatUp to 22 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteWall

Central Coast

Corinne's Canyon (Norah Head)

A remote deep wall 6 km south of Norah Head with a distinctive boulder formation (The Seven Apostles) and two secondary…

BoatUp to 33 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteReef

Lord Howe Island

Deacon's Delight

Swim-throughs lined with purple soft coral, fusilier schools and Galapagos sharks.

Boat (day trip)Up to 22 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteWall

Sydney Northern Beaches

Dee Why Wide (Deep)

A true wall from 30 to 36 m with the richest sponge and gorgonian growth on the Northern Beaches and big pelagics on the edge.

BoatUp to 37 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteDrift

Newcastle & Lake Macquarie

Desoto Inlet Drift

A narrow, vertical-walled sandstone inlet with an old car wreck at its head, opening onto reef walls to 16 m.

Shore or BoatUp to 16 m
NSWYouDive mascot illustration; not a photograph of the siteReef

Forster & Seal Rocks

Diamond Reef (Forster)

A macro photography reef renowned locally for an exceptional range of nudibranch species — 38 varieties recorded.

BoatUp to 20 m