Southeast Asia · Malaysia
Tenggol Island
Current-swept rock and drifts, with whale sharks from August to October
Tenggol is a small island in the Terengganu Marine Park off Kuala Dungun, and the diving is a mix of shallow fringing reef and deeper rock swept by current. Turtle Point on the west side suits newer divers, while Tokong Timur, Clerk's Pinnacle and The Edge give drifts, walls and open-water pinnacles where giant trevallies and barracuda patrol. Whale sharks pass from August to October, and macro life is abundant alongside the big fish.
About diving in Tenggol Island
Speedboats from the jetty at the Kuala Dungun bridge take about 45 minutes to reach the island, and fishing boats around 2 hours. Days run from the mainland start early, with breakfast and loading before the boats leave Dungun, and the boats bring divers back to Dungun for the night after the last dive. The resort on the island has its own dive centre, with divemasters guiding guests around the sites.
Fringing reefs on the western side, Turtle Point among them, start at about 4 m and slope gently to about 18 m. Elsewhere the diving goes deeper: submerged pinnacles and boulders, a wall at The Edge, two submerged hillsides at Clerk's Pinnacle and a cavern at Gua Rajawali. The Malaysian Marine Park Department has sunk several vessels around the island as artificial reefs. Giant trevallies, bonitos and barracuda cruise the pinnacles, and Tokong Laut is known for big schools of fish.
Average dive depth runs around 21 m, and the deeper pinnacles generally suit more experienced divers, as they can be exposed to challenging conditions. The wrecks sunk around the island suit divers with Advanced training, the deepest lying at 34 m, while the two historical wrecks, Kapal Kain and Propeller Wreck, lie beyond 50 m and are for technical divers only. The walls are mostly sheltered and relaxing, which suits macro photographers who come for nudibranchs, shrimps and ornate ghost pipefish.
Best time to dive Tenggol Island
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Off-season | Off-season | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Fair | Off-season | Off-season |
| Sea surface | 28°C82°F | 28°C82°F | 29°C84°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 29°C84°F | 29°C84°F | 29°C84°F | 30°C86°F | 29°C84°F | 28°C82°F |
| Daytime high | 28°C82°F | 28°C82°F | 29°C84°F | 30°C86°F | 31°C88°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 29°C84°F | 28°C82°F |
| Rain | 265 mm10.4 in | 113 mm4.4 in | 100 mm3.9 in | 114 mm4.5 in | 166 mm6.5 in | 178 mm7.0 in | 168 mm6.6 in | 210 mm8.3 in | 202 mm8.0 in | 249 mm9.8 in | 524 mm20.6 in | 621 mm24.4 in |
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Good | Good | Good | Good |
| Sea surface | |||||
| 28°C82°F | 28°C82°F | 29°C84°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F |
| Daytime high | |||||
| 28°C82°F | 28°C82°F | 29°C84°F | 30°C86°F | 31°C88°F | 30°C86°F |
| Rain | |||||
| 265 mm10.4 in | 113 mm4.4 in | 100 mm3.9 in | 114 mm4.5 in | 166 mm6.5 in | 178 mm7.0 in |
| Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Prime | Prime | Fair | Off-season | Off-season |
| Sea surface | |||||
| 29°C84°F | 29°C84°F | 29°C84°F | 30°C86°F | 29°C84°F | 28°C82°F |
| Daytime high | |||||
| 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 30°C86°F | 29°C84°F | 28°C82°F |
| Rain | |||||
| 168 mm6.6 in | 210 mm8.3 in | 202 mm8.0 in | 249 mm9.8 in | 524 mm20.6 in | 621 mm24.4 in |
2011–2025 averages. Sea surface: NOAA Coral Reef Watch, measured at the surface, so deeper water can run colder. Daytime high and rain: NASA POWER.
The island reopens when the monsoon ends at the end of February, and from March to May manta rays are possible on the dives. April to early October is the calm stretch, with calmer water and favourable weather. August and September are the peak, when the calm season and the whale shark run overlap, and the sharks keep coming into October. The monsoon arrives at the end of October or in early November, and the island stays closed to visitors until the end of February.
Best months: August, September
Tenggol Island water temperature and weather by month
The sea surface stays between 28 and 30 °C (82–86 °F) all year. Most rain falls from October to January, peaking at about 620 mm (24 in) in December; February to April are the driest. Daytime highs sit around 29 °C (84 °F) all year. The coldest water here is about 27 °C (81 °F), so pack a 3 mm, or even a 2 mm, suit.
Dive types & marine life
Whale sharks typically appear from August to October, with Tokong Timur one of the likelier points from May and June on. Manta rays are possible from March to May. Turtles, reef sharks and barracuda are among the regular sightings, and guitar sharks are possible below 30 m at Tokong Timur where the water is colder.
- Reef
- Wall
- Drift
- Wreck
- Cave & cavern
- Pelagic & blue water
- Whale sharks
- Manta rays
- Reef sharks
- Sea turtles
- Barracuda
- Trevally & jacks
- Reef fish swarms
- Nudibranchs
- Macro critters
Best dive sites in Tenggol Island
- 1
Tokong Timur
A whale shark point with a little current, and guitar sharks possible from 30 m down
- 2
Clerk's Pinnacle
Two hillsides from 12 to 35 m with nothing at the surface, dived only at slack water
- 3
The Edge
Wall from 12 to 25 m, run as a drift
- 4
Gua Rajawali
Cavern and swim-throughs over a gentle slope in the north-east of the island
- 5
Fisherman Wreck
A 20 m fishing boat sitting upright, with long arm boxer shrimps and baby bamboo sharks
- 6
Turtle Point
Sheltered, calm fringing reef for novices, with guitar sharks and eagle rays at times on the deeper sand
- 7
Tokong Burung
Deep rock to about 35 m for experienced divers
Site guides
Pinnacle
Two submerged hillsides from 35 m up to 12 m, dived only at slack tide
Coral garden
Coral-covered slopes to about 18 m, one of the island's most popular sites
Wreck
A 20 m fishing boat sitting upright in 18 m, sized for a first wreck
Cave & cavern
Cavern and swim-throughs between 8 and 25 m on the island's northeast side
Reef
Flat reef in a bay at the northwest tip, 10 to 18 m, also snorkelled
Reef
Gentle 9 to 25 m slope with a pinnacle further out
Wall
A stone wall from 5 m to beyond 30 m, with nudibranchs and sea slugs for macro lenses
Wall
Drift past a rock at about 17 m to where the seabed falls away into the blue
Pinnacle
Soft corals and sea fans on the boulders, barracuda and jacks overhead
Reef
One of the island's likelier whale shark points; reef at 10 to 15 m under the lighthouse
Reef
Sheltered fringing reef from 4 to 18 m on the island's west side
How to get to Tenggol Island
The nearest airports are Kerteh, 30 minutes from Kuala Dungun, Kuala Terengganu, 1 hour away, and Kuantan, 2 hours 30 minutes away; from any of them divers take a taxi to Kuala Dungun.
Questions divers ask
Do divers need Advanced certification for Tenggol?+
For part of it. Sites deeper than 18 m with strong current ask for Advanced, while Turtle Point is sheltered, calm and suited to novices.
Is Tenggol open all year?+
No. Severe weather closes the island to visitors through the monsoon, and most of the resort staff move to the mainland until it reopens at the end of February.
How strong are the currents at Tenggol?+
Strong enough that drift diving is the island's speciality. Moon Raker, Mini Highway and Tanjung Api can run hard, and Clerk's Pinnacle is dived only at slack water.
Sources
- Diving in Tenggol — Viking Scuba
- Tenggol Island — Tenggol Coral Beach Resort
- Terengganu Travel Guide: Pulau Tenggol — Terengganu Travel Guide
- Tenggol — Wikivoyage
Embed
Run a dive centre, club or blog? Embed this map of 11 dive sites near Tenggol Island on your own page.
In The Logbook
- Nudibranchs: species, habits and where to diveMacro & muck · 13 min read
Similar destinations
Granite pinnacles and intact park reefs off Thailand's far-southern border
Volcanic gas bubbles through the sand off a current-swept island
A vertical chimney runs up through the rock from 18 m to 6 m
Remote liveaboard-only archipelago with the shark-rich Burma Banks seamount