Is Coron good for beginner divers?

Yes, partly: 4 of the 19 dive sites we document are suited to Open Water divers, including Lusong Gunboat, Lusong Reef and Sangat Coral Gardens. The others need more experience or a higher certification.

What is the water temperature in Coron?

The water is usually between 27 °C and 30 °C over the year.

What marine life can you see in Coron?

Divers regularly see turtles, barracuda, trevally, nudibranchs, scorpionfish and batfish.

Coron

Diving in Philippines

19 documented dive sites, 4 of them for Open Water divers. Known for turtles, barracuda and trevally.

Best months: Dec–Apr
Water: 27–30 °C
Levels: Open Water, Advanced, Experienced

Photo: Nicko Melendres, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

When to go

Pick a month: the diving season, from published sources, and the typical weather.

Pick a month

Best
Good
Possible
Closed
Not documented yet

Coron in October

Good season

Sea: 30 °C; at the surface
Air: 29 °C; 27 °C at night
Rain: 330 mm; one of the wettest months
Wind: 16 km/h; on average

The warmest water of the year.

Typical weather, not a forecast: averages for 2021–2025 (air, rain, wind) and 2023–2025 (sea), data from Open-Meteo (ERA5 / Copernicus, Météo-France). Covers an area of roughly 10 to 25 km around the destination.

Dive-the-World: dry season Dec–Apr best, rainy May–Nov (wettest Jul–Aug). Other sources stretch the good season: SSI Oct–May, PADI Oct–Jun, Liveaboard.com Nov–May with Dec–Mar best. Dec–Apr shown as best; May, Jun, Oct and Nov shown as good (inside some sources' window but rainy season per DTW); Jul–Sep shown as possible. Diving is year-round.

Source: dive-the-world.com

Dive sites in Coron

From the easiest to the most demanding. Levels with a dashed outline are estimates we are still verifying.

Open Water friendly

usual dive down to 18 m4 sites

Wreck

down to 15 m

Lusong Gunboat

A shallow Japanese gunboat off Lusong island, encrusted with coral and popular with snorkellers as well as divers.

Open Water

Drift

down to 15 m

Lusong Reef

Two-kilometre reef along Lusong Island with soft and hard corals and frequent sea turtle sightings; an easy dive with a gentle drift on the right tide.

Open Water
Turtles

Reef

down to 25 m

Sangat Coral Gardens

Protected sanctuary reef off Sangat Island starting at 1–3 m, with small drop-offs and little caves, reachable on foot from the resort.

Open Water

Reef

down to 18 m

Dynamite Point Reef

Coral gardens off Chindonan Island with colourful soft corals and very large sea fans, all within 18 m.

Open Water

For Advanced divers

usual dive down to 30 m12 sites

Hidden gem

Barracuda Lake

A lake where fresh water sits on top of salt water heated by geothermal vents to 38 C, with a resident barracuda.

Advanced
Lake
Barracuda

Drift

down to 34 m

Calumbuyan Reef

Island reef with coral gardens on its east side and a 1-3 knot channel drift along the south side from 4 to 34 m.

Advanced

Wreck

down to 36 m

Kogyo Maru

A freighter to 34 m where you can swim through the engine room, bridge and all 6 holds at 22-28 m.

Advanced
Barracuda

Wreck

down to 26 m

Morazan Maru (Ekkai Maru)

A wreck lying on its side at 12-26 m, teeming with snappers and cardinalfish, with the occasional turtle.

Advanced
Turtles

Wreck

down to 22 m

Teru Kaze Maru (East Tangat Gunboat)

A Japanese gunboat or submarine hunter in very shallow water off the east side of Tangat Island, from 3 m to 22 m.

Advanced
Mandarinfish

Cavern

down to 25 m

Cathedral Cave

A reef hole at 6 m leads by tunnel into a chamber with stalactites lit by shafts of sunlight; calm seas only.

Advanced

Wreck

down to 32 m

Nanshin Maru (Black Island Wreck)

A wreck sitting upright on a sandy bottom off Black Island, full of scorpionfish, lionfish, trumpetfish and batfish.

Advanced
Scorpionfish

Wreck

down to 26 m

Okikawa Maru

Advanced
Barracuda

Wreck

down to 32 m

Olympia Maru

Advanced
Barracuda

Siete Pecados

A marine-sanctuary reef of table and staghorn corals where turtles, Napoleon wrasse and mandarinfish can be seen.

Advanced
Reef
Turtles

Wreck

down to 22 m

Skeleton Wreck

The weathered ribs of a small fishing boat off Coron Island, starting at 4 m, with a lot of macro life hiding inside.

Advanced

Pinnacle

down to 25 m

Twin Peaks

Two coral seamounts with reef slopes to 25 m where white-tip reef sharks and barracuda may appear, and pygmy seahorses in the shallows.

Advanced
Whitetip reef sharks

For experienced divers

usual dive down to 40 m3 sites

Wreck

down to 45 m

Irako

A 145 m Japanese refrigerated provisions ship lying upright to 43 m, with deck areas between 28 and 35 m.

Experienced
Turtles

Wreck

down to 39 m

Kyokuzan Maru

A 180 m Japanese freighter northeast of Busuanga, away from the main cluster of Coron wrecks.

Experienced
Scorpionfish

Akitsushima

Experienced
Wreck
Tuna

Marine life

When the big encounters happen, month by month.

Reported here, season not documented yet:

Turtles
Barracuda
Trevally
Nudibranchs
Scorpionfish
Batfish
Groupers
Snappers
Sea snakes
Whitetip reef sharks
Dugong
Tuna
Cuttlefish
Ghost pipefish
Mandarinfish
Pygmy seahorses
Seahorses
Napoleon wrasse

Where is Coron?

View on OpenStreetMapLocation: Coron Island (Wikipedia)Map: Natural Earth

Coron: frequently asked questions

When is the best time to dive Coron?: The best months to dive Coron are Dec–Apr. Dive-the-World: dry season Dec–Apr best, rainy May–Nov (wettest Jul–Aug). Other sources stretch the good season: SSI Oct–May, PADI Oct–Jun, Liveaboard.com Nov–May with Dec–Mar best. Dec–Apr shown as best; May, Jun, Oct and Nov shown as good (inside some sources' window but rainy season per DTW); Jul–Sep shown as possible. Diving is year-round.
Is Coron good for beginner divers?: Yes, partly: 4 of the 19 dive sites we document are suited to Open Water divers, including Lusong Gunboat, Lusong Reef and Sangat Coral Gardens. The others need more experience or a higher certification.
What is the water temperature in Coron?: The water is usually between 27 °C and 30 °C over the year.
What marine life can you see in Coron?: Divers regularly see turtles, barracuda, trevally, nudibranchs, scorpionfish and batfish.

About this page

Seasons and marine life come from the sources below. Site levels and depths marked as estimated come from our original catalogue and are being checked one by one. Conditions change: always confirm with a local dive centre.

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Photo: Sarah Lee on Unsplash

Photo credits

Lagoons and karst cliffs of Coron Island, Nicko Melendres, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Barracuda Lake Dive site, Coron, Madcel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Akitsushima Wreck dive site, Coron, Philippines, Ryan Sia, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The Siete Pecados islets, Coron, Patrickroque01, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Sunlight and bubbles in deep blue water, Sarah Lee, Unsplash License, on Unsplash