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Netherlands Antilles

Divesites
220
Centers
28
Courses & Events
116
Wildlife
36
© Mares

Explore Netherlands Antilles

The Netherlands Antilles, also often referred to as the Dutch Antilles, are a group of islands which lie in the Caribbean Sea. There are six islands which make up the Dutch Caribbean and they are split into two groups; the SSS Islands and the ABC Islands. The SSS Islands, of the Leeward Islands, are St Eustatius, Saba and St Maarten. The ABC Islands, of the Leeward Antilles, are Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao. There are many dive centres and dive resorts spread over numerous cities and towns on these islands which offer both dive courses and guide divers to the best dive sites of each island. There are also liveaboards which visit this region, mainly Saba and St Maarten. Scuba diving in the Netherlands Antilles ensures many opportunities to dive into history as there are a large number of shipwrecks on the sea beds here, many of which are accessible to even novice divers. The waters here are protected which has allowed the marine environments to flourish, resulting in densely packed marine environments and the chance to spot something exciting on every dive. There are many underwater adventures to have in the warm, tropical waters here!

Power Plug Type
A, B
Payment Method
AMEX, DC, JCB, Cir, Plus
Airports
SXM
Currency
Netherlands Antillean Guilder (ANG) (still used in Curaçao & Sint Maarten)
Dial Code
+599
Electricity
127V / 50Hz (Curaçao & Bonaire) / 110–120V (varies by island)
Time
Atlantic Standard Time (AST) – UTC −4

Places to explore

Courses and Events

Dive Centers

Dive Sites

Top Wildlife Sightings in Netherlands Antilles

The many different marine environments allow for a high abundance of different marine life. What also allows the marine life here to flourish and be in pristine condition is the fact that the waters here have been announced as a Protected Marine Park. The reefs are made up of marine flora such as Hard Corals, Soft Corals, Sea Sponges including Tube Sponges, Brain Corals, Flower Corals and many more. These thriving reefs, the artificial reefs which come in the shape of many wrecks, the Seagrass environments and the many cracks and crevices of the rocky topography hold a plethora of different marine species. The marine fauna attracted to these includes fish such as Angelfish, Groupers, Squirrelfish, Barracuda, Jacks and more. Other species include Moray Eels, the majestic Seahorses, Loggerhead Turtles, Green Sea Turtles, Lobsters, Crabs, Octopus, Stingrays and many more. On the luckiest of days, divers can also spot the graceful Manta Rays, Nurse Sharks, Reef Sharks, Flying Gurnards and Peacock Flounder. Some rare seasonal species spotted here include Humpback Whales and Dolphins.

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: 200

Moray Eel

17k Sightings
J
1.5k
F
1.2k
M
1.3k
A
1.2k
M
1.1k
J
1.2k
J
1.5k
A
1.7k
S
1.6k
O
1.5k
N
1.7k
D
1.8k

Green Turtle

9.7k Sightings
J
788
F
608
M
789
A
648
M
565
J
729
J
895
A
888
S
918
O
866
N
1k
D
1k

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 27

Barracuda

8.7k Sightings
J
734
F
584
M
785
A
452
M
459
J
494
J
698
A
820
S
814
O
812
N
1k
D
1k

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 600

Wrasse

3.5k Sightings
J
259
F
193
M
319
A
140
M
261
J
285
J
281
A
336
S
417
O
266
N
315
D
423

Hawksbill Turtle

2.9k Sightings
J
270
F
196
M
212
A
237
M
175
J
266
J
278
A
280
S
178
O
253
N
271
D
281

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 300

Octopus

2k Sightings
J
187
F
100
M
131
A
96
M
113
J
112
J
118
A
229
S
212
O
200
N
247
D
239

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 25

Eagle Ray

1.7k Sightings
J
110
F
109
M
177
A
132
M
127
J
173
J
137
A
172
S
106
O
118
N
162
D
190

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 100

Parrotfish

19k Sightings
J
1.5k
F
1.2k
M
1.5k
A
1.1k
M
1.1k
J
1.4k
J
1.9k
A
1.9k
S
1.8k
O
1.8k
N
1.9k
D
2.1k

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 90

Angelfish

14k Sightings
J
1.1k
F
836
M
1.1k
A
766
M
912
J
1k
J
1.4k
A
1.3k
S
1.4k
O
1.2k
N
1.4k
D
1.6k

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 3

Trumpetfish

14k Sightings
J
1.1k
F
814
M
1.1k
A
769
M
830
J
1.1k
J
1.4k
A
1.4k
S
1.4k
O
1.3k
N
1.4k
D
1.5k

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 12

Lionfish

13k Sightings
J
1.1k
F
845
M
1k
A
800
M
665
J
963
J
1.3k
A
1.2k
S
1.1k
O
1.1k
N
1.3k
D
1.4k

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 130

Butterfly Fish

9.7k Sightings
J
769
F
533
M
769
A
424
M
643
J
725
J
1k
A
898
S
925
O
849
N
957
D
1.2k

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 25

Boxfish

8.8k Sightings
J
746
F
506
M
661
A
413
M
472
J
545
J
715
A
911
S
999
O
875
N
889
D
1k

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 130

Pufferfish

8.5k Sightings
J
682
F
527
M
656
A
543
M
528
J
602
J
802
A
781
S
786
O
732
N
914
D
906

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 85

Surgeonfish

7.4k Sightings
J
587
F
488
M
616
A
381
M
545
J
502
J
663
A
674
S
756
O
643
N
785
D
776

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 2

Tarpon

7.4k Sightings
J
442
F
376
M
494
A
450
M
481
J
547
J
785
A
747
S
833
O
833
N
742
D
627

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 90

Goatfish

6.2k Sightings
J
543
F
404
M
482
A
294
M
368
J
433
J
530
A
611
S
626
O
620
N
581
D
728

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 350

Damselfish

6k Sightings
J
487
F
344
M
540
A
300
M
420
J
444
J
591
A
535
S
711
O
470
N
470
D
705

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 60

Soldierfish

5.7k Sightings
J
471
F
324
M
482
A
235
M
331
J
389
J
593
A
613
S
709
O
474
N
479
D
622

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 150

Sweetlips and Grunts

5.3k Sightings
J
350
F
251
M
468
A
215
M
357
J
425
J
442
A
549
S
582
O
488
N
569
D
601

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 110

Snapper

5k Sightings
J
390
F
274
M
435
A
247
M
313
J
326
J
431
A
507
S
595
O
456
N
506
D
544

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 20

Porcupinefish

3.8k Sightings
J
418
F
235
M
477
A
177
M
194
J
224
J
313
A
397
S
357
O
213
N
372
D
404

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 250

Scorpionfish

3.2k Sightings
J
230
F
217
M
344
A
220
M
171
J
222
J
308
A
347
S
253
O
260
N
319
D
326

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 40

Triggerfish

3k Sightings
J
201
F
174
M
229
A
128
M
132
J
223
J
313
A
321
S
364
O
316
N
284
D
358

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 40

Jackfish

3k Sightings
J
231
F
130
M
189
A
109
M
110
J
191
J
258
A
340
S
438
O
410
N
281
D
304

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 60

Squirrelfish

2.8k Sightings
J
291
F
151
M
219
A
148
M
110
J
228
J
299
A
182
S
316
O
175
N
202
D
504

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 250

Grouper/Basslets

2.7k Sightings
J
199
F
175
M
313
A
225
M
120
J
222
J
265
A
263
S
269
O
242
N
166
D
268

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 120

Flounder

2.5k Sightings
J
215
F
125
M
186
A
125
M
152
J
135
J
197
A
239
S
236
O
229
N
353
D
340

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 3400

Shrimp

2.5k Sightings
J
114
F
119
M
123
A
169
M
158
J
234
J
185
A
389
S
312
O
193
N
264
D
220

Common Seahorse

2.2k Sightings
J
133
F
81
M
131
A
179
M
148
J
216
J
274
A
195
S
189
O
204
N
238
D
185

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 80

Stingrays

2.1k Sightings
J
205
F
134
M
165
A
143
M
118
J
210
J
164
A
198
S
143
O
187
N
206
D
245

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 7000

Crab

1.8k Sightings
J
109
F
72
M
121
A
140
M
175
J
164
J
159
A
176
S
162
O
119
N
202
D
187

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 300

Squid

1.5k Sightings
J
88
F
67
M
52
A
59
M
106
J
182
J
248
A
259
S
150
O
77
N
125
D
101

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 3

Cornetfish

1.5k Sightings
J
158
F
109
M
121
A
101
M
85
J
89
J
102
A
163
S
140
O
106
N
165
D
136

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 15

Garfish

1.4k Sightings
J
164
F
95
M
84
A
83
M
101
J
145
J
151
A
176
S
128
O
124
N
87
D
111

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 8

Bannerfish

1.3k Sightings
J
116
F
53
M
92
A
23
M
106
J
109
J
131
A
159
S
157
O
119
N
120
D
123