Dive Seasons across the world; Where to go Diving and When?

Do you want to go diving but don't know where it is best now? Planning a dive holiday in a particular month and deciding where to go? Here you can check high season dates, telling you which dive destinations can be best visited in which months. From the cold water destinations in the northern hemisphere between may and august to a wicked Red Sea live-aboard tour in December; from most famous Cairn's Great Barrier Reef in Australian winter to Nov up to May for the Caribbean; there is always a place to go diving in perfect conditions.

Europe

Europe's climate offers cool winters and warmer summers. There isn't a real rainy season although the summer months tends to be a bit dryer. Europe's diving high season runs from Apr-Sep. In winter dive shops are more often closed and it is harder to find a dive boat that brings you out.

Africa

• Egypt, Sudan, Red Sea: Year-round
  The Red Sea can be dived throughout the year with a slight increase in popularity in the winter months.
• Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa: Year-round

Middle East

Oman, Qatar and the UAE receive hardly any rain and have temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius in summer and often above 20 degrees in winter. Scuba diving is therefore done Year-round, with a slight rise during winter because of the milder temperatures.

Asia

• Indonesia: Year-round
  Jun-Oct is considered slightly dryer.
• Malaysia: Borneo, Year-round: Peninsular Malaysia, Feb-Nov
• Maldives: Year-round
• Micronesia: Jan-May
  From Jun-Dec, Micronesia is struck by typhoons and lots of rain.
• Myanmar: Andaman Sea, Oct-Apr
• Philippines: Nov-Jun
  If there is a dryer season in the Philippines it should be between Nov and Jun and more distinctive the more west you go.
• Thailand: Gulf of Thailand, May-Sep: Andaman Sea, Oct-Apr
  There is always somewhere to dive in Thailand. When weather conditions get rougher in the Andaman Sea, it clears up in the Gulf of Thailand and visa versa.
• Vietnam: Year-round

Oceania

• Australia: Year-round
  Southern Australia (New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania) is best dived in summer from Nov-Feb, while the northern regions of Australia (Queensland, Northern Territory) including the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) can be dived any time. Western Australia north of Perth is warm enough to be dived throughout the year while south of Perth, you are better off diving in summer.
• New Zealand: Nov-Feb
  New Zealand can be dived throughout the year, although dive tours are better booked in summer when the weather is warmer and dryer.
• Papua New Guinea: Apr-Jun, Sep-Dec
  Some months are wetter than others, but year-round diving is possible through dive resorts and liveaboards as local dive shops are hard to find.

Pacific

• Fiji, French Polynesia, Solomon-Islands: May-Nov
  The dryer season in the southern Pacific islands goes from May to Nov.
• Hawaii: Apr-Sep
  Temperatures in summer and winter are not that different, but it is slightly dryer and warmer in summer.

Caribbean, Central America

• Caribbean: Nov-May
  The Caribbean offers warm and sunny tropical winters during Nov-May, while Jun-Oct is hurricane season, a time you prefer not to be there.
• Central America: Caribbean Side Mrt-Aug, Pacific Side Dec-Apr
  Central American countries such as Belize, Honduras but also Mexico can be dived throughout the year. The Caribbean Side is occasionally hit by typhoons and the Pacific Side is best dived in winter, early spring.

North America

• Northern America, Vancouver-Seattle, Great-Lakes, Canada: Apr-Sep
  Apr-Sep, the warmer summer months, are the best months to go diving in Northern America.
• Florida: Oct-May
  Florida's wet season is from Jun-Sep, which is also the time that it is occasionally hit by Caribbean hurricanes.
• California: Year-round