Indian Ocean · India
Goa & the Grande Island
Shipwrecks and rocky reefs in warm, sheltered water off Goa
Photo: KenWalker kgw@lunar.ca · CC BY-SA 3.0
Goa's diving happens around Grande Island and neighbouring St. George's Island, just off the coast near Vasco da Gama and reached by boat from Bogmalo. The sites are rocky reefs with hard and soft coral, a rock pinnacle at Lobster Avenue, a canyon at Turbo Tunnel and several shipwrecks, with most dives between 12 and 16 m. Warm, sheltered water makes it a practical place to learn or to log easy reef and wreck dives.
About diving in Goa & the Grande Island
Diving here is a day-boat affair. Private boats leave Bogmalo for the sites around Grande Island and St. George's Island, just off the coast near Vasco da Gama. The local centres run beginner dives, PADI courses and fun dives for certified divers on the same island sites, and several also organise trips to Pigeon Island, known locally as Netrani, in neighbouring Karnataka. The monsoon closes the water entirely.
Underwater the terrain is rock first: reefs and pinnacles carrying hard and soft coral, a canyon to swim through, and several shipwrecks around the islands. Most dives sit between 12 and 16 m, and depths run to 20 m. Many species of reef fish live over the coral. One line of rocks has a small wall on its south side and a gentle boulder slope on its north, and is prone to currents going north to south or south to north.
The coast suits new divers and course students who want easy reef and wreck dives in warm, sheltered water; Grande Banks is an easy reef ideal for intro dives and students. The challenging sites give seasoned recreational divers something to work on: Davy Jones Locker is for experienced divers and can have strong currents and low visibility. Divers who want clear blue water should look elsewhere, as visibility runs from 3 to 8 m and averages around 5 to 6 m through the season.
Best time to dive Goa & the Grande Island
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Good | Good |
Boats run mid-October to mid-May and stop for the monsoon from June; no month inside the season stands out.
Best months: January, February, March, April, November, December
Dive types & marine life
The jetty ruins north of St. George's Island are a nursery for baby fish, with many sea cucumbers and shrimp gobies on the sandy bottom and lots of fish around the jetty. Davy Jones Locker also has lots of fish, and the holes and windows along Suzy's Wreck open onto the fish life inside.
- Reef
- Wreck
Best dive sites in Goa & the Grande Island
- 1
Lobster Avenue
Coral reef and rocky pinnacle on the south side of St. George's Island, 8 to 14 m
- 2
Double Boiler
Wreck of a steel-hulled steamship lying between 15 and 19 m
- 3
Davy Jones Locker
Stern section of a steel-hulled wreck on the south side of St. George's Island, 12 to 16 m
- 4
Suzy's Wreck (S.S Rita)
Wreck rising to 2 m and dropping to 12 m, suited to beginners and advanced divers alike
- 5
Grande Banks (Navy Bay Rocks)
Rocky reef with a large area of plate coral, 5 to 13 m
- 6
Turbo Tunnel
Rock canyon to swim through at about 8 m
Site guides
Wreck
Stern of a steel-hulled wreck for experienced divers
Wreck
Steamship wreck with boilers, pistons and propeller in place
Reef
Sheltered reef beside Suzy's Wreck for courses and intro dives
Reef
A large field of plate coral between the two islands
Reef
Coral reef wrapped around a rocky pinnacle
Wall
A wall of stacked boulders ending in sand
Sand slope
Sandy training bay with a swim-through to a coral garden
Artificial reef
Ruined jetty that serves as a nursery for baby fish
Reef
Swim-through rock canyon lined with orange sponge
Wall
A small wall on one side, a boulder slope on the other
How to get to Goa & the Grande Island
Dabolim Airport (GOI) sits in Vasco da Gama, and pre-paid taxis leave from a booth just outside the main building. Boat trips to the Grande Island sites leave from Bogmalo.
Photos from Goa & the Grande Island
Vinayaraj · CC BY-SA 4.0
Questions divers ask
When is the diving season in Goa?+
Boats run from mid-October to mid-May. Diving is not possible during the monsoon, from June until mid-October.
Is Goa a good place to learn to dive?+
Yes. The warm, sheltered water around Grande Island and shallow sites such as Grande Banks, from 5 m, and Suzy's Wreck, from 2 m, suit first dives and PADI courses.
How good is the visibility around Grande Island?+
Modest. It runs from 3 to 8 m and averages around 5 to 6 m, varying through the season.
How do divers get to the Grande Island sites?+
By day boat from Bogmalo. Flights land at Dabolim Airport (GOI) in Vasco da Gama, where pre-paid taxis run from the terminal; the islands lie just off the coast.
Sources
- Goa - Wikivoyage — Wikivoyage
- Goa Diving Centre — Goa Diving Centre
- Dive Goa — Dive Goa
- Grande Banks/ Navy Bay Rocks — Scubago / SSI MyDiveGuide
Photo credits
- Wooden fishing boats pulled up on a wide sand beach below a green wooded headland under a hazy sky by KenWalker kgw@lunar.ca, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- A yellow speedboat on an open sand beach with a wooded headland and calm sea behind, under a clear blue sky by Vinayaraj, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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