Imagine this, a huge area of light turquoise waters and there, in the middle, is a dark blue, almost perfectly round sinkhole of 125 metres deep, and 300 metres in diameter, this is the Great Blue Hole in Belize. Located off the coast of Belize in the Lighthouse Reef in the Belize Great Barrier Reef, this is a unique geographical phenomenon and a unique diving experience. Around the Blue Hole is some of the best coral reefs that Belize has to offer, but on the inside it is all about the unique wall topography including caves and interestingly shaped stalactites. It really gives an opportunity to more experienced divers to experience ‘floating in the abyss’ and essentially having a sensory deprivation experience. It has a UNESCO world heritage site status.
Divers who want to visit the Great Blue Hole do not necessarily need to be Advanced Open Water certified, however, it would be an even better experience if they are as firstly it would mean being able to delve down deeper into the Blue Hole experience and it would mean being able to see the Caves located at 30 metres. This would be an even greater experience should divers have their Deep Speciality. Of course this is an ideal location for tec divers to reach new limits. All diving here is done from boats, either day trip boats from dive centres and dive resorts in Belize, or from liveaboards as this is a popular destination for liveaboards. This is not a location that would be visited for dive courses.
The Great Blue Hole is located in the Caribbean Sea and the benefits of that are warm waters and pleasant climate to be enjoyed year round. Belize has a dry and a rainy season but the annual rainfall is not incredibly high so does not often have a negative effect on diving. The water temperature here ranges between 24°C and 29°C and the visibility between 15 and 30 metres. November to January usually has the strongest winds, but this also does not often prevent diving.
There is quite a lot to see here throughout the year, but the month of June is the best for spotting larger species including Manta Rays, Hammerhead Sharks and Whale Sharks.
Even though the reef surrounding the Great Blue Hole has some of the most impressive coral reefs in the area, due to the lack of light inside the Great Blue Hole, the walls inside are not covered in corals but rather with Sea Plants and Algae. However, this does not take away from the impressive topography it offers. The impressive topography definitely makes up for the lack of marine life. The walls are covered in large stalactites, columns and interestingly shaped rock formations. These formations plus the sheer drop into the abyss and having no sense of depth is what makes this dive so uniquely thrilling.
Wildlife Sightings are Based on User Generated Content
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 27
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 25
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 200
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 600
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 300
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 90
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 2
