Dive· Lighthouse Reef· Other Caribbean
Great Blue Hole (Lighthouse Reef)
17° 18.9′ N · 87° 32.1′ W
The near-circular marine sinkhole in the middle of Lighthouse Reef - about 318 m across and 124 m deep - made famous by Jacques Cousteau's Calypso expedition in 1971; divers drop to around 130 ft to swim among giant stalactites under an overhang while reef sharks circle.
Practical
A natural monument (1,023 acres) co-managed by the Belize Audubon Society; no land and no facilities except mooring buoys for dive boats (management plan). Fee BZ$60 (US$30) per person per day for non-nationals (Belize Audubon Society), normally collected by the warden on Half Moon Caye (Ventura Yacht Agency). BAS requires mariners to call the Half Moon Caye rangers on VHF 16 before hooking onto a mooring or anchoring; moorings (capacity 370 gross tons) are at Lighthouse Wall, Half Moon Caye Wall, Tarpon Cave and Chain Wall. VYA: maximum recommended draft to the Blue Hole 10 ft; transit across the atoll from the reef takes most yachts 2 to 2.5 hours weaving between patch reefs, so go with the sun high and a tender sounding ahead; most yachts anchor off and take guests in by tender. Below about 300 ft the water is anoxic with hydrogen sulphide (Wikipedia). The deep dive is for experienced divers with an operator; snorkelling the shallow rim is possible. Shark chumming is banned. Long Caye is the usual anchorage for a Blue Hole visit (Boat International).
Best for
Bucket-list deep dive and the aerial-photo icon of Belize
Nearby
- Ermlund Wreck (Lighthouse Reef)6.1 NM away
- Half Moon Caye Wall6.4 NM away
- Half Moon Caye Anchorage6.6 NM away
- Half Moon Caye Natural Monument6.6 NM away
- Sea Turtle Nesting Season6.7 NM away
- Long Caye Aquarium (Lighthouse Reef)7.2 NM away
- Long Caye Anchorage (Lighthouse Reef)7.6 NM away
- Lighthouse Reef West-Side Dives (Silver Caves, Tres Cocos, West Point)7.8 NM away