One of the best dive sites in Italy must mention in Liguria. It is a region of Northwest Italy, connecting to France. It is often called the Italian Rivera. Like its neighbor, the French Rivera, it is a popular tourist destination, especially for those who can afford mega yachts. The Ligurian Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, between the Italian mainland and the island of Corsica.

Portofino is the center of diving here and is considered the birthplace of Italian scuba diving. Nearby are the villages of Santa Margherita Ligure and Camogli. There are many dive sites located in the area, however, the most famous may be the site of the Abyss of Christ. The statue was installed in August 1954 in the bay at San Fruttuoso, as a memorial for diver Dario Gonzatti, which died while diving with a rebreather at the time. The sculpture lies at 16 meters/53 feet. Copies of the statue are also found in St. George’s, Grenada, and Key Largo, Florida, USA.

Location: Liguria, Italy.

Best Time To Dive: April to August.

The marine protected area of Punta Campanella is located on the Sorrentine peninsula about 50 kilometers from the big city of Naples. Surrounded by the rich waters of the Tyrrhenian Sea, this peninsula is part of the Amalfi coast, a 40-kilometer region of Italy stretching between the Gulf of Naples and the Gulf of Salerno. The marine protected area includes some grotto’s, inlets, and bays starting at Punta del Capo and ending near Punta Germano.

One of the most popular places to visit on this peninsula is the town of Sorrento due to its accessibility to the Amalfi coast and view of Mount Vesuvius. Sorrento is a little of an unexpected diving destination. All the treasures of the underwater world, the depths of deep-blue waters in Sorrento allow so many things to be seen! Taking a plunge in Sorrento is embodied by similar geology as found on the beach like caverns, sheer drop-offs, and caves. The gem in its crown is the protected marine territory of Punta Campanella, making it the best spot for scuba diving in Italy.

Location: Sorrentine, Italy.
Best Time To Dive: April to November

Sardinia is among those top places where you can experience the best scuba diving in Italy. This is the second biggest Italian island, located in the Mediterranean Sea (between Tunisia and Corsica). Sardinia is appreciated for three things: the beach life, the clarity of its beaches, and vivid underwater pictures. The island has a mighty area for a memorable scuba dive in Italy. You can dive here at many places like Capo Carbonara, Orosei Gulf, Capo Testa, and Sant’Antioco to name a few for enjoying the island’s natural glory.

Technical divers love the area’s caves, history-lovers are fascinated by the wrecks and beginners can ease into the water on a variety of shore dives. Among the sandy seabeds, maze-like caves, and fascinating rock formations, divers have the opportunity to find eagle rays, tuna, groupers, barracudas, the elusive sunfish (from March to June), dolphins, octopus, slipper lobsters, the Mediterranean bamboo shark, pipefish, breams, squid, crabs, scorpionfish and moray eels. Sponges, sea fans, and red corals are also visible. Nudibranchs, sea horses, Pinna nobilis fan mussels, and other macro life can be spotted year-round.

Location: Sardinia, Italy.
Best Time To Dive: April to November

Elba is among the best dive sites in Italy. It is a mind-boggling scuba diving site, known for its dazzling red, yellow, and white gorgonians, which cover the seabed at about 20m. There are dives suitable for all levels: walls, shoals and Marine Protected Areas where the underwater environment is pristine. Usually, passing this zone, you traverse a Posidonia meadow at 25m at that point drops to 30m with red gorgonians up to a profundity of 40m. When you arrive at the passageway of a cave you’ll be rewarded with scorpion fish, lobster, and some pelagic fish like amberjack and barracuda.

The coralligenous is embellished with sponges and corals. In the ravines the typical Mediterranean burrow fishes such as moray eels, octopuses and scorpionfish shelter and colorful nudibles can be found everywhere. Stepping fish such as barracudas, groupers, tuna, sea eagles, are frequent to meet. Elba is also at the center of the area named the Cetacean Sanctuary due to the frequent presence of dolphins andfin whales, but not only: turtles lay their eggs on the island.

Location: Latin Ilva, Italy.

Best Time To Dive: Year-round

Another best dive site in Italy is Ustica which is acclaimed as the scuba diving capital of the Mediterranean Sea. Ustica is a small volcanic island full of history, pristine nature, a charming Mediterranean atmosphere, and marvelous sunsets oversea. Ustica is the oldest island in Italy. Since 1986 the whole island has been a Marine Reserve which is a reservoir of plenty of fish covering some substantial specimens.

There are 13 dive sites offering various itineraries. Enjoy the caves where big groupers hide, the canyons, and endless passages with splendid color plays of “Il Medico” dive. Be amazed by the clouds of barracuda and big pelagic that swim around the wreck of “Colombara”. Explore the reef of “Falconiera” looking for critters or admire the colonies of shrimps of the “Grotta dei Gamberi” cave. Travel into the past by following one of the archaeological underwater routes at the “Secca d’Africa”. Perfect dives for either beginner or experienced levels.

Location: Sicily, Italy.

Best Time To Dive: From half April until the end of October.

Sicily is a vast island in Europe and is among the best dive sites in Italy. It is one more extraordinary place for scuba diving of all aptitude levels and intrigue. There are many shipwrecks ranging from the time before the Roman Empire to the World Wars and to recent events. Additionally, you’ll also discover black volcanic rock here. Find the thrill of scuba diving in Italy with an introductory diving adventure in the bright and clear waters of Sicily’s bayous.

Fascinating dive destinations are the islands scattered along its coast, most of which are volcanic, with walls formed by lava and covered in gorgonian sea fans and bright colored sponges such as in Pantelleria or in the Aeolian Islands. Great biodiversity occurs in the Marine Protected Areas. Ustica Island is renowned for its abundant marine life; the Aegadian Islands offer an impressive morphology of the seabed, as well as the Pelagian islands in the very south, where you are more likely to encounter large pelagic marine life. Palermo, Siracusa, Messina, and Catania offer also challenging scuba experiences for shipwrecks, breath-taking caves, and thrilling ancient remains.

Location: Sicily, Italy.

Best Time To Dive: March to November

Ischia is an island in Italy that is recognized for its enrapturing excellence and extraordinary diving adventures. Scuba diving in Ischia is done in the Tyrrhenian Sea, in the northern part of the Gulf of Naples. This volcanic island is the largest of the Phlegrean Islands, and it attracts tourists from around the globe throughout the year. Many of these visitors are divers who are looking for their next adventure beneath the waves in one of the loveliest places on the planet. The island of Ischia is one of the protected areas of Italy to save marine life as well as famous for the clearness of its water so that you can see everything far off while scuba diving in Italy. There are many agencies on the island offering scuba diving packages to tourists.

There are many dive sites to choose from while diving Ischia such as Mitigliano, Vervece, Monte Sant’Angelo, Secca delle Formiche. With colorful corals adorn the walls, so have your camera ready for some breathtaking underwater shots. Swim through a corridor to find myriad fish species gliding alongside you, as well as tiny creatures such as red shrimp along the way. Then pass through a tunnel that leads you into a space that is filled with colorful sea anemones that are truly breathtaking. Scuba diving in Ischia is so amazing!

Location: Gulf of Naples, Italy.

Best Time To Dive: Year-round, except monsoons.

Calabria is among the best dive sites in Italy. The Calabrian coasts offer divers a great variety of diving sites, from vertical walls overlooking the blue, in which there are caves full of life, to lush shoals animated by benthic and pelagic life, including the famous mountain of Scylla. Capo Vaticano is presumably a great pick in Calabria that ensures both quantity and quality for the diving aficionado, making it a great spot for experiencing the best diving in Italy.

The sandy bottom, usually considered boring, can hold interesting encounters such as seahorses on the agenda here, octopuses in their burrows, fascinating owl fish, and large weevers. The depths of Calabria are scattered with wrecks of various kinds both on the Ionian side and in the Strait of Messina. Let's discover these “oases of biodiversity” where history has stopped!

Location: Calabria, Italy.

Best Time To Visit: May to October

Palinuro is one of the best dive sites in Italy. If you are an expert or a fan of immersions or just want to experience the thrill of scuba, come and discover the depths of Palinuro: about 35 caverns and underwater caves make it one of the main points of interest for lovers of marine biology and caving in the Mediterranean. Some forms of plant and animal life have their own habitat deep in the depths of the Cape, for years a destination for scholars and enthusiasts who prefer the seabed to the beaches of Palinuro. Basically, there are amazing diving locations, among them the one is the Grotta Azzurra Capo Palinuro showing interesting things to a large extent.

If you want to try your hand at a diving course in Palinuro with instructors and experienced guides, either diving in Capo Palinuro or snorkeling with mask, fins and snorkel, there’s nothing better than one of the many diving schools. Let's into the wonderful depths of the Cape to discover unique species.

Location: Salerno, Italy.

Best time to dive: April to November

Punta Nasuto is a famous dive site in Marciana Marina and also is one of the best dive sites in Italy. Here the seabed is very varied. For an interesting dive, start from the east side of the promontory. After moving through thick shoals of damselfish hanging constantly in mid-water, you will reach the base of the cliff at a depth of 42 meters.

This underwater itinerary continues for about 50 meters towards the open sea along a sandy track until reaching a large isolated rock that rises on the surface of the water for a couple of meters. The life surrounding these two cliffs is extraordinary: there are shoals of white breams and shade fish inside the deep clefts, with lobsters and conger-eels appearing from behind the rocks, as well as the beautiful Anthias whirling inside the cracks with their pink coats. The rocks display a particularly rich coralligenous with bright colorful sponges, bryozoans, and the delicate crowns of the Protula tubular.

Location: Livorno, Toscana, Italy.

Best Time To Dive: June to August.