GrumpyOldGuy
Contributor
I posted a few months ago asking for advice on diving in Taiwan and I thought an update was in order. I have been traveling to Taiwan on business for some time, generally regarding it as 2 very long rides (24hrs for me) in a tin can followed by a week in the urban jungle. I finally got smart and realized the water was a lot warmer than New England and maybe I could have some decent diving at the end of a business trip. I was right!
I received advice from several friendly SB members and finally hooked up with Shellbackdiver1 for a trip to Little Okinawa (a small island 20KM offshore of Taiwan). I had such a good time, I followed up a few weeks later with a day of shore diving off Kenting on the next trip.
I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the diving and the reasonable prices. With 7 dives in Taiwan I am NOT an expert, but saw enough good diving to keep bringing my gear with me on every business trip I schedule in the future. The visibility ranged from 35-70 feet, the water was low 70’s (I dived wet in an old 3/2 with no hood). While there are areas that have been affected by runoff, the water is remarkably clean and the good dive sites were fine. I saw more trash in the water off Maui than in Taiwan. In Kenting the variety of small to medium sea-life was good, the corals even better. The only real shortfall was a lack of larger sea life as the area has been fished hard.
My advice to anyone thinking of diving in Taiwan is to hook up with knowledgeable local diver. The logistics are significant and difficult for an English speaker. There really appears to be no dive travel infrastructure. There are small dive shops that provide air/tanks/lead and sometimes other gear. They do not appear to advertise and even typical retails signs are missing from many shops. If you don’t know where it is, you will not find them nor tell what shops are decent and which ones are less desirable. However, once you get hooked up, its a pleasant surprise!
I received advice from several friendly SB members and finally hooked up with Shellbackdiver1 for a trip to Little Okinawa (a small island 20KM offshore of Taiwan). I had such a good time, I followed up a few weeks later with a day of shore diving off Kenting on the next trip.
I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the diving and the reasonable prices. With 7 dives in Taiwan I am NOT an expert, but saw enough good diving to keep bringing my gear with me on every business trip I schedule in the future. The visibility ranged from 35-70 feet, the water was low 70’s (I dived wet in an old 3/2 with no hood). While there are areas that have been affected by runoff, the water is remarkably clean and the good dive sites were fine. I saw more trash in the water off Maui than in Taiwan. In Kenting the variety of small to medium sea-life was good, the corals even better. The only real shortfall was a lack of larger sea life as the area has been fished hard.
My advice to anyone thinking of diving in Taiwan is to hook up with knowledgeable local diver. The logistics are significant and difficult for an English speaker. There really appears to be no dive travel infrastructure. There are small dive shops that provide air/tanks/lead and sometimes other gear. They do not appear to advertise and even typical retails signs are missing from many shops. If you don’t know where it is, you will not find them nor tell what shops are decent and which ones are less desirable. However, once you get hooked up, its a pleasant surprise!
