Flying Fish Cove (The Settlement)
42 site records refer to this town or area.
Look for operators around Flying Fish Cove (The Settlement) →External Territories
Christmas Island is the top of a volcanic seamount, so the fringing reef gives way to a wall within 20–50 m of the shore and keeps falling to 500 m. The diving is drift and wall diving in exceptional visibility, with sea caves such as Thundercliff, the endemic dragon moray, grey reef and silvertip sharks, spinner dolphins and, from November to January, whale sharks that arrive to feed on red crab spawn.

Custom YouDive mascot art inspired by External Territories. An imaginative illustration, not a photograph or map of this destination.
Your bearings, in a minute
Start with the local site mix, explore the map and find people to ask about your trip.
Directory counts describe published records, not bookable trips. Location confidence is shown separately in the map list. How we check information →
Prepared by YouDive editorial with AI assistance. No firsthand visit, equipment test or instructor review is implied.
Independent specialist review: pending. We publish a reviewer’s name, qualifications, date and exact review scope only after the review has actually happened.
Who can contribute and how reviews work →Find your bearings
Compare where the recorded sites sit, then open a site to read its access and source notes. Locations are for orientation, not marine navigation or entry instructions.
42 matching records · 42 with a map location · 0 without a usable position.
Wall · 5–30 m
Approximate area
Reef · 5–25 m
Approximate area
Cave/Cavern · 4–16 m
Approximate area
Wall · 5–40 m
Approximate area
Drift · 6–16 m
Approximate area
Cave/Cavern · 15–20 m
Recorded location
Cave/Cavern · 2–22 m
Recorded location
Shore/Rock Platform · 0–10 m
Approximate area
Wall · 10–22 m
Recorded location
Wreck · 5–18 m
Approximate area
Reef · 2–14 m
Approximate area
Shore/Rock Platform · 2–25 m
Approximate area
The local notebook
Use the actual places attached to the local records to narrow your research. These are recorded nearby towns and areas, not verified departure points or accommodation recommendations.
42 site records refer to this town or area.
Look for operators around Flying Fish Cove (The Settlement) →| Local example | Recorded nearby place | Recorded access | Follow the evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boat Cave | Flying Fish Cove (The Settlement) | Boat | Recorded source ↗ |
| Coconut Point | Flying Fish Cove (The Settlement) | Boat | Recorded source ↗ |
| The Sandpatch | Flying Fish Cove (The Settlement) | Shore | Recorded source ↗ |
| Lynnie's Bommie | Flying Fish Cove (The Settlement) | Boat | Recorded source ↗ |
Choose the named outing that interests you first. Compare its recorded place and access with your accommodation plans, then obtain the actual meeting address and schedule from the provider. The site links show the underlying depth, location confidence and source notes. Similar town names or map positions do not establish that two outings can be combined in a day.
A closer look at Christmas Island
Our Christmas Island directory currently includes 42 published site records. The largest recorded category is reef (13 records). Use the mix below to decide what you would like to read about first.

A visual guide to recorded site types. Counts show coverage, not popularity or current availability.
Source: published YouDive directory records for Christmas Island. Bars use the same scale within this graphic; the longest is the largest category, not 100% of the destination.
Start with Boat Cave, Coconut Point, The Sandpatch. These are examples from different recorded categories, not a recommended route or a list of the best sites. Open each record for its sources, map and review notes.
| Site | Recorded type | Access | Depth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boat Cave | Cave/Cavern | Boat | 4–16 m |
| Coconut Point | Drift | Boat | 6–16 m |
| The Sandpatch | Muck/Sand | Shore | 3–18 m |
| Lynnie's Bommie Details need confirmation | Pinnacle/Bommie | Boat | 8–25 m |
A dot shows a recorded maximum. A line joins the recorded minimum and maximum when both are available. These are site descriptions, not target depths or certification limits.
The table above contains the same depth values. Depth alone cannot establish suitability, and records may require correction. Source: the linked site records.
The external-territory collection groups separate island destinations for browsing. Choose the actual island first, then research its transport, accommodation and diving as one connected itinerary.
A listing under External Territories does not describe a single travel region. Keep each island’s itinerary separate and confirm the current transport options with the relevant suppliers. Ask the dive provider which arrival dates and local transfers fit the proposed activity. Decide what needs booking together and what is a separate purchase before comparing package prices.
Describe the equipment, training and services you need for the intended outing. Ask what is available locally and what must be arranged in advance. Use the actual airline or transport provider’s baggage information for your route. Do not assume that a service available on one island is also available on another simply because both appear in this directory collection.
Write down who to contact if transport or diving changes, and read the relevant booking terms before paying. Consider how an altered arrival affects accommodation, hire reservations and the first planned activity. Keep medical, travel and insurance questions with the appropriate professionals and suppliers. A tidy list of confirmed arrangements is more useful than an ambitious list of unconfirmed dives.
Which exact island and arrival route are we planning?
Keep separate destinations as separate itineraries.
What can be reserved locally?
Confirm specific items and services.
What happens to dependent bookings?
Save contacts and written terms.
From “that looks lovely” to a plan
Find your starting point, meet the local options and keep your ideas together. You do not need to have the whole trip worked out yet.
Find out how a first course works, compare your options and get comfortable asking questions.
Connect your next outing with useful reading and a conversation about the right training and support.
Explore the professional pathway and prepare better questions for a training centre.
These are learning paths to explore, not prerequisites for every local site. Confirm the actual course, instructor and your readiness with the provider.
These profiles are based in the region or have a sourced link to one of its sites. Shown alphabetically, not as a quality ranking. Ask about the specific trip or course you want.
Listed in this region
Christmas Island
Open the profile for contact details and recorded services, then ask about current arrangements.
Meet this operator →Listed in this region
Flying Fish Cove
The main dive operation on Christmas Island, servicing the island's wall and drop-off diving.
Meet this operator →Listed in this region
Christmas Island
Open the profile for contact details and recorded services, then ask about current arrangements.
Meet this operator →Start with the place and your questions. Add dates and prices once you have spoken with the people running the trip.
Creates a new trip with this destination, useful reading and starter questions. Saved on this browser; export a backup from My trips.
THE LOCAL PLANNING BRIEF
Build a Christmas Island trip around confirmed transport, accommodation and a local operator’s current programme. Ask about equipment availability and baggage arrangements before deciding how much personal kit to carry. Treat the regional map as an orientation tool and discuss actual departures with the provider. An island stay benefits from a clear plan for delayed connections and activities that do not depend on a particular dive taking place.
One useful question: Which bookings depend on the arrival connection, and what are the agreed alternatives if it changes?
There are 42 published site records in Christmas Island. The recorded categories include reef (13), wall (9), cave/cavern (8), shore/rock platform (5). These categories reflect the database; they are not a ranking, a conditions report or an assessment of your suitability.
Use the Christmas Island site cards to compare recorded access and depth, then open the individual pages for the map accuracy and source notes. Sites grouped in a region are not necessarily close enough to combine in one day.
Research operators in External Territories →Save the answers with the contact name and date. Separate confirmed arrangements from items still waiting for a reply.
Record your trip questions →Begin with the individual site and its source notes, then discuss the proposed trip with a local provider. The 42 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.
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.
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: Parks Australia — Australian Marine Parks ↗. Directory counts come from published YouDive records. Individual site claims remain subject to their source and review notes.
Search within Christmas Island, or narrow the list to a recorded dive type. Open a site for its map, sources and access notes.
42 matching site records. Listings do not confirm current access or availability.
DriftChristmas Island
The island's classic drift: swirling currents, eel gardens, gorgonians and a chance of hammerheads, ten minutes from the jetty.
WreckChristmas Island
WWII history in 5–18 m: the broken-up Norwegian freighter Eidsvold, torpedoed in Flying Fish Cove in 1942, now overgrown with…
Shore/Rock PlatformChristmas Island
Arguably Australia's best shore dive: a pristine coral slope and wall 50 m from the car park, endemic and hybrid reef fish, and…
Pinnacle/BommieChristmas Island
A solitary coral bommie rising from sand, with a dense garden eel colony and outstanding photography on the summit.
WallChristmas Island
A true vertical wall into the abyss at the island's north-western tip, with colourful fans, schooling fish and a real chance of…
WallChristmas Island
Coral slope, sheer wall and a quarry-like ramp, with schooling grey reef sharks and some of the island's closest whale shark…
ReefChristmas Island
A macro-rich slope with giant Acropora and feather stars, ribbon eels and Spanish dancers – the island's favourite boat night…
Cave/CavernChristmas Island
Swim into the cliff and surface inside air-filled chambers decorated with stalactites – reef, wall and cave in one dive.
ReefChristmas Island
Shallow coral reef with anemone fields off a remote rainforest beach, where whale sharks and dolphins are regular visitors.
Cave/CavernChristmas Island
A huge, bright sea cavern with twin entrances and a pillar, its roof and walls a riot of colour.
WallChristmas Island
A sheer, effectively bottomless wall reached from the beach, with trevally, reef sharks and seasonal whale sharks.
Cave/CavernChristmas Island
A sea cave big enough to park the boat in, with a floor carpeted in plate corals and colourful whips on the walls.
WallChristmas Island
A vertical north-coast wall with exceptionally large gorgonian fans below 33 m.
Cave/CavernChristmas Island
A sea cave that connects to one of the island's best-known land caves, with an anchialine pool and swiftlet colony above.
WallChristmas Island
Rated one of the island's best shark dives, with open-ocean pelagics and 40 m+ visibility at the south-west corner of the west…
ReefChristmas Island
A colourful sloping reef off one of Australia's best beaches – the island's wet-season shore dive and a red crab spawning site.
ReefChristmas Island
Healthy coral reef beneath the Navy refuelling buoys, with a surreal straight trench carved by the giant mooring chain.
DriftChristmas Island
An easy one-way drift from drop-off into a lush coral garden, often linked with Submarine Rock.
Cave/CavernChristmas Island
Entrance zone of one of Christmas Island's largest submarine cave systems, with overhangs, gullies and light shafts.
WallChristmas Island
Typical north-coast reef and wall with dense fish life, next to the Lost Lake caves.
ReefChristmas Island
Sandy reef ledges with sleeping reef sharks and dense schools – the gentler companion dive to Perpendicular Wall.
ReefChristmas Island
Towering gorgonian fans on dramatic west-coast reef structures – a wide-angle photographer's site.
ReefChristmas Island
Scenic ledges, boulders and a drop-off on the east coast – a wet-season refuge when the north coast is blown out.
WallChristmas Island
A submarine-shaped reef and 50 m drop-off with healthy boulder corals and passing mantas, eagle rays and grey reef sharks.