Scuba Season
Underwater reef at Turneffe Atoll
Declining

Turneffe Atoll

Belize · Caribbean

Turneffe Atoll is the largest of Belize's three coral atolls and home to the country's best wall diving — long uninterrupted walls, healthy reef fish, the Elbow current point, and a much quieter alternative to Ambergris Caye.

How this reef is doing

ⓘ How we measure this

Reef state

Declining

Atoll reefs at Turneffe show post bleaching recovery in patches. Wall diving still strong.

Coral cover

HEALTHY RANGE7%2015now
Declining

Fish life

healthy reef of its kind ▾
SparseRich

About what a healthy reef of its kind holds.

Moderate

Heat

SafeBleaching

Warmer than usual right now, but not hot enough to bleach.

Warming

Fishing

QuietBusy

Quiet water, and the protection is actively patrolled.

Patrolled

Sources · MERMAID and the survey teams · Reef Life Survey · NOAA Coral Reef Watch · Global Fishing Watch and reef gravity

Coral cover over time

Live coral cover, by survey year

Across 9 survey years from 2015 to 2025, live coral cover here has held steady at about 7%. Every point is a real survey reading, never a projection.

Live coral cover, percent by year

40%0%region avg 16%201520172019202020212022202320242025
9 surveys, 2015 to 2025
Caribbean average (GCRMN)
MERMAID and the survey teams, within 56 km

What you will see

13 species across the dive sites here

Dive sites

What divers say

Belize's Blue Hole gets the headlines, but Turneffe is the diving worth flying for.
— Repeat visitor

Good to know

Combine with Blue Hole

Most Turneffe trips include the Blue Hole as a day excursion.

Gear & getting wet

  • Basic kit

    • Mask and fins
    • BCD and regulator
    • 3mm full wetsuit · warm water
    • Dive computer

  • For specific sites

    • SMB + reel · The Elbow
    • Dive light · Black Beauty