
Similan Islands · Thailand · Reef · Coral garden
Waterfall Bay
Hard-coral slope of staghorn, table and brain corals
Area photo: Reinhard Link · CC BY-SA 2.0
Waterfall Bay is a small bay in the Similan Islands whose coral reef slopes down to a maximum of about 20 m. It is a hard-coral site, its slope built of porites, staghorn, table and brain corals, and a shallow, relaxed reef dive.
Where it is and how deep
8.6622° N, 97.6390° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The average depth here is 10-15 m, and most of the dive is spent at that level over an abundance of hard coral: pore coral, stag horn coral, table coral and brain coral. Below it the reef keeps sloping down to its deepest point at about 20 m.
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 | Prime | Prime | Fair | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Good | Prime |
Season follows Similan Islands: The park is closed by law from mid-May to mid-October; December to April is the calm high season.
Sources
- Khao Lak day trips — Sea-Bees Diving
- Waterfall Bay, Similan — ScubaGo
More dive sites in Similan Islands
Reef
A coral-covered rock standing alone on the sand
Wreck
The 27 m liveaboard Atlantis X, bow at 16 m
Reef
Longest reef in the Similans, over 300 coral species
Reef
Big granite blocks with reef sharks and Napoleon wrasse
Coral garden
Morning light on a shallow coral garden off Ko Bangu
Reef
Granite boulder maze of swim-throughs, caverns and morays
Granite arches at the exposed north end of the chain
Drift
Strong-current ridge with soft coral gardens and big boulders
Similar dives elsewhere
Brain, maze and table coral from 3 m, easy enough to snorkel
Staghorn and table coral to 18 m, with reliably clear water
Two shallow coral sites: nudibranchs at 12 m, macro to 18 m
Stingrays in numbers at Sting Ray Alley, the deepest site here




