Where is the best place to scuba dive in December?

For most divers, Cozumel, Bonaire and Grand Cayman are the easiest December picks: warm water around 27°C, short flights from North America and dive conditions that suit Open Water divers. For big animals, the Maldives' northeast season and Socorro's whale shark window stand out.

Is December a good month to dive in Thailand?

On the Andaman side, yes. Similan Islands National Park is open from October 15 to May 15, and the most settled weather is usually from December to April. On the Gulf side, Koh Tao is in its northeast monsoon in November and December, with heavy rain and reduced visibility.

Is the Red Sea too cold in December?

Not for most divers in a 5mm wetsuit. Water averages around 22 to 24°C in December. Book early December if you want lower prices, because the Christmas and New Year weeks are peak season.

Where can beginners dive in December?

Bonaire, Cozumel's calmer reefs, Grand Cayman's west side, the Riviera Maya cenotes (Dos Ojos accepts Open Water divers with a cenote guide) and the Egyptian Red Sea all suit newly certified divers. Socorro and Antarctica are for experienced divers only.

Should I book with a local dive shop or a big booking site?

Booking directly with an independent local dive shop usually gets you better local knowledge, such as which side of the island is diveable when the wind shifts, and puts more of your money into the local operation. Check recent reviews and the shop's own site for prices and certification requirements.

Best Places to Scuba Dive in December 2026 (12 Picks)

December splits the dive world in two. Winds and rain shut down some well-known spots, while others enter their best months of the year. This list covers 12 places that are genuinely good in December 2026, what the water will feel like, what you're likely to see, and who each one suits.

A quick note on sources: water temperatures come from long-term monthly averages and local dive operators, linked in each section. I checked every source on October 3, 2026. Conditions vary year to year, so treat the numbers as typical, not guaranteed. This post is refreshed every October.

December diving at a glance

Destination	Avg. water temp in December	What's good in December	Best for
Cozumel, Mexico	26.7°C / 80°F	Spotted eagle ray season starts	Open Water and up (drift diving)
Riviera Maya cenotes, Mexico	24 to 25°C / 75 to 77°F	Constant conditions year-round	Open Water (cavern, guided)
Grand Cayman	27.6°C / 82°F	West-side walls and reefs	All levels
Bonaire	27.6°C / 82°F	Shore diving, outside the hurricane belt	All levels
Roatan, Honduras	27.3°C / 81°F	Good diving if you plan for north winds	All levels, with a flexible shop
Similan Islands, Thailand	About 29°C / 84°F (Phuket average)	Park open; settled season begins	Open Water and up (liveaboard)
Moalboal and Malapascua, Philippines	25 to 28°C / 77 to 82°F	Sardines and thresher sharks year-round	Open Water and up
Maldives	28.2°C / 83°F	Northeast season: clear east-side channels	Advanced recommended for channels
Egyptian Red Sea	22 to 24°C / 72 to 75°F	Good visibility, quiet early December	All levels (5mm wetsuit)
Raja Ampat, Indonesia	About 29°C / 84°F	Dry season, calm seas, mantas	Open Water and up; Advanced for currents
Socorro, Mexico	24 to 27°C / 75 to 80°F	Warmest water, peak whale shark months	Advanced
Antarctic Peninsula	About -1°C / 30°F	Expedition season, pristine ice	Advanced plus drysuit experience

Sources for each figure are in the sections below.

Caribbean and Mexico

December is the start of the dry, busy season across much of the Caribbean. The Atlantic hurricane season ends on November 30 (Bonaire.com), and the main tradeoff becomes wind direction rather than storms.

Cozumel, Mexico

Why December: Spotted eagle rays. The main season runs from December through March, with January and February the most active months, when rays sometimes pass in groups of a dozen or more (Coral Princess Dive Resort). A Cozumel reef guide notes that young females start appearing at Cantarel (Eagle Ray Wall) in December (Reefs of Cozumel). Average December water is 26.7°C (seatemperature.org).

Who it suits: Cozumel is mostly drift diving, and plenty of reefs work for Open Water divers. Cantarel itself is rated intermediate, with strong and sometimes down currents, and is best done with an experienced guide (Reefs of Cozumel).

Practical notes: Most divers are comfortable in a 3mm wetsuit at this temperature. Cantarel is remote, with few other boats nearby (Reefs of Cozumel), so ask your shop how often they run it and what experience they expect.

Riviera Maya cenotes, Mexico

Why December: Cenotes barely change through the year. Water is a constant 24 to 25°C and visibility inside is very good, because rain is filtered through limestone before it reaches the caverns. December has low rainfall but the holiday week is the busiest of the year (Aquacore Adventures).

Who it suits: Open Water divers can do daylight cavern dives at sites like Dos Ojos, which has a maximum depth of about 6 to 7 meters, as long as they go with a certified cenote guide (Blue Life). Going beyond the light zone takes cave training.

Practical notes: Wear a 5mm full suit; an hour at 24°C chills most people (Aquacore Adventures). Pair it with Cozumel on the same trip.

Grand Cayman

Why December: Warm water (27.6°C average at West Bay, per seatemperature.org) and some of the Caribbean's most accessible wall diving.

Who it suits: All levels. Calm, sheltered west-side sites work well for newer divers.

Practical notes: As the wind shifts at the end of the year, the famous North Wall is often blown out, and many operators spend the winter on the western half of the island instead (Divetech). If the North Wall is your goal, book a shop that can reach several sides of the island and keep a spare day.

Bonaire

Why December: Bonaire lies outside the main Caribbean hurricane belt, and a direct hurricane strike is statistically very unlikely (Bonaire.com). December water averages 27.6°C (seatemperature.org).

Who it suits: Everyone, and especially divers who like independence. Bonaire is best known for shore diving, so you can plan your own days around the reef.

Practical notes: Shore diving still benefits from a local shop for tanks, briefings and first-day orientation. Book early if you're going over Christmas.

Roatan, Honduras (with a caveat)

Why December: Warm water and Mesoamerican Reef diving. By December and January water is around 27°C, or 79 to 80°F (Roatan Divers); the long-term December average is 27.3°C (seatemperature.org).

The caveat: Winter brings rain and north winds. When the wind is strong on the north side, north-side shops move their boats and dive the south side instead, because the island is long and narrow (Roatan Divers). Ask any shop you're considering whether they can do that. If you're torn between the Bay Islands, I'm putting together a Roatan vs Utila comparison.

Southeast Asia

The rule for December in Southeast Asia: go west in Thailand, and pick your coast carefully elsewhere.

Similan Islands, Thailand

Why December: The Similan Islands National Park is open only from October 15 to May 15, and within that window the most settled weather is usually from December to April (Visit-Thailand.org). Phuket, the nearest location with long-term data, averages 28.8°C in December (seatemperature.org).

Who it suits: Open Water and up. Most visitors take a speedboat day trip from Thap Lamu pier near Khao Lak, and divers often choose a liveaboard (Visit-Thailand.org).

Practical notes: All visitors need an e-ticket from Thailand's national parks department, and foreign adults pay a 500 baht park fee as of October 2026 (Visit-Thailand.org). Liveaboards over the holidays sell out, so book early.

Moalboal and Malapascua, Philippines

Why December: Both have year-round headline animals. Moalboal's sardine run lives off Panagsama Beach all year, and Malapascua's thresher sharks visit Kimud Shoal daily, with a sighting rate the local operator puts at about 99% (Cebu Destinations; Thresher Shark Divers).

The honest picture for December: The calm Amihan season brings the best conditions overall, but November through February is its shoulder, with choppier crossings, visibility often 10 to 15 meters, and water dipping to 25 to 26°C in December and January (Cebu Destinations). The long-term December average at Moalboal is a bit warmer, 27.9°C (seatemperature.org).

Who it suits: Open Water divers can see the threshers with an instructor; Advanced divers can go with a divemaster (Thresher Shark Divers).

Indian Ocean and Red Sea

Maldives

Why December: December falls in the northeast season (November to April), which is drier, with generally very good visibility. Clean water flowing in from the east brings visibility of up to 40 meters and a lot of shark action in the east-side channels, while mantas and whale sharks are mostly found on the west side of the atolls (Explorer Ventures). December water averages 28.2°C near Malé (seatemperature.org).

Who it suits: Advanced divers get the most from channel dives, where currents begin in November and get stronger through January (Explorer Ventures). Resort house reefs work for newer divers.

Practical notes: Choose your itinerary by what you want to see: east-side channels for sharks, west-side sites for mantas. Bring a reef hook if your operator recommends one.

Egyptian Red Sea

Why December: December water runs 22 to 24°C with 25 to 35 meters of visibility. Early December is quiet with low-season prices, and oceanic whitetip sightings at the Brothers and Elphinstone hold strong through the month (Aquarius Diving Club). Long-term December averages are 24.7°C at Sharm El Sheikh, 24.2°C at Hurghada and 23.9°C at Dahab (seatemperature.org Sharm, Hurghada, Dahab).

Who it suits: All levels. Reef and wreck diving near Sharm and Hurghada suits newer divers; offshore reefs like the Brothers and Elphinstone are for experienced divers.

Practical notes: Pack a 5mm wetsuit and a hood if you run cold. The weeks from about December 23 to January 5 are peak demand, with summer-level prices, so book the first three weeks of December for a cheaper, quieter trip (Aquarius Diving Club).

Pacific

Raja Ampat, Indonesia

Why December: December is inside the dry season (roughly October to April), which brings calm seas, visibility often 20 to 30 meters or more, warm water and peak manta activity (Bluewater Dive Travel). Sorong, the gateway town, averages 29.3°C in December (seatemperature.org).

Who it suits: Open Water divers can enjoy many reefs, but some of the best sites run with strong current, so Advanced certification and recent experience help.

Practical notes: This is high season and it's remote, so liveaboards and homestays book up far ahead. If December is already full, look at the shoulder months.

Bucket list and advanced trips

Socorro (Revillagigedo Islands), Mexico

Why December: Socorro's season runs from November to May, by liveaboard only. November and December are the warmest months, at about 24 to 27°C, and the peak months for whale sharks. Giant mantas and several shark species are around all season; humpbacks come later, from about January to April (Bluewater Dive Travel).

Who it suits: Advanced divers. Expect long open-ocean crossings, strong current and blue-water safety stops (Bluewater Dive Travel). Confident intermediates can manage with good guidance, but it's no place for a first trip after certification.

Antarctic Peninsula

Why December: The Antarctic travel season runs from November to March. Early season, November and December, brings the most pristine ice and the longest daylight, but also the coldest water and air (AntarcticaTourism.org). Water sits at roughly -1°C.

Who it suits: Only experienced cold-water divers. Operators typically require Advanced Open Water or equivalent, current drysuit certification, and around 20 to 30 or more logged drysuit dives, with recent experience (AntarcticaTourism.org). If you're not there yet, spend the next year logging drysuit dives and aim for a later season.

Where to skip in December, and why

Koh Tao and the Gulf of Thailand: November and December are the northeast monsoon here, with thunderstorms, heavy downpours and runoff that reduces visibility (Crystal Dive). Go to the Andaman side instead.
Tubbataha Reefs, Philippines: The park's designated dive season is mid-March to mid-June, chosen for calmer open-ocean crossings (DAN Alert Diver). There's no December option.
North shores in the Caribbean when the wind turns: Not a skip, but a planning point. Grand Cayman's North Wall and Roatan's north side can both be blown out in winter. Pick shops that can move to the sheltered side.

How to book: go direct with an independent local shop

Wherever you go, consider booking directly with an independent, locally run dive shop rather than only through a big booking marketplace. A few reasons:

Local judgment. The shop on the island knows which side is diveable when the wind shifts, which sites suit your level, and when the eagle rays or sardines are showing up.
Clear answers before you pay. A shop's own website or WhatsApp is usually the quickest way to confirm prices, certification requirements, nitrox availability and gear rental.
Your money stays local. Booking direct means more of what you pay goes to the people running your boat.

What to check before you book: recent reviews, whether prices are listed, which agency they teach (PADI, SSI or others), group sizes, and their policy for weather cancellations. Ask what certification level and logged dives they expect for the sites you want.

Planning further ahead? The where to dive in January 2027 guide is next, and a month-by-month guide to the best dive destinations for 2027 is on the way.

Run a dive shop yourself? Divers planning December trips are looking at your site on their phones right now. ScubaDock builds a mobile-first site with course and trip pages, a booking link and a WhatsApp button for $99 a month.