All activities / Scuba Diving / Soufriere, Dominica
Scuba Diving in Soufriere, Dominica
A fishing village on Dominica's sheltered south-west coast, at the foot of the extinct Soufriere volcano and the tip of the island at Scotts Head. Its bay sits inside the Soufriere Scotts Head Marine Reserve, one of the Caribbean's best-regarded dive areas, and the bubbling volcanic vents of Champagne Reef lie just up the coast toward Pointe Michel.
Why here
Dominica's best diving is packed into the Soufriere Scotts Head Marine Reserve, a flooded volcanic crater at the southern tip of the island where the sea floor drops away in walls, pinnacles and canyons. The reserve was set up in 1998 to end anchor damage and overfishing, and the reefs have recovered into some of the healthiest in the eastern Caribbean, thick with barrel sponges, sea fans, frogfish, seahorses and turtles. The signature dive is Scotts Head Pinnacle, an underwater ridge riddled with swim-throughs where two bodies of water meet, alongside the sheer wall of L'Abym that runs past 40 metres and the crater rim of Scotts Head Drop-Off. Just north lies the island's most famous site, Champagne Reef, where geothermal vents send streams of warm bubbles up through the shallows so you dive and snorkel through what feels like a glass of champagne. The water is warm and clear, the sites sit minutes from shore in the calm western lee, and the volcanic drama underfoot is what sets Dominica apart from the rest of the region.
Best months
Diving is good year round in the sheltered lee of the west coast, with water temperatures of 26 to 29 degrees and little need for more than a shorty wetsuit. The drier season from December to June brings the calmest seas and the clearest water, often 20 metres or more; the wetter, warmer months can drop visibility with run-off after heavy rain and overlap the Atlantic hurricane season. The marine reserve sites are close inshore, reached by short boat rides or straight off the shore at Champagne, and depths range from shallow reef to deep wall. Champagne is gentle enough for snorkellers and first dives, while the pinnacle and wall sites suit intermediate and advanced divers.
Getting there & around
Most dive centres sit along the coast between Roseau and Soufriere and run two-tank morning boats to the reserve, roughly a 15 to 30 minute ride south; Champagne Reef can also be reached straight off the shore. A marine reserve user fee applies and access is regulated, so dive through a licensed local operator. Bring certification, as the wall and pinnacle sites want proof of experience, and there is a recompression chamber on the island. The reserve is a short drive from the capital, so many divers base near Roseau rather than in Soufriere itself.
Skill levels: beginner, intermediate, advanced
Schools & guides (2)
Dive Dominica
OutfitterDive Dominica operates from Castle Comfort just south of Roseau and is one of the island's longest-running dive centres, working the Soufriere Scotts Head Marine Reserve and Champagne Reef with a fleet of five boats and PADI instructors and divemasters. It dives the reserve's walls, drop-offs and canyons and runs the full range of PADI certification courses. It is also known for whale-watching trips that follow the International Fund for Animal Welfare code of conduct.
Nature Island Dive
OutfitterNature Island Dive sits on the shore of the Soufriere Scotts Head Marine Reserve in the village of Soufriere, and its team has dived the reserve since 1994. Certified through both SSI and PADI and a REEF conservation partner, it runs small-group boat dives to the reserve's pinnacles, walls and the bubbling volcanic vents of Champagne Reef, and teaches the full course ladder from Open Water up. Guides run lionfish culls and reef monitoring alongside the diving, and rent kayaks and snorkel gear.