Scuba diving is an easy and fun activity in the Gili Islands. Whether you are trying scuba diving for the first time, earning your Open Water Certification, diving into continuing scuba education, fun diving or even tech diving, there are plenty of options on the Gili Islands.
In this blog post I will cover scuba courses and prices, professional scuba diving courses, tech diving, drift diving, and night diving in the Gili Islands.
So keep reading to learn about diving in the Gili Islands from a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor who has spent almost five months diving on the islands. I also did my Divemaster and Instructor courses there.
*This post may contain affiliate links, which means I will receive a commission if you purchase through my link, at no extra cost to you.
Most dive shops do three dives each day and sail out in smaller boats to do one dive at a time. Surface intervals are almost always done on shore where you can enjoy a snack or lunch in the dive shop while you energize for the next dive.
This also means that you have the option of doing only one dive a day, if that is what you prefer.
The dive shops on all three Gili Islands visit largely the same dive sites. But there are differences between the islands.
Read more about the Gili Islands here, or click to read specifically about Gili Trawangan, Gili Air or Gili Meno.
Prices and courses
For beginner divers not looking to do a course, a Discover Scuba Diving program is the best way to experience scuba diving. You spend some time in the swimming pool learning skills with your instructor before going on an open water dive. It is usually done on the same day. A Discover Scuba Diving program costs around 1 million Indonesian Rupiah.
Fun dives (aka. Discover Local Diving) for already certified divers cost around 600,000 Indonesian Rupiah. That includes a divemaster to guide you around the local reefs, and equipment rental.
In most dive shops you can rent GoPro cameras to take on your dive. Or you can hire a professional to film – and even edit – a video of your scuba diving experience. If you are doing a Discover Scuba Diving program this is ideal as you may not be able or allowed to record yourself for safety reasons.
A PADI Open Water Course in the Gili Islands costs between 6 and 7 million Indonesian Rupiah. And that includes equipment rental, learning materials as well as pool and open water sessions. It usually takes between 3 to 4 days to complete the PADI Open Water Diver Course.
Bundles
If you are thinking about doing both your Open Water and Advanced Open Water Course, get in touch with the dive shop you are thinking of using and see if they can give you a good price offer. They usually can, and that way you can choose the dive shop that fits your needs and your budget.
PADI also has bundles on their website where you can combine more courses for a better price. For example this Advanced Open Water Diver and Enriched Air Diver bundle.
The same goes if you are thinking of doing more continuing education courses and/or professional programs. Most dive shops can offer you a package deal. That can make planning easier and help you save money.
Professional Scuba Diving Courses
A lot of the dive shops on the Gili Islands are well-known for offering great professional scuba diving courses such as Divemaster and Instructor Development Courses.
I did my PADI Divemaster Course and PADI Instructor Development Course with Blue Marlin Dive Gili Trawangan and I had a great experience. I can recommend Blue Marlin Dive for both fun dives and courses (not sponsored).
They also throw a huge party every Monday night and offer accommodation. But be aware that it gets very noisy on Monday nights though.
Tech Diving in the Gili Islands
If you enjoy tech diving, especially Gili Trawangan is renowned for tech diving. Dive shops like Blue Marlin Dive and Trawangan Dive have tech departments and explore deeper dive sites around the Gili Islands and Lombok. With chances of seeing hammerheads and manta rays among other things.
I am not a tech diving expert, but some of the dive shops are. So explore their homepages and get in touch with them to learn more (not sponsored).
Drift Diving
The ocean surrounding the Gili Islands has some currents. Therefore the type of diving practiced in the Gili Islands is mostly drift diving. This means that you start the dive in one spot and end the dive in another spot.
During the dive you will usually drift with the current making for some relaxing dives with limited air consumption. If you manage your buoyancy correctly that means you can dive for even longer than normally.
Currents can get strong in some dive sites, but mostly they are manageable. And they are nowhere near as strong as they get in the Indonesian Komodo Islands in Labuan Bajo, Flores. There will also be days with no currents at all, which is good for beginners. The islands also offer some more sheltered areas.
If you have been considering the PADI Drift Diver Course, the Gili Islands is a great place for this course. This is because currents are almost always present here. In the course you will get more comfortable drift diving, and practice SMB (Surface Marker Buoy) deployment.
Night Diving
Night diving is both possible and very cool in the Gili Islands. If you are an avid nightdiver like me, try to get on a night dive visiting Seahorse Bay. It is located just off Lombok. And on the boat ride to the bay, you can enjoy the beautiful sunset over the ocean and the Gili Islands.
The sheltered bay has no current and usually no surge either so you can have a very chill dive. The temperatures are pleasant but consider a full wetsuit if you get cold easily.
Because it is shallow, you can dive for over an hour. Go searching for seahorses, see active moray eels, squid turtles, lionfish, stonefish and so much more. The night brings a completely different life to the ocean and nocturnal species are very active.
If you are not yet a Night Diver, there is still hope. You can either do the PADI Night Diver Course, do a night dive as an adventure dive, or do a night dive as a part of your Advanced Open Water Diver Course.
