A holiday in Gozo would be incomplete without a dive into the island’s crystal-clear waters to discover a magical submerged world. Beneath the Mediterranean Sea’s glimmering surface, wrecks, caves and reefs provide a delightful underwater playground for colourful marine life and divers of different levels, making Gozo a top diving destination.
There are many licensed diving centres on the island of Gozo making is very easy to book an unaccompanied or accompanied dive as well as to rent any diving equipment which would be too cumbersome to pack and travel with.
While words can really do no justice to the underwater wonders that await to be discovered, we’ll be giving you a very small taste of what you can expect if you choose Gozo for your next diving holiday. With the island being quite small, the access point to many dive sites is never further away than a 20-minute drive from the Villa Marni luxury apartments in the touristic village of Xlendi. Additionally, there are three licensed dive centres in Xlendi.
Are you ready to virtually dive some of our favourite sites?
XLENDI BAY
Since the Villa Marni apartments are located in Xlendi, we thought we would start with a couple of sites close to home! A 70-metre-long tunnel and reef teeming with marine life are two popular dive spots in Xlendi, especially with individuals who are still in training or at a beginner level. These sites can either be accessed from shore or by boat.
BONUS TIP: Some years back, a Phoenician shipwreck was discovered just off Xlendi Bay – the oldest known wreck in the Central Mediterranean. Although this wreck cannot be dived due to the fact that it lies at a depth of around 110 metres, you can explore it virtually here.
THE BLUE HOLE, CORAL GARDEN & AZURE REEF IN DWEJRA
A perennial favourite with more advanced divers, which was once described by Jacque Cousteau himself as one of the best dive sites in Europe, is the Blue Hole in Dwejra. Located close to the western coast of Gozo, this site is accesible from shore via a rather long walk over rocky terrain, and is also popular with snorkellers, swimmers, and free divers.
The Blue Hole – a circular sinkhole of which there is a concentration in Dwejra – is around 15 metres deep, with walls which are a sight to behold, being carpeted with colourful sponges and marine life. An archway situated at around 7 to 9 metres leads you to the open sea.
Once out of the Blue Hole, you can turn left to reach the chimney – which can only be entered by one diver at a time – leading to the breathtaking Coral Garden (suitable for beginners) which, in turn, gives way to the Coral Cave (suitable for advanced divers). Getting its name from the spectacular yet fragile corals encrusting its walls, the Coral Cave can be accessed through a yawning entrance starting at a depth of around 17 to 18 metres, which tumbles down to a sandy floor.
A right turn from the Blue Hole, will lead you to the relatively new Azure Reef (suitable for advanced divers), formed after the March 2017 collapse of the iconic Azure Window pictured below. Given the newness of this reef, the boulders are still shifting and changing, necessitating extreme caution when attempting to swim through them. More marine life is making this reef its home, as the boulders gradually settle in their new resting spot.
THE THREE WRECKS AT IX-XATT L-AĦMAR
Here’s one – or rather three – for divers who love to explore underwater wrecks. Three wrecks – MV Karwela, MV Cominoland and MV Xlendi – are all accesible from shore at Ix-Xatt l-Aħmar, which lies on the south-eastern coast of Gozo.
MV Karwela, a former passenger ferry which was scuttled in 2006, is the most popular of the three wrecks, being closer to the shore and larger than Cominoland. Resting upright on the seabed between its sister wrecks, Karwela has numerous entry and exit points which were made prior to scuttling to make the wreck as as safe as possible. One of the most photographed and iconic features of the Karwela is a staircase which leads to the lower deck.
To the east of Karwela, lies MV Cominoland, which was used for trips around Comino and harbour cruises around the Valletta area in her heyday. This wreck too is safe to penerate and offers good opportunities for exploration, with the sandy bed on which she rests being home to a number of rays and gurnards.
Xlendi became the first artificial reef structure in Gozo back in 1999 when it was scuttled. Unfortunately, it ended upside down and is not safe to penetrate. The rich marine life that swims the waters surrounding this wreck, together with a car wreck lying close by, make for an interesting dive nonetheless.
BONUS TIP: Since these three wrecks are more suited to advanced divers, you can opt to dive the Xatt l-Aħmar bay and reef if you are still a beginner.
While we could write on forever about Gozo’s dive sites, we’ll stop here and leave it up to you to pay us a visit for a first-hand experience of the sites and more. At Villa Marni, we’re waiting to welcome you to our little gem of an island with arms wide open. Book now.
