AUSTRALIAN DESTINATIONS
Diving in Tasmania
Explore 238 listed dive sites and find the local knowledge to help plan your visit.
THE LOCAL PLANNING BRIEF
Give the local base and equipment plan equal attention
Tasmania’s directory separates the Tasman Peninsula, east coast, Hobart and other coastal or island regions. Choose a practical base before trying to connect many sites in a short visit. Ask a local provider about the exact experience, exposure protection and equipment support you will need rather than transferring assumptions from a tropical holiday.
Choose the setting, then the trip Counts describe published records, not bookable trips or confirmed open sites.
There are 238 published site records across Tasmania. The recorded categories include reef (64), shore/rock platform (48), wreck (38), island (27). 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 Tasmania →Ask before booking
- Which equipment sizes and models can be reserved?
- What local conditions should we discuss before choosing a trip?
- How much flexibility is needed around regional transport?
Save the answers with the contact name and date. Separate confirmed arrangements from items still waiting for a reply.
Record your trip questions →Hobart and the south-east
Compare departure points and the time needed to reach them from your accommodation. Ask which trips match your training and recent experience.
East coast and regional bases
Check the availability of hire equipment and local services for your dates. A site record is not a promise of a daily guided departure.
Islands and specialist records
Transport and access questions come first. Keep freshwater and cave-related listings separate from ordinary coastal dive planning.
Questions, answered
How do I choose a dive in Tasmania?
Begin with the individual site and its source notes, then discuss the proposed trip with a local provider. The 238 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 Tasmania 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: Tourism Tasmania — official travel planning ↗. 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 PlatformHobart & Derwent
Blackmans Bay
Two easy shore dives in one suburban bay – crevice-rich reef at the blowhole and a giant kelp patch at the south point.
Cave/CavernTasman Peninsula
Cathedral Cave
Australia's largest sea-cave system with named passages (Catacombs, Revelation Bend, Skull Cave, Devil's Tonsils); walls covered…
WallTasman Peninsula
Deep Glen Bay North Wall
Colourful sponge and sea-whip wall that is the fallback when the Sisters are blown out, with seals and seadragons.
Shore/Rock PlatformTasmania East Coast
Fish Rock (Bicheno)
A split granite spire a short swim from the breakwater, with seahorses and seadragons in the surrounding weed and excellent night…
Kelp ForestTasman Peninsula
Fortescue Bay
Easy shore access to one of the last giant kelp forests on the Tasman Peninsula, with camping on the beach.
Pinnacle/BommieTasmania East Coast
Golden Bommies
Twin 10 m bommies smothered in yellow zoanthids and sea whips rising from sand at 39 m; huge schools of butterfly perch and…
IslandTasman Peninsula
Hippolyte Rocks
Remote seal-colony islets with bull kelp shallows, sponge reefs from 30 m and huge fish schools.
Shore/Rock PlatformHuon & Far South
Ninepin Point Marine Reserve
Tannin-darkened Huon water brings deep-water sea whips, sponges and bryozoans into 5-10 m – a rare 'pseudo-deep' reef in a…
ReefTasmania North & North-West
North West Rocky Cape
Gutters and small boulders on a reef rising from 20 m to 10 m.
WreckHobart & Derwent
Otago Hulk (Otago Bay)
Remains of the only ship Joseph Conrad ever commanded, visible in the shallows of the Derwent.
Pinnacle/BommieTasmania North & North-West
Rocky Cape Outer Reef
Rated 9/10: a twin-peaked outcrop stepping to 25 m with current-fed gorgonians and sea pens in often 25 m visibility.
WreckHobart & Derwent
SS Lake Illawarra
Tasmania's largest shipwreck lying beneath the Tasman Bridge span it brought down in 1975 – a dark, historically weighty expert…
WreckTasman Peninsula
SS Nord
Intact 88 m steamer upright at 42 m, cloaked in colour and fish; rated among Australia's best wreck dives.
Pinnacle/BommieTasmania North & North-West
Simmos Reef (Shag Rock)
A figure-6 bommie from 25 m to 4 m with sea pens, dumpling squid and 25 m visibility.
IslandTasmania North & North-West
Sisters Island (North East Bommie)
An easy bommie circumnavigation in gutters of kelp, gorgonians and nudibranchs, often in 20 m visibility.
Pinnacle/BommieTasman Peninsula
Sisters Rocks
Vertical walls that bloom with sponges, sea whips and anemones below 30 m; regarded as one of Australia's best temperate wall…
WallTasmania East Coast
The Canyon (Bicheno)
A 20 m-wide canyon with a 15 m sponge-covered wall, boulder swim-throughs and the local masked garden gnome.
Cave/CavernTasmania East Coast
The Castle (Bicheno)
A 30 m tunnel between two granite boulders at 25 m, packed with crayfish and lined with sea whips and zoanthids.
WallTasmania East Coast
The Hairy Wall
A long granite drop-off bristling with sea whips, often with the clearest water in the reserve.
Shore/Rock PlatformHobart & Derwent
Tinderbox Marine Reserve
Tasmania's most accessible marine reserve: a no-take shore dive 30 minutes from Hobart with seahorses, seadragons and rebounding…
WallTasman Peninsula
Waterfall Bay Wall
Colour-drenched dolerite walls and canyons in the most sheltered bay on the peninsula; suits every level from new Open Water…
Shore/Rock PlatformTasmania East Coast
Waubs Bay
Bicheno's easiest shore dive: rays on the sand edge, big seahorses in the kelp and a split bommie at 15 m.
WreckTasman Peninsula
William Pitt Wreck (Canoe Bay)
Shallow scuttled 1904 dredge breaking the surface in a sheltered bay – a classic snorkel wreck.
ReefTasmania East Coast
27B (Bicheno)
A moderate-depth wall with an overhang and a large cave, close to the ramp.