Koh Tao's best-known offshore site: one large granite pinnacle with a series of smaller ones around it, standing in open water north-west of the island. The rock starts at about 14 m and drops to 26 m, with medium current and schooling barracuda, jacks and potato grouper. Whale sharks are recorded from February to May and again in September.
Also known as Chumphon Pinnacles.
Where it is and how deep
10.1485° N, 99.7841° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The dive starts on the main pinnacle, which tops out at about 14 m, so the descent is made in open water with the rock as the only reference. From the crown the granite drops to 26 m, and the smaller pinnacles standing around the main mass sit at similar depths. Current here is medium, so groups drop up-current and use the rock itself as shelter rather than swimming against the flow.
The schools are the reason to come this far out. Barracuda and large schools of jacks hold in the current off the pinnacle, potato grouper sit among the rocks and batfish work the water around them. Juvenile bull sharks are seen here, and used to be misidentified as grey reef sharks. Whale sharks pass through between February and May and again in September, and manta rays turn up as occasional visitors.
Because the pinnacle stands alone, the dive ends where it began: back up the granite to the crown at about 14 m. The crown is far deeper than a safety stop, so the stop itself is made in open water rather than on the rock. Visibility runs 10 to 20 m and the site is dived all year round. The ground off the edges of the pinnacle can be worked to 40 m, well below the 26 m that most of the diving here is planned around.
Marine life and season
- Barracuda
- Trevally & jacks
- Groupers
- Whale sharks
- Bull sharks
- Manta rays
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Good |
Season follows Koh Tao: No official closure; whale shark sightings peak March-May and September-October, while October-November bring more rain and surface chop.
Know before you go
- Medium current is normal and picks up around the flanks of the rock: drop up-current, stay close to the granite and use it as shelter when the flow builds.
- Juvenile bull sharks are seen here and used to be misidentified as grey reef sharks; give them room rather than closing in for a photograph.
Photos from Chumphon Pinnacle
portioid · CC BY-SA 4.0
portioid · CC BY-SA 4.0
portioid · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dive videos
Scuba Diving on Koh Tao at Chumphon Pinnacle 2018 · Norbert B on YouTube
Diving with Whale Shark: Chumphon Pinnacle Koh Tao, Thailand · Nan with a Backpack on YouTube
Questions divers ask
How deep is Chumphon Pinnacle?+
The main rock starts at about 14 m and drops to 26 m, and depths of 40 m are reachable off the edges of the site. Operators run it as an Advanced-level dive rather than a deep one.
Do I need an Advanced certification for Chumphon Pinnacle?+
It is not a site for complete beginners. Operators run it as an Advanced Open Water dive because of the 26 m profile, the open-water descent with no shallow reference, and the medium current.
When can you see whale sharks at Chumphon Pinnacle?+
Whale sharks are recorded from February to May and again in September, though sightings are never guaranteed. The pinnacle itself can be dived all year round.
Sources
- Chumphon Pinnacle dive site — Divezone
- Diving in Thailand — Wikivoyage
- Ko Tao — Wikivoyage
- Diving Sites Thailand - Koh Tao — Dive The World
- List of deepest dive sites in the Gulf of Thailand — Wikipedia
- ChumPhon pinnacle — OpenStreetMap
Photo credits
- Yellow-spotted trevally swimming over the granite at Chumphon Pinnacle by portioid, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Two pickhandle barracuda hanging in blue water off the pinnacle by portioid, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Pickhandle barracuda schooling in open water at Chumphon Pinnacle by portioid, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Pickhandle barracuda cruising past the pinnacle in green-lit water by portioid, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In The Logbook
- Cheapest places to scuba dive, and the catchTrip planning · 15 min read
- Where to dive with whale sharks, month by monthBig animals · 16 min read
More dive sites in Koh Tao
Drift
Drift over the Nang Yuan rock, with 40 m a short swim west
Reef
Sheltered fringing reef, sandy bottom at 12 m
Pinnacle
Coral-covered pinnacles beside the Sattakut, 7 m to 22 m
44.9 m navy attack craft, mast at 13 m, seabed at 23 m
Upright navy wreck, superstructure at 18 m, keel at 30 m
Reef
Calm reef in the lee of Koh Nang Yuan, 2 to 16 m
Artificial reef
Sunken jeep and scrap at 10 to 12 m, colonised by reef fish
Reef
Plateau and canyon off the headland, sponges from 8 to 18 m
Similar dives elsewhere
A current-swept pinnacle from 30 m to within 5 m of the surface
Mantas and a swirling barracuda vortex over a current-swept plateau
Seamount summit 2 m under the surface, coated in soft coral
Occasional whale sharks and manta over a 45 m pinnacle