Description
The English to Thai translation of Koh Tao is “Turtle Island”. It was originally named by local fisherman and settlers who described a turtle shape when looking at the island from their boats. The island does have a healthy population of sea turtles with both Hawksbill and Green turtles living in the waters off the island. They are a common sight for divers when they are out fun diving or taking a diving course.
Koh Tao is known for beeing one of the best places to learn to dive, and yet see beautiful coral reefs with plenty of fishes
Koh tao complete guide:
https://www.kohtaocompleteguide.com/diving/koh-tao-dive-sites/
Best time to visit location
Any time is good, however Spring to autum n has better weather.
Information about the site
The site gets its name from the shape of the island which, with some imagination, looks like the dorsal fin of a giant shark. Located 300m off the Southeast corner of Koh Tao, this is one of the few sites where the current can be strong enough that choosing another location would be the only sensible choice to make.
When it's calm though its beautiful. Shark Island has an abundance of soft and hard corals interspersed between towering boulders.Yellow-Tail Barracuda, friendly Batfish and a large school of Weibel's Butterflyfish all have a fascination with divers and you will often find yourself with a few new buddies on your dive! Polka Dot Nudibranch seem to love this site as well as their mutli-coloured Wart Slug cousins. It is also one of the few places around Koh Tao to see the Orange-Spined Unicornfish. A shallow area on the East side of the island called the Aquarium is the perfect place to end the dive. As its name suggests, it is just like being in a life-sized fish bowl. Surrounded on three sides by large boulders, the Aquarium is full of hard corals and colourful reef fish. Small silver baitfish seek sanctury here from hunting Trevally, only to come across metre-long Crocodile Needlefish.
Recommended diver experience level
Open water diver with experienceOpen water diver with experience,Open water diver with up to 30 dives