Scuba Diving in Madang (North Coast of Mainland)

About Madang (North Coast of Mainland)

Madang, on the north coast of the Papua New Guinea mainland, is a gentle, topography-rich diving region that mixes offshore pinnacles, steep walls, historic wrecks, and calm training reefs. The offshore Planet Rock pinnacle explodes with barracuda, jacks, trevally, and dogtooth tuna, while Magic Passage and the Kranket Island Wall deliver drift dives along gorgonian-covered walls rich in ghost pipefish, frogfish, and leaf scorpionfish. Hansa Bay holds a cluster of WWII wrecks, including a Japanese submarine chaser, a cargo vessel, and a shallow, intact B-25 Mitchell bomber, and Pig Island and the Jais Aben House Reef offer sheltered, beginner-friendly muck and critter diving. With its sheltered harbour and easy access, Madang is an excellent destination for photographers, newly certified divers, and those who want variety without long transfers.

Highlights

• ✓Planet Rock (Madang): an offshore pinnacle with huge schools of barracuda, jacks, trevally, and dogtooth tuna.
• ✓Magic Passage: a drift dive along a steep wall with gorgonians, napoleon wrasse, turtles, and eagle rays.
• ✓Kranket Island Wall: a coral wall rich in ghost pipefish, frogfish, and leaf scorpionfish.
• ✓Hansa Bay Wrecks: a submarine chaser, cargo vessel, and a shallow B-25 Mitchell bomber.
• ✓Jais Aben House Reef: shallow macro diving with seahorses, pipefish, and dusk mandarinfish.

Getting There

Madang is reached by domestic flight from Port Moresby, with some connections via Lae or Mount Hagen. Dive boats depart the resorts and town for Planet Rock, Magic Passage, and Hansa Bay, with most sites within an hour of base. The sheltered geography makes Madang one of the easiest places in PNG to combine a wide range of dive types without long transfers.