The Top 12 Diving Spots In Malaysia For The Best Dive Experience

There's no better way to experience the spectacular blue ocean and beautiful sea creatures in our Malaysian waters than with an exciting diving experience. Thankfully for us, the country is blessed with a range of great dive sites across both Peninsular and East Malaysia. Get ready to explore the marine world with a dive underwater — just make sure to check out these best diving locations in Malaysia and tick them off your list!

Sipadan Island, also known as Pulau Sipadan, is a little island in Sabah that gained protected status in 2002 and is known by many divers as one of the best diving spots in the world. You'll need to hop on a plane, a car, then a boat to get here, but trust us when we say the bumpy journey will be worth it. The island shut down all its resorts to preserve its delicate ecology years ago, so you best believe you'll witness phenomenal coral reefs and walls while you're here, as well as an abundance of marine life and impressive biomass.

Another island famous worldwide among scuba divers, Mabul Island is best known for its amazing muck and critter diving conditions. Often visited along with Kapalai Island (and Sipadan Island), a dive experience here will bring you up close to an abundance of macro species, as well as rare species of marine life such as the Nudibranch and blue-ringed Octopus. The opportunities for beautiful underwater photography are practically limitless here!

Oh, beautiful Redang Island. This bustling tropical paradise may be known for its vibrant beaches and nightlife, but did you know it also is home to great dive sites with the perfect diving conditions? Being one of the nine protected islands dotting the South China Sea, its corals as well as flora and fauna are well-protected and extremely breathtaking, making it a great place to kickstart your diving adventures. You may even get to see large pelagic creatures such as reef sharks, barracudas, and even whales!

Perhentian Island is divided into two islands — Pulau Perhentian Kecil (perfect for budget travelers) and Pulau Perhentian Besar (great for honeymoons and romantic getaways), but no matter what kind of trip you're planning for, you're definitely in for a memorable diving experience here! Known for its beautiful reef, massive diversity of fish and calm waters, the island is perfect for diving beginners with its pleasant water conditions and great underwater visibility.

For advanced divers and wreck diving enthusiasts, make sure to check out the Sugar Wreck, a definite highlight of diving at Perhentian, with its healthy coral growth and various resident marine creatures.

Located between the more popular Redang and Perhentian islands, the smaller Lang Tengah Island is a secluded paradise lying within the Terengganu Marine Park. This little, pristine island offers great diving and snorkeling opportunities, especially due to its generally easy diving conditions that make it suitable even for beginners (as well as night scuba diving). Encounter an abundance of crustaceans, shoals of rabbitfish, turtles, sea critters, leopard sharks, and more during your dive sessions here.

Tioman Island is a densely forested island blessed with crystal clear waters and spectacular coral reefs — making it a popular destination for those looking for a scuba diving adventure. Perfect for divers of all ranges of capabilities and experiences, the island is home to over 25 dive sites, including the colorful, coral-encrusted Tiger Reef and its abundance of marine life. Be sure to traverse the magnificent underwater caves and canyons here as well to discover colorful fishes, reef sharks, manta rays, and moray eels.

Sibuan Island may be often overshadowed by the nearby Sipadan and Mabul islands, but the beautiful island offers arguably amazing dive sites, especially for muck diving enthusiasts. A diving experience here offers you the chance to spot rare critters, including some of the most iconic of Southeast Asia like the colorful mandarin fish as well as as various species of crustaceans and mollusks.

Located within the Semporna Marine Park, Mataking Island is home to luxury resorts for you to stay at during your diving adventures, as you explore the island's many dive sites (there are over 30 to pick from). Both beginners and experienced divers will find diving here hugely rewarding, especially with the array of marine life such as eagle rays, reef sharks, turtles, and more that reside in the area, including rare critters. Fun fact: you can plan a wreck diving trip here for you to visit the world's first-ever underwater post box!

Lankayan Island is known by many diving enthusiasts as one of the best diving spots in Malaysia (some may even say it's a close second to the popular Sipadan). With great diving conditions and about 30 dive sites located within the area, the island offers the perfect opportunity for you to witness beautiful corals and huge schools of fishes up close, as well as to enjoy muck and wreck diving experiences. With just one luxury resort on the island, Lankayan is the perfect getaway spot for a relaxing diving vacation!

Across the waters from Kota Kinabalu is the Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park (also known as TAR Marine Park), the first national park in Malaysia! This marine park is home to five stunning islands, Gaya Island, Sapi Island, Manukan Island, Mamutik Island, and Sulug Island.  

It is also known for its numerous dive sites with reefs that are home to impressive macro marine life, perfect for divers to go critter hunting. Magnificent sharks, turtles, and rays also frequent the area, so you may get a chance to spot them too.

If you're a beginner, the dive conditions here are ideal to test the waters with a PADI dive course. Experience the thrill of swimming alongside sea turtles and exploring vibrant coral gardens!

Situated in the northwest region of Sabah, the remote Mantanani Island is another gem for diving enthusiasts. The hidden beauty of the island is best discovered via dive experiences along its untouched coast of clear, turquoise waters and colorful reefs that showcase kaleidoscopic corals. Its many dive sites are also home to various marine life including ribbon eels, tropical reef fishes, stingrays, batfish as well as giant clams! Fun fact: the island is also known by the locals as Mermaid Island as it used to be a hot spot for spotting dugongs!

Discover untouched corals near Tenggol Island, another impressive dive site in Malaysia. With over 20 different dive spots to explore, the island is blessed with various reef types and interesting topographies of boulders and pinnacles, where you can encounter large pelagic life such as giant trevallies, barracudas, and whale sharks. However, we'd recommend this dive site only for experienced divers as the strong currents in the area may not be as suitable for beginners.

Learn more about PADI, the scuba diving course certification here: