Sipadan Diving Holidays: An Overview
What makes diving at Sipadan so special? First of all, its geographical position: Sipadan Island is in the centre of the richest marine habitat in the world, the heart of the Indo-Pacific basin. More than 3,000 species of fish and hundreds of coral species have been classified in these ecosystems.
Please note that Original Diving are not currently offering trips to Sipadan.
Located in the Celebes sea off the east coast of Sabah, Malaysia, Sipadan is an oceanic island rising up 600m from the ocean floor. Upwellings from the very deep waters surrounding this tiny island transport cold, nutrient-rich water to the surface which in turn brings in a huge variety and abundance of marine life, attracting divers from all over the world. The diving here really is world-class.
Turtles, both green and hawksbill, are around every corner along with a large number of white-tip reef sharks, huge schools of barracuda, jack and trevally, bumphead parrotfish as well as the occasional ray so keep your eyes peeled! There are around 12 dive sites to choose from around the island including dramatic drop-offs, sloping reefs and the famous turtle cavern.
There are government regulations about how many people can dive at Sipadan per day which keep changing so do speak to us before booking a trip. This means that you may not be able to dive Sipadan every day but there is still fantastic diving around the island of Mabul, specifically muck diving with all the weird and wonderful critters, and around Kapalai which has incredible macro life.
It is no longer possible to stay on the island of Sipadan itself as the government seeks to protect this unique and incredible marine ecosystem. Instead, you can stay on one of the excellent resorts that lie a short distance from the island itself.
