Caribbean · Saint Barthélemy
Saint Barthélemy — Gustavia & Les Anses
Short boat rides from Gustavia to walls, pinnacles and rock arches
Photo: Don Loarie · CC BY 4.0
Saint Barthélemy is a French island whose diving lies mostly inside its protected marine reserve, almost all of it under 20 minutes by boat from Gustavia harbour. Most reef dives stay shallower than 20 m, with weak currents and 20–30 m of visibility. Pain de Sucre, the wall and barracuda pinnacle off Pointe de Colombier, and the garden eels at Fourchue are the reasons to go.
About diving in Saint Barthélemy — Gustavia & Les Anses
Diving here is boat diving from Gustavia, with several outings a day every day of the year to sites around the island, most of them inside the marine reserve. Almost every site is less than 20 minutes away; Pain de Sucre is about five minutes out of the port, while Fourchue and the remote Les Cayes are longer runs. The site for each trip is chosen to suit the levels of the divers on board.
Most dives follow reefs no deeper than 20 m, where the life is richest, and the sandy floor around the island does not go below 30 m. The terrain changes from site to site: the islets of Gros Ilets with their drop-offs, the wall and pinnacle off Pointe de Colombier, arches and caves at Toc Vers, and tunnels at Groupers and Roche Roubes. The Kayali is a deep wreck dive with plenty of marine life and sharks.
The island suits beginners well: the currents are weak on most sites, visibility is good, and depths stay moderate. Gros Ilets is the exception, where fast currents turn some dives into drifts. Experienced divers have the deep wreck and the remote Les Cayes, which need Advanced or Level 2 certification, and 50 logged dives for Les Cayes.
Best time to dive Saint Barthélemy — Gustavia & Les Anses
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Prime | Prime |
Boats leave Gustavia several times a day in every month of the year. The peak diving season runs from November to May, the dry season, and the water is at its coolest in February at about 26 °C (79 °F). June sits between the busy months and the storms. July to October is the low season because it coincides with the Caribbean hurricane season, bringing a risk of storms and heavy rainfall. The same months bring the warmest water, about 29 °C (84 °F) in September.
Best months: January, February, March, April, May, November, December
Dive types & marine life
Green and hawksbill turtles are regular visitors to the reefs and nurse sharks are often seen resting under ledges. From February to May, the luckiest divers at the remote Les Cayes can hear, and maybe see, whales.
- Reef
- Wall
- Drift
- Wreck
- Cave & cavern
- Sea turtles
- Barracuda
- Reef sharks
- Whales
Best dive sites in Saint Barthélemy — Gustavia & Les Anses
- 1
Pain de Sucre
Prominent rock at 10–20 m with minimal current, ringed by sites that include the island's most admired wreck.
- 2
Pointe de Colombier
A wall facing the tip of Colombier and a large pinnacle where barracuda live.
- 3
Fourchue
Further out: rays, barracuda and turtles over a seabed full of garden eels, with reef sharks on lucky days.
- 4
Gros Ilets
Islet sites with drop-offs to 30 m (100 ft) and fast currents that make for drift dives.
- 5
Kayali Wreck
Cargo ship sunk in 1989, now an artificial reef at about 30 m (100 ft) for advanced divers.
- 6
Roche Roubes
Sharks and turtles asleep on a plateau, and a finishing swim through a sunlit tunnel.
- 7
Groupers
Rock passages and tunnels between Saint Barthélemy and Saint Martin, with Caribbean sharks.
- 8
Les Petits Saints
Coral gardens at 10–15 m (30–50 ft) above drop-offs to 25 m (80 ft) with larger fish.
Site guides
Hundreds of garden eels on the sand below a leeward coral reef
Drift
Drift dive along steep drop-offs swept by fast currents
Pinnacle
A pinnacle at the harbour mouth, five minutes by boat from Gustavia
A sponge-covered wall and a pinnacle where barracudas live
How to get to Saint Barthélemy — Gustavia & Les Anses
A small airport takes only small prop planes from St Martin and San Juan. Fast ferries link Gustavia with Marigot and Oyster Pond on Saint Martin and with Simpson Bay on Sint Maarten. The dive centres are in Gustavia.
Photos from Saint Barthélemy — Gustavia & Les Anses
User:Mattes · CC BY 2.0
Starus · CC BY-SA 3.0
Dive videos
Scuba Saint Barthélemy · Mahlon Clark on YouTube
BEST DIVE IN Saint Barthélemy · Balou on YouTube
Questions divers ask
When is the best time to dive Saint Barthélemy?+
November to May is the peak season and the dry season. July to October is hurricane season, with a risk of storms and heavy rain, though the boats run every day of the year.
Is Saint Barthélemy good for beginner divers?+
Yes. Most dives stay between the surface and 20 m with weak currents, and Gros Ilets has shallow sites for all levels. The Pain de Sucre wreck needs Advanced, and Les Cayes needs Level 2 and 50 logged dives.
How do divers get to Saint Barthélemy?+
Small prop planes fly in from St Martin and San Juan, and fast ferries cross to Gustavia from Marigot, Oyster Pond and Simpson Bay.
Can divers see whales or turtles in Saint Barthélemy?+
Green and hawksbill turtles are regular visitors to the reefs. From February to May the luckiest divers at the remote Les Cayes can hear, and maybe see, whales; those dives need Level 2 and 50 logged dives.
Sources
- Ouanalao Dive — Ouanalao Dive
- Serial Divers — Serial Divers
- The Essential Guide to Diving St Barts — Bucket List Villa
- Les Gros Îlets, St. Barth — Gustavia Harbor
- Best time to visit St Barts for yachting — Gustavia Harbor
- Saint Barthélemy – Wikivoyage — Wikivoyage
- Sea temperature by month in Saint-Barthelemy — SeaTemperatu.re
- Sites remarquables de plongée sous-marine — Enezgreen
- Dive sites – Serial Divers — Serial Divers
- Les Petits Saints dive site, St Barth — Gustavia Harbor
- Le Pain de Sucre — Gustavia Harbor
- Kayali Wreck, St Barth — Gustavia Harbor
Photo credits
- A branching coral colony with orange-yellow antler-like tips and dark brown patches, rising from grey rocks underwater. by Don Loarie, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- One sea turtle swimming in hazy bright blue water, seen from below with its flippers spread. by User:Mattes, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Aerial view of a green, hilly island with turquoise bays and a small rocky islet in deep blue water in front. by Starus, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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