Scuba Diving in Cabo San Lucas: An underwater world of wonders

Jacques Cousteau raved about the sea life he discovered in the Sea of Cortez, calling it “the world’s richest sea.” The waters are home to sea turtles, hammerhead sharks, giant manta rays with 12-ft wingspans, sea lions and more than 900 species of reef fish.

This means… There’s awesome scuba diving in Cabo San Lucas!

“Cabo” (as it’s called for short) is located at the tip of the Baja Peninsula – right where the marine-rich Sea of Cortez meets the Pacific Ocean.

What a rush it is to go scuba diving in Cabo San Lucas! (Janice is in scuba heaven)

Scuba diving in Cabo San Lucas

Beginners can be comfortable diving easy sites just a short boat ride away. More challenging and dramatic offshore walls entice intermediate and expert divers.

And then further away in Cabo Pulmo, well, you’ll be amazed by what you see there!

Un-cheesy sunset cruises? Best whale watching tours? Read our Los Cabos guide for water lovers!

Best dive sites in Cabo San Lucas

Land’s End:

Land’s End is popular because it’s so close to the Cabo San Lucas marina. It’s just a 5- to 10-minute panga or boat ride away.

See the famous underwater sandfall, beginning at a depth of 100 feet, at Neptune’s Finger; it was supposedly discovered by Jacques Cousteau. (Sandfalls are unique phenomena where sand flows down a cliff much like a waterfall does.)

The rock-covered North Wall is a great dive for beginners.

You start from a shallow sandy bottom, gradually diving deeper until about 40 feet, when you start to see rock boulders. The dive site is home to eels, pufferfish and lobster.

Hello there! You might spot an eel at Land’s End

The Corridor:

Along the Corridor, a 20-minute boat ride from the marina, swim over underwater canyons and enjoy drift diving. Visibility is good (often 80 to 100 feet).

Barracuda, hawkfish, different types of moray eels, angelfish? See them all here.

You might even spot a shark.

Gordo Banks:

Located about 10 miles offshore from San Jose del Cabo, Gordo Banks is an underwater mountain. Huge numbers of pelagic fish gather around the top of this sea mount, which is about 120 feet underneath the surface.

Schools of hammerhead sharks are the big draw, inviting experienced divers to sink deep into open blue water at Gordo Banks.

Wow! You may see heaps of hammerheads at Gordo Banks, but there are no guarantees

You may also spot giant manta rays and whale sharks.

Boat rides from San Jose del Cabo take about 50 to 60 minutes to reach the dive location.

Diving La Paz:

At La Paz, you can dive with sea lions at Los Islote.

Getting up close-and-personal with sea lions is always fun in Los Islotes!

La Paz diving trips often combine snorkeling with the whale sharks there.

We know you want to swim with whale sharks in La Paz – read all about it here!

Cabo Pulmo diving:

Then there’s Cabo Pulmo.

Strewn with coral reefs, this remote national marine sanctuary teems with parrotfish, bull sharks and the occasional tiger shark too.

There are lots of amazing tropical fish to see in Cabo Pulmo

The expedition usually involves a 2+ hour drive, including along a bone-jarring stretch of bumpy sand tracks, then a panga or boat ride from the beach.

We enjoyed diving Cabo Pulmo with Manta Scuba Divers; they whisked us out on a fast 38-foot twin-diesel dive boat – the fastest way to reach Cabo Pulmo.

And yes, we spotted many bull sharks along with one tiger shark, which circled and followed us quite closely for a while (making us a teeny bit nervous).

Scuba diving in Cabo San Lucas

Best time to dive Cabo

June to November is the best time to dive Cabo and sites around Los Cabos. Underwater viz extends up to 100 feet and more during these months.

For bathtub warm waters, go in October, when the water temperature fluctuates between 80 and 85 degrees F on average. (October is also pleasant above water, whereas August and September are extremely hot and muggy outside.) Our October dive trip was superb!

In the winter months, the water is colder – between 64 and 74 degrees F.

Diving Gordo Banks and La Paz is typically only offered June to November.

Prefer to go snorkeling in Cabo instead? Get the scoop here on the best snorkeling tours!

Cravin’ more Cabo? Find tips on restaurants, local buses and more in our Los Cabos holiday guide

Sea of Cortez marine life

See more crazy photos of the weird and wonderful creatures you meet diving the Sea of Cortez!

Cannonball jelly fish

Sea horse

Moray eel

Spotted eagle ray

Arrow crab

Whale shark

Cup coral at night

Giant coral hawkfish

Diving with sharks

Coral hawkfish

Playful sea lion

Playing hide-and-seek

Scuba diver with manta ray

Photo credits:  Manta Scuba Divers 2, 5, 7, 11, 16, 20  | Nautilus Dive Tech 1, 3, 9, 10, 12 – 15, 17 – 19 | Eagle Divers 4 | Cabo Adventures 8 | 

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Have you gone scuba diving in Cabo San Lucas? Where?

Janice and George

We’re Janice and George Mucalov, award-winning travel writers, sharing tales of luxury travel with a twist of adventure at Sand In My Suitcase.