Diving Sabah and the Celebes Sea from Singapore

Sipadan, Mabul and Layang Layang. Sheltered enough to dive most of the year, with one atoll that shuts completely.

Islands: Lankayan

Best months: Apr–Aug
Also good: Mar, Sep–Nov
From Singapore: ~6h 57m each way
On the map: 5 dive sites

When to go

Good

October works.

The year here

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Best here: April, May, June, July, August.

Sabah and the Celebes Sea. Written by hand from how the season actually runs, calibrated against what the boats do, since a season that disagrees with the operators is wrong however good the meteorology behind it. It describes most years, not this one: the forecast above is what knows about next week.

Northeast monsoon (Nov–Feb) — Swell and rain reaching down from the South China Sea. Semporna's inshore sites stay diveable; the crossings get uncomfortable and visibility drops.
Closed September to February — Layang Layang, the offshore atoll, closes for the monsoon and opens again in March — hammerhead season is March to May. Sipadan and Mabul are unaffected and run all year.

Where to dive in Sabah and the Celebes Sea

Lankayan · 5 sites

Every site opens onto this week's sea forecast and the marine life seen there. See them on the map →

Getting there from Singapore

~6h 57m

door to water, each way · 4 legs

FlightSandakan (SDK)~4h 42mFlight time plus the airports at both ends. A connection adds to it.Find flights →
Transferthe jetty~27 minFor Lankayan.Directions →
Ferrythe crossing~1h 18mAt this distance the last stretch is a scheduled crossing rather than a dive boat, so book it before the flight — a missed sailing usually costs a day. Which crossing it is has been worked out from the distance and not from a timetable; ask the operator.
Dive boatLankayan - Jetty Dive~30 minThen the dive boat out from the island.

📍 Lankayan - Jetty Dive on Google Maps 🧭 Route from Sandakan

Times marked ~ are estimated from straight-line distance and will be roughly right at best. The road legs are the ones Google Maps answers properly; it will not plan the ferry or the dive boat at all. A dive site's coordinates put a pin in open water, so the map link drops you on the site, not on a jetty.

Is it good right now?

The forecast for Lankayan - Jetty Dive shows this week's swell and wind — and you can ask to be told when it looks good. Or see where to dive this month.

Planning Sabah and the Celebes Sea with friends?

Hear when a site looks goodFollow any dive site and we'll tell you when a good spell is on the forecast.
Plan trips with your groupEveryone answers going, maybe or can't, and the club calendar shows the dates most people can make.
Join a trip from the group chatTap “Count me in” on a shared trip link and you're in the club and down as going.
Keep a log bookLog your dives with the conditions you found, which become your group's reports on that site.
Your group's own spacePosts, photos and private messages, seen by members only.
Add missing dive sitesPut a site the map doesn't have yet where the boat actually goes.

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