Phuket Dive Guide : Racha Noi - South tip
About the location and site
Racha Noi, just 50 minutes south of Racha Yai, has several dive sites around this small island. With greater depths at some locations exceeding 80 metres and frequent stronger currents, it is a popular dive-site for experienced divers to explore. Although some bays are also very ideal for beginners. Racha Noi has become famous for its resident manta rays at several dive sites Manta sightings are the best from December to April, when ocean currents and winds create the ideal feeding and cleaning grounds for these majestic animals.
The northern tip of the island offers an opportunity for a good multilevel dive along a large pinnacle where spotting larger marine life like reef sharks and stingrays is common. Off the southern point is a nice drift dive along some spectacular scenery as you find yourself on top of large rock formations surrounded by deep water. On the southwest side, a wooden shipwreck draws a lot of interesting reef fish.
Racha Noi offers many opportunities for an enjoyable and rewarding deep-dive. It is probably not as famous as some other sites such as Anemone Reef or Shark Point, but it never disappoints.
Racha Noi, just 50 minutes south of Racha Yai, has several dive sites around this small island. With greater depths at some locations exceeding 80 metres and frequent stronger currents, it is a popular dive-site for experienced divers to explore. Although some bays are also very ideal for beginners. Racha Noi has become famous for its resident manta rays at several dive sites Manta sightings are the best from December to April, when ocean currents and winds create the ideal feeding and cleaning grounds for these majestic animals.
The northern tip of the island offers an opportunity for a good multilevel dive along a large pinnacle where spotting larger marine life like reef sharks and stingrays is common. Off the southern point is a nice drift dive along some spectacular scenery as you find yourself on top of large rock formations surrounded by deep water. On the southwest side, a wooden shipwreck draws a lot of interesting reef fish.
Racha Noi offers many opportunities for an enjoyable and rewarding deep-dive. It is probably not as famous as some other sites such as Anemone Reef or Shark Point, but it never disappoints.
This small dive site is a few hundred meters from the southern tip of Racha Noi, and is probably the best of the Racha area to see Manta rays. Once at depth, divers can find shelter from the stronger currents and improvise a route to facilitate a relaxed dive meandering around the large granite boulders and through connecting channels. The boulders start quite deep from 14 metres and run down to 40 metres and beyond, so overall this is a site for more experienced divers. The corals here are pristine and due to the cooler water here, there were no signs of bleaching. There is a good mix of hard and soft corals. Some of the walls around the dive site are carpeted with purple and red soft corals and sea whips. Gorgonian and other varieties of sea fan festoon the boulders and gently sway in the current, filtering microscopic particles from the water. There is a pinnacle below the surface off the tip of the island, with the highest point about 9 meters below the surface.
The usual surgeonfish and unicornfish can be found and if you are lucky, large schools of Chevron Barracuda can be seen. You will definitely find Crinoid's and colourful Long Arm Feather Stars, lion fish, Bearded Scorpion Fish, Wrasse, Triggerfish. In deeper waters look for Leopard sharks, White tip reef sharks, as well as whale sharks that are often seen around this Island.
The usual surgeonfish and unicornfish can be found and if you are lucky, large schools of Chevron Barracuda can be seen. You will definitely find Crinoid's and colourful Long Arm Feather Stars, lion fish, Bearded Scorpion Fish, Wrasse, Triggerfish. In deeper waters look for Leopard sharks, White tip reef sharks, as well as whale sharks that are often seen around this Island.
Phuket Dive Guide dive maps : Racha Noi - South tip
