Diving in Jeju

[afternoonnaps]

Hi all, I’m considering diving in Jeju, Korea late Sep. anyone have any recommendations for dive operator, helpful tips, etc? Thanks in advance!

 

[scuba_divo]

Hi all, I’m considering diving in Jeju, Korea late Sep. anyone have any recommendations for dive operator, helpful tips, etc? Thanks in advance!

Greetings Naps!

It might help to narrow things down a bit. Jeju has several areas that offer diving, although Seogwipo is probably the main one, and there are many dive operators in those areas. For starters, you could take a look at my trip report from 2022, which discusses some relevant issues.

Further questions. Are you:
-looking to dive any area of the island specifically (West, South East)?
-looking for any specific type of dive or experience?
-trying to do some training while there that might require a specific group (PADI, NAUI, SSI, etc.)?
-conversant in Korean?
-bringing all your own gear?

Hope this helps get you started!

 

[afternoonnaps]

Greetings Naps!

It might help to narrow things down a bit. Jeju has several areas that offer diving, although Seogwipo is probably the main one, and there are many dive operators in those areas. For starters, you could take a look at my trip report from 2022, which discusses some relevant issues.

Further questions. Are you:
-looking to dive any area of the island specifically (West, South East)?
-looking for any specific type of dive or experience?
-trying to do some training while there that might require a specific group (PADI, NAUI, SSI, etc.)?
-conversant in Korean?
-bringing all your own gear?

Hope this helps get you started!

Thanks for the reply! Here’s a little more info on me:
- PADI advanced open water certified 100+ dives
- if I had to choose what I enjoy in order:
1) beautiful coral
2) lots of fish or other animals, small is totally cool
3) big fish
4) cool canyons or topography other than wall dives. Wall dives are totally cool too tho.

Really, I’d just prefer a dive that has a lot of sealife to look at. Some current is fine but I find that too much current/drift means I don’t get to take the time to look at details of the sealife.

-I would be renting gear as I won’t be carrying mine with me.
-Shore dive or boat are both fine.
-Planning for probably only 2 days of diving this trip
-I unfortunately do not speak Korean, English only here
-no idea on area of the island at the moment, I’m totally open to suggestions! I will take a look at the areas you suggested above

Question - do you know what water temp I could expect for in late Sept? Perhaps that would determine which area to dive as I prefer the warmest water (I’ve tried diving in San Diego and it was too cold for me).

Thanks so much for your input and thoughts!

 

[scuba_divo]

Thanks for the reply! Here’s a little more info on me:
- PADI advanced open water certified 100+ dives
- if I had to choose what I enjoy in order:
1) beautiful coral
2) lots of fish or other animals, small is totally cool
3) big fish
4) cool canyons or topography other than wall dives. Wall dives are totally cool too tho.

Really, I’d just prefer a dive that has a lot of sealife to look at. Some current is fine but I find that too much current/drift means I don’t get to take the time to look at details of the sealife.

-I would be renting gear as I won’t be carrying mine with me.
-Shore dive or boat are both fine.
-Planning for probably only 2 days of diving this trip
-I unfortunately do not speak Korean, English only here
-no idea on area of the island at the moment, I’m totally open to suggestions! I will take a look at the areas you suggested above

Question - do you know what water temp I could expect for in late Sept? Perhaps that would determine which area to dive as I prefer the warmest water (I’ve tried diving in San Diego and it was too cold for me).

Thanks so much for your input and thoughts!

OK. That helps. Thanks.

The ocean is at it's warmest in September, so I think you'll be fine on that front although you may still want a 5 mm suit. Warmth also means the water can be a bit murky as a lot of microorganisms are blooming at that time. Korea is not 'South East Asian crystal clear waters with vis for miles', but there will be ocean life to see and plenty of soft coral.

I think Seogwipo would meet your needs. It's the biggest dive area with the most dive centres (increasing your chances of finding English services) and a variety of things to see. Diving mostly centres around the three volcanic islands (Jeju is a giant dormant volcano), so wall dives are pretty common although they do have some nice canyons off of the islands, and there's also some shore diving, just depends on what the centre has planned that day and the weather.

I just double checked the link on my trip report and it seems that Big Blue 33's website is no longer active. Not sure what happened there. Here are some other links I just found with some info.

This one has a picture gallery and a chart of what you might see (scroll down) and what types of landscape you might find:
https://www.diveoclock.com/destinations/Asia/South_Korea/Jeju/

Trip Advisor also has a list of dive shops with some reviews that might help in your search.
THE 10 BEST Jeju Island Scuba Diving & Snorkeling (Updated 2024)
I didn't dive with All Blu, but I do follow them on IG and they seem to be active. Actually a lot of the dive shops just use IG rather than maintaining an expensive website. This would let you see what they get up to, what languages they post in, and see if they feature foreigners in their posts. It would also let you contact them and ask questions.

Here's a travel blog couple's take, They also went with All Blu. Their dives were in June which is still quite cool, but I think their pics and vids might give you some insight.
Everything you need to know about scuba diving on Jeju Island, South Korea - 365 THRIVE

Gear: if you are a medium height, medium build kind of person, you should be fine renting gear. I'm big and just ended up getting my own gear because it was hit and miss whether places here would have my size. Something you might want to explore depending on your needs. Korea just generally has a smaller selection of gear than you what you might find in North America or Europe.

Let us know if you have any further questions, and please post back with your experiences!