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Shan Hai is a secret treasure. Newer divers ask "where's all the reef? Where are all the colorful fishes?" More experienced divers, with 80 or 90 minute bottom times, can find all sorts of fascinating marine life in the sand, on the rocks, out in the open … but it's also possible to have a tot...

Sounds like you did 3 dives at Hejie (that's the site with the little wreck at about 33m). That's one of my favorite sites in Kenting. A bit difficult to get in and out of, though, isn't it? Shan Hai sometimes has some really cool marine life in the sand, and is the best site for cuttlefish...

Hope your trip goes well.

Yup … Well, you have read my private messages about the [typical lack of] professionalism of the local dive business; I'll try to keep my rants private. But one good thing about Taiwan's dive destinations is that people are generally laid-back, mellow, easy-going folks who are not too...

Oops! That was "jin shui kou." Auto-correct did an auto-incorrect. Jin Shui Kou is a shallow dive site near where the electricity plant draws in the water it uses as a coolant. Shallow, but not easy to access from shore, so not often dived. I remember lots of healthy acropora corals; a...

The one potential problem is that in May, the better diving is usually at the sites which face West, which means those shore dives you don't like so much (Hejie, Ding Baisha, Shan Hai, etc.). But on a busy weekend, with enough customers, the boats will go there. And anytime of year, if the...

Centrals, back to your question, May is much, much better diving than early September.

I don't often go to Xiao Liu Chiu, mostly I guess because my buddies in Kenting trust us, and will hide a key so we can open up the place and let ourselves in and sleep if we arrive at 1 or 2 in the morning. XLC, on the other hand, has a last ferry leaving around like 5 or 6 pm on Friday...

Rumor has it that the Taiwanese government told the (non-Chinese) people on Lanyu/Orchid Island that they would build a tuna fish cannery … got the local leaders to sign a contract they couldn't read, and then dumped a bunch of barrels of radioactive waste into the ocean. It's a pretty cool...

Yes, one of Taiwan's two functioning nuclear power plants is there in Kenting. If you are concerned about possible radioactive contamination, don't go to the popular dive site 出水口 (although the more important reasons to avoid it are the jet-skis and banana boats, which speed around precisely the...

There are a couple quite comfortable dive boats in Kenting. I quite liked the dive boat I was on the last time I went to Seven Stars. My buddy Andy Gray arranged that trip for us. He occasionally posts here, so maybe he can refer you to the folks who operate that boat. (It ain't a cheap ride...

Centrals, most dive centers in Kenting are awful. I mean really, truly horrible. I usually use Dive New World. 墾丁帶福新樂園潛水訓練中心 Dive New World | PADI 5 Star IDC PADI 5星教練發展中心 I only go there a couple times a year now that I live up north, but they have always been professional, safety-oriented...

Yes, thick soles; also made of felt, which is much less slippery. I have a drysuit I bought for the Florida caves, but I rarely use it in Taiwan in the winter because its rubber-sole boots are too slippery for some of my favorite shore dives. Unfortunately, many of Taiwan's best dive sites are...

Yeah, that's what I thought, too -- my eyesight is weakening, and I'm not a great macro critter spotter -- and then I saw it. And that was before I invested in prescription lenses for my mask. Look for the seagrass that has little round leaves, about the size of the fingernail on your littlest...

I found this pygmy seahorse among the rubble, sand, and seagrass … but to be honest: it was luck, not skill. We eventually got our buddy Thomas' attention and showed him the seahorse. These pitctures are among the very, very few which prove the presence of this species in Taiwan. Coleman's...

Two final suggestions occur to me. 1) If you have a lycra cap for your head, bring it. They probably won't let you into the hot springs without one, and sometimes they don't have them in stock for sale there. 2) Bring or buy a plastic raincoat, preferably the kind that has a hood and goes all...

dive centers, not dive center's Two things that drive me nuts: apostrophes for plurals, and autocorrect!

If you're on a fixed budget, I think C.F. might be a better choice than Blue Safari. I've never used Blue Safari but when I asked about prices some years ago, they were one of the most expensive shops on the island. Maybe they earn those high prices by providing some kind of unusual value, but I...

In my experience, without a guide or a ride in a truck or any other extras, shore dives are the price of a cylinder (probably 200 or 250 (maybe 300 nowadays) for air, EANx more, depending upon the shop. This time of year, I recommend Bai Sha (surface swim for the little rock breaking the...

LINE_MOVIE_1551104082680 Melibe (one of many) on the Anilao pier night dive. Must have been 20 coconut octopuses and a blue ring or two as well. And lots more. I might lean toward Sogod Bay as being slightly better than Anilao, but it's a hard choice … more hairy frogfish in Sogod; more...