About Reef Explorers
Who's behind it
I'm Sébastien. I work in IT by trade, and I came to diving by chance: at 33, on a discovery dive in Vietnam. It was love at first breath. I did my Open Water and Advanced in Nha Trang, then my Rescue, Divemaster and Instructor courses on the Gili Islands, where I taught for two years. Diving is a hobby again now, and I still dive for fun whenever I can travel: Belize, Mexico, the Philippines, Thailand, Egypt.
- Vietnam A discovery dive, by chance, at 33
- Nha Trang Open Water, then Advanced
- Gili Islands Rescue, Divemaster, Instructor
- Gili Islands Two years teaching
- Belize, Mexico, Philippines, Thailand, Egypt Still diving for fun, whenever I can travel
- Reef Explorers The guide I wished I'd had
As an instructor, I kept running into the same problem. Looking for dive sites online, I landed again and again on pages that only listed the places where one agency had centres. Divers come from every agency, and the ocean doesn't care which card you carry. Reef Explorers is the guide I wished I could send them to: every site, every level, every agency, with the sources.
Why we built it
Most dive travel sites start from a hotel or a boat to sell. We start from the dive itself: how deep it goes, what level it needs, what lives there and in which months. Then we help you find the destinations that fit your certification and your dates.
What's in the catalogue
- 111 destinations in 47 countries, from week-long regions to single dives worth the trip.
- 1274 dive sites, each with its depth, recommended level and conditions.
- 10,060 facts backed by one of 2195 published sources, each linked from the page where it is used.
Independent by design
No destination, dive centre or liveaboard can pay to appear or to rank higher. If we ever earn a commission on a booking, the link will be clearly labelled, and it will never change a ranking or a recommendation.
Honest about what we don't know
Every value on the site says where it comes from. When a depth or a level hasn't been checked against a published source yet, we mark it as estimated. When we don't know a season, we say so instead of guessing. Read how we rate dive sites and the sources we use.
Dive safely
Conditions change with the season, the weather and the tide. Our pages help you plan; they don't replace a briefing. Always confirm conditions and requirements with a local dive centre, and dive within your training.