Scuba diving in Sydney

Diving has quickly become one of my ultimate favourite things to do. We did it as often as we could in Bali and on the East Coast of Australia, and for some reason it never occurred to me that we’d be able to do it once we got as far south as Sydney.

But in massive stroke of good luck we moved into a houseshare with some great people and lovely neighbours, most of whom are diving fanatics too! During the summer months we were off on family dives most weekends, and afterwards we’d all sit and fill our log books in while enjoying beers and barbecues. It was the best! The ease of diving here has played a big part in why we have based ourselves in Sydney the last eight months.

If you’re not as lucky as us and need a guide/instructor/gear hire then I can highly recommend Frog Dive. They’re reasonable on price and have lots of organised dives you can join in on.

We’ve tried out three great dive sites, all of which are around a half hour drive from Sydney city centre:

– Shelly Beach ​

This little cove is at the eastern end of Manly Beach and is lovely with clear and calm waters. It’s a popular spot for divers as there’s so much to see here.

We usually head in from the beach and do a circle anti clockwise, going out along the rocks on the right, then going across and back in via the rocks on the left. We’ve seen Wobbegong sharks (see video above), groper fish, puffer fish, flathead fish, cuttlefish… there’s loads of life here! Unfortunately I’ve not been lucky enough, but you can often see Port Jackson sharks and Dusky Whaler sharks here too, as well as giant cuttlefish.

There’s also a motorbike that has been stripped and placed on the seabed in this cove, which is great fun to pose on!

– Clifton Gardens

This beach is on the northern side of the harbour and it’s a lovely place with a little pier, which we use to jump off to start the dive.

They have shark nets here, which is a bit controversial, but it makes for great diving! You can follow the nets along and there’s plenty of coral growing on them. And the nets are a favourite hangout, very excitingly, for seahorses! You’ve got to look closely to spot them, but there are loads there, it’s so lush! We’ve also seen cuttlefish, pipe fish, big pufferfish and octopus here. It’s a great site!

– Bare Island

No this isn’t where the Mormonts live! But it is where Mission Impossible was filmed, apparently. It’s a little island in Botany, which is attached to the mainland by a little footbridge. (Main pic!)

It’s a little tricky getting in and out across the rocks, just because it gets slippery. It’s okay if you’re careful, although I did end up rolling around on my back like a turtle and generally making a fool of myself ha!

It’s another great site where we saw cuttlefish, octopus, groper fish… and I missed it but my dive buddies spotted a giant seahorse!

– We haven’t tried it, but I’m also told Gordon’s Bay, near Coogee, is pretty great for diving and snorkelling with an underwater trail.