To put it mildly, Belize is the place to scuba dive. There are infinite possibilities with the Blue Hole, the Barrier Reef and the Jesus Statues. Diving can be done from the luxury of a liveaboard to the convenience of the doorstep at your beachfront hotel.

What makes diving in Belize so great? Well, for starters, the water is warm, averaging nearly 80° you don’t need to don a suit of neoprene armor to protect yourself. If you’ve ever lived in New England, or Europe, you can appreciate the benefit in that. A light skin or rash guard might be desirable for the thinner skinned folks. Belize also boasts dozens of coral species and hundreds of fish species. Belize boasts a barrier reef offering walls and drift dives for divers of all experience levels.

The primary decision to make when choosing to dive in Belize is liveaboard or day trips. For the serious diver, 3-7 days of diving 3-5 dives per day is the only way to truly do a Caribbean vacation. Never leaving the boat is one option for ensuring they get the most underwater exposure during their trip. For those of us who prefer to set foot on something that doesn’t rock constantly, staying on an island and chartering a boat for a day trip is the better option. Basically, it is up to you to decide what you want out of your vacation.

Liveaboards

Peter Hughes offers the Sundancer to tour around the reefs and Blue Hole. It runs a couple thousand dollars US for a 5 ½ day cruise. That’s meals, lodging and diving included.
Peter Hughes

The Aggressor III offers a more luxurious option. For a few hundred more, you can enjoy the same 5 ½ day experience but maybe sleep a little more soundly in your stately bunk while digesting your four-star dinner. It may cost more, but remember the Aggressor fleet is often regarded as the premier liveaboard provider.
The Aggressor III

Nekton Cruises offers liveaboards covering Central Belize and Southern Belize. Nekton Cruises boasts a no seasick guarantee as they float you around on an oil rig instead of a boat. Actually the vessels are quite remarkable and must make for a very pleasant ride – though a fall from the deck may be traumatic. I like their website, too. It has a really nice map of all the dive sites offered in Belize.
Nekton Cruises

Dive Sites

There are far too many dive sites to list them and properly represent them on this website.

More appropriately, we’ll direct you to our best reference. Lonely Planet’s Diving and Snorkeling Belize is a very good manual for deeply examining the diving options in Belize. This website will at least offer a few of the most notable sites and comment on the options available for divers of different experience levels.

The Blue Hole looks cool, is cool and could probably be visited every day for a month and continue to offer a visitor new sites, photo opportunities and memories. The blue hole reaches depths of 412 feet making it more than capable of supporting technical divers and recreational divers alike. Stage decompression can be achieved for those who just can’t get within the restrictions of recreational dive tables. The blue hole holds a wealth of photo opportunities, both micro and macro. Bring a camera, practice your buoyancy control and set your dive computer for “amazing.”

There are three primary regions for diving, the Northern Cayes, Southern Cayes, and off-shore atolls. Among them, there are about 65 recreational dive site. Skill level ranges from novice to advanced and some offer snorkeling options. Each region offers novice and intermediate options. Advanced options do exist, but should be undertaken only by those with the qualifications. Depth varies from 30-130 feet (10-40 meters) among these sties.

Diving opportunities include shark dives (Shark-Ray Alley), wrecks (Amigo’s Wreck, Triple Anchors), deep dives (Silk Cayes Canyons) and shore dives (Tobacco Cut). The options are diverse enough and co-located allowing divers the opportunity to make two tank dives without languishing on the boat for hours beyond the requisite SIT.

Statue, located Northeast of San Pedro on Ambergris Caye is one of several dive sites across the globe that boasts a welcome from Jesus, himself.

Night Diving

There are several night dive opportunities along Belize’s barrier reef. Night diving is a truly awesome experience for the uninitiated and a fun change of pace for those who’ve “seen it all.” Lights and glow sticks are critical, but can be acquired from the local dive outfitter for an opportune excursion.

If your trip is not exclusively diving, consider where you might be staying. There are several beach dives that can be easily accessed from beach-front rentals for those who would like to catch a quick morning (or night dive) prior to heading out for a day’s worth of other activities. Look into hotels and resorts that offer you the best accessibility to shore dives, dive outfitters, and the other activities you wish to engage in.

SAFETY

Oh, and one more thing. Be safe. That C-card isn’t just meant to eliminate one of the credit card slots in your wallet. Dive to your ability and always double check your gear.