Scuba Diving Outing in Phuket, Thailand

One of our first exotic dive destinations was Thailand. While we were just newly certified and this was mostly a traditional holiday, we could not resist the opportunity of diving in the Andaman Sea. Diving in Phuket was the perfect conclusion to our Thailand adventure and a great dive destination.

Up until then, we had been mostly diving in Brockville, Canada, in fresh (and cold!) water so just the experience of donning a thin suit and jumping into the crystal-clear waters of Phuket was amazing.

We went out with Sub Aqua Dive Center and dove in Bungalow Bay. It was quite a long boat ride from Phuket but the boat was comfortable and in the end it was well worth it. Ten years later and I still haven’t seen anything that big and comfortable in terms of dive boats. Aboard there were showers, toilets, a restaurant, and a large interior dining space with tables and chairs. Of course, there was also a sundeck.

Visibility was amazing, there was no current and our guided dives were great. Perfect dive conditions for a couple of newbies like us at the time (Dives 13 and 14). As new divers, we were mesmerized by the biodiversity we saw. Huge clams, colorful corals, and a plethora of cool critters, all new to us.

We saw a blue spotted stingray, a big moray eel, scorpionfish, lionfish, triggerfish, and clownfish galore, as well as a huge school of barracudas. There must have been a thousand. Wonderful!

Another highlight was a carpet of garden eels swaying to the rhythm of the gentle surf. On top of that we also saw countless colorful starfish and sea cucumbers, and various species of shrimp.

We stayed at a traditional resort and didn’t bring any dive gear besides our prescription masks and dive computers, so we don’t have recommendations for a local dive resort for a longer dive trip or advice on a strategic location. Given the chance we would definitely go back to Thailand to see more of these amazing dive sites and critters.

You may like: 22 Tips for Choosing the Right Resort

If you have recommendations, please do let us know.

Note: I believe new divers should hone their dive skills (especially, buoyancy) before picking up a camera to preserve and protect the underwater world. So, since we were new divers, we didn’t have a camera and bought all these underwater photos from our dive guide, Miyuki.