One of the best diving places today, possibly the best thing about Sipadan is the fact that it’s relatively untouched. Go there and you’ll...
One of the best diving places today,
possibly the best thing about Sipadan is the fact that it’s relatively
untouched. Go there and you’ll find yourself exploring a healthy sea life with
very few people swimming beside. Quick and efficient, it’s not surprising that
a lot of water lovers go diving in Sipadan. Aside from the diving, however,
this location also offers numerous amenities for tourists.
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| Photo by Richard Segal from Pexels |
Requirements for Diving
Due
to the rich underwater environment, the government that handles Sipadan diving
requires permit from every scuba diving group before allowing access to the area.
It’s best to secure this days or even weeks before the actual dive. This is
because there’s actually a daily limit to the number of permits given: 120
permits. Your travel agency or hotel of choice will take care of the permit or
you.
What
to Look Forward To
Sipadan
itself is a patch of island located between Malaysia, the Philippines and
Indonesia. Diving rights, however, are owned by Malaysia so all permits go
through there. Once you arrive in Sipadan, you have several choices on their diving
sites.
Following are the different options and what you can look forward to when going there:
Following are the different options and what you can look forward to when going there:
- Mid Reef – it has a depth of around
15 to 20 meters, the mid-reef’s main attraction is the amazing amount of
colorful corals. Sea anemones and other static creatures can be found
on the ocean floor, swaying to the waves. A few fishes can be seen since
this is basically their home, but the focus is mainly on the corals. If
you want interaction with other sea creatures, you can check out a
different dive site in Sipadan.
- Barracuda Point – as the name
implies, Barracuda Point gives you the chance to get up close and personal
with barracudas! Keep your eyes open for schools of fish,
triggerfish, bump-head parrot fish and so much more! Around 20 meters in
depth, the current can be strong at this point so be careful!
- Jetty – this is the first place
you’d go to when scuba diving. Dubbed as the drop-off point, the jetty
measures around 600 meters below and offers a cornucopia of water life.
There are soft corals, hard corals, mackerels, and batfish
swimming about. If you’re lucky, you can also glimpse leopard sharks
and reef sharks, but try not to get too close!
- Turtle Cavern – the best stop when
scuba diving in Sipadan, the turtle cavern is around 20 meters
down and will remind you of spelunking. In here, you’ll find the remains
of hundreds of turtles because according to stories, this is where
turtles go when they’re about to die. The view is incredibly fascinating
despite the fact that there’s few water life inside. Of course, you might
still encounter one or two live turtles swimming about – possibly
visiting loved ones!
- South Point – featuring a sudden
drop down, the South Point is home to rare sharks like the thresher
shark. Be careful, this has some of the strongest currents in the
dive.
Typically,
a tour of Sipadan means going to all the different dive sites mentioned here so
you won’t miss a thing. Fortunately, Malaysia’s Sipadan features dive-worthy
waters at every day of the year. To ensure safety, though, it’s best to visit
from March to October since this is the country’s dry season. (Posted by Dave Calpito)
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