Victoria
Diving in Melbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Melbourne's bayside suburbs, from Williamstown around to Frankston, have shallow, easy shore dives: Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary, Black Rock, Half Moon Bay and the Cerberus wreck, Frankston pier, and the artificial reefs and scuttled boats off St Kilda and Mordialloc. Visibility is modest but the life, especially at night, is good.
Dive sites in this region
Shore/Rock PlatformMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Green Point, Brighton
Easy reef dive beside Brighton Beach station with simple navigation; a good beginner and night site minutes from the bathing…
WreckMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
J7 Submarine (Sandringham)
The last J-class submarine in commission, scuttled as a marina breakwater in 1930 and visible from the Sandringham foreshore – a…
Shore/Rock PlatformMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Jawbone Marine Sanctuary
Urban sanctuary with lava-flow boulders, seagrass, saltmarsh and small kelp in one shallow dive; the western suburbs' best…
Jetty/PierMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Kerferd Road Pier
Twenty minutes from the CBD; a rebuilt, well-lit pier with reliable critter life on the piles for easy night and training dives.
Jetty/PierMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Lagoon Pier
Closest pier dive to the Melbourne CBD; an easy, very shallow snorkel or check-out dive with a lit pier for night dives.
Shore/Rock PlatformMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Middle Brighton Baths
Melbourne's most sheltered training dive beside a heritage sea-baths building; ramp entry and full facilities.
Shore/Rock PlatformMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Point Cooke Beach
The western shore's only sanctuary reef: basalt lava ledges and seagrass with basking fiddler rays and small sharks inside Point…
Shore/Rock PlatformMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Point Gellibrand
Basalt lava ledges at the tip of Williamstown with excellent nudibranch macro; free parking and a heritage-park setting.
Shore/Rock PlatformMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Point Ormond Reef
Natural reef and breakwater ten minutes from the CBD; simple navigation and a sandy entry make it a handy snorkel or quick night…
WreckMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
SS Kakariki
Salvaged remains of a 1926 steamer lost in the port of Melbourne's worst collision (1937, five dead), dumped off Williamstown in…
Shore/Rock PlatformMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Sandringham Pier Breakwater
Breakwater built partly from old ship hulks, with the J7 submarine wreck 150 m away; sheltered, fishy and good at night.
Jetty/PierMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Seaford Pier
Easy, very shallow seagrass pier dive beside Seaford station; garfish schools in the weed and simple night diving.
Shore/Rock PlatformMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
South Road Reefs and Bommie
Natural reef, bommie and the piles of a vanished 1900s sea baths in one shallow shore dive; good for navigation practice and…
Jetty/PierMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
St Kilda Pier
Extensive seagrass nursery beside a landmark pier reachable by tram; good macro and night diving close to the city.
Artificial ReefMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Tedesco Reef, Seaford
Concrete-module fishing reef off Seaford named for a local diver; a flat, easy, fishy 11 m small-boat dive.
Shore/Rock PlatformMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
The Jawbone, Williamstown
Basalt boulder reef inside an urban marine sanctuary where abalone and sharks are returning; sheltered but requires a long carry.
Artificial ReefMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Tyre Reef
Victoria's surviving 1973 tyre reef, now a fish-packed overgrown mound in 10 m off Chelsea; a quick and fishy small-boat dive.
Shore/Rock PlatformMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Williamstown Beach Rotunda
Easy beach entry near the city with small reefs in 5-6 m full of seahorses, blue-ringed octopus and bobtail squid; good night…
ReefMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Black Rock Shoal
Isolated offshore shoal off Black Rock with larger fish than the shore reefs; a quiet small-boat dive on calm days.
Details need confirmationReefMelbourne & Port Phillip Bay
Seaholme Reef, Altona
Boulder reef close to shore near Altona giving western-suburbs divers natural structure instead of pylons.
Details need confirmation