Antigua Diving: Not the Best - But, Hey, You're Underwater Anyway
I have a special place in my heart for Antigua.
Unfortunately, it's not because of Antigua diving.
Antigua was where my boyfriend (now husband) and I got our scuba diving certification. And a few years later, it was where we got married.
So I have very good memories of Antigua. However, I do not have very good memories of Antigua scuba diving.
In my opinion, it was overfished and there was not alot to see. It has also been damaged by hurricanes and humans. Of course some sites will be better than others, but overall we were underwhelmed by the diving in Antigua.
On a positive note though, you are underwater. And that is always a good thing. If I were going back to Antigua, I would still go scuba diving. However, I would just enjoy being underwater and not go with high expectations. After all, you are scuba diving, so how bad can it be?
At the worst, you can always use your Antigua diving time to work on some your scuba diving skills such as buoyancy control or air consumption. And Antigua diving is a good break from all that beach lounging and Wadadli (national beer) drinking.
Besides the diving, Antigua itself is worth a visit IMHO. It lays claim to 365 beaches so if you are a beach lover, this might be the Caribbean island for you. Enjoy the island, its' history and its' beaches and do a dive or two to get back underwater.
No matter what, you are on vacation so have a great time and enjoy the break from the everyday.
Lay of the Land
The nation of Antigua is actually made up of three islands – Antigua, Barbuda and the uninhabited island and nature reserve of Redonda. It has a population of approximately 69,000 people and is the largest English speaking nation of the Caribbean Leeward Islands.
Antigua's capital, St John's can be found on Antigua Island, which is 14 miles long and 11 miles wide and approximately 108 square miles in area.
Antigua is mostly quite flat, unlike other Caribbean islands, but has a range of hills in the south western part of the island which includes Boggy Peak, at a height of 1319 feet.
The island is surrounded by coral reefs with the shoreline made of rocky coast and beautiful beaches. In fact, Antigua claims 365 beaches - one for each day of the year. And all are open to the public. Most of the beaches are found on the protected Caribbean side of this island.
As a rough guide, the more developed beaches are generally found on the north-western coast, quieter beaches on the southern coast and great family beaches, protected by reef, on the eastern corner of the island.
Location
Antigua is in the West Indies, in the middle of the Leeward Islands in the Eastern Caribbean. Which pretty much places it right in the middle of the Caribbean.
It is 290 miles southeast of San Juan, Puerto Rico and about 1300 miles southeast from Miami.
Islands nearby include Montserrat, Guadaloupe, St. Kitts and Nevis.
(Check out our page of Antigua maps to see its location. We even have a couple of interactive maps of Antigua for you to play with. Also see our map of Caribbean.)
Flights to Antigua
You can find which airlines fly to Antigua, which have non stop flights to Antigua, where you can get connections to Antigua and more on our flights to Antigua page.
We also show you which airfare search engine tool we use the most to find cheap flights to Antigua - and everywhere else we go.
(You might want to also check out our #1 tip for cheap airfare to the Caribbean as well as our other tips for cheap airfare to help make your trip more affordable. You may also find our discussion on different types of scuba dive vacations helpful also if you are planning an Antigua diving vacation.)
Antigua Resorts
Once you decide to go to Antigua, with all it's beautiful beaches, you'll need to decide on a place to stay. And with all the options available, it can be a bit overwhelming.
A good place to start your search is with this free tool we discuss on our Antigua resorts page.
You can also read about where we stayed while on our vacations in Antigua.
Weather
Antigua has a wonderful tropical climate cooled by the breezes of the north-eastern trade winds. Perfect for when you're done with Antigua diving.
Temperatures on Antigua range from an average low of 73ºF in January and February to an average high of 87ºF between July and September. Minimum night temperatures in the cool season are 60-65ºF.
Antigua is said to be the sunniest island in the Eastern Caribbean, with an average rainfall of only 45 inches. Its dry climate and its lack of natural rivers mean that it is prone to drought but desalination of sea water helps to combat this problem.
As far as hurricanes are concerned, hurricane season is from 1st June to 30th November and August to mid October are the riskiest times. Statistics show that Antigua is affected by hurricanes every 3.11 years, but only suffers from a direct hit every 12.45 years, the last being in 1999.
Water Temperatures
The water temperature around Antigua averages approximately 80ºF year round with a range of about 78ºF to 84ºF. For most people a 2-3mm wetsuit should be sufficient for this temperature. Howewver, if you get cold easily or are doing alot of Antigua diving, you might want to use a full wetsuit.
Underwater visibility usually ranges from 50 to 100+ feet. Unfortunately, when we were there our average visibility was only around 20 feet. Hopefully your visibility will be much better.
Reefs and Rides
Antigua is pretty much surrounded by a barrier reef so there are lots of shallower dive sites. Most dive operators take you to do some Antigua diving off of the southern and western coasts.
Ride times to the site depends, of course, on where you are diving. There are quite a few sites close to shore so your boat ride will be in the 5-15 minute range. Sites further out can take from 30-45 minutes.
Diving
As you may have figured out, Antigua is not well known for its' diving. Rather it is more popular as a topside destination with its 365 beaches and many historical sites. So it is a good place to go with non-divers.
But while you are there, I would say do some Antigua scuba diving anyway. It's always good to get some bottom time.
Sign up for a dive, see what you think and go from there. Who knows, maybe you will be pleasantly surprised by Antigua diving. It would be an appropriate spot for beginner divers since there are many shallower dives and usually no current.
We did our certification in Antigua and weren't very impressed, despite these being our first open water dives. Visibility was also poor - averaging about 20 feet. We dove at Sandy Island (including the barge there) and Boon's Reef.
However, I will say that since we were doing our certification dives, they take you to shallower sites that see alot of scuba traffic. Other sites are probably somewhat better for Antigua diving.
We went back and did some more Antigua scuba diving a few years later and, unfortunately, came away with the same impression. Although we did see a nurse shark and a couple of lobsters.
The south/south eastern sides are reputed to have the more impressive dive sites. However, many dive operators dive the western/southwestern coasts since those are closest to most of the hotels.
There was a dive operator located in English Harbour (Antigua Scuba) that dove the south eastern side of the island. However, someone on the scubaboard.com forum said that they had called Antigua Scuba but was told the owner was closing shop and moving back to Canada. They also told the poster that Ultra Marine Scuba had closed too. Both of these dive shops websites are still up so you may want to contact them to find out the current status.
Topside
One of the more popular things to do (after your Antigua diving) if you are in a party mood is to go to Shirley Heights on Sunday afternoon for some reggae music, BBQ, rum and beer (not necessarily in that order). There are gorgeous views from up top and it is a fun afternoon.
We've had a great time at Shirley Heights and will be going back. Take heed though, it can get crowded and just be aware of what's happening around you.
If you can't bear to leave the water, you can always opt for the Pirate Ship - another rum and beer soaked party. Have fun dancing, doing the limbo, jumping off the rope swing and pretty much anything you want. (The ship we went on, the Jolly Roger washed up in a storm, but there is another one that has taken its place.)
If you want a more relaxed day, you can always enjoy lazing on one of its 365 white beaches (yes, it'll take you a year to get round them!), while being cooled by a trade wind (hopefully).
You might like to check out this book to help plan your trip to Antigua - whether you are going to do some Antigua diving or not. It gets great reviews and seems to be more than just your average guidebook:
Give Antigua diving a shot - we'd love to hear what you think!
For more information, you can take a look at our other pages on Antigua:
For most people a 2-3mm 
It would be an appropriate spot for beginner divers since there are many shallower dives and usually no current.
