Diving in Mozambique

Last updated: October 19, 2023

Written by: cazenove+loyd

Mozambique | Adventure | Beaches and Private Islands

Mozambique is home to some of the very best diving sites in the Indian Ocean. In addition to Azura Benguerra being one of our favourite island retreats, the surrounding reefs offer some of the most sublime diving in Mozambique.

The protected Bazaruto Marine National Park is a scuba diver’s paradise, featuring crystal-clear waters teeming with large schools of tropical fish and complete with a range of dazzling soft coral ridges and reefs to explore.

The coral life is especially healthy, and home to a huge diversity of underwater life including turtles, moray eels and rays, plus stunning nudibranchs and several species of shrimps.

Water temperatures range from 21°C during winter to 28°C in summer, with the best diving months running from April to September when visibility is excellent.

There are plenty of dive sites to discover, all with alluring names such as The Arches, Shark Point, North Point, The Boulders, Surgeon Rock, The Drop-off, Cathedral and The Gap.

Two Mile Reef, a short barrier reef protecting a narrow channel between Bazaruto and Benguerra, is particularly well known for its excellent snorkelling and exciting dives. The flat-topped reef is carved with gorgeous gullies, which curve out from the shallows towards the deeper areas – prepare for a sense of anticipation as navigate each bend, imagining what might be hiding around the next corner.

This reef has a colourful diversity of hard and soft corals; anemone fish hide in their swaying homes; large moray eels lurk in their rocky hideouts and black tip reef sharks circle their territory. There are numerous schools of brightly coloured reef fish to observe, such as coachman, fusilier, snapper and surgeon, plus potato bass, kingfish, barracuda, guitar fish, devil, manta and honeycomb rays. Turtles often drift by, and you’re lucky, you might even see a wondrous whale shark or spot an elusive dugong.