Chandelier Caves Dive Site

Site Overview

Chandelier Caves, within the Chandelier Caves & West Coast of Palau, is one of the region's most rewarding dive sites and a highlight of any Micronesian diving trip. Five linked limestone caverns with glittering 'chandelier' formations and air pockets you can surface inside. Geographically the site features cavern and chamber formations built from rock and limestone substrate, dropping from a shallow top of around 3 metres to a maximum depth of about 12 metres, with an average working depth near 8 metres. Visibility is typically excellent, ranging from 10 to 25 metres, while water temperatures hold between 27 and 30 degrees Celsius year-round. The marine life is the headline attraction. Divers routinely encounter Flashlight Fish (Anomalops katoptron), Batfish (Platax orbicularis), Bigeye (Priacanthus hamrur), Cave Shrimp (Palaemonidae), Spotted Snake Eel (Ophichthus puncticeps), alongside dense reef fish, invertebrates, and the soft and hard corals that blanket the reef. The mix of nutrient-rich currents and Palau's protected status makes Chandelier Caves one of the most reliable places in the country to see both abundant macro life and large pelagic visitors on a single dive. Chandelier Caves is best enjoyed as part of a boat programme out of Koror, and it rewards wide-angle photographers, naturalists, and adrenaline-seeking drift divers alike. The Palau Protected Areas Network helps keep the reef pristine, so divers are asked to maintain perfect buoyancy and respect the fragile coral at all times.