Diving in Crete

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Sbiriguda

Contributor
Messages
1,234
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Location
Italy
# of dives
50 - 99
Which specific spots would you recommend for diving in Crete?
Thanks
 
Hello,
I have dived only around the north/western part (north coast of Chania area).

I really don't like the look of their new website but you can get an idea about the local sites here Dive Sites | Chania Diving Center

The most popular sites are the "Cathedral" or "Cavern" and the "Elephant cave" (a must see).

As you can see in the website above most of the sites include (at least some) overhead. I know overheads is a BIG NO here in SB and I somewhat agree. Nevertheless local dive stores bring divers of all levels to these sites practically every day of the season with no problems so far.

The sites mentioned above (cathedral and elephant cave) are indeed very easy dives. Entrances are at ~14m and ~6m respectively, then there is an overhead section of about 10m long or less and then you have open roofed chamber in the cathedral or a huge (maybe 200m long and 10m or so tall) chamber filled with breathable air and lots of stalactites / stalagmites in the Elephant cave. The water in the Elephant cave is so shallow you actually walk around most part of the cave. Bring as many lights as you can and you will love it.

There are also some wrecks here (mostly from WWII) but they are at 40m or deeper hence suitable for technical dives only.

For operators Chania Diving is the most professional one. They cater all levels (from snorkeling / try scuba to trimix/rebreather/cave divers/dpv etc) and they can practically do all the sites. For Elephant cave a more convenient operator is Omega divers (their base is much nearer) - but they practically do nothing else. I wouldn't bother with other operators.

Personally usually I don't have access to a boat so my choices are limited to few places accessible by car which are not included in the highlights above. There is an area accessible by car with very nice macro (for Mediterranean standards) - nudies, crabs, gobbies, sea horse if you are lucky etc in Souda Bay but it is a real muck area (very fine sand, low vis, not much else to see other that critters). There are also some other sites with interesting landscapes near Stavros area and some sites further away from the city that have very nice visibility.

Unfortunately the whole area is overfished so don't expect to see schools of big fish etc. If you are lucky you might see lobsters, lion fish (the newest addition), moray eels, grouper, scorpion fish etc.

I haven't dived at all at the south side of the island, but I hear people saying that down south sites are wilder. Deeper but cleaner waters, occasionally currents (which are non existent in the north side) but also nicer/wilder landscapes.

For the rest of the island of Crete I have heard only rumors. Heraklion is supposed to have a more fish but again don't expect too many. There is a very easy airplane wreck from WWII somewhere near Matala I think at maybe 10m deep. I have heard that in the eastern part of the Island (I think near Elounta/Agios Nikolaos area) there is an ancient submerged city where you can actually dive around the ruins. This sounds interesting but I haven't tried it.

I think that's all I know.

If you decide to come, please let me know and I will try to meet you, if not for diving at least for a drink.
Glad to help with whatever else I can.

All the best
 
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