Diving the Crab offers a variety of diving and non-diving excursions. Situated only 13km from our base at Nomads, is Chale Island – a beautiful private island teeming with life. Although it is a private island, we are privileged to have one of our dive centres situated right by the water, with our very own fleet of boats. Therefore, day trips to and from Chale Island can be organised through us with all excursions departing from our bases in Diani.

We organize 2 dives in the morning and all other activities are dependent on the tides. You have the choice of diving, snorkelling, mangrove tour and a complimentary guided walk through the sacred Kaya Forest. Included in the tour is a tasty buffet for lunch, which is provided on the island itself.

Coral Reefs

Chale Island is known for its beautiful unspoilt shallow reefs that gently slope down to around 30m. Its reefs offer unique contrasting landscapes as well as an abundance of marine life – making it ideal for both snorkelers and divers.

Sacred Kaya Forest

Chale Island contains a mixture of indigenous and tropical flora and provides you with the opportunity to witness some of the tallest trees in Africa. Along the coastline itself is an incredible Mangrove forest. Spread out across the island, you can find a wide variety of primate life, birds and insects. We call it a ‘magical fusion of nature.’
For more information regarding our snorkel and diving excursions, please feel free to contact us via diving@divingthecrab.com.

Our shallow lagoons in Diani primarily consist of seagrass which is an important ecosystem for juvenile fish and invertebrates. Seagrass also plays a vital role in climate change mitigation, as it sequesters huge amounts of carbon dioxide, and functions as the main food source for sub-adult and adult green turtles, of which we have many.

Limited seagrass research has been conducted along the coast of Diani Beach, but luckily for us, a team of experts have recently set out to assess this ecosystem. Additionally, the team will also focus on macroalgae; determining for both, the species composition, distribution and abundance. The project will be conducted between Tiwi and Chale Island, throughout the National Marine Reserve, aiming to inform local conservationists on the current status of this lagoon system and form a basis for future monitoring.

Climate change continues to negatively impact the ocean and its organisms. With waters becoming warmer, corals become stressed, dislodging the symbiotic algae living in their tissues causing corals to whiten; a term known as coral bleaching. In the short term, this is reversible if the water temperature decreases. However, extensive coral bleaching events result in mass coral deaths, reducing biodiversity throughout the coral reef ecosystem. It is important for scientists worldwide to measure the health of this vital ecosystem that supports approximately 25% of all known marine species, and to use the data collected to attempt to enhance ecosystem sustainability and mitigate future climatic changes. Because of this, the team is conducting ground-truthing of shallow-water reefs in Diani and contributing this data to validate satellite images as part of a global coral reef mapping initiative.

Look out for part 2 of the ‘protection and monitoring of our shallow-water ecosystems.’ Find out who will conduct the research, how they will conduct their research and what the results will tell us.

Grab your gear, pack your bags and come on down to one of Africa’s finest beaches. Once again the annual migration of whale sharks is just around the corner! Starting in November, these magnificent gentle giants slowly start to emerge from the ocean’s depths into the shallows off Diani Beach.

These beautiful creatures inherited the Swahili name ‘Papa Shillingi,’ which directly translates into ‘Shark covered in shillings.’ Legends say that God was so pleased to have created such a creature, that angels were given gold and silver to throw down from heaven onto the sharks back. These fish are known to swim along the ocean’s surface, filtering plankton, which in turn-is their way of giving thanks to God for their creation.

Little is known about the biggest fish in the sea, but we can tell you that our dive site ‘Papa Shillingi’ is known for its name. When the season hits, the site becomes immensely popular for divers. With an average depth of 12m, this site is great for both beginners and advanced divers to tick off an experience that should be on every divers bucket list.

Papa Shillingi is not the only hotspot for these beauties…sightings of whale sharks are recorded on many of Diving the Crab dive sites, so keep those eyes peeled!

Scuba diving is an incredible experience, that allows you to explore amazing new environments and discover a beautiful underwater world. However, choosing the best way to get started isn’t always easy. Here at Diving the Crab we have gone through the 3 most common ways people start diving and broken them down into a short and simple review – to help you make that choice.

PADI Discover Scuba Diving Course

Duration: 1 afternoon + 1 morning (over 2 days)
Minimum age: 10 years

The DSD is a fantastic introductory course for those with limited time. This is not a certification, but a one-time experience with a scuba instructor. You will do an afternoon session with basic dive theory and a few skills in the swimming pool. The following day you will be able to head out for 2 fun dives with your Instructor at a depth no deeper than 12m.
For those wishing to start their Open Water Course within 12 months after completing their DSD, this experience can be credited.

PADI Scuba Diver Course

Duration: 2½ days
Minimum age: 10 years

The Scuba Diver Course is the first step to receiving a certification. It is for those who wish to begin their Open Water Course but have limited time. In other words, the Scuba Diver Course is literally the first few days of the Open Water certification course.

With this course; you will begin your first day with theory, second day with pool skills and final day with diving in the open ocean. Upon completion, you will receive a certification that allows you to dive no deeper than 12m. Later on, you can decide to continue this toward a full Open Water Diver certification.

PADI Open Water Course

Duration: 4 days
Minimum age: 10 years

The classic SCUBA certification, Open Water diver, will allow you to dive independently- the world over. Theory, pool sessions, 4 open water dives, and a final exam, all under the supervision of your instructor. Afterwards, you can dive up to 18 meters with another certified diver.

Junior divers of 10 and 11 years old are limited to a depth of 12m. From 12-14 years old, they can go up to 18 meters with an adult diver.

The schedule for this course is as follows:
Day 1: Morning of theory and afternoon of pool skills
Day 2: Morning of theory and afternoon of pool skills
Day 3: Morning Open water dive 1 and 2
Day 4: Morning Dives 3 and 4

For any more information, please feel free to contact us via email: diving@divingthecrab.com

Are you a Scuba Diver? Have you invested in your own Scuba Gear? Have you dreamt of travelling to beautiful, deep blue tropical waters but concerned about not being able to travel light with your gear?

We all know the difficulties of travelling light at the same time as wanting to dive in the comfort of your own gear

• First check with your airline, it’s quite possible that you can bring all your scuba gear for free. (please do not bring your own tank!)

• The most important and easiest piece of equipment you should carry, is your own dive computer. The second would be mask, snorkel, and wetsuit. Regulator and then BCD, all of this in order of importance for your own personal comfort.

We think you should know: with our local technicians at hand, we are known for maintaining our Dive Gear in proper conditions. All Scuba Gear, aside from the computers, are provided in our prices. Those wishing to rent a computer can do so for an extra 5 Euros!

We provide both Air (21% O2) and Nitrox. Nitrox is free (for divers who are Enriched Air certified). Our tanks can take both International (Yoke) and DIN regulator systems.

Our Equipment and their Brands:

Mares

• Closed Heel Fins

Free Shark

• Wetsuits (all 5mm shorty’s)
• Buoyancy Control Device (BCDs)
• Open Heel Fins (For those with their own Booties as we do not provide Booties)
• Dive Bags and Weight Belts

Cressi

• Regulators
• Masks and Snorkels
• Optical Masks ranging from -5 to 8
• Leonardo Dive Computers
• Compass
• Torches (available for rent)

To make it easier for your travels, we also provide a discount for those who bring their own BCD and Regulator set (this discount is available only for a complete regulator set & BCD). All other necessary gear is happily provided by us.