Komodo · Indonesia · Coral garden · Reef
China Shop
The sheltered coral garden at the end of the Cauldron ride
Area photo: Siharaditia · CC BY-SA 4.0
China Shop is a protected coral garden in the northern area of Komodo National Park, and it is best known as the place The Cauldron delivers you to at the end of its current ride. Dived on its own it is a gentle slope to 20 m with mild current, and the catalogue welcomes all levels of divers.
Where it is and how deep
8.4675° S, 119.5652° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The topography is a gentle slope, which is what makes this an easy dive, and the bottom is at 20 m. Current conditions are mild, so you can work the coral at your own pace instead of holding station against flow, and divers of all levels are welcome. It is one of the few places in the north of the park where the reef, rather than the water moving over it, sets the tempo.
Most divers arrive here rather than start here. The Cauldron, immediately north, shoots divers into China Shop like a shotgun at the end of its drift, so the site is the calm second act of that dive: you come out of the ripping current into a protected coral garden and finish shallow. Dived on its own it is a straightforward slope, and the mild conditions make it a reasonable choice early in a trip.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Good | Prime | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Prime |
Season follows Komodo: Liveaboards run all year: April is often rated the best month, July to September is the big-fish peak, and the rainy months bring the best visibility and the mantas.
Questions divers ask
Can beginners dive China Shop?+
Yes. The catalogue says all levels of divers are welcome because current conditions are mild, and the topography is a gentle slope with a maximum depth of 20 m.
Sources
- China Shop - Scubago — Scubago
- The Cauldron - Scubago — Scubago
More dive sites in Komodo
Soft coral and macro on a rock in the cold south of the park
Wall
Southern drop-off with 20 m-plus visibility and reef sharks
Rock corridors on the south coast where the mantas feed
Reef
A sloping northern passage dived on generally strong current
Drift
Ripping current fires you through into China Shop
A calm northern bay for skills practice near Crystal Rock
Soft-coral mound with sharks holding in the flow
A submerged pinnacle where the sharks hold in the current
Similar dives elsewhere
Temple, cabbage and mushroom coral in 15 m of water
An islet with one tree, ringed all round by hard and soft coral
The area's most reliable tasselled wobbegong sightings
A coral plateau at 18 m, swarmed by fish and turtles