AUSTRALIAN DESTINATIONS
Diving in New South Wales
Explore 685 listed dive sites and find the local knowledge to help plan your visit.
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 Counts describe published records, not bookable trips or confirmed open sites.
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
- Where does the trip meet, and is parking or a transfer needed?
- Which alternative itinerary might be offered?
- 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.
Find your region
Dive sites to explore
Shore/Rock PlatformPort Macquarie & Camden Haven
Port Macquarie – Flynns Beach & Shelly Beach shore/snorkel
Two popular Port Macquarie surf beaches with rocky points suitable for calm-day snorkelling rather than serious diving.
Details need confirmationShore/Rock PlatformPort Macquarie & Camden Haven
Port Macquarie – Lighthouse Beach reef
A rock platform fringing a long ocean beach near Tacking Point Lighthouse, suitable for calm-day snorkelling.
Details need confirmationReefPort Macquarie & Camden Haven
Port Macquarie – Tacking Point / Nobbys reefs
An easy, accessible reef off a historic lighthouse point, diveable from the beach on calm days or by a short boat trip.
Details need confirmationReefLord Howe Island
Pot Holes
Pocket-guide snorkel site listed for bluefish and coral.
Details need confirmationShore/Rock PlatformUlladulla
Pretty Beach (Murramarang)
Easy, sheltered beach dive and night dive in Murramarang National Park.
Details need confirmationShore/Rock PlatformEden & Green Cape
Quarantine Bay
Sheltered bay with resident stingrays and seals, next to Eden's main boat ramp.
Details need confirmationReefSydney Northern Beaches
Ray Alley (North Head)
Resident two-metre bull rays in a sandy alley between kelp boulders at 10–20 m – the gentlest big-animal dive at North Head.
Details need confirmationWallLord Howe Island
Roach Wall
Steep coral wall on the Admiralty Islets with Galapagos sharks, fusiliers and rare angelfish in 30 m visibility.
Details need confirmationWreckLord Howe Island
Runic wreck (Middleton Reef)
The fire-blackened hulk of a 13,500-ton ship, landmark of Middleton Reef since 1961.
Details need confirmationReefSydney Northern Beaches
Runway 36 (North Head)
A flat reef 'landing strip' along the outer North Head cliffs, with sponge gardens and gorgonians at the 25 m sand line and…
Details need confirmationWreckNewcastle & Lake Macquarie
SS Byron wreck (Redhead)
An undived-since-1996 timber wreck in 40 m off Redhead - an exploration target for technical divers.
Details need confirmationWreckShoalhaven Coast
SS Corangamite
The last traces – ballast blocks and scattered remains – of a large 1886 passenger steamer wrecked in fog.
Details need confirmationWreckCentral Coast
SS Paterson wreck (Cabbage Tree Bay area)
An easily accessible 1951 wooden-steamer wreck close to the Norah Head boat ramp, in a shallow 8-10 m.
Details need confirmationWreckShoalhaven Coast
SS Plutus
Beach-accessible remains of an 1882 iron collier, a shallow historic snorkel.
Details need confirmationWreckCentral Coast
SS Speedwell wreck
An 1884 shipwreck scattered across shallow Bull Reef between Bird Island and Norah Head.
Details need confirmationWreckCentral Coast
SS Yambacoomba wreck
Scattered remains of a 1917 wooden steamer lost off The Skillion, dived in combination with Boat Trailer Reef close to Terrigal…
Details need confirmationReefCentral Coast
San Francisco Reef (Avoca)
A deep sponge-garden reef off Avoca with noticeably more fish and fixed growth than the inshore reefs.
Details need confirmationShore/Rock PlatformWollongong & Kiama
Sandon Point
Shallow ledges packed with resting wobbegong sharks, accessible from the beach.
Details need confirmationReefCoffs Harbour & Solitary Islands
Sawtell Reef
A local headland reef south of Coffs Harbour, dived occasionally on the rare calm day.
Details need confirmationReefNambucca & Urunga
Scotts Head reefs
An uncrowded headland reef at the transition between subtropical and cooler temperate influences, with gutters and kelp on the…
Details need confirmationReefEden & Green Cape
Seahorse Shoals
Exposed deep reef with sea whips, gorgonians and pelagics off southern Twofold Bay.
Details need confirmationReefForster & Seal Rocks
Seal Rocks – Little Rock
A minor named formation within the broader Seal Rocks reef system, offering variety alongside the main island dives.
Details need confirmationReefForster & Seal Rocks
Seal Rocks – Sawtooth Rocks
A jagged rock formation within the broader Seal Rocks reef system, offering variations on the main island's shark and reef diving.
Details need confirmationReefForster & Seal Rocks
Seal Rocks – Western Gutter
A named gutter section within the Seal Rocks cave and grotto complex, closely associated with the Grotto, Labyrinth and…
Details need confirmation