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A blue nudibranch with black stripes and yellow bumps crawling over grey volcanic sand — Padangbai & Candidasa

Padangbai & Candidasa · Indonesia · Wall · Reef

Gili Biaha

Rocky walls around a small island, with Shark Cave and Biaha Slope

Area photo: Bernard Picton · CC BY-SA 4.0

Gili Biaha is the farthest of the three Candidasa islets, a small island a little south-east of Tepekong and Mimpang ringed by rocky walls and overhangs. It holds two named dives, Shark Cave and Biaha Slope, and its strong, unpredictable current limits it to experienced divers.

Also known as Biaha.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Gili Biaha: typical dive to 40 m (to 130 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit40 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 50 m (164 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

8.5090° S, 115.6143° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.

The dive

Rocky walls surround the island and reach more than 40 m deep. On the eastern wall is a cave whose entrance lies at 12 m, the favourite part of the dive, and several whitetip reef sharks usually rest inside, close enough to photograph. Shark Cave and Biaha Slope can be combined in one dive when the current allows.

Marine life and season

  • Mola mola
  • Reef sharks
Month-by-month season rating for Gili Biaha
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
FairFairFairGoodGoodGoodPrimePrimePrimePrimeFairFair

Season follows Padangbai & Candidasa: Diveable all year; mola mola are likeliest July to October, while the November to March wet season cuts visibility and makes the islets harder to dive.

Dive videos

Diving at Gili Biaha, Candidasa, Bali with Southern Dreams Diving Club · southern dreams diving club Bali on YouTube

Sources

  1. Gili Biaha, Candidasa — ScubaGo
  2. Candi Dasa — Wikipedia
  3. Candidasa — Wikivoyage
  4. Gili Biaha — Divezone
  5. Scuba diving in Padangbai and Candidasa — Zublu
  6. OpenStreetMap — OpenStreetMap

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Blue Lagoon

Protected bay that serves as both training ground and night dive

to 25 mintermediate

Reef

Ferry Channel

Whitetip reef sharks beside the Lombok ferry lane

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Pinnacle

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Three large rocks and six smaller ones in a current-swept cluster

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Gili Tepekong

Boulder overhangs and tunnels above a steep wall

5–35 m · max 40 madvanced

Artificial reef

Tanjung Jepun

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Tanjung Sari

Volcanic rock reef top on the cape between the Blue Lagoon and the harbour

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