Scuba diving locations in South Africa:

• Just outside Cape Town, there are huge kelp forests, abundant reef walls and caves, and the chance to see great white sharks in season.
• False Bay, on the way to Cape Point Nature Reserve and the Cape of Good Hope, is the largest true bay in South Africa and, although part of the Atlantic Ocean, the temperature difference between the two sides of the Cape Peninsula is sometimes as much as 10°C. This temperature difference is caused by the convergence of the cold current that sweeps up from the Antarctic along the Atlantic coast, bringing plankton-rich waters, and a warm current coming along the east coast.
• Cage diving with sharks can be done at the Aliwal Shoal, Protea Banks, Sodwana Bay and at the sardine run.

When to scuba dive in South Africa:

In the Indian Ocean), the water in summer is around 20°C, from January to March, dropping to 16°C between July and September. The Atlantic Ocean coast is generally around 7°C colder, and even more so in the winter months. From April to September, great white sharks have active feeding patterns off Cape Town. Late winter brings migrating whales including southern right whale and Balaenoptera brydei. In May and June, millions of sardines migrate north following the cold winter currents towards the Indian Ocean, attracting thousands of predators, including dolphins, orcas, sharks, seals and whales.

Local standards for gear:

The best scuba diving spots in South Africa:

• The Maori Wreck is on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.
• Aliwal Shoal, Hibiscus Coast , offers the chance to see a Ragged tooth shark, Tiger sharks, Manta Rays and Dolphins.
• Protea Bank hosts mainly pelagic life, with schools of yellow tail, kingfish, tuna and barracuda attracting a variety of top predators. Keep an eye out for the large population of Bull shark.
• Sodwana Bayis a residence for many species of sharks and rays and a nesting site for Loggerhead Turtles and Leatherback Turtles.

The best spots to snorkel in South Africa:

Fun scuba facts:

Country data:

Administrative details

• Currency: rand (ZAR)
• Population: is about 50,600,000 (2011)
• Time Zone: SAST (GMT+2)
• Main languages spoken: Afrikaans, English, Southern Ndebele, Northern Sotho, Southern Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu

Diveable overseas territories:

South African diving federations:

CMAS INSTRUCTORS SOUTH AFRICA (CMAS-ISA) is a member of Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS)

Local diving laws and regulations (and PADI-equivalent certifications):