New Zealand

These prehistoric-looking but docile sharks are seasonally encountered at several sites in the north, including the Poor Knights.

Grey Nurse Shark (Sand Tiger)

Playful and inquisitive seals are a major highlight of diving in the South Island and the subantarctic islands.

New Zealand Fur Seal

Normally a deep-water species, these stunning white trees are found in shallow water in Fiordland due to the unique freshwater layer.

Black Coral

Large and impressive rays are frequently seen in the caves and over the sandy flats of the northern marine reserves.

Stingrays (Short-tail & Eagle)

New Zealand offers some of the most spectacular and diverse temperate water diving on the planet, characterized by extraordinary visibility, dramatic volcanic topography, and a density of shipwrecks that is a haven for underwater explorers. The country is world-famous for the Poor Knights Islands Marine Reserve, famously described by Jacques Cousteau as one of the top ten dive sites in the world. Here, the meeting of warm subtropical currents and cooler temperate waters creates a unique 'subtropical-temperate' hybrid ecosystem teeming with life. Beyond the Poor Knights, New Zealand's underwater world is a realm of dramatic contrasts. The legendary wrecks of the MS Mikhail Lermontov in the Marlborough Sounds and the Rainbow Warrior in the Bay of Islands provide world-class historical diving. Fiordland, on the South Island, offers a truly unique experience with its 'black coral' trees found in shallow depths due to the layer of dark freshwater on the surface. New Zealand's diving is supported by a highly professional infrastructure, with a strong focus on safety, conservation, and heritage preservation. While the water is cool, ranging from 12°C to 22°C, the reward is a wild and pristine underwater world that offers a deep connection to both nature and history.

While land-based diving is common, there are occasional liveaboard expeditions to the remote offshore islands, such as the Three Kings or the Kermadec Islands, for experienced divers.

The Lodge at Kauri Cliffs

Blanket Bay

Huka Lodge

The Bay of Plenty offers some of New Zealand's most dramatic and unique diving, headlined by the active marine volcano of White Island and pristine offshore vol...

Bay of Plenty

Canterbury and Banks Peninsula offer diverse diving from marine reserves to sheltered harbours around the South Island's largest city. The Pohatu Marine Reserve...

Canterbury & Banks Peninsula

East Cape and Gisborne represent one of New Zealand's least explored and most pristine diving frontiers, where remote rocky reefs, kelp forests, and marine rese...

East Cape & Gisborne

Fiordland and Stewart Island represent the pinnacle of New Zealand's unique diving, offering an underwater experience found nowhere else on Earth. The fiords of...

Fiordland & Stewart Island

The Hauraki Gulf and Coromandel Peninsula offer some of the most accessible and diverse diving in New Zealand, with marine reserves, offshore islands, wrecks, a...

Hauraki Gulf & Coromandel

Hawke's Bay and Wairarapa offer a growing diving scene centred on artificial reefs, navy wrecks, and rugged limestone coastlines along the eastern seaboard of t...

Hawke's Bay & Wairarapa

Kaikoura is one of New Zealand's most extraordinary dive destinations, where the Kaikoura Peninsula meets the deep waters of the Pacific Ocean creating a unique...

Kaikoura

The Kermadec Islands are New Zealand's most remote and exclusive diving destination, a subtropical volcanic archipelago located over 1000 kilometres northeast o...

Kermadec Islands

Lake Taupo and New Zealand's freshwater lakes offer a completely different dimension of diving, from volcanic crater lakes to geothermal underwater hot springs...

Lake Taupo & Freshwater Lakes

The Marlborough Sounds and Nelson/Tasman region is home to one of the world's greatest wreck dives and some of New Zealand's most sheltered and diverse diving....

Marlborough Sounds & Nelson/Tasman

Northland and the Bay of Islands represent the birthplace of New Zealand diving, offering world-famous wreck diving, spectacular marine reserves, and some of th...

Northland & Bay of Islands

The Poor Knights Islands Marine Reserve is New Zealand's most famous dive destination, described by Jacques Cousteau as one of the top ten dive sites in the wor...

Poor Knights Islands Marine Reserve

The Three Kings Islands are New Zealand's most remote and pristine diving destination, located 55 kilometres northwest of Cape Reinga at the tip of the North Is...

Three Kings Islands

Wellington and its south coast offer world-class wreck diving and diverse marine environments at the southern tip of the North Island. The HMNZS Wellington, a L...

Wellington & South Coast

The West Coast of the South Island is New Zealand's wild frontier, offering remote and rarely-dived underwater landscapes shaped by the same forces that created...

West Coast (South Island)

Abel Tasman National Park (Tonga Island)

Alderman Islands

Blue Maomao Arch

Cape Brett / Rakaumangamanga

Cape Kidnappers

Castlepoint (Wairarapa)

Cathedral Cove Marine Reserve

Cream Gardens

East Cape Shipwrecks

F69 (HMNZS Southland)

Goat Island Marine Reserve

Golden Bay (Farewell Spit)

Haulashore Island (Nelson)

HMNZS Canterbury Wreck

HMNZS Kahu Wreck

HMNZS Waikato Wreck

HMNZS Wellington Wreck

Hole in the Rock (Piercy Island)

Labrid Channel

Little Barrier Island

Long Island Marine Reserve

Lottin Point (Waihau Bay)

Maketu Shore Dives

Matauri Bay

Matiu/Somes Island

Middle Arch (Rikoriko Cave)

Mikhail Lermontov Wreck

Moa Point / Lyall Bay

Mount Maunganui / Moturiki Island

Napier Artificial Reefs

Northern Arch

Nursery Cove

Palliser Bay Shipwrecks

Pampero & HMNZS Tui Wrecks

Pelorus Sound

The Pinnacles (D'Urville Island)

Rainbow Warrior Wreck

Slipper Island (Whenua Hou)

SS Wairarapa Wreck

Taioma Wreck (Papamoa Beach)

Taputeranga Marine Reserve

Te Tapuwae o Rongokako Marine Reserve

The Maze (Whangaroa)

The Noises

The Pinnacles (Cape Karikari)

Three Kings Arch

Trev's Rock

Tuhua (Mayor Island)

The Volkner Rocks (Te Paepae o Aotea)

Wellington South Coast Wrecks

White Island (Whakaari)

Wild Beast Point

Renting a car or motorhome is the most popular way to explore New Zealand's rugged landscapes. A reliable domestic flight network connects major cities. Ferries connect the North and South Islands.

Liveaboard Diving in New Zealand

Experience Overview

Featured Operators

Remote Reach

Booking Advice

Where to Stay in New Zealand