East Asia · Taiwan
Penghu Islands
Barracuda drifts and basalt ridges in a Taiwan Strait protected area
Penghu is an archipelago of 90 islands and rocks in the middle of the Taiwan Strait, known for its basalt columns. Magong's shops run gentle shore dives such as the submarine mailbox off Suogang, while the more challenging boat diving lies in southern Penghu, in and around a marine protected area: drifts at Wolf East with a giant school of yellowtail barracuda, the Lingyun wreck off Qimei and the lavender-blue staghorn fields of Dongjiyu.
About diving in Penghu Islands
Diving splits into two quite different trips. The shops in Magong concentrate on try-dives and beginner courses, walking groups in from the beaches of southern Penghu and Fenggui, with boat dives around Qingwan, Hujing and Tongpan. The shore sites are best dived when waves are below 0.6 m. Experienced divers head south instead, where a single operator offers dives inside the marine protected area, running 4-day, 3-night packages between April and September with pick-up at Magong Harbour.
At Xijiyu a ridge of basalt columns runs underwater, matching a similar ridge above the surface on the far side of the island, and the reefs off Dongjiyu carry staghorn coral. The wreck south of Qimei was sunk as a fish aggregation device, and it still gathers fish in the open sea, though little coral has grown on it. The current-swept point at Wolf East holds schools of surgeonfish, snapper and sweetlips alongside the barracuda.
Penghu is known for drift diving, and the southern dives are built around moving water; the open-sea wreck also sees some current. Divers comfortable in a drift who can travel between April and September get the most from the islands. New divers and those taking a first course are well served by the Magong shore sites, which stay shallow, though tide and waves cut visibility there. Anyone hoping for big animals should know that nothing on these drifts is guaranteed.
Best time to dive Penghu Islands
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair |
The year splits on the wind. From October to February the islands are very windy, and strong wind cancels ferry crossings. The Suogang mailbox takes post from March to November. April to September is the high season, with hot, humid summer weather, and the only months the trips into the southern protected area run. Summer also brings typhoons, which cancel ferries too.
Best months: March, April, May, June, July, August, September
Dive types & marine life
The yellowtail barracuda at Wolf East are the headline, a large school holding in the current at the island's tip, though no sighting is guaranteed. A group of large marble rays lives inside the Lingyun wreck. Both sites are dived on the southern trips, which run only between April and September.
- Drift
- Wreck
- Coral garden
- Barracuda
- Stingrays
- Reef fish swarms
Best dive sites in Penghu Islands
- 1
Wolf East
Drift off southern Dongjiyu where a giant school of yellowtail barracuda hangs in the current.
- 2
Lingyun Shipwreck
Navy transport scuttled south of Qimei, lying on its side at 30 m with marble rays inside.
- 3
Dongjiyu Lavender Fields
Fields of lavender-blue staghorn coral, famous across Taiwan and an icon of the islands.
- 4
Xijiyu Basalt Ridge
An underwater ridge of basalt columns, where the geology outshines the fish.
- 5
Suogang Village
Shore dive to a submarine mailbox at about 5 m that takes post from March to November.
Site guides
Coral garden
Fields of lavender-blue staghorn coral famous across Taiwan
Wreck
Huge marble rays living inside a navy transport's hull
Reef
A working post box on the seabed off Suogang Village
How to get to Penghu Islands
Magong Airport, a domestic field in the middle of the main island, is a 20-minute drive from Magong city. A ferry runs all year from Kaohsiung, taking about 5 hours and docking at a downtown pier in Magong, where the dive shops are based.
Photos from Penghu Islands
Philoschen · CC BY-SA 4.0
Carrie Kellenberger (globetrotter on Flickr) https://www.flickr.com/photos/globetrotteri/ · CC BY 2.0
Dive videos
20220720 Penghu Diving 8K HDR · Johnny Ko on YouTube
BEAUTIFUL TAIWAN - SCUBA DIVING -Penghu Islands - Underwater mailbox - Cave diving - GoPro · TerrAwsome on YouTube
Questions divers ask
Can certified divers visit the southern marine protected area on a day trip?+
No. Only one operator dives inside the protected area, and only on 4-day, 3-night packages between April and September, with pick-up and drop-off at Magong Harbour.
Is Penghu suitable for beginners?+
Yes, around Magong. The town's shops focus on try-dives and beginner courses, and their shore sites stay within 10 m, which suits first dives and new divers.
Is the Suogang submarine mailbox worth a dive?+
It is the most distinctive of the Magong shore sites and has become a standard stop on a Penghu trip, but the mailbox only takes post from March to November.
How strong are the currents in Penghu?+
Penghu is well known for drift diving, but conditions are no harder than at other Asian current destinations. At Wolf East the current carries divers along the reef, so the dive is planned as a drift.
Sources
- Dive into Taiwan: Penghu — X-Ray Mag
- Penghu – Wikivoyage — Wikivoyage
- PADI澎湖興仁潛水訓練中心 shore diving — PADI Xingren Diving Training Centre
- 澎湖潛點地圖導覽 — Ocean Channel Diving
Photo credits
- Two dark, jagged basalt sea stacks rising from grey-blue water, with a green headland behind under a pale sky by Philoschen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- A low island edged with tall columnar basalt cliffs and a green top, seen across deep blue sea by Carrie Kellenberger (globetrotter on Flickr) https://www.flickr.com/photos/globetrotteri/, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Embed
Run a dive centre, club or blog? Embed this map of 2 dive sites near Penghu Islands on your own page.
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