Scuba Diving

The Kisite-Mpunguti Marine Park & National Reserve offers some of the best diving on the East African Coast; certainly the shallow and clear water around the islands provides an ideal location for first time divers. If you would like to experience a scuba dive for the very first time then do a FUN DIVE safely with us.

Fun dives are offered for those who have never tried diving before. You will have the chance to do a dive with an instructor at a shallow controlled depth, after receiving a detailed briefing. This will give you the opportunity to see just how easy, safe and enjoyable diving can be for everyone!

If you have snorkelled before, and want to take the next step and scuba dive, the fun dive experience is a great way to explore the exciting adventure of scuba diving, without having to commit to a full course.
Children as young as 10 can also join and have amazing stories to tell their friends.

Your scuba guides are extremely experienced and know how to relax guests and prepare them to enjoy this unique moment. Our dives are usually between 5-6m. The excitement of seeing eye to eye so much of the Kisite underwater world is just mind-blowing for the first experience.

You receive a full briefing on aboard your dhow on the way to the Marine Park. And learn the basics about their equipment that you will be using underwater. Soon after that you will experience scuba diving for the first time, diving to a maximum safe depth of 5-6 metres for approximately 30 minutes. You will enter a fantastic underwater world and possibly be joined by dolphins & turtles.

There is also time to have fun snorkeling either before or after your fun dive. Let Kisite be an introduction to the fantastic underwater world of East Africa.

What makes Shimoni so spectacular to divers is the variety of dive sites, quantity of reef fish and pelagic fish, and diversity of corals, both hard and soft. That’s why both beginners and advanced divers can find something here they can enjoy. Indian Ocean currents generally make diving a pleasure with temperatures in the months of July to September at between 24/26 Celsius, and from October till April warming up from 26 / 29 Celsius.

The deeper dives at off shore bottom reefs are well visited by the pelagic larger fish.

The shallower dives are beautiful for pink soft corals, and a large variety of fish species, ideal for macro photography.
In between dives, dolphins often provide amazing chances to snorkel in the open ocean alongside them.

Most days are planned with 2 dives in the morning when the ocean is at its usually calmer. Then returning for a late well earned feast of a lunch. Night dives are available as well.

Equipment can be provided at no extra cost though we recommend you bring your own for better fit and familiarity. If you require use of our equipment, please provide us with the necessary details when booking. Qualified divers should bring certification and log book.

Learn to Dive with PADI.

You can take a PADI course from scratch with us and learn to dive in shimoni. Starting in our custom deep pool you get confined water lessons and then out to the ocean for open water training. In 4 days you can get a certificate and be allowed to dive anywhere in the world after that.

Beginners will enjoy the supervision of an experienced PADI dive instructor and will be astonished by the wealth and diversity of marine life. Diving within the Kisite Marine National Park is an unbelievable experience. The variety and abundance of fish is astounding. Blue striped snappers, Ehrenburg snappers and sweet lips with their prominent yellow colouring. Families of up to eighty parrot fish, mainly blue in colour, can be seen passing through these shallow waters feeding on the coral with loud crunching noises. Amongst the smaller fish are the common damsel fish, surgeon fish, angelfish and butterfly fish.

Night diving is done off the house reef the house reef at Wasini island. We dive just as darkness falls (1830- 1900Hrs). Dive time is 45- 60 min at a maximum depth of 12-15m, most of the dive being at 5-7m. It’s an easy, relaxing, slow dive looking at strange and bizarre organisms that only come out at night.

Now here is where you see creatures unfamiliar to humans! The resident lobsters would look much better dressed with butter garlic sauce! Watch the changing colours of octopus, squid and cuttlefish as they hunt. The normally shy moray eels, snake eels and puffer fish often come out to say hello.
There are beautifully coloured side-gill slugs and flatworms interspersed with numerous Spanish dancers and nudibranchs. Torches are provided.

• Limited numbers: maximum 6 divers per dive
• Personal service: less than 3 divers per guide
• PADI courses : up to Divemaster

DOLPHINS ARE SPOTTED REGULARLY. Some guests have even had the luck to swim with them. We are careful to follow the “Code of Conduct” to ensure the dolphins are not chased, harassed, or put under stress. Some divers have also been lucky enough to see whales and whale sharks.

FREE EQUIPMENT HIRE: Please let us know sizes required when booking. Qualified divers should bring certification and log book

INTRODUCTORY DIVES are offered for those who have never tried diving before. You will have the chance to do a dive with an instructor to a maximum depth of 8 metres after receiving a detailed briefing. This will give you the opportunity to see just how easy, safe and enjoyable diving can be for everyone!

Spectacular diving is offered for all levels of divers. Beginners will enjoy the supervision of an experienced PADI dive instructor and will be astonished by the wealth and diversity of marine life.

WHALES:

Humpback whale A really special treat!!! Normally seen between August and October with September the high point.  They are the most dramatic  of all whale species and are often leaping and crashing back into the water  .Their endless migration brings them south past Kenya and close to the shimoni area every year.  A mother calling her calf can be heard for miles in underwater. We spot them from boats from far and can approach them in the water for the intrepid.

Short Finned Pilot This cross between a whale and a dolphin is also a seasonal visitor that shows itself during the year. . They are easily mistaken for large dolphins or false killer whale.

WHALE SHARKS (Rhincodon typus):

We have frequent sightings but each year we see a different amount of whale sharks passing. We work together with the East African Whale shark Trust. Peak sightings are December to February but you may get lucky and see them any time.
www.eastafricanwhalesharktrust.com