Green Island: Snorkeling and Scuba Diving

Our eyes have been opened and there’s no going back. I don’t know how professional divers function, knowing that there’s this beautiful, quiet world waiting for them to jump into. We’ve re-organized our future trips around scuba diving and are looking into getting PADI certified before the year is out. All thanks to an hour spent underwater off the coast of Green Island.

As far as Taiwan us concerned, Green Island and Kenting are the best places in the country for diving and snorkeling. Green Island’s “Big Mushroom” coral formation is the largest and oldest of its kind in the world. Previously, the dive site was listed among South East Asia’s top diving destinations and it’s where we got our introduction to the activity. Unfortunately, the “Big Mushroom” has since been toppled by a typhoon and is currently lying on its side, but there’s still plenty of life around the site.



During the first five minutes underwater, you will check off everything from the opening sequence in Finding Nemo. The hungry fish will nibble on your fingers and some follow the divers around like flocks of birds looking for a handout. We didn’t see any turtles or rays, but there were plenty of clownfish and sea anemones to keep us company.

We went diving through Blue Safari in Gongguan. It’s a reputable place with certified instructors. We paid quite a bit for the experience, but it was worth it and I definitely recommend them. The guides were very helpful and considerate, giving us: underwater cameras, towels, clear instructions and extra layers to wear under our suits. In addition to three daytime excursions, they also do night dives. If only we’d had one more day :(



If snorkeling is more your thing, Green Island offers a plenty of it as well. There are two well-known snorkeling sites on the island: Shilang and Chaikou. Shilang is more popular as it’s the closest area to Nanliao. Of course, that also means that it’s the most crowded and girls might suffer an occasional butt grab. If you pay for a snorkeling tour, this is where it’ll be. It was cheap, fun and I’m glad we did it as it convinced my boyfriend to try diving with me, but I would NOT pay for another tour (butt grabbing d-bags).

Instead, rent your own gear and try going it alone. This way, you’ll get to check out both sites, have significantly more freedom of movement and save some money. Snorkeling tours cost around $400 NTD per person and last about an hour. At $250 per day, gear rental is a much more economic option.