My top 10 of the cheapest diving destinations in the world

Scuba diving doesn’t have the reputation of being a cheap hobby, so it could come as a disadvantage when travelling alone. However, I have been surprised more than once. I found scuba diving destinations with soft diving rates in many places around the world, locally and on tropical islands. Even if it sounds counterintuitive, it is possible to combine budget travel and scuba diving by going to the 10 cheapest diving destinations I listed below. If the cost of your scuba diving holiday is something holding you back from travelling the world on your own and ticking off the best dive sites from your bucket list, check these places first.

The cheapest areas to go scuba diving include Southeast Asia, the Mecca of budget scuba diving, Central America and Southern Europe. Even the Red Sea, one of the world’s top diving areas, is among the most affordable destinations for scuba diving. Note that these destinations are affordable from a scuba diving and travel point of view. What’s the point of a dive below 20€ if you can’t find accommodation below 200€ a night?

Please note that the prices below are indicative only. They are based on the 2020 rates for the first 5 diving centres ranked on Google for each diving destination.

1 – Thailand

In the last few decades, Thailand has earned a reputation as the place to go if you are looking to start scuba diving on a budget, especially to Koh Tao. Indeed, this is where I headed in 2009. The island is now famous for being the scuba diving school island for divers coming from all over the world, thanks to its affordable prices. However, Thailand is not only a backpacker’s destination anymore these days, even if diving remains very affordable. All sorts of travellers come now attracted to all the fun things to do in Thailand.

I realised later that Thailand is not the only place with low prices on scuba diving, but it is indeed an excellent place for beginners, thanks to its easy conditions with almost no current and warm waters. While Koh Tao doesn’t offer super colourful coral reefs, the Similan Islands National Park is a fabulous diving destination with stunning reefs and exciting pelagic encounters. Koh Lanta is another popular destination for backpackers who love scuba diving. The island is located in southern Thailand, and it has become my new favourite place in the country.

Prices in Koh Tao

• Price per dive from 1,000 BHT / 27 € / £ 25 / $ 32 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 950 BHT / 26 € / £ 24 / $ 30 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 800 BHT / 22 € / £ 20 / $ 26 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 11,000 BHT / 297 € / £ 275 / $ 352

Prices in Koh Lanta

• Price per dive from 1,550 BHT / 42 € / £ 39 / $ 50 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 1,350 BHT / 36 € / £ 34 / $ 43 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 1,155 BHT / 31 € / £ 29 / $ 37 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 11,850 BHT / 320 € / £ 296 / $ 379

2 – The Philippines

A bit less explored than Thailand, the Philippines is yet one of the most affordable countries to travel to in Southeast Asia, thanks to its extensive network of ferries and jeepneys (local buses). The density of dive spots across the country is such that you will need more than one trip to see everything. Scuba divers visiting the Philippines usually focus on the Luzon area, including Palawan and Anilao, or the Visayas Islands, including Cebu and Malapascua. With the opportunity of wreck diving in Coron, muck diving in Dauin and diving with thresher sharks in Malapascua, there is no shortage of fun things to do in the Philippines.

While its top dive site, the Tubbataha Reefs, a UNESCO marine heritage site, requires an expensive liveaboard to be explored, places such as Moalboal and Panglao offer low-key but paradise-like dive resorts on the beach with some of the lowest diving rates I’ve seen around the world.

Prices in Moalboal

• Price per dive from 1,100 PHP / 19 € / £ 18 / $ 23 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 950 PHP / 16 € / £ 15 / $ 20 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 850 PHP / 14 € / £ 14 / $ 18 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 14,999 PHP / 255 € / £ 240 / $ 315

Prices in Malapascua

• Price per dive from 1,580 PHP / 31€ / £ 29 / $ 38 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 1,300 PHP / 26 € / £ 24 / $ 32 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 1,170 PHP / 30 € / £ 28 / $ 37 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 18,000 PHP / 315 € / £ 296 / $ 389

3 – Indonesia

For many scuba divers, Indonesia is the world’s number one destination. With world-class diving spots such as Raja Ampat and Wakatobi National Park, passionate divers and enthusiastic underwater photographers flock from all over the world, even if prices in these places are not the cheapest.

However, Indonesia, spanning from Sumatra to West Papua, has many places that offer fantastic dive sites and affordable prices, such as Bali and the Gili Islands. Even Komodo National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, can be explored for less than most liveaboards charge for day trips.

While Bali is one of the most popular tourist destinations with world-class dive sites, diving there remains surprisingly affordable. It’s especially true in the Tulamben & Amed area, known for the Liberty shipwreck, which is mostly about shore diving. In areas like Nusa Penida, where longer boat rides are necessary, the price of a dive is obviously higher but still extremely affordable. On top of this, there are so many fun things to do in Bali that you can only have unforgettable holidays there.

In Komodo, the day trips leave early morning from Labuan Bajo harbour for a two or three-tank dive trip in the waters of the national park. Obviously, these boats can only take you to a tiny part of the park, but it’s already fascinating. And did I mention that you will also have the opportunity to meet a Komodo dragon at the surface interval?

Prices in Tulamben / Amed (Bali)

• Price per dive from 300,000 IDR / 18 € / £ 15 / $ 21 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 250,000 IDR / 15 € / £ 13 / $ 18 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 271,500 IDR / 16 € / £ 14 / $ 19 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 3,100,000 IDR / 186 € / £ 155 / $ 217

Prices in Nusa Lembongan / Nusa Penida (Bali)

• Price per dive from 425,000 IDR / 26 € / £ 21 / $ 30 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 425,000 IDR / 26 € / £ 21 / $ 30 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 342,900 IDR / 21 € / £ 17 / $ 24 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 3,750,000 IDR / 225 € / £ 188 / $ 263

Prices in Labuan Bajo (Komodo National Park)

• Price per dive from 550,000 IDR / 33 € / £ 28 / $ 39 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 550,000 IDR / 33 € / £ 28 / $ 39 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 550,000 IDR / 33 € / £ 28 / $ 39 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 5,500,000 IDR / 330 € / £ 275 / $ 385

4 – Egypt

Even before becoming a certified Open Water diver, I knew the waters of the Red Sea offered some of the most fabulous coral reefs and spectacular marine life in the world. No wonder: after only 3 to 4 hours of flying from Europe, and only 6 months after my certification, I was travelling to Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt! For most European divers, Egypt is all about liveaboard diving, especially at the Brothers, Daedalus, and Elphinstone Islands, which made diving in the Red Sea famous.

But if you are looking for affordable scuba diving day trips, you have to know that the South Sinai includes some of the most famous spots in the Red Sea, such as the Dahab Blue Hole, Ras-el-Mohammed National Park and the Thistlegorm submarine wreck. With budget diving camps and mostly shore diving, Dahab in the South Sinai, and Marsa Alam in the south of Upper Egypt, became budget travellers’ favourites.

Prices in Dahab

• Price per dive from 25 € / £ 23 / $ 30 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 25 € / £ 23 / $ 30 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 20 € / £ 19 / $ 24 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 280 € / £ 259 / $ 332

Prices in Marsa Alam

• Price per dive from 40 € / £ 37 / $ 47 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 32 € / £ 30 / $ 38 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 27 € / £ 23 / $ 30 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 325 € / £ 301 / $ 385

5 – Honduras

This small Central American country might be known internationally mostly to scuba divers thanks to the Bay Islands on its Caribbean coast. While the island of Roatan became a place for scuba divers looking for a luxury dive resort, the island of Utila became the hotspot for backpackers in love with scuba diving and whale sharks! Over the years, Utila became for Central America what Koh Tao is for South-East Asia, a scuba diving school island.

Prices in Utila

• Price per dive from 27 € / £ 25 / $ 32 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 21 € / £ 20 / $ 25 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 25 € / £ 23 / $ 30 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 190 € / £ 176 / $ 225

6 – Belize

Another tiny Central American country, right below Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula, Belize is mainly famous among scuba divers. This is due to its Great Blue Hole, the largest in the world, measuring 200 m in diameter! While most scuba divers looking for a luxury vacation will stay on Ambergris Caye, backpackers touring Central America gather in Caye Caulker. While day trips to the Great Blue Hole have become increasingly expensive over the years, diving in the Hol Chan Marine Reserve, located between Caye Caulker and Ambergris, remains affordable.

Prices in Caye Caulker

• Price per dive from 42 € / £ 39 / $ 50 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 42 € / £ 39 / $ 50 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 42 € / £ 39 / $ 50 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 338 € / £ 313 / $ 400

7 – Mexico

This is maybe one of the most exciting diving destinations in the world due to the variety of diving adventures you can live from one ocean to the other. In Baja California, on the Pacific shore, it is all about encounters with large pelagic species such as whales and sharks, while in the Yucatan Peninsula, on the Caribbean shore, you can mix reef diving with cenote diving, the famous Mayan underwater caverns.

While prices have increased significantly since my visit in 2010, Mexico remains an affordable diving destination, especially if you stay around Playa del Carmen or Tulum. In Quintana Roo, one of the three states of the Yucatan Peninsula, you can also dive in Cozumel Island and Isla Mujeres, next to Cancun.

Prices in Playa del Carmen

• Price per dive from 25 € / £ 23 / $ 30 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 25 € / £ 23 / $ 30 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 25 € / £ 23 / $ 30 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 286 € / £ 265 / $ 339

8 – Spain

Time to talk about diving in Europe, in Southern Europe, to be specific! I usually amaze people when I say scuba diving in Europe can be some of the cheapest in the world. You can technically scuba dive everywhere in Europe, but diving in Spain offers amazing marine reserves and some of the most affordable prices.

Diving hotspots in mainland Spain are mostly around marine protected areas, such as the Medes Islands in the Costa Brava, Catalonia, or Cabos de Palos in the Costa Calida, Murcia. However, let’s not forget that the Canary Islands also belong to Spain. In Tenerife, Lanzarote, Gran Canaria, El Hierro and La Palma, scuba diving is full of underwater surprises with volcanic landscapes and pelagic encounters.

Prices in l’Estartit (Medes Islands)

• Price per dive from 42 € / £ 39 / $ 50 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 30 € / £ 28 / $ 36 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 37 € / £ 34 / $ 44 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 345 € / £ 319 / $ 409

Prices in Tenerife

• Price per dive from 37 € / £ 34 / $ 44 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 25 € / £ 25 / $ 32 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 35 € / £ 32 / $ 41 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 380 € / £ 352 / $ 450

9 – Malta

When discussing scuba diving in Europe, it’s impossible to forget Malta. It must be Europe’s #1 diving destination thanks to its clear waters and the shipwreck program, which has been in place since the 1970s. Most dive sites in Malta and Gozo are accessible from the shore. Hence, you usually take a van to go scuba diving in the Maltese Islands. This unique situation makes prices more affordable for the greater pleasure of European divers who love the Maltese shipwrecks or the famous Gozo Blue Hole. Despite its small size, making it easy to explore even in just a week, there are many other fun things to do in Malta besides scuba diving.

Prices in Malta

• Price per dive from 37 € / £ 34 / $ 44 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 30 € / £ 28 / $ 36 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 29 € / £ 27 / $ 34 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 315 € / £ 292 / $ 373

10 – France

My latest destination on this list might be the most underrated scuba diving destination in Europe. Why? It might be because people think prices will be high in France, and international divers are afraid they won’t find service in English. Well, prices are definitely among the best in Europe, and now most scuba diving centres, especially in the south of France, have English-speaking instructors. With two superb marine national parks, Port-Cros near Toulon and the Calanques near Marseille, diving in France offers surprisingly incredible value.

Prices in Marseille

• Price per dive from 50 € / £ 45 / $ 58 (with rental gear included)
• Price per dive from 35 € / £ 31 / $ 41 (without rental gear)
• Price per dive from 31 € / £ 28 / $ 36 (as in a 10-dive package)
• Price for the Open Water course from 410 € / £ 370 / $ 479