10 Best Warm-Water Scuba Diving Destinations

BAHAMAS

The Bahamas is one of those magical destinations that even people living in the tropics want to escape to in winter. The country of 3,000 islands, cays and islets features fantastic beaches flanked by glistening five-star resorts and casinos; and though the Bahamas is just a onehour flight from Florida, it exudes a laid-back Caribbean vibe that is worlds away. For scuba divers, the Bahamas has it all, and more. In the Out Islands, you’ll find vertiginous walls packed with colorful reefs and big animals. And Nassau is home to possibly the most famous shark dive in the world — where shark wranglers feed dozens of Caribbean reef sharks — and the Hollywood wrecks of 007. In recent years, more big thrills have surfaced too, with expeditions farther afield to dive with oceanic whitetips and Grand Bahama’s Tiger Beach, where you can dive with one of the oceans’ top predators: tiger sharks. If these striped sharks don’t make an appearance, you’ll have plenty to see with toothy lemon sharks, nurse sharks and the occasional hammerhead. When the day’s diving is over, find a deck, grab a drink and warm to the rays of a sun that seems as if it refuses to set. — David Espinosa

>> DIVE IT: Stuart Cove’s Dive Bahamas, stuartcove.com

SILVER BANK, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Humpback whales have migration points across the globe where people can spot them breaching and tail-slapping from the surface, but places where divers can slip in alongside them are few and far between. Luckily, one of best in-water encounters happens to be just a short hop from the U.S. — at the Silver Bank between the Dominican Republic and the Turks and Caicos islands. Every winter, this collection of remote, shallow shoals at the edge of the tropical Atlantic sees thousands of humpbacks, who arrive en masse to mate and give birth in the warm water. Altogether, the Silver Bank comprises the largest marine-mammal sanctuary in the northern hemisphere, and a select group of live-aboard operators has special permission to make contact with these gentle giants in the water. These trips permit only free diving — no tanks allowed — but you won’t need scuba gear because the humpbacks tend to hang around on the surface. To maximize face time with these highly intelligent marine mammals, it’s best to float calmly on the surface. Mothers will be watching over their newborns, and they can get spooked if people splash or try to chase them. — Travis Marshall

>> DIVE IT: Turks & Caicos Aggressor II, aggressor.com

FIJI

In Fiji, divers get the best of both worlds — a soft-coral paradise and drift dives filled with hammerheads, manta rays and turtles — all in a tropical paradise. And while you might not think of Fiji as “easy” access, direct flights from LAX deliver divers to Nadi International airport on Vita Levu. From there, choose any number of islands to get your dive on, including Wakaya, which features Sunset Wall, just five minutes by boat from the resort. The wall starts at 20 feet, and is home to elusive frogfish hiding under corals and flamboyantly colored nudibranchs flaunting themselves on the reef top. When it comes to the big stuff lurking in the blue, you’ll get showstoppers like blacktip reef sharks and stingrays. Some divers hover on the wall and watch the life go by, but it’s hard to resist going with the current and making it a drift. To get the most from your trip, a live-aboard is a good option. — Tara Bradley

>> DIVE IT: Island Dancer II, dancerfleet.com

OAHU, HAWAII

The classic vision of Hawaii underwater conjures up winding lava tubes, hard-coral reefs fluttering with endemic butterflyfish, and big creatures like sharks and dolphins. The diving scene in Oahu is different; the best underwater attractions are wrecks. Advanced divers shouldn’t miss Oahu’s renowned wreck trifecta: the former Navy fueler YO-257, Sea Tiger and San Pedro. All three wrecks sit just off Honolulu, and Waikiki-area operators visit them often, usually as part of a morning advanced charter since the wrecks are deep and prone to strong currents. On any of Oahu’s wrecks, it pays to keep watch into the blue — you never know when a squadron of eagle rays, pelagic sharks or pod of dolphin might cruise by. For novice wreck divers, Oahu has a new attraction: Brian Benton of Dive Oahu says he’s recently begun taking divers to the USS Nashua, a 110-foot Navy tugboat sunk as an artificial reef in early 2012. — Travis Marshall

>> DIVE IT: Dive Oahu, diveoahu.com