Scuba Diving In Sri Lanka: Diving In Kappalady Reef

Sri Lanka is a small island destination below India with a rugged coastline of 1600km across the country. Surrounded by warm Indian ocean waters and coral reefs that are home to plenty of marine life from large blue whales and sperm whales to spinner dolphins, sea turtles and anemone, the island nation is a great place for diving and scuba diving. Meanwhile, a number of shipwrecks are scattered off the island’s coast, calling home to corals, schools of colourful, swimming fish and critters of all sorts. As a reason, adding scuba diving in Sri Lanka to your activity list is a great, fun way to witness the beautiful underwater world surrounding Sri Lanka. The country has several magnificent snorkeling and scuba diving spots.

If you are not an experienced diver, don’t fret! There are many PADI diving schools across the island to get you all buckled up for your underwater adventures.

In summary: Here’s why you should try scuba diving in Sri Lanka:

1. You can witness hundreds of specifies of marine life including colourful corals and fishes

2. Sri Lanka is home to great diving schools with qualified dive masters and safe, high quality equipment — It’s safe for beginners!

3. The island nation calls home to some of the best wreck dive sites

Best scuba diving sites in Sri Lanka

While there are many dive sites along the Western and eastern coast of Sri Lanka such as Nilaveli in the east coast and Unawatuna in the south coast, the best dive sites in Sri Lanka are located in the Kalpitiya region. A palm tree fringed region that marks up the peninsula in Northwestern Sri Lanka with 14 off-the-beaten-path small and secluded islands, Kalpitiya calls home to stunning coral reefs and mangrove systems with dense jungles. The region only hosts two dive centers, which means that you can explore the underwater world without being distrbed by too many travelers.

The best time for scuba diving in Kalpitiya, Sri Lanka

From October to April, the calmer northwestern winds and turquoise blue seas offer stunning scenery in the region. This is also the best time to head for scuba diving in Kalpitiya. The region hosts several incredible dive sites for scuba diving in Sri Lanka.

The best dive sites in Kalpitiya: Kappalady Reef, Bar Reef and Talawila Reef

Scuba diving in Kappalady Reef

In Kalpitiya, Kappalady is a small village and boasts of one of the most ambitious dive sites in the country. During the long Civil War period in the country, the region remained untouched and guarded by the forces of Sri Lanka. As a reason, most dive sites in the region didn’t see human intervention and it’s only now that they are being admired by divers across the globe.

The rocky reef hosts morays, stingrays, lobsters, schools of tuna, barracudas, colourful fishes, snails and garupas. Kappalady reef is located close to Elements Beach & Nature Resort and is easily accessible. At Elements, we collaborate with two of the best dive schools in Sri Lanka to offer you PADI scuba diving courses.

Safety of our guests is our priority. Therefore, we make sure that you receive the best quality equipment and are guided by qualified dive guides and licensed PADI instructors.

Talawila Reef

A quick ride from Elements is Talawila, which calls home to one of the most frequented Christian pilgrimage sites in Sri Lanka — St’ Anne’s Church. With cracked boulders hosting a variety of sea life, Talawila is a great scuba diving destination in Sri Lanka.

Bar Reef

Although the largest reef sanctuary in Sri Lanka, Bar Reef has suffered a lot of degradation over the years. With 280 species of sea life, it’s still a wonderful location for scuba diving if you are an ambitious traveler who wants to take the hour-long trip. Here, you can dive as deep as 20m.

The region is also frequented by a large aggregation of spinner and bottlenose dolphins, just a few miles off the coast. From October to April, you can also spot blue whales, sperm whales and killer whales if you are lucky. While diving with whales isn’t possible at the moment, it could be a fascinating exploration in the future.

At the moment, Elements is collaborating with two great dive schools in Kalpitiya region to offer our guests full open water scuba diving PADI certification courses with qualified instructors and safety gear as well as conduct dive sessions in some of the best scuba diving sites in Sri Lanka.

Why you should go for scuba diving in Kappalady, Sri Lanka

1. You can see hundreds of marine specifies

2. It’s safe!

3. You would be guided by the best dive guides and instructors

4. There are other dive sites nearby.

5. If you want a change of activities, there are plenty of fun things to do like exploring mangroves in a kayak, dolphin watching and kitesurfing.