Pattaya Samae San Islands
SCUBA Diving and snorkeling around the Samae San Islands is amazing. Tropical islands, tropical fish, what else do you need? Turtles? Sharks? Stingrays? We often are lucky to spot them on our fun dives around Samae San.
As the area around Samae San is less developed and more quiet than Pattaya you can see the difference while diving. The coral reefs are more intact and healthier as there are simply less people visiting them and there are less stressors to influence the ecosystem. At the Samae San Islands you often have the best visibility as well.
It takes about 45 minutes by minivan to drive from our dive shop in Pattaya to the Samae San pier and 30 to 60 minutes by boat to reach the dive sites and snorkeling spots.
Our other boat takes you to the Pattaya Near Islands and / or the Pattaya Far Islands. Make sure to schedule at least two day trips to explore both the Samae San and Pattaya areas underwater, they are really different!
Read more about what to expect for a day of SCUBA diving or snorkeling with us.
- Hotel pick up around 08.00 – 08.30.
- Hotel drop off around 16.30.
The hotel pick up is around 08.00 and 08.30 from your hotel, where we meet at the shop to complete paperwork and confirm equipment sizes. Once completed, we head off together to of the two harbors we sail from. We normally visit a wreck dive site and a coral dive / snorkeling site in the morning and after lunch on board we do our third dive / second snorkeling spot.
Once the diving and snorkeling is completed, we head back to the harbor, unload the equipment and head back to the dive shop. Depending on where we go, we usually arrive back at the dive shop between 15.30 and 16.30. Our drivers will then drive you back to your hotel.
Snorkeling gear, lunch, hot / soft drinks, drinking water, fresh fruits and cookies on the boat are included.
We are the main operator on Jomtien Beach Road and take bookings from all over Pattaya. A vast number of hotels use us on a regular basis as we offer great service and value for money.
Please check our price list for prices and bookings or contact us for more information.
We will go to the Samae San Islands or the Pattaya Islands. The Pattaya Islands are divided into the Pattaya Near Islands and Pattaya Far Islands.
We can also combine the Pattaya Far and Near Islands during one day trip. Normally we organize one coral reef dive and one wreck dive during a day trip. Wreck dives are only possible for certified PADI Advanced divers and above.
The exact dive and snorkeling sites we choose depend on the weather conditions and certification level of the divers. We take you to the best dive and snorkeling sites of that particular day, so that you can experience the best of our stunning coral reefs and wrecks.
Choosing the dive site and location is normally done the night before. If you do have any requests please ask when you book and we will do our best to schedule it.
Samae San Islands Dive Sites
For the Samae San Islands we first drive by minivan to Samaesan, south of Pattaya. There we jump on the boat to explore the dive sites around these tropical islands. Especially around the islands of Samae San the visibility can be stunning and marine life is thriving. This is the area to go to if you hope to see sharks and to tick the Hardeep wreck / Suddhadib wreck off your dive bucket list!
The name Shark Fin Rock comes from the amazing shape of this dive site. Underwater you will find a huge rock / pinnacle shaped like a shark fin. You can easily spend the whole dive swirling around this rock. The top of the reef starts at 12 meters and you will reach the bottom at around 28 meters.
The coral species vary a lot on this dive site, like different levels of coral colonies. Eels and marbled stingrays are commonly seen as well as tropical fish shoaling around the rock. Make sure to check the blue every now and then as well, sometimes we can spot eagle rays.
We only dive here at slack tide.
Ko Rong Nang is one of the best dive sites of the Samae San Islands.
It drops down to 30 meters at one point, creating a deep dive site with a large variety of fish and bigger marine life species. The colors of the corals are amazing at Ko Rong Nang. If we are lucky we can see cobias!
It current can be strong at this dive site.
Ko Chuang is a perfect dive site for try diving and getting more comfortable in the water. This protected bay has a lot of sandy areas at shallow depth, perfect for practicing buoyancy underwater without damaging the reef or hurting yourself on rocks or shark edges.
There are lovely coral formations and anemones to discover, just stick around one place and observe anemone fish (Nemo) moving in and out of their anemone.
Ko Chuang is a great dive site to learn underwater photography as well.
Hin Chalam is a special dive site in many ways. As you can see on the map it is the most remote dive site, the farthest South from the Samae San Islands.
As it is laying ‘in the middle of nowhere’ the weather needs to be good. Only when the sea is really flat we can go to Him Chalam, mainly between October and June.
The Hardeep wreck or S.S. Suddhadib is arguably one of the most exciting dive sites around Pattaya.
Bombed and sunk in an aerial attack in 1945, the Suddhadib now lies on her starboard side at a maximum depth of 28 meter / 92 feet, 300 m north of the island Ko Chuang. The 2 large cargo holes as well as the boiler room located in the center of the ship are all easily penetrable and the cabins at the bow and stern offer grounds for exploration to more experienced wreck divers.
Build: 1918
Type: Steam Ship
Length: 69 m / 226 ft
Width: 11 m / 36 ft
Maximum depth: 28 m / 92 ft
At No Limit Divers Pattaya we take only certified PADI Advanced Open Water Divers (or above) to the HTMS Hardeep wreck, people who have done the PADI Deep Adventure Dive or equivalent. This is because of its depth (the top of the wreck is at 15 meters) at possible strong currents.
Not suitable for snorkeling.
If you do not have one of the above please contact us for possibilities not to miss out on this amazing wreck dive with an explosion of marine life.
Pattaya Fun Dive Packages
Silver
2 Dives-
2 Fun Dives
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Dive Equipment
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Dive Leader
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Hotel pick up and return (Pattaya area)
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Fruit, Snacks and refreshments
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Lunch
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Tropical Fruit
Gold
6 Dives-
6 Fun Dives
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Dive Equipment
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Dive Leader
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Hotel pick up and return (Pattaya area)
-
Fruit, Snacks and refreshments
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Lunch
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Tropical Fruit
Platinum
10 Dives-
10 Fun Dives
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Dive Equipment
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Dive Leader
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Hotel pick up and return (Pattaya area)
-
Fruit, Snacks and refreshments
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Lunch
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Tropical Fruit
Scuba Equipment
Should i buy my own scuba equipment? To answer this question you will need to take a look at what type of diver you are or will be but the short answer is Yes. It’s always a good idea to have your own gear for many reasons. Some divers prefer to use rental equipment; However, they will buy their own gear after a while. It is absolutely your choice to buy them or not. We highly recommend you to buy the essential equipment for you convenience. If you want to learn more about it, please read our article on Owning Scuba gear or if you have decided to buy scuba gear, We always have something available to suit everyone’s budget. Aqualung, Apeks, Scubapro and Suunto are all top brands available locally in Thailand. We have products to suit your style and have monthly promotions on specific items. Please visit our scuba dive gear shop and DO Not hesitate to contact us, our scuba dive gear specialists would love to assist you to get the best deal.