Ayvalık & Cunda Islands · Turkey · Reef · Wall
Melina Adası
Ayvalık's biggest groupers on an island face divable in any weather
Melina is an island off Ayvalık whose west face can be dived in any weather, and it is a site that can be chosen for students and one-star divers. A wall drops on one side and broken rock runs deeper on the other, and the island is home to the largest groupers in Ayvalık.
Also known as Melina, Melina Adası Batı Yüzü, Melina Island, Yuvarlak Island.
Where it is and how deep
39.3368° N, 26.5611° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The rocks begin as shallow as 3 m. On the right-hand side a wall drops to 19 m, while on the left a rocky slope starts at 15 m and keeps going down to 37 m. Large hollows cut into the rock, and the face holds plenty of fish among its rock scenery.
The shallow parts are thick with large octopus, gilthead bream, forkbeard and damselfish. Melina's rocks also shelter the biggest groupers found anywhere around Ayvalık.
Marine life and season
- Groupers
- Octopus & cuttlefish
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Ayvalık & Cunda Islands: The high season ends in September, and boats keep diving until the end of October.
Dive videos
Melina Adası - 3Sea Dalış Merkezi · Moto Travel on YouTube
Questions divers ask
Can Melina be dived in rough weather?+
Yes. The west face can be dived in any weather, and its rocks start at 3 m, so it can be chosen for students and one-star divers.
Sources
- Ayvalık 3 Sea dive sites — Ayvalık 3 Sea dive centre
- Ayvalık Islands - Wikipedia — Wikipedia
- OpenStreetMap — OpenStreetMap
More dive sites in Ayvalık & Cunda Islands
Pinnacle
Twin hills ringed with red coral between Kız Adası and Burhaniye
Sea bunny nudibranchs on a wall that gives way to eelgrass meadows
Reef
Unbroken amphorae and an old iron anchor from a lost wreck
Pinnacle
Red coral and a gorgonian forest found nowhere else in Turkey
Similar dives elsewhere
Cobbles and posidonia at 6 m, a rocky wall out to 20 m
An island wall from 2 m to 18 m over posidonia meadow
Octopus holes on the slope and lobsters on the drop-off
A 40 m canyon at the end of a 5 to 20 m drop-off