Mar del Plata

Most diving here is a boat trip. Boats leave from the city's nautical clubs and head offshore to the Cristo Rey wreck park, about 5 km off the coast, and to the sand banks; the Kyokko lies further out on Banco de Afuera. The Club de Actividades Submarinas Escualo, teaching since 1969, sends divers out every weekend, winter included, and Mar del Plata Divers runs CMAS courses at every level. The classic shore dive is the Escollera Norte, the north breakwater.

The seabed off the city is sand and shell. The wreck park began with the Cristo Rey, which rests on a shell bottom, and has grown with the Khronometer, an 82 m Russian fishing vessel sunk in 2014, the Simbad in 2022, the Sirius in 2024 and the 38.5 m Ribazón Dorine. The sand banks run from Banco de Afuera at 17–20 m to Banco Patria at 24–42 m. Visibility swings between 2 and 10 m and drops when strong wind stirs the water. Amberjack, groupers and sargos come and go with the seasons, while rays, guitarfish and angel sharks lie on the sand.

This is cold water with frequent currents, from 8 °C in winter to 23 °C in summer, and it suits divers who are comfortable with limited visibility and interested in wrecks rather than colour. The deepest sand banks, Patria and Pozo del Tío, start at 24 m. Divers new to the sport or after warm, clear water should look elsewhere.