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Best Places to Scuba Dive in England
The most popular dive spots around England include famous and historic shipwrecks, more than twenty accessible beaches, submerged caves, and a variety of shallow pinnacles and natural reefs to explore.
This section contains details about the top dive sites in England for beginners and experienced divers, with further information about the marine creatures native to Great Britain.
When and Where is Best for Diving in UK?
The best place to dive with grey seals is the Farne Islands off the coast of Northumberland.
Even so, the other popular destinations where new divers can explore diving in England, include:
- Breakwater Beach
- Capernwray
- Dosthill Quarry
- Lundy Island
In case you were wondering, the chequered seafaring history of the British Isles has left an abundance of sunken shipwrecks for exploration.
The creatures living around the shores of Great Britain range from the tiny short-snouted seahorse to the colossal basking shark.
However, divers heading to the coastlines need to be mindful of big tidal swings and fast-moving water currents.
Best Months for Diving in England
For the most part, divers will be experiencing cold water temperatures for most of the year. The water averages 7° Celsius in the winter months (January to April) and up to 15° Celsius in the summer (June to September).
Pro Tip: Be aware that water conducts heat away from your body 20 times faster than air. So, wearing adequate exposure protection is paramount to avoid the risks of hypothermia.
Marine Life around the United Kingdom
- Barrel jellyfish (Rhizostoma pulmo)
- Basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus)
Beadlet anemone (Actinia equina)- Black seabream (Spondyliosoma cantharus)
- Blue shark (Prionace glauca)
- Common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis)
- Common dolphin
- Common seal
- Cuckoo wrasse (Labrus mixtus)
- Great spider crab (Hyas araneus)
- Minke whale
- Orange-clubbed sea slug (Limacia clavigera)
- Red gurnard (Chelidonichthys cuculus)
- Small-spotted catshark (Scyliorhinus canicula)
- Thornback ray (Raja clavata)
Pro Tip: According to the IFAW, over 500 different shark species are currently swimming in the oceans - and we separate them into ten individual orders.
A-Z List of Top England Dive Sites
- Chesil Beach (Dorset)
- Collywell Bay (Falmouth)
- HMS Scylla (Plymouth)
- Isles of Scilly
- Lundy Island (North Devon)
- Northumberland (e.g. Farne Islands)
- Porthkerris (Cornwall)
- Scapa Flow
- South West Peninsular (e.g. Babbacombe Beach)
- Swanage Pier (Dorset)
- The Manacles (Cornwall)
Pro Tip: The underwater structures at the UK dive sites means getting the PADI® Wreck Diver certification would qualify you to join organised excursions around sunken shipwrecks in deep water.
Related Information and Help Guides
- Diving in the United Kingdom
- Scuba Diving in Croatia
- Scuba Diving in Cyprus
- Scuba Diving in Ireland
- Diving in Malta and Comino
Getting to England
The London airports of Heathrow and Stansted are by far the biggest and busiest aviation hubs servicing international travellers to the United Kingdom. Even so, you'll find it easy and affordable to fly around the country.
Divers on a budget might prefer to use public transport, such as buses, trains, and taxis, to travel around the different English counties and coastal destinations.