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Scuba diving in Croatia

Dive operators Regions Dive seasons Best diving Cost of diving Marine life

Croatia is often described as a hidden diving gem in the Mediterranean. The country’s coastline is on the Adriatic Sea in the east of the Mediterranean, and its waters are rich with marine life. There are literally hundreds of dive sites around the coast dotted around the more than 1,000 islands, of which 66 are inhabited. With great weather, warm waters, and abundant marine life, Croatia is one of the best diving destinations in the Mediterranean. 

Why dive in Croatia?

Croatia has something for every type of diver. The country’s waters are rich with marine life with plenty of things to see. Also if you are into wrecks, then you can plunge into the host of wrecks that litter the Croatian coast, and provide a historical insight into the events of in the eastern Mediterranean. Aside from the marine life and wrecks, Croatia also has an abundance of caves and caverns for lovers of the dark to explore. 

If that is not enough for you, there are also some great technical diving sites that are either wrecks or natural features. Overall no matter what kind of diving you are into you will find something to make you happy diving in Croatia. 

Diving in Croatia is easy to arrange, and most dive operators can organize it with very little notice. One point to be aware of is that you need a permit to undertake any diving in the country. A Croatian Diving Permit can be purchased from any operator or dive center for 100 HKR (Croatian Kuna)/ ~15 USD/ ~13.5 EUR. The permit is valid for one year so make sure to take your permit with you, so if you return within a year you don’t need to purchase another permit. 

If you plan on visiting Mljet National Park, or Kornati Islands National Park then there additional marine park fees, however, these tend to be included in the cost of most trips. 

The best operators in: Croatia

Be the first to review!Region: Dubrovnik

D.C. Blue Planet

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Be the first to review!Region: Hvar

Hvar Divers

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Be the first to review!Region: Korčula

Croatia Divers

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Be the first to review!Region: North Adriatic

DC Mihuric

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Be the first to review!Region: Pula

Diving Center Shark

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Be the first to review!Region: Pula

Starfish Diving Center Ltd.

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Scuba diving regions in: Croatia

NameOperators
Korčula1
Dubrovnik1
Hvar1
North Adriatic1
Pula2

Best diving in Croatia

There are four main diving locations off the Croatian coast:

Kornati
Arguably the best diving location in Croatia, Kornati is a series of uninhabited islands that offer some of the best and most diverse diving conditions in the country. From reefs to tunnels and caverns, and the odd wreck Kornati has it all.

The Dome is the notable dive site in Kornati stretching from a depth of 10m all the way down to 50m and features rich marine life with plenty of sponges corals and a great macro life. 

The Istrian Peninsula
The Istrian Peninsula sticks out into the Adriatic and offers a host of great dive sites. The stand out feature of diving the peninsula is the abundant marine life, and crystal clear waters with great visibility. 

One of the best sites is Krinca Cape point; again this is a site with a lot of depth variety, stretching from 5m all the way down to 50m. The site features great visibility (regularly 30m or over) and plays host to soft corals, and small caves inhabited by lots of critters. 

Kvarner Bay
Kvarner Bay is another location that is similar to the Istrian Peninsula. The area has a few beautiful islands, and the diving conditions around them are rich with marine life, and also offer great visibility and great diving conditions. 

The highlight of diving Kvarner Bay is Plic Tenki which is a phenomenal wall dive with many rocky pinnacles. The wall teems with marine life with plenty of fish and gorgonians living in its many crevices and crags. 

Korcula
If you are interested in wrecks, caves, and caverns, then Korcula is the place for you in Croatia. The waters of Korcula feature dozens of caves and swim-throughs, and various caverns, as well as a host of interesting historical wrecks. However, this is not to say that Korcula is barren, and the area does also offer bountiful marine life. 

The “Boca” offers a great wreck diving experience for every level of diver. The ship lies in shallow water between 5m and 12m and is an easy dive. Although the ship was salvaged there is plenty to see, including the ships impressive propellers. Lying in shallow waters the wreck is teeming with interesting and rich marine life.

Dive seasons in Croatia

The water temperature in Croatia can vary substantially between winter and summer, with temperatures as low as 7 Celsius in the winter, to as high 24 Celsius in the summer. One unique aspect of diving in Croatia is that temperatures can vary wildly between one location and another at the same time of year due to freshwater springs upwelling from the sea bed. 

The main diving season in Croatia runs from May through November, and during that time the temperatures will vary from 21 to 24 degrees. With the water in September and October still retaining a significant portion of summer heat. 

The Adriatic around Croatia is blessed with minimal currents and small waves averaging between 0.5 and 1.5 meters. Although currents are normally weak, they can be powerful at certain bottlenecks between islands and other passages. 

When it comes to visibility, Croatia delivers on a level not normally associated with the Mediterranean. Some locations offer up to 50 meters of visibility, although typically visibility is around 10 to 20 meters in the waters around the country. 

Cost of diving in Croatia

The cost of diving in Croatia is comparable with other European Mediterranean destinations. A typical 1 day 2 dive trip will set you back around €75/~$82 at most locations. If you shop around there are some cheaper offers on the market, with the biggest factor driving the prices is the location in Croatia. Like almost all dive destinations around the world if you have your own dive gear, then you can significantly cut the costs of diving by not having to pay for rental equipment. 

Discounts
Although diving in Croatia is similarly priced when compared to other global destinations,  discounts can still be arranged. While it is often more difficult to organize discounts online. If you walk into a dive center in Croatia, then there is some room to negotiate, especially if you have your own equipment. The size and scope of the discount you can negotiate will ultimately depend on the number of dives or courses you are planning on undertaking. 

Croatia Scuba Diving Courses
The diving market in Croatia is reasonably well developed, with several training agencies being well established in the country. Typically you can find PADI, CMAS, and some SSI centers, as well as several technical diving agencies including TDI and IANTD. There is a wide range of courses on offer at both technical and recreational level, including some good options to take Cavern and Cave diving courses.

Is it mainly liveaboards or day trips?
Diving in Croatia is almost all daily boat diving, with virtually all of the dive sites within easy reach of a day boat or RHIB (Rigid-Hulled Inflatable Boat). Most dive operators have their own boats, although on occasion dive operators will share a RHIB. There is a limited number of liveaboards operating in the waters around Croatia, although these tend to be smaller vessels compared to liveaboard in other destinations like the Maldives or the Red Sea. 

Marine life in Croatia

The waters of the Adriatic are host to a wide variety of species and marine life. Typically you will find most species found in the Mediterranean, as well as a few species you are more likely to encounter in the Red Sea. With deeper water in some locations, you can often encounter some pelagic species as well as more shallow dwelling species. Diving in Croatia you can encounter species including:

  • Common dolphin
  • Bottlenose dolphin
  • Mediterranean monk seal
  • Green turtle
  • Loggerhead sea turtle
  • Leatherback turtle
  • Nudibranchs
  • Octopus
  • Seahorses
  • Fin Whales- normally seen from boats
  • Sperm Whales- normally seen from boats

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