Tenggol Island · Malaysia · Cave & cavern · Reef
Gua Rajawali
Cavern and swim-throughs between 8 and 25 m on the island's northeast side
Gua Rajawali is a cavern site on the northeastern side of Tenggol Island that combines a cave, swim-throughs and a gently sloping reef in one dive. Depths run from 8 to 25 m, and the published description rates it for advanced divers on that depth range; the overhead sections mean it is not a site for a first cavern. Divers come for the rock architecture rather than for any one animal.
Where it is and how deep
4.8147° N, 103.6774° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The boat moors off the northeastern side of the island and you descend onto the slope, which starts at about 8 m. The terrain is a gentle incline rather than a wall, so the guide can set the depth to suit the group and work down towards the 25 m limit of the site at an easy pace. The cavern and the swim-throughs are the reason to be here, and the guide will normally lead the group to them in turn rather than let divers find their own way through the rock.
Take each swim-through one diver at a time behind the guide, with the exit in sight before you commit; the cavern itself is an overhead space, so keep your buoyancy trimmed and your fins off the floor to avoid stirring up the bottom. Once the rock features are done the dive finishes back on the open slope, working up over the shallower part of the reef towards 8 m for the safety stop. Current, visibility and the marine life are not described for this site, so ask the resort about conditions on the day.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Good | Off-season | Off-season |
Season follows Tenggol Island: The island is closed for the northeast monsoon from November to the end of February; whale sharks are logged mostly from August to October, with a few in May.
Know before you go
- Overhead sections in the cavern and swim-throughs; go through one at a time behind the guide and only where the exit is in sight.
Questions divers ask
How deep is Gua Rajawali?+
The site runs from 8 to 25 m: a gentle slope with the cavern and swim-throughs on it. The published description rates it for advanced divers on that depth range.
Sources
- Gua Rajawali - Scubago — Scubago
More dive sites in Tenggol Island
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
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
Pinnacle and boulder terrain to about 35 m on the middle of the three Tokongs
Similar dives elsewhere
A tunnel through the island with three-metre nurse sharks inside
A marine cave to 19 m opening onto a reef that drops past 30 m
Yellowmouth, honeycomb and salt-and-pepper morays hold in the cracks.
Volcanic boulders stacked into tunnels, with a cave at 21 m