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Aerial view of a long sandy spit and a sheltered blue lagoon below forested mountains, with a town on the shore and open sea beyond — Fethiye & Ölüdeniz

Fethiye & Ölüdeniz · Turkey · Reef

Red Island

Massive groupers and schooling barracuda over sponges and corals

Area photo: Dan Taylor · CC BY 2.0

Red Island is a Fethiye dive for intermediate to advanced divers, known for massive groupers and schooling barracuda over sponges and corals. The bottom slopes gently to about 15 m before taking on an almost amphitheatre-like look, with 25 m as the deepest point.

Also known as Kızıl Ada, Red Island Lighthouse.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Red Island: typical dive to 25 m (to 82 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit25 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

36.6586° N, 29.0478° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.

The dive

The seabed follows a gentle slope down to about 15 m. Below that the rock takes on an almost amphitheatre-like shape, and the dive stays within 25 m. Massive groupers and schooling barracuda gather here with plenty of smaller fish, set against sponges and corals.

Marine life and season

  • Groupers
  • Barracuda
Month-by-month season rating for Red Island
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FairFairGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodPrimePrimeGoodFair

Season follows Fethiye & Ölüdeniz: September and October pair warm sea with cooler air; winter brings heavy rain, strong winds and many closed facilities.

Dive videos

Fethiye - Kızıl Ada 10/2019 · Orhan Akay on YouTube

Sources

  1. Amphora Bay And Beyond: Diving Turkey's Fethiye — Just Gotta Dive
  2. Kızıl Ada (OpenStreetMap) — OpenStreetMap contributors

More dive sites in Fethiye & Ölüdeniz

Cave & cavern

Afkule I

The Shrimp Hole cavern at 24 m and a cave that holds 10 divers

to 24 m · max 50 madvanced

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Amphora Bay

Roman-era amphorae lying on a steep slope

14–27 m · max 60 mintermediate

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Aquarium Bay

Orange sponges, groupers and octopuses in a bay dived by day and night

to 10 mbeginner

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Dalyan Bay

A shallow first-dive bay that also works as a night dive

to 10 mbeginner

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Kamil Island

Amphorae and old stone anchors scattered across the seabed

to 30 mintermediate

Cave & cavern

Sariyarlar Bay

A series of tunnels at the foot of a 30 m drop-off

12–30 m · max 40 mintermediate

Reef

The Great Reef

Schools of salema and resident groupers on an open-sea reef

7–40 madvanced

Similar dives elsewhere

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Adiavatos Reef

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Rock carpeted in shellfish and invertebrates near the caldera rim

to 30 mintermediate

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Bau de Cap Trencat

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Sand, coralligenous and rock between 12 and 30 m

12–30 mintermediate

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Black Rock

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A 50-minute lap of a rocky islet a mile off Alyko Bay

to 30 m · max 34 mintermediate

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Cala Cerrada

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A cove sheltered from wind and swell, 10 m to 30 m

10–30 mintermediate