Your Guide to Diving Japan

Japan Seasonal Dive Planner

The most southerly sub-tropical islands of Okinawa are popular with divers from Southeast Asia, but few westerners trek there. Those who do, rave about it. There’s good diving from February to November with underwater visibility ranging from 33-130ft (10-40m) and water temperatures from 70-86°F (21°-30°C) but the best time to visit is between June and September although there may be tropical storms. High winds in October can be avoided by choosing the lee side of the islands.

Diving Japan Reader Reports and Feature Articles

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Latest Reader Reports from Japan from the serious divers who read Undercurrent All Reader Reports from Japan	All 10,000+ Reports
All Blue Divers/none Report in Japan/Yomitan, Okinawa "Great Local Operator to Access all Areas of Okinawa" filed Nov 25, 2024 by Robert H Pecoraro Jr (Experience: Over 1000 dives, 17 reports, Contributor )
We had an awesome time diving with Otavio and All Blue Divers in Okinawa. Being a free-lance dive guide allows him to take you to all o... ... Read more
Ito Diving Services Bommie/Tateyama Resort Hotel Report in Japan/Tateyama "Awesome Shark Scramble" filed Aug 15, 2024 by ROBERT PECORARO (Experience: Over 1000 dives, 17 reports, Contributor )
This was my second time diving with Ito Diving Services Bommie. The place has an interesting background. The owner made a deal with l... ... Read more
All Blue Divers Okinawa Report in Japan/Okinawa "Three days of sub par diving" filed Sep 26, 2023 by Steven Belmont (Experience: Over 1000 dives)
The owner of All Blue Divers Okinawa, Otaviao, is terrific. He is a self employed owner and does a good job of communicating before a... ... Read more
Aloha Divers Report in Japan/Okinawa "General Tips" filed Sep 17, 2023 by David Jordan (Experience: 501-1000 dives)
Very small outfit, run by a husband and wife who are very nice. I like to take a lot of photos and usually take a private dive guide. T... ... Read more
Bommie Dive center Report in Japan/Chiba Prefecture "Shark Scramble Dives and Healthy Reefs" filed Nov 25, 2017 by ROBERT PECORARO (Experience: Over 1000 dives, 17 reports, Contributor )
We went to this area of Japan to dive with Bommie Dive Center and their famous Shark Scramble. This is a shark feed dive which attract... ... Read more

Editor's Book Picks for Scuba Diving Japan

The books below are my favorites about diving in this part of the world All books are available at a significant discount from Amazon.com; just follow the links. -- BD

Reef Creature Identification: Tropical Pacific
by Paul Humann and Ned Deloach

Paul Humann and Ned Deloach have done it again, releasing a definitive identification guide to 1600 extraordinary reef creatures of the Tropical Pacific. with this 500+ page softbound guide, you get upwards of 2000 exceptional photos of shrimp and crabs and stars and worms and lobsters and nudibranchs and slugs and squid and bivalves . . . well, all those invertebrates that move along the reefs of this region without fining, so it seems. There are several photos of some creatures to help you identify them during different life stages, and about ten percent of the book is descriptive copy so you can tie down your identification. Even if you have no plans to go to the tropical Pacific, just to thumb through the pages, gawk at the complexity and uniqueness of these animals, and read a thumbnail sketch will give any serious diver vicarious thrills for endless hours.

Click here to buy it at Amazon.

Reef Fish Identification: Tropical Pacific
by Gerald Allen, Rodger Steene, Paul Humann, & Ned Deloach

At last, here's a comprehensive fish ID guide covering the reefs of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The generous 500-page text, displaying 2,500 underwater photographs of 2,000 species, identifies the myriad fishes that inhabit the warm tropical seas between Thailand and Tahiti. The concise text accompanying each species portrait includes the fish's common, scientific and family names, size, description, visually distinctive features, preferred habitat, typical behavior, depth range, and geographical distribution. This is an essential book for every diver traveling westward. 6x9 inches.

Click here to buy it at Amazon.

Dive Sites of the Great Barrier Reef
by Neville Coleman.

With 2900 reefs in 220,000 square miles, the enormous Great Barrier Reef has incredible dives -- and some very ordinary ones. If you're contemplating a trip, Neville Coleman's Dive Sites of the Great Barrier Reef and the Coral Sea will help you ensure you pick the best. This 176 page book, with good maps and scores of colorful photos, describes the significant sites, the topography and the critters, then rates and ranks them so you can pick the best. Don't even consider a trip to Australia without consulting this. $24.95

Indo-Pacific Coral Reef Field Guide
by Gerald R. Allen, Roger Steene.

I was trying to pack light for a change. Surely the Solomon Sea would have good identification books aboard. Not so; the only book on the boat belonged to a fellow passenger. It was one that I had not seen before, the Indo-Pacific Coral Reef Field Guide, by two of the best fish guys around, Gerry Allen and Roger Steene. The problem was this fellow passenger kept it in a plastic baggie most of the trip and I had to beg to see it. Great book, good traveling size, and it covers everything from fish, shells, marine plants, mammals, corals, and invertebrates to sea birds and more. Now I've got my own, and it won't do you any good to beg me to borrow it. This is one of two books that I will not travel to the Pacific without. Good for travel to the Red Sea, East Africa, Seychelles, Mauritius, Maldives, Andaman Sea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, Micronesia, Polynesia, and Hawaii, it has 1,800 color illustrations in a 6x8 1/2 paperback format with 378 pages. $39.95.

There's a Cockroach in My Regulator
by Undercurrent

The Best of Undercurrent: Bizarre and Brilliant True Diving Tales from Thirty Years of Undercurrent.

Shipping now is our brand new, 240-page book filled with the best of the unusual, the entertaining, and the jaw dropping stories Undercurrent has published. They’re true, often unbelievable, and always fascinating. We’re offering it to you now for the special price of just $14.95.

Click here to order.

You might find some other books of interest in our Editor's Book Picks section.