The Myth of the Best Scuba Diving in the World

Last Updated on April 30, 2025 by Candice Landau

How can anyone genuinely claim to know where the best diving in the world is? The answer is they can’t, at least not objectively. These articles and the rankings within them are often based less on experience and more on SEO, advertising, or press perks. And in most cases, they’re filtered through an alarmingly narrow lens.

Most “best of” articles in the scuba world are deeply biased. Sometimes it’s because a tourism board or resort paid for a press trip. Other times, it’s because a publication is trying to rank for a high-volume keyword. Or maybe the writer has only been to a handful of places and is drawing conclusions from a limited sample size. I’ve written these kinds of stories myself (best wrecks of the BVI for example) and even then, I was aware of their limitations, well-intentioned as I might have been.

The author on a dive trip in the Red Sea. Photo by Kristin Paterakis.

Here’s the thing: if you ask me where the best diving in Baja is, all I can honestly say is Loreto. But that’s because it’s the only place in Baja I’ve dived. I can’t tell you whether La Paz or Cabo Pulmo blows it out of the water because I haven’t been. And yet, I’ve seen writers do exactly that—make sweeping judgments based on narrow slices of experience (or lack thereof).

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The problem runs deeper still. Many regions don’t get coverage simply because they’re not convenient. There are fewer PR budgets promoting them, fewer dive shops marketing to North American tourists, and fewer western publications bothering to dig deeper. Africa, South America, even much of Asia outside the “usual suspects”—these regions are wildly underrepresented. Mozambique, Madagascar, Zanzibar, Guyana, Oman—who’s to say some of the world’s most untouched, thriving reefs aren’t hidden here?

And what about data? Try finding hard numbers on fish biomass, coral health, or diver satisfaction across regions. You’ll quickly realize that we’re working in a vacuum. The dive industry is notoriously lacking in transparent, global statistics. Agencies and training organizations are biased toward reporting on their own dive shops and clients too. What we do have is anecdote. Sometimes, powerful anecdote but anecdote all the same.

An anemone and it’s wee anemonefish in the Maldives. Photo by Candice Landau

If you want to talk about the best diving in the world, all you can really do is this: Offer up the best diving you’ve personally experienced and qualify your sources for anything you haven’t.

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Here’s my list. It’s personal but incomplete:

Palau (been there: mind-blowing coral, sharks, WWII wrecks)
Raja Ampat (not been, but universally raved about, with incredible biodiversity data and photo reportage to back it up)
Chuuk Lagoon (been there: unmatched wreck diving)
Galápagos (been there: raw, current-ripped, wild, more sharks than I’ve ever seen in my life)
British Columbia (not yet, but top of my cold-water list based on countless divers’ praise)
Egypt’s Red Sea (been there: historic wrecks, stunning visibility, healthy reefs with abundant life)
Maldives (been there: mantas, great reefs and healthy coral)

Other places didn’t make the cut—not because I had a bad time—but because I didn’t see the kind of marine life or reef quality that, to me, defines the best.

Of course you have to take into account the fact that my standard of “good” is shaped by when I learned to dive—2016, a time when reefs were already under serious stress. Ask someone who learned in 2000 or 1990, and they’ll describe oceans that were more alive, more colorful, and far less crowded. Baselines shift.

A diver exits the Fujikawa Maru wreck in Chuuk Lagoon. Photo by Candice Landau

I still remember telling a friend I was headed to Cozumel. She was unimpressed. She said, “It was great 20 years ago but today it’s been ruined by cruise ships.” Of course, I hadn’t seen it 20 years ago (I was finishing high school) so I still enjoyed it.

Even so, places I rave about today might not make the list in ten years. Climate change, coral bleaching, overfishing, and unsustainable tourism are changing the seascape rapidly. Some sites are already shadows of their former selves.

So instead of pretending there’s a definitive list of “the best diving in the world,” let’s acknowledge this: The best diving isn’t universal. It’s personal and it’s always evolving.

My choices are as they are because I am open to cold water diving, I love marine life and animal behavior, and I am a huge wreck diving fanatic. I’m also a scuba diving instructor and baby technical diver/cave diver so comfortable doing dives in places others might find tough (Chuuk Lagoon or Galápagos, for example). You can’t not take these things into account when reviewing my list. My best dive destination might be your worst, after all!

What types of articles and generalizations annoy you?! Leave a comment. I want to know. Chances are we’re on the same page.