Experience Cape Town’s Underwater World

Divers can now explore Cape Town dive sites aboard Sea Otter, Oceans Africa’s SAMSA-certified vessel. The charters launch from Simonstown, Kommetjie or Hout Bay and adapt daily to conditions, offering reef, wreck, kelp and seal encounters in small, private groups.

False Bay Scuba Diving and Kelp Forests

False Bay’s calmer winter waters contrast with the Atlantic’s clear summer upwellings, giving year-round dive opportunities. The kelp forests of the Great African Sea Forest extend nearly 1 000 km north, creating shelter for fish, sharks and seals, perfect for kelp forest diving South Africa.

Ideal for Beginner Diving Cape Town or Seasoned Explorers

With only three scuba divers per instructor and flexible scheduling, Oceans Africa’s charters suit newcomers and advanced adventurers alike. Freedivers and snorkelers can join without individual permits while enjoying the same pristine Marine Protected Areas.

Top Dive Sites in Cape Town

Cape Town’s diving reveals a rare blend of wild beauty, history, and color beneath the surface. Oceans Africa’s Cape Town dive charters explore a selection of dive sites that showcase why the Cape Peninsula ranks among South Africa’s most diverse underwater destinations.

- Partridge Point (False Bay): A lively seal diving site where Cape fur seals glide through kelp forests, especially rewarding in winter when False Bay offers calm, clear conditions.
- Smitswinkel Bay: A long-time favorite among local divers, home to several scuttled shipwrecks now transformed into thriving artificial reefs rich in soft corals and marine life.
- Bellows Rock (Cape Point): The site of the Portuguese liner SS Lusitania, this 40-metre wreck remains one of the Cape’s most iconic and challenging deep dives, accessible only on calm days.
- False Bay Reefs: Filled with colorful corals and invertebrates in shades of red, blue, pink, orange, and purple, these reefs deliver calm, scenic winter dives among granite boulders.
- Atlantic Seaboard Reefs: Summer’s south-easterly winds bring cool, clear water to reveal dramatic granite structures, natural swim-throughs, and coral-covered rock faces ideal for photography.
- Kelp Forests of the Cape: Part of the Great African Sea Forest, these towering underwater canopies create a surreal experience alive with movement, light, and marine biodiversity.

Each site highlights a different face of Cape Town’s marine landscape, from playful seal encounters to the quiet majesty of deep wrecks, and together they form the range of experiences that Oceans Africa’s small-group charters make possible year-round along the Cape Peninsula.

Plan Your Next Charter

For updates, availability and detailed information, visit https://www.oceansafrica.com/. Each charter is tailored to diver experience and daily conditions.

About Oceans Africa

Oceans Africa runs private scuba and freedives charters from Cape Town’s Southern Peninsula. Operating within the Table Mountain National Park Marine Protected Area, the company specializes in kelp forest diving, reef exploration and Cape Town wreck dives for small groups.