Cocos (Keeling) Islands · Australia · Reef
Manta Cleaning Station
Two coral heads at 9 m where local mantas come to be cleaned
Area photo: photoboothrental.com · CC BY-SA 3.0
Two small coral outcrops in 9 m of water close to Direction Island, with the cleaner wrasse that the local manta rays come in to use. The whole site is those two heads and the sand around them, so the dive is about what arrives rather than about the terrain, and the same water is also run as a snorkel site.
Where it is and how deep
12.0959° S, 96.8742° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The site lies close to Direction Island and sits entirely in 9 m of water, so the descent is over in a few seconds and there is no depth to manage once you are down. Two small coral outcrops are the cleaning station itself, and the cleaner wrasse living on them are the reason the mantas come in at all. Finding those two heads is the whole of the navigation.
Settle on the sand a few metres back from the outcrops rather than hanging over them, get your breathing slow and wait. Local mantas favour this spot for their regular cleaning, which makes the dive a watching game more than a swim, and at 9 m there is no penalty for staying put — air and no-decompression time both last far longer than your patience will. The same water is run as a snorkel site, so a group can be split between divers on the sand and snorkellers above.
Marine life and season
- Manta rays
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Good |
Season follows Cocos (Keeling) Islands: Divable year-round; Apr–Jun and Oct–Nov are calmest, with the wet season from December to March bringing more wind.
Questions divers ask
How deep is Manta Cleaning Station?+
The two coral outcrops that make up the site sit at 9 m, and that is the maximum depth of the dive.
Can you snorkel Manta Cleaning Station?+
Yes. It is listed as a popular snorkel site close to Direction Island, and the two coral outcrops that make up the cleaning station sit at 9 m.
Sources
- Manta Cleaning Station - Cocos (Keeling) Islands — Scubago / SSI MyDiveGuide
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