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
WallTasmania East Coast
Magic Garden (Bicheno)
A full-height granite wall with an undercut cave system and tunnels lined with delicate invertebrates.
Shore/Rock PlatformTasmania North & North-West
Mersey Bluff (Devonport)
Devonport's easy shore dive below the Mersey Bluff lighthouse - ideal before or after the Spirit of Tasmania.
Pinnacle/BommieTasmania East Coast
Mount Everest (Bicheno)
A mound rising from 40 m to 5 m - a whole vertical profile in one dive and a colourful safety stop after The Castle.
ReefTasmania East Coast
Muirs Rock
A ring of granite boulders with an amphitheatre and swim-throughs lined with zoanthids - the best mid-depth dive at Bicheno.
Kelp ForestTasman Peninsula
Munro Bight
Giant kelp and walls beneath Australia's tallest sea cliffs, with seals – often paired with the Nord.
WreckKing Island
Netherby
The shallow remains of an 1866 emigrant ship from which all 450-plus aboard survived.
Kelp ForestTasman Peninsula
O'Hara Bluff Kelp Forest
One of the remnant giant kelp areas on the Tasman Peninsula and a focus of kelp restoration; seals often play in the canopy.
ReefTasmania East Coast
Paradise Reef
A two-sided sponge and sea-whip reef that gives deep-site colour at more moderate depths.
Cave/CavernTasman Peninsula
Patersons Arch
Big daylight swim-through arches lined with anemones – cave scenery without the commitment.
Shore/Rock PlatformTasmania North & North-West
Pebbly Beach (Rocky Cape)
An attractive day-or-night shore dive with spires covered in nudibranchs and basket stars.
IslandBruny Island & D'Entrecasteaux Channel
Penguin Island (Adventure Bay)
Steep reef and shallow sea caves under Fluted Cape, a short hop from the Adventure Bay ramp.
ReefTasman Peninsula
Point Puer
Sheltered kelp slope and small caves off the convict boys' prison, opposite the Isle of the Dead.
Shore/Rock PlatformTasmania North & North-West
Rocky Cape
An easy, sheltered course site with a fish-packed rock and superb night diving.
WreckHobart & Derwent
SS Lintrose
Twin propellers and engine of a Scottish-built river steamer lying in 2-5 m beside the Iron Pot.
WreckTasmania North & North-West
SS Southern Cross (Boat Rock)
Stern and propeller of an 1863 Clyde-built steamer lost in bushfire smoke in 1889.
WreckTasman Peninsula
SS Tasman
Rarely seen 1883 steamer at 70 m beneath the Hippolyte Needle – a serious technical expedition target.
Muck/SandHobart & Derwent
Sandy Bay & Battery Point (Handfish)
A guided search for the critically endangered spotted handfish, a walking fish found almost nowhere else, in Hobart's own…
ReefTasmania North & North-West
Sea Pen Point (Rocky Cape)
Sea pens in 10-16 m - unusually shallow - on a colourful, tide-fed reef.
Kelp ForestTasman Peninsula
Sloping Island Kelp Forest
One of the few giant kelp forests within reach of Hobart, with seahorses in easy depths.
Shore/Rock PlatformTasmania North & North-West
Stanley – The Nut / Godfreys Beach
A sheltered westerly-weather shore dive beneath The Nut, with seadragons, prowfish and giant sponges.
WreckFlinders Island & Furneaux Group
Sydney Cove (Preservation Island)
One of Australia's oldest shipwrecks (1797), whose survivors' ordeal opened Bass Strait to sealing.
Shore/Rock PlatformHobart & Derwent
Taroona Marine Reserve (Crayfish Point)
Lobster-rich research-area reef 15 minutes from Hobart, with kelp beds and easy beach access.
IslandTasman Peninsula
Tasman Island
Remote island wall under the Tasman Island lighthouse with deep-water sponges, seals and clean Southern Ocean water.
ReefTasmania North & North-West
The Boomer (Mary Ann Bay)
A quick, easy dive on a rocky dome right off the Mary Ann Bay ramp.