Ranked by recorded winter water temperature: Tasmania, Victoria, the South Australian sinkholes and the Southern Ocean coast, where 11–13 °C is the winter norm and drysuits are standard equipment.
Updated daily from the directory. 25 sites listed.
1. Tasmania Freshwater & Caves · TAS
Kubla Khan Cave Sump (Mole Creek)
Winter water: 6-8 °C · Site of Tasmania's first cave dive (1959) - a 1.1 km zero-visibility sump, for expedition cave divers only.
Cave/CavernDepth not publishedExpert/TechnicalCave/Cavern certificationShore accessMore in Tasmania Freshwater & Caves →
2. Hobart & Derwent · TAS
Otago Hulk (Otago Bay)
Winter water: 8-11 °C · Remains of the only ship Joseph Conrad ever commanded, visible in the shallows of the Derwent.
3. Hobart & Derwent · TAS
Tinderbox Marine Reserve
Winter water: 9-12 °C · Hobart's shore-dive reserve with an underwater snorkel trail, weedy seadragons and easy access.
4. Hobart & Derwent · TAS
Blackmans Bay
Winter water: 9-12 °C · Two easy shore dives in one suburban bay – crevice-rich reef at the blowhole and a giant kelp patch at the south point.
5. Hobart & Derwent · TAS
Kingston Beach (Handfish site)
Winter water: 9-12 °C · Easy suburban shore and night dive on the edge of the spotted handfish's Derwent range, with seahorses and sand critters.
6. Hobart & Derwent · TAS
Iron Pot Reef
Winter water: 9-12 °C · Reef, swim-through and small caves beneath Australia's oldest operating lighthouse, 15 minutes from South Arm.
7. Huon & Far South · TAS
Ninepin Point Marine Reserve
Winter water: 9-12 °C · Tannin-darkened Huon water brings deep-water sea whips, sponges and bryozoans into 5-10 m – a rare 'pseudo-deep' reef in a no-take reserve.
8. Hobart & Derwent · TAS
Sandy Bay & Battery Point (Handfish)
Winter water: 9-12 °C · A guided search for the critically endangered spotted handfish, a walking fish found almost nowhere else, in Hobart's own waterfront.
9. Hobart & Derwent · TAS
Taroona Marine Reserve (Crayfish Point)
Winter water: 9-12 °C · Lobster-rich research-area reef 15 minutes from Hobart, with kelp beds and easy beach access.
10. Hobart & Derwent · TAS
SS Lake Illawarra
Winter water: 9-12 °C · Tasmania's largest shipwreck lying beneath the Tasman Bridge span it brought down in 1975 – a dark, historically weighty expert dive.
11. Hobart & Derwent · TAS
SS Lintrose
Winter water: 9-12 °C · Twin propellers and engine of a Scottish-built river steamer lying in 2-5 m beside the Iron Pot.
12. Melbourne & Port Phillip Bay · VIC
Banksia Point, Ricketts Point
Winter water: 10-13 °C · Quietest entry in the sanctuary; very shallow close-in reef for snorkelling, children and relaxed night dives.
13. Mornington Peninsula · VIC
Blairgowrie Pier
Winter water: 10–13 °C · The best pier dive in Australia: seadragons, cuttlefish, frogfish, seahorses and the spider crab aggregation in May.
14. Tasman Peninsula · TAS
Cathedral Cave
Winter water: 10-13 °C · A huge sea cave system at Waterfall Bay, with chambers you can surface in and walls of colour outside.
15. Melbourne & Port Phillip Bay · VIC
McGregor Rock, Quiet Corner
Winter water: 10-13 °C · The sheltered fallback corner of Ricketts Point; profuse fish life over shallow ledges when other bayside sites are blown out.
16. Melbourne & Port Phillip Bay · VIC
Middle Reef, Ricketts Point
Winter water: 10-13 °C · Uncrowded shallow reef edge between the teahouse and the life saving club; simple night dive and a good intertidal-to-subtidal study site.
17. Mornington Peninsula · VIC
Mornington Pier
Winter water: 10–13 °C · Deepest of the northern piers with a reef along Schnapper Point; cuttlefish, seahorses and squid; diveable when southerlies blow out everything else.
18. Mornington Peninsula · VIC
Portsea Pier
Winter water: 10–13 °C · Port Phillip's oldest dive pier, with sea dragons and night-dive octopus.
19. Melbourne & Port Phillip Bay · VIC
Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary
Winter water: 10-13 °C · Melbourne's flagship marine sanctuary: eight shallow reef entries, tame fish, sea caves and seagrass twenty minutes from the CBD, perfect for beginners, snorkellers and night dives.
20. Mornington Peninsula · VIC
Rye Pier
Winter water: 10–13 °C · Seahorses on nearly every pylon, the annual giant spider crab aggregation, big stingrays and superb night diving – all in 7 m from a car park.
21. Melbourne & Port Phillip Bay · VIC
Table Rock, Ricketts Point
Winter water: 10-13 °C · The sanctuary's best terrain: undercut ledges and a cave-like hollow under a sandstone headland, with bigger fish and rays; a favourite Melbourne night dive.
22. Melbourne & Port Phillip Bay · VIC
Tea House Bay, Ricketts Point
Winter water: 10-13 °C · The most sheltered and accessible water in the sanctuary, right in front of the teahouse; sand and seagrass critters plus reef edges.
23. Melbourne & Port Phillip Bay · VIC
Tea House Reef, Ricketts Point
Winter water: 10-13 °C · The central reef of the sanctuary with navigable channels, dense tame fish and the best facilities of any bayside shore dive; the standard Melbourne night and training site.
24. Melbourne & Port Phillip Bay · VIC
Triangle Reef, Ricketts Point
Winter water: 10-13 °C · Deepest reef in the sanctuary (to 8 m) off a proper beach with showers; the sanctuary's main scuba training site and a fine night dive.
25. Tasman Peninsula · TAS
Waterfall Bay Wall
Winter water: 10-13 °C · The dolerite wall beneath 100 m cliffs, with kelp, sponge gardens and seals passing through.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the coldest diving in Australia?
Tasmania's east coast and Port Phillip Bay drop to 11–13 °C in August; the Mount Gambier sinkholes are a constant 14–16 °C. A drysuit is the norm from May to November.
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