Dive site · South-east
Shark Island
Named for its silhouette, loved for its corals.
Dive site · South-east
Named for its silhouette, loved for its corals.
First things first: Shark Island isn't named for what lives there. The rocky islet off Koh Tao's south-east point earned its name because its silhouette above the water looks like a shark's fin. What's below is the draw: one of the most colourful dives on the island.
Underwater, granite boulders form slopes, gullies and corridors dressed in purple soft corals, giant gorgonian sea fans over two metres wide, whip corals and barrel sponges. Most of the dive happens between 10 and 18 metres, with deeper sections down to about 28.
Schools of yellowtail barracuda hang off the rock, batfish follow divers around, blue-spotted ribbontail rays rest in the sand, morays and sweetlips fill the cracks, and turtles come through regularly. The current that sometimes runs across the site is exactly what feeds all that colour.
On calm days it suits any certified diver; when the current picks up, it's one for Advanced divers, and all the better for it.
Less than a kilometre off Koh Tao's south-east point, a very short ride from the Chalok side of the island, where several dive resorts are based.