With so much coastline and so many seas, it is no wonder that South-east Asia has some of the best wreck diving in the world.
Many of the region's wrecks are not only great for their level of preservation & fascinating history, but also for the amount of marine life that now calls them home.
So if you want to experience some world-class wreck diving, click on a hotspot below...
Love marine life?
Coron Bay
During September 1944, an American reconnaissance mission discovered a camouflaged fleet of Japanese warships. They duly attacked, destroying 24 ships. 12 of these wrecks can be dived, making Coron Bay one, if not the top wreck diving destination in the world.
John Hernandez
Madang
Also in PNG, Madang has some great wreck diving. The Mitchell Bomber is an excellent example of a WWII plane wreck, while nearby, the USS Boston and Coral Queen are also fantastic wreck dives. A night dive on the Coral Queen is a dive with a difference, with millions of Flashlight Fish lighting up the water with their impressive show of bio-luminescence.
Tara North
Pattaya
Pattaya, in the north of the Gulf of Thailand, is the country's top spot for wreck diving. A number of wrecks are found in the area, the largest of which are a the Hardeep, an Indonesian Freighter that found a watery grave in 1942; and the Bremen, a 300ft wreck that provides a refuge for plenty of marine life.
Pacific Klaus
You might also enjoy...
Madang
Madang is a bustling town on the north coast of Papua New Guinea.
It is also renowned for some superb diving and its unique marine environment is of great interest to scientists, with new species regularly found here.
Tioman & Aur
Around 40km off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, not far from Singapore is the picturesque island of Tioman.
A popular holiday resort for Malaysians & Singaporeans, the steep-sided jungle clad slopes of the island rise straight out the water and smaller islets dot the coastline, making for a spectacular tropical dive spot.
A little to the south is the tiny island of Aur, which while difficult to reach, has good diving.
Bucket list big fish dives
There's no other thrill that quite compares to an encounter with an apex predator or gentle giant. For some, diving with Sharks is the ultimate bucket list experience. For others, it is swimming with Manta Rays.
From Myanmar in the west to PNG in the east, South-east Asia cannot fail to disappoint lovers of majestic pelagic species looking for that ultimate diving encounter.
Best places for beginner divers
Asia has a huge number of dive spots that have perfect conditions for learning to dive. It has so many in fact, that you may be having a hard time choosing where you should go.
Tunku Abdul Rahman
Just off the coast from Kota Kinabalu, Sabah's regional capital - the five islands that make up Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park are often overlooked by divers heading straight to Sipadan in the south.
The national park, which is named after a former Malaysian president, has some very good diving though, with pretty fringing reefs sloping gently down from white-sand beaches, plus some rare & unusual species.
Pulau Weh
