Madagascar Diving

The islands off Nosy Be are famous for their tropical beaches and warm, translucent waters brimming with dramatic corals and colourful reef fish.

Scroll for more

Overview

Sainte-Marie-humpback-whale
Madagascar definitely deserves its growing popularity with keen divers. The islands off Madagascar are famous for their white beaches. And warm, translucent waters brimming with colourful reef fish. The warm Mozambique Channel separates Madagascar - the fourth largest island in the world - from Africa. It is filled with some 1.500 miles of pristine coral reefs.

Notably the waters around Madagascar have the highest coral diversity of the western Indian Ocean and the Red Sea. Marine life includes trigger-fish, eagle rays, damsel-fish, barracuda, and reef sharks. Invertebrates include sea stars, anemones, and sea urchins. Plus in season, you may also be able to spot Manta rays and whale sharks.

Diving trips are usually based on the islands close to Nosy Be in the north-west of the country. This is the best area overall - especially Nosy Tsarabanjina, Nosy Tanikely and Nosy Sakatia. The coral reefs here are healthy and full of colour. Plus the islands have escaped the coral bleaching found in other parts of the Indian Ocean. (Researchers believe that the cool water currents from adjacent deep ocean areas have countered the global warming effect.)

Indian Ocean diving

You can also find excellent diving off Ile Sainte Marie in the east. And around Ifaty near Tulear on the southern coast.

What is the best time for diving in Madagascar?

April to May and August to November are probably the best times for diving holidays in Madagascar. This gives the calmest waters and so best visibility. You have the greatest likelihood of spotting whales and turtles from July to November..

Avoid the heavy summer rains usually between January and March. Heavy swells make it difficult to get to remote dive sites. And also reduced visibility. Cooler waters from June and July increase plankton levels which in turn reduces visibility. (But the upside is that whale sharks are more likely to be spotted during these months.)

Diving in Nosy Be

The island of Nosy Be itself does not have great diving opportunities. However, Nosy Be has a number of dive schools which offer excursions to the superb dive sites at the Marine Reserve. You can head to Nosy Tanikely as well as Nosy Mitsio and Nosy Sakatia. You may like to stay at Sakatia Lodge so that you are based right at the heart of the action.

Wreck Diving off the Ile Sainte Marie

Madagascar diving

Ile Sainte Marie offers tropical reef fish and wreck diving. The Ile aux Nattes to the south of Ile Sainte Marie offers some of the best coral reefs. Divers enjoy seeing the turtles, skates and morays around Ile Sainte Marie. But the island’s pirate history means that wreck diving is also an option, as several pirate ships foundered in the bay.

See our Main Page on Luxury Diving Holidays around Africa for more destinations.

Interested in booking a Safari or Holiday?

Chat to one of our experienced consultants that's here to help and guide you. We use our expertise to narrow down the choices and present feasible ideas, so you can relax and ENJOY the planning process! Contact us!
Find me the best in for
Glad we booked with Cedarberg
"They were very informative and helpful. Milandi in particular helped us with car hire and when I lost my wallet on arrival in Cape Town. Milandi was always available to discuss and change anything required. Emails were replied to promptly. " - Mr Chris Jones, UK
Exceeded our expectations
"From our first phone call, our requirements for the holiday were quickly and efficiently met and the overall standard of accommodation booked for us met and, in some cases, exceeded our expectations. All the transfers worked well and directions to our hotels were accurate and simple to follow. The information booklet supplied was very helpful. " - Mr B Smith
Namibia was as wonderful as ever and didn't fail to impress third time around !
"Namibia was as wonderful as ever and didn’t fail to impress third time around ! Thank you for arranging it and for your patience and understanding. It can’t have been easy to keep going and retain the confidence of the suppliers involved in the chain and the customers. We really appreciated it that we were able to have the itinerary we wanted more than 2 years after we planne ..." - Mr Andy
We enjoyed it all
"Ginny created a holiday that was well-suited to our requirements. The arrangements, timings and itinerary were sensible and all stages of the holiday were faultlessly executed by the chosen representatives. " - Mr John Hartley, UK
Exactly what we wanted
"The services Cedarberg provided was excellent. We had a few hiccups and needed to change the itinerary a couple of times but Cedarberg was very quick to respond to our needs and helped us out very quickly. All the accommodations were excellent and suited us perfectly for what we wanted and doing at that time. " - Mrs Kim Swain
 
staff image

Kate Bergh

AFRICAN TRAVEL SPECIALIST

Hi I'm Kate, I'm here to help you plan your ideal holiday experience GET IN TOUCH