Scuba diving holidays in Belle Mare

Mauritius' Eastern region is wilder and less commercial than other parts of the island but it has so much to offer. As well as being renowned for its beautiful beaches, this area of coastline hosts some of the best dive sites around the island. Belle Mare is an excellent base from which to explore the highlights of this magnificent underwater world.

The coastline around Belle Mare is scattered with sparkling lagoons and channels that provide easy access to the open sea and a host of some of the most exciting dive sites in Mauritius. The high winds and rougher seas can be challenging for divers, so dive centres in Belle Mare carry out organised dives by professional instructors in certain parts of the East coast only.

The current of the Belle Mare lagoon is one of the best and most popular areas for scuba diving and smorkelling. Ranging from depths of 12-30m, divers can expect to see a rich diversity of sea life here such as kingfish, reef sharks, eagle rays, barracuda, tuna fish and jacks.

La Passe De Bella Mare is stunning, but scuba diving here is subject to tidal flow and currents, which can be particularly strong. This beautiful drift dive will take you from the lagoon through a natural pass in the barrier reef, passing an exciting array of marine life on the way.

Dive sites within La Passe De Bella Mare include Sea Fan Valley, where a huge variety of giant sea fans can be seen growing amongst the coral along the cliff face, resulting in spectacular underwater scenery for photographers to capture. Other popular dive sites here are the Castle, which comprises a maze of channels and gullies, and Shark Point, where divers can spot various shark species such as bull sharks and black-tip reef sharks, as well as a wide variety of fish.

The Aquarium site, situated in the main channel of the pass, is another dive not to miss if you get the chance. This features a series of rocky outcrops which are inhabited by a multitude of fish of all colours, shapes and sizes. The diversity here is incredible.

This beautiful, lesser known area of the Indian Ocean is certainly worth exploring, and a scuba diving holiday in Belle Mare provides the ideal opportunity to do so.