Aliwal Shoal South Africa

Aliwal Shoal-Scottburgh South Africa Scottburgh, Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa is home to Aliwal Shoal, a breath taking Marine Protected Area with incomparable diversity. Diving pioneer Jacques Cousteau himself, named Aliwal shoal as one of his top ten favourite dive sites in the world. The climate in the Kwa-Zulu Natal is all year 'round tourist friendly and boasts an average of 320 days of sunshine per year. Sea temperatures are also relatively stable, averaging between 21 and 25 degrees all year round, thanks to the warm Mozambique current flowing along the cost. The average visibility on Aliwal Shoal is 12 meters but 30 meters is not uncommon. When diving Aliwal Shoal the adventure starts with your boat ride off Scottburgh beach located on the doorstep of ScubaXcursion dive centre. Enjoy breath-taking encounters with humpback whales and dolphins. The main attraction of Aliwal Shoal is our sharks. The swirling mass of marine life and game fish brings in the predators like few other reefs worldwide, it’s not uncommon to have encounters with as many as 20 Ragged tooth sharks (also called Sand Tiger or Grey Nurse sharks) from May to October. Oceanic Black tips, Zambezi’s and White tip Reef sharks all year round and Tiger sharks during summer months from November to March. All aspects of Aliwal Shoal makes it a perfect location for underwater photography enthusiast. Aliwal Shoal has a great selection of Coral and marine plants. Descend to a colourful welcome in shades of pink and purple with branched black coral trees, untouched whip corals twirling towards the sun and large green coral trees decorated with goldies, other colorful reef fish making this dive site a spectacular and vibrant experience. View as many as ten different species of Nudibranch on a single dive. Aliwal Shoal is rich in living colour, these delicate jewels of the ocean cannot successfully be kept in aquariums due to their unique dietary requirements and other contributing factors that cannot be mimicked from the ocean. The best way to view Nudibranch alive is in their natural habitat and Aliwal Shoal delivers all that can be expected for the trained eye. The reef structure has more than enough small caves and ledges ideal for rarely seen beauties like the pineapple fish, Tiger angel fish and wide variety of pipefish. The wide variety of healthy corals and sponges attract grazing Green, Hawksbill and Loggerhead Turtles. With a plethora of marine life on Aliwal Shoal to keep our divers interest we have the added bonus of two vastly different ship wrecks, home to large resident Brindle Bass and Potato Grouper, all within a short boat ride from ScubaXcursion dive centre. The mountain like scenery of the reef structure is unique. Comparing Aliwal Shoal to any other dive destination is simply not an option. Aliwal Shoal is often rated by seasoned divers as one of their best diving experiences. No words can truly describe or justify the life changing encounters that Aliwal Shoal has to offer, you simply have to come and experience it for yourself. Therefore ScubaXcursion would like to extend a warm invitation to all diving enthusiast, Come and visit us