Malta punches well above its size as a diving destination. The water is clear, the wrecks are genuine, and you can dive year-round without flying to the tropics. This guide covers the best sites on both Malta and Gozo, what a course or fun dive actually costs, and a few things the brochures won't tell you.
If you're not ready to commit to tanks and regulators, the snorkelling guide covers plenty of the same coastline at the surface. If you want something to do on your surface interval, the hiking guide has routes near several of the main dive sites.
The short answer is geology and history. Malta sits on a limestone platform in the central Mediterranean, which means the seabed drops away sharply at the island edges, visibility regularly reaches 20–30 metres on a calm day, and the rock has been dissolving into caves, tunnels and arches for millennia. The water is warm enough to dive in a 3mm wetsuit from June through October, and in a 5mm or 7mm the rest of the year. There are no currents strong enough to make most sites dangerous, which is part of why the islands became a popular PADI and BSAC training ground.
The other factor is two world wars. Malta was fought over hard, and the seabed around the islands collected aircraft, minesweepers, submarines and cargo vessels that have had decades to colonise with marine life. Several of these wrecks are accessible to divers of modest experience. None of them require you to be a technical diver or to travel far from shore.
Visibility does drop in August when plankton blooms push through, and the Blue Hole at Dwejra gets genuinely crowded in summer — both things worth knowing before you book.
The Um El Faroud is the biggest wreck dive in Malta and probably the most talked about. It's a Libyan oil tanker, approximately 109.5–110 metres long, sunk deliberately off Wied iż-Żurrieq in 1998 after an explosion killed nine workers during dry-dock repairs. The wreck spans a depth range of approximately 15–36 metres: the bridge superstructure sits at around 15–18 m, the main deck at around 25 m, and the seabed at the stern reaches 36 m at its deepest. Penetration is possible for qualified divers. The wreck is encrusted and genuinely impressive, though the sheer volume of divers visiting means the silt inside can be stirred badly on busy days.
The HMS Maori in Valletta's Grand Harbour is a different experience altogether — a Royal Navy destroyer sunk in a German air raid in 1942, lying in 14 metres off Fort St Angelo. It's an urban dive, which sounds odd, but the setting is extraordinary: you're diving in one of the great harbours of the Mediterranean, with the fortifications rising above you. Accessible from a shore entry; check current access arrangements with your dive centre before planning a trip.
The Bristol Beaufighter wreck off St Paul's Bay is a Second World War RAF aircraft lying in around 40 metres — a technical dive, not for open-water qualifications. If you're not there yet, it's worth noting as a reason to keep advancing your certification.
In Gozo, the MV Karwela and MV Cominoland were both sunk near Xatt l-Aħmar as artificial reefs in 2006. The Karwela sits upright in about 40 metres; the Cominoland is shallower and more accessible. Both are diveable from Gozo's shore with a short surface swim.
The Blue Hole at Dwejra on Gozo is the site that gets into every magazine and most social media feeds. It's a natural limestone chimney that opens to the sea through a rock arch at around 8 metres, dropping to about 50 metres where the wall falls away. The dive itself is genuinely spectacular — but it is also one of the busiest dive sites in the Mediterranean. In July and August, surface entry can feel chaotic, with multiple groups entering and exiting simultaneously. Go early in the morning or come in the shoulder season (May–June or September–October) if you want something closer to the experience the photographs suggest.
The Azure Window, the famous arch that stood beside the Blue Hole, collapsed in a storm in 2017. The rubble is now itself a dive site and worth seeing, but visitors still arrive expecting the arch to be there, so manage expectations if you're bringing non-diving companions. VisitMalta and Heritage Malta both carry information on Gozo's protected coastal zones.
The Inland Sea at Dwejra, a hundred metres from the Blue Hole, connects to open water through a tunnel roughly 80 metres long. The tunnel dive is popular with intermediate divers and is sheltered enough to be manageable when sea conditions outside are rougher. Boats operate through the tunnel as well as divers, so listen to your guide's briefing carefully.
On Malta itself, the Cathedral Cave at Qawra is a reliable cave dive for those not yet comfortable at Dwejra. It's shallower, better lit by natural light, and a short surface swim from the entry point. Several centres run guided dives here specifically for divers on their first cave experience.
Most beginner and discover-diving sessions run from St Paul's Bay, Mellieħa or Marsaxlokk. The entry points are manageable, depths are shallow, and the seabed is sandy enough that a few fin kicks don't destroy the visibility. A typical Discover Scuba Diving session (no prior certification needed) typically costs €60–80 at established Maltese centres, with some centres charging €80 or more; confirm directly when booking. All equipment hire, a briefing and a guided underwater session of around 30–45 minutes are included.
A full PADI or SSI Open Water Diver course in Malta typically costs €350–560, depending on the centre; budget at least €370. Some centres bundle this with accommodation; if you're doing a dedicated dive holiday, it can be worth asking about package rates. The course takes three to four days minimum and involves classroom sessions, confined-water skills in a pool, and four open-water dives.
Anchor Bay near Mellieħa is shallow, calm and popular for training dives. It's also next to the Popeye Village film set, which makes for a slightly surreal backdrop. Cirkewwa at the northern tip of Malta is another reliable beginner site — there's a purpose-built dive platform and the site is run through by several centres simultaneously in summer. Route 41 runs from Valletta to Ċirkewwa; a single bus ticket costs €2.50 in summer (14 June–18 October). If you're doing multiple dives on different days, a 7-day Explore Card (€25) will save you money over buying singles each time. Check current fares and routes at publictransport.com.mt.
Water temperature ranges from around 14–15°C in February to 27–28°C at the peak of August. Most recreational divers visit May through October, when the water is warm enough for a 3mm suit and the evenings ashore are comfortable. September and October are often cited by local divers as the best months: the worst of the summer crowds have gone, water temperatures are still high (23–26°C), and visibility tends to improve after the late-summer plankton bloom passes.
Winter diving (November through March) is quieter and colder, but the sites don't close. A 7mm wetsuit or a semi-dry handles most conditions down to around 14°C without a drysuit. Some dive centres reduce their schedules or require minimum group sizes in winter, so ring ahead rather than simply arriving.
The Maltese xlokk — a warm, southerly wind — can appear at almost any time of year and picks up the sea on the south-facing sites quickly. Wied iż-Żurrieq and the Faroud site can become undiveable within a few hours when the xlokk blows. Your dive centre will know on the morning; don't assume a plan made the day before holds.
There are more dive centres in Malta than you can visit in a fortnight. Most are affiliated with PADI, a significant number with BSAC, and some with SSI. Affiliation matters less than the specific centre's reputation and the condition of their equipment. A few practical points:
Snorkelling trips marketed as dive experiences. Several boat operators around St Julian's, Sliema and Bugibba sell "diving excursions" that are, on inspection, glass-bottom boat trips with a snorkelling component. If you want to actually dive, book directly with a registered dive centre. The boat trips themselves are fine for what they are — the snorkelling guide covers them properly — but they are not dive experiences.
Discover dives at hotel pools. A handful of hotels offer PADI Discover Scuba sessions in their swimming pools as an add-on activity. There is nothing wrong with this as an introduction, but it is a shallow pool session in chlorinated water, not a dive. The real thing costs roughly the same and is available ten minutes from most hotels.
The organised dive boat to Filfla. Filfla is a protected islet south of Malta used as a bombing range by the RAF and subsequently protected as a nature reserve. Access requires a permit from the Environment and Resources Authority, and dive trips are occasionally marketed as though this is a routine excursion. In practice, permits are rarely issued for recreational dive groups, and operators occasionally oversell what they can actually deliver. If you're quoted a Filfla dive, ask to see the permit before paying.
Diving the Blue Hole in the middle of the day in July or August. It isn't dangerous, but it is unpleasant — boats rafted up, divers queuing at the entry point, silt kicked up from heavy traffic. Either time it properly or pick a different site for that day.
No prior certification is needed for a discover dive or introductory session, which costs around €50–70. A full PADI Open Water course runs €250–350 and takes three to four days.
September and October for the combination of warm water, good visibility and smaller crowds. July and August are busy and plankton can reduce visibility.
Route 41 runs from Valletta to Ċirkewwa. A single bus fare is €2.50 in summer (14 June–18 October) or €2.00 in winter. A 7-day Explore Card costs €25 if you're doing multiple journeys.
Yes. Water temperatures drop to around 14–15°C by February, so a 7mm wetsuit or semi-dry is needed. Some centres reduce their winter schedules; book ahead.
No. It collapsed in a storm in March 2017. The rubble is now itself a dive site at Dwejra, Gozo, next to the Blue Hole.
At least two to three weeks ahead for August, and ideally more if you need specific equipment hire sizes or a small-group course.