Seal & Sea Lion Dives in New South Wales

Fur seal colonies from Montague Island to Tasmania and the Prom, and Australian sea lions at Port Lincoln, Baird Bay, Jurien Bay and Kangaroo Island. Young animals will spin around divers for a whole dive; give the bulls room.

All states QLD NSW VIC TAS SA WA NT Territories

40 sites

Sort:Default Most dived Deepest Shallowest A–Z

IslandMax 20 m

Little Seal Rock

Forster & Seal Rocks · NSW

A complex, circumnavigable rock reef under 20 m with reliable grey nurse sharks and a strong resident bull ray…

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

IslandMax 15 m

Montague Island Seal Colony

Narooma & Montague Island · NSW

Shallow, playful encounters with fur seals at the largest seal colony in NSW.

Open WaterBeginner

Shore/Rock PlatformMax 15 mShore

The Steps (Kurnell)

Sydney South & Botany Bay · NSW

Sydney's definitive weedy seadragon dive – a sand edge at 10–15 m below superb boulder sponge gardens, opposite Bare…

Open WaterIntermediate

ReefMax 30 m

Drum and Drumsticks

Jervis Bay · NSW

Playful fur seals, a large swim-through cave and old practice bombs on a multilevel reef beside the Wandra wreck.

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

Pinnacle/BommieMax 26 mArea view

Home Bommie (Ulladulla)

Ulladulla · NSW

Close-to-harbour bommie with a sponge-covered double-ledged wall, small caves and occasional visiting seals.

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

ReefMax 16 m

Lighthouse Bay (Montague Island)

Narooma & Montague Island · NSW

Sea cave, swim-throughs and dramatic rock formations in a bay sheltered from northerlies.

Open WaterBeginner

WallMax 30 m

Martin Island

Wollongong & Kiama · NSW

Winter fur seal encounters on a colourful sponge and gorgonian wall only 15 minutes from Port Kembla.

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

ReefMax 35 mArea view

Shark Gutters (Montague Island)

Narooma & Montague Island · NSW

Grey nurse sharks in rocky gutters on the northern side of Montague Island, with seals passing through.

Deep/Advanced + experienceIntermediate

Shore/Rock PlatformMax 26 mShore

Shark Point (Clovelly)

Sydney South & Botany Bay · NSW

Boulder field, walls and a 26 m reef edge dense with sponge life, blue devils and seadragons – the best shore dive in…

Advanced Open WaterAdvanced

ReefMax 25 m

Steamers Beach Seal Colony

Jervis Bay · NSW

Close, playful encounters with 30–40 resident Australian fur seals in clear water.

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

Pinnacle/BommieMax 32 m

The Pinnacles (Montague Island)

Narooma & Montague Island · NSW

Kelp-topped pinnacles dropping into a deep sponge garden at the northern tip of Montague Island.

Deep/Advanced + experienceAdvanced

WreckMax 28 m

TSS Wandra

Jervis Bay · NSW

Boiler, twin engines, shafts and propellers of a 1915 timber steamer beside the Drum and Drumsticks seal colony.

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

Pinnacle/BommieMax 30 m

Aughinish Rock

Narooma & Montague Island · NSW

Isolated plateau with sponge- and soft-coral-covered walls to 30 m; the reef that sank the Lady Darling.

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

Cave/CavernMax 30 m

Bubble Cave (Montague Island)

Narooma & Montague Island · NSW

An air-pocket cave on Montague's northern headland, with seals often joining the dive.

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

ReefDepth not published

Disaster Bay

Eden & Green Cape · NSW

Wild, rarely dived bay on the far south coast between Green Cape and Cape Howe.

Open WaterAdvanced

ReefMax 30 mArea view

Edith Breaker

Forster & Seal Rocks · NSW

The historic reef that wrecked the SS Satara in 1910 — dived both for its natural reef structure and its maritime…

Advanced Open WaterAdvanced

ReefMax 18 m

Haycock Point

Merimbula · NSW

Haystack Rock bommie and reef beside NSW's largest remaining wreck.

Open WaterIntermediate

Pinnacle/BommieMax 22 m

Jibbon Bombora (Fish Reef)

Sydney South & Botany Bay · NSW

The reef that shelters Port Hacking: overhangs, a canyon and a huge overhang on the south-east side with giant…

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

IslandMax 25 mShoreArea view

Lennards Island

Eden & Green Cape · NSW

Remote, 4WD-access island with sheltered shallow boulders and deeper sponge gardens.

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

ReefMax 27 m

Maccas Reef (Jibbon)

Sydney South & Botany Bay · NSW

Rated by McFadyen among his best-ever Sydney dives: a multi-directional wall covered in huge sponges with prolific…

Deep/Advanced + experienceAdvanced

Shore/Rock PlatformMax 8 mShore

Manly Beach (South Steyne – Queenscliff)

Sydney Northern Beaches · NSW

The beach where a southern right whale and calf rested within 200 m of the sand in 1993 – an open surf beach with reef…

Open WaterIntermediate

ReefMax 22 m

Marley Point (Royal National Park)

Sydney South & Botany Bay · NSW

Massive boulders with swim-throughs and caves, grey nurse sharks and 20 m+ visibility on a calm westerly day in Royal…

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

Pinnacle/BommieDepth not publishedArea view

Mewstone (Eden)

Eden & Green Cape · NSW

Rock with colourful sponge gardens and better fish on its eastern side.

Open WaterIntermediate

ReefMax 33 m

Middle Ground (Cronulla)

Sydney South & Botany Bay · NSW

Compact deep reef with seals on most dives, up to six giant cuttlefish at a time and a large low cave – circumnavigable…

Deep/Advanced + experienceAdvanced

ReefDepth not publishedArea view

Neverfail Reef

Narooma & Montague Island · NSW

Old site name near the seal colony at the northern end of Montague Island.

Open WaterIntermediate

Jetty/PierMax 8 mArea view

Old Wharf (Montague Island)

Narooma & Montague Island · NSW

Shallow, calm dive among the remains of the 1880s lighthouse jetty.

Open WaterBeginner

ReefMax 27 m

Pizza Reef (Jibbon)

Sydney South & Botany Bay · NSW

The original 'fast-food' reef: a round figure-8 reef with overhangs all round, a central gully, colourful gorgonians…

Deep/Advanced + experienceAdvanced

Shore/Rock PlatformMax 8 mShore

Quarantine Bay

Eden & Green Cape · NSW

Sheltered bay with resident stingrays and seals, next to Eden's main boat ramp.

Snorkel/AnyBeginner

WallMax 27 m

Red Rooster Reef (Jibbon)

Sydney South & Botany Bay · NSW

A prominent wall with an old Admiralty anchor lying beside it, giant jelly ascidians and a resident seal.

Deep/Advanced + experienceAdvanced

ReefMax 20 mArea view

Seal Rocks – Little Rock

Forster & Seal Rocks · NSW

A minor named formation within the broader Seal Rocks reef system, offering variety alongside the main island dives.

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

ReefMax 25 mArea view

Seal Rocks – Sawtooth Rocks

Forster & Seal Rocks · NSW

A jagged rock formation within the broader Seal Rocks reef system, offering variations on the main island's shark and…

Advanced Open WaterAdvanced

ReefMax 28 mArea view

Seal Rocks – Western Gutter

Forster & Seal Rocks · NSW

A named gutter section within the Seal Rocks cave and grotto complex, closely associated with the Grotto, Labyrinth and…

Advanced Open WaterAdvanced

Cave/CavernMax 33 m

Smugglers Cave

Jervis Bay · NSW

Huge dog-leg sea cave with an ocean entrance and a sheltered exit into a small bay.

Deep/Advanced + experienceAdvanced

Jetty/PierMax 10 mShore

Snug Cove Wharf

Eden & Green Cape · NSW

Guided macro and night wharf diving in Eden's working harbour.

Open WaterBeginner

WreckMax 49 m

SS Tuggerah wreck

Sydney South & Botany Bay · NSW

The most intact engine room of any Sydney wreck, buried in schooling fish, at 45 m off Royal National Park.

Technical (decompression)Expert/Technical

WreckMax 45 m

SS Undola wreck

Sydney South & Botany Bay · NSW

Complete, upright 1909 collier with boiler, triple-expansion engine and the famous Shanks toilet, lost with all hands…

Technical (decompression)Advanced

ReefMax 22 mArea view

Statis Rock

Forster & Seal Rocks · NSW

A sheltered 'home reef' near Seal Rocks used when conditions rule out the more exposed island sites, still with…

Advanced Open WaterIntermediate

WallMax 42 m

The Crossroads

Jervis Bay · NSW

Pristine vertical wall at 30–39 m with pineapplefish, blue devils and anemone-draped sea whips.

Technical (decompression)Expert/Technical

ReefMax 40 mArea view

The Keyhole (Montague Island)

Narooma & Montague Island · NSW

Deep sponge gardens with large sea fans and pelagic schools beside the seal colony.

Deep/Advanced + experienceAdvanced

DriftMax 33 mArea view

The Plateau (Montague Island)

Narooma & Montague Island · NSW

Fast drift over a boulder plateau east of the seal colony – experienced divers only.

Deep/Advanced + experienceAdvanced