When Jacques-Yves Cousteau says "I have seen other places like Sipadan 45 years ago . . . now we have found again an untouched piece of art", then you know it's safe to say that there is going to be is some pretty special marine life to be found here! Lying just 5° above the Equator, Sipadan is Malaysia's only oceanic island, nestled like a green jewel in the beautiful Sulawesi Sea, just 35km away from the Borneo mainland. Pushed up from the seabed, this beautiful sandy island was formed by layers and layers of coral resting on the extinct volcano beneath.

Sipadan is many people's benchmark for world class diving and snorkelling and home to hundreds of species of fish and hard corals. It offers some of the best wall-diving opportunities in the world, with drop-offs of more than 2000 feet being just 30 feet from the shore in some places. With occasional visitors such as manta rays and scalloped hammerhead sharks, divers can also swim past shoals of barracuda, eagle rays and trevally which school in dizzying numbers out on the reef. The aptly-named 'barracuda point' is the best place to swim alongside these graceful, watchful fish as they swirl around you in large schools.

Sipadan is perhaps most well-known for its abundance of turtles, using the island and its reefs for everything from feeding to nesting and it is not uncommon to see more than twenty turtles on a single dive. It is also a place made famous for seeing the skeletons of turtles in. Dotted with twisting and cavernous limestone caves and tunnels, the famed turtle tombs can be seen whilst diving at Sipadan; an eerie spectacle, where countless unfortunate turtles became lost and disoriented and became trapped, their skeletons littering the floor of the cave. If ever a diver needed a lesson in the risks of cave and cavern diving, then this is one.

In addition to the large and enigmatic pelagic species, Sipadan is hugely rich in its 'macro' fauna and divers are able to explore the beautiful and intriguing world of animals such as leaf scorpion fish, fire gobies, mantis shrimps and frog fish, as well as a wide collection of beautiful and healthy corals.

Diving conditions around Sipadan are usually classed as being good to stunning. Most diving occurs at depths between 15-30m, with all dives taking place from visiting boats as visitors are not able to stay on the island. Currents are usually fairly modest and the water temperature is between 26-30°C throughout the year.

Whilst it is under consideration as a World Heritage Site on account of its myriad of marine life, Sipadan began its career in conservation in 1993 when it was designated as a bird sanctuary. At just 12 hectares in size, it is possible to walk round Sipadan in less than ½ hour and see large numbers of tropical birds, including sea eagles, kingfishers, and sun birds. The formidable coconut (or robber) crab (Birgus largo) also resides on the island and can be seen hoarding and tearing into the tough husks of coconuts on the shore.

In terms of the practicalities of visiting Sipadan, Aqua-Firma arranges this either by speed boat from the neighbouring islands of Kapalai and Mabul, or by liveaboard motor yacht. Whichever way, visitors are limited to 120 divers and snorkelers each day and permits to visit are determined on a lottery basis. There is never a guarantee that we can get you to the island on a particular day, but the best chances are usually on our dive liveaboard trips where we expect to get to the island up to four times each week.


Malaysian Borneo's islands are jewels in South East Asia's rich tapestry of marine habitat - and long may they remain that way.  The diversity of life within them is of global importance, but like many reefs around the world, they are beautiful but fragile environments that are under pressure.  We therefore urge all divers to dive responsibly and safely, avoiding any contact with the reef.  For full details of our Responsible Diving Code of Conduct, please CLICK HERE