Falmouth Dive Sites

An ariel view of Gyllyngvase Beach during the height of summer!

Quite possibly one the UK’s most favourite diving destinations!

Falmouth has a rich and vibrant history that attracts thousands of visitors every year. It has a huge variety of shops, hotels, cafes and activities that you and your family can take part in. But for most people, it is Falmouth’s beaches that draws in the crowds!

Because of Falmouth’s unique location and geography, people have been living here since the Iron Age due to its strategic position and access to the sea. In fact, Falmouth Docks is still used to harbour military vessels today, as well as enormous cruise ships that pull up to restock before voyaging across the Atlantic to America and beyond - and it is because of its location, it is without question a must dive destination for divers of all experience levels!

If you’re a newly qualified diver, then Falmouth is definitely for you. It is sheltered from the elements, has easy access to the sea, carpark’s close to the beach, free public toilets and cafe’s where you can grab some refreshments between dives.

It is also home and visited by the most amazing marine life during both day and night all year round, all within depths of less than 8 metres, meaning you can have longer dive times increasing your chances of seeing something awesome!

Falmouth also has the remains of WW1 Germain U-boats that you can explore as well, all within walking and snorkeling distance!

Please be aware the information below can be used to assist you for researching dive or snorkel sites, but we cannot be held liable for any accidents/incidents should you choose not to use us as your guide.

Our Dive Sites:

Swanpool

Our Safety Diver & inhouse Marine Biologist James with a Long-legged spidercrab. These magnificent little critters walk along the sandy bottom in a stuttery/swaying fashion mimicking that of seaweeds in light surge.

Our favourite dive site in all of Falmouth!

Swanpool is what we call a marine nursery, as it provides a safe haven for lots of baby and juvenile marine life!

Car parking is exceptionally easy and the sea is only a 50 yard walk or so away. The entry is a nice gentle stroll down the beach and the exit is likewise back up. There is a local cafe on site that does excellent food and refreshments and there are free public toilets next to the carpark.

The dive site itself is just amazing though. We generally see more here than anywhere else in Falmouth. The total depth is no more than 6 metres, meaning our dive times are 60 minutes or more, which helps increase our chances of seeing something awesome!

Swanpool is often known as the UK’s second safest dive site due to it’s incredibly sheltered location. As a result - this is also our main dive site for Guided Night Dives!

A Smalleyed Ray (Raja microocellata) is a near threatened species with dwindling population numbers. Falmouth is one of its last breeding sites in the UK.

Gylly Beach

Very similar to Swanpool with regards to facilities and dive site entry/exit except that the walk from the carpark is slightly longer and the carpark itself is slightly smaller. However, don’t let that put you off as Gyllyngvase (or Gylly for short) is where we like to dive to see the larger and more oddball marine life!

There are two dives you can do at Gylly:

The first and easiest is to follow the reef line on your right hand side and eventually into the reef itself. Here you might be lucky enough to witness Garfish predating on the massive shoals of sandeels. It is also where we find most cuttlefish as they prefer Gylly reef to hunt, hide and breed. There is also the flattened remains of the SS Ponus, which was once an Oil Tanker that ran aground in 1916. It used to be a lovely little wreck site until it was flattened by another oil tanker in 2019 that wasn’t anchored properly and blown in by a storm. (Fortunately and thanks to the flatness of Falmouth’s underwater geography, no oil was spilled!).

The second option is a 200 metre surface swim/snorkel out to the marker buoys in Falmouth bay. These buoys are here permanently all year round to warn boat skippers that they are only allowed to do 4 knots between the buoys and beaches. (But very rarely do boats actually come between the buoys and beaches). Once you have reached the buoy, take a moment to get your breath back and then descend on the buoyed line to the reef below that sits at of depth of 8 metres. Heading east, you will enter the biggest seagrass bed in Falmouth where you’re very likely to see Thornback Rays, Nursehounds, many varieties of flatfish and if you’re lucky - John Dorys! Spend 20 minutes here and then head back to the reef and follow the reef line back to gylly beach, investigating as you go.

Underneath the flattened remains of the SS Ponus which sank in 1916.

Deep in the jungles of Gylly Seagrass beds during the dead of night, we came across this superb adult John Dory hunting for small fish and crabs.

Castle Beach

If you’re planning to dive here, then it is best done during a high spring tide. If you’re planning to snorkel here, then it is best done during a low spring tide.

Preferably it is better to hire a guide like us if you’ve never dived or snorkeled this site before as the entry/exit can be quite deceptive as first.

Parking is free but is on street and generally a first come first serve basis. There are two ways down the beach, one is a set of steps and the other is a steep path, both lead down to the concrete platform with small steep steps on either side onto the beach.

The next difficult bit is the walk out to sea where you can get some depth. On a low tide, you can see lots and lots of rocks covered in kelp covering 100 metres or so. Don’t go over the rocks in full dive kit on a low tide - its treacherous! Instead, just to the right of the concrete platform along the beach, you may see a small stream running down between the rocks that ends in an open sandy bay - walk down this stream instead, as it is the least hazardous entry.

Or better yet, enter during a high tide about where the stream is and you should get waist deep quite quickly and be able to back kick your way over the rocks.

If you’ve never dived or snorkel here, we highly recommend you hire us to show you the path in and out.

Once out though, it is a lovely dive with some nice small reefs to explore and a good place to look for mermaids purses belonging to catsharks. But that’s not all, for Castle Beach hides a very cool secret!

Castle Beach is the final resting place for the last remaining German WW1 Mine Laying U-boat, the UC92. Captured during the First World War, the UC92 was floated into Falmouth Bay where it was used for target practise before World War 2. It was then hauled up onto Castle Beach, broken into three parts and heavily salvaged leaving only a skeleton of its original hull. What they also left behind is the original mine laying shaft, where mines were carried and released during WW1.

The wreckage also provides a welcoming home for marine life including a very crusty lobster estimated to be at least 70 years old, that has made the UC92 its permanent home.

If you would like to dive the UC92, once again it is best dived during a high spring tide. Otherwise, this is a fantastic snorkel site accessible during a low spring tide.

Castle Beach entry/exit is deceptive. The shallow reef is often covered by the sea making it difficult to know where to step. Local guides such as ourselves know where the hidden stream is and where is the best place to enter/exit.

Part of the wreckage belonging to the last remaining German WW1 Mine Laying U-boat, the UC92.

Silversteps

Back from a guided dive at Silversteps where we were tripping over marine life for a full 40 minutes!

Look carefully and you can see the claws belonging to a lobster hiding at back of ‘The Alice’ Boiler. This boiler at first glance looks like a random boulder sitting alone on the sand.

Arguably one of the top 5 dive sites in the United Kingdom - and its easy to see why!

Silversteps has it all: 5 wrecks, lots of marine life, swim throughs, a free car park, on site seasonal cafe within very easy walking distance and sheltered from that horrible Easterly wind. The only thing that it’s really missing is a loo, so you’ll have to make do with the bushes opposite the car park.

Otherwise, this dive site is regularly used by all the local dive centres and clubs in Cornwall and is often visited by divers in Devon, looking for a cheeky diving weekend away.

Park up and gear up in the car park, there is normally a parking space but like Castle Beach - its on a first come first serve basis. Buddy checks done, walk down the path with the sea on your right hand side to the entry/exit point. Be careful on this path and it can get quite muddy and slippery, particularly if there has been wet weather previously. The path will lead round to the right where you’ll come across to some steps leading down on to the rocks.

On the highest tide, the sea will reach the bottom of the steps and although shallow, there can be quite a strong swell around you ankles and knees, which can trip up even the most experienced diver. There is a concrete wall on your left which then becomes a natural reef wall that you can use to balance yourself. The rocky terrain underneath your boots is uneven and full of potholes, so be careful not to lose you balance. About half way down the reef wall, there is a foot drop to be mindful of as well. On a high tide, fully inflate your BCD and then kick yourself off this ledge. You’ll be deep enough to then put your fins on. On a low tide, there are natural steps in the middle section of the drop, that you can carefully step down and continue walking into the sea. Be mindful of slippery kelp underfoot after the drop.

From here on though, it’s pretty straightforward. The reef wall on your left will continue on under the sea right down to the sand. This reef wall is fantastic home for much marine life including but not limited to: squat lobsters, velvet swimming crabs, baby conger eels, topknot, baby lobsters, prawns, ling, snakelock anemones and much more!

The kelp covering reef also provides sanctuary for corkwing wrasse that build their nests there, ballan wrasse, pollock, spidercrabs, cuttlefish, bullhuss, catsharks and much more.

Once you reach the sand, you may come across a couple of ray species or even broken pieces of cutlery - where they all came from, we’re not entirely sure and most likely fell overboard from small pleasure yachts during the summer months. Still, who knows what you might find?

Or follow the reef round on your left and you may come across one or two wreckages belonging to some old U-boats. These are cracking little sites as they’re usually covered in kelp and easily missed if you don’t know what you’re looking for.

If the visibility is good, you might see what looks like a large boulder sitting on its own in the middle of the sand. This isn’t a boulder, it’s the old boiler that once belonged to an old trawler vessel called ‘The Alice’ which caught fire and sank. The boiler is all that remains of her and you can often find large ballan wrasses, catsharks, lobsters or baby congers inside.

There is also a swim through which leads to a secret lagoon that is only exposed during a low tide. For this, we recommend you contact us for a guided dive here as very few divers know where this is and there are a lot of similar looking holes in the reef that don’t go anywhere.

The choices on what you want and where to dive are endless here and you are truly spoilt. However, we would recommend that you have some experience sea diving (at least 20 shore dives) as the entry and exit can be hazardous to the inexperienced.

We have logged hundreds of dives here over the years and we know the entire site like the back off our wetgloves! So we would be more than happy to guide you at this very special dive site!

On the highest of spring tides, the sea reaches right to the bottom of the steps and can be quite swelly, making entry/exit hazardous to the inexperienced. We highly recommend you hire us as your local dive guide as we have logged hundreds of dives here and know it like the back of our wetgloves!

One of films showing off the swim throughs and wrecks at Silversteps. We highly recommend you hire us as your local dive guide if you would like to visit here yourself. You need to be at least an SDI Advanced Adventure Diver or equivalent. We will be happy to train you to reach this level, where this dive site will likely be part of your course.

Maenporth & Durgan

Wreckage belonging to the ‘Ben Asdale’. Great to snorkel when safe to do so.

We’ve grouped these two sites together as there isn’t as much to say about them and technically, they are on the edge of Falmouth.

Maenporth Beach is one of our training sites as there is very little distraction, the site is confined and very very shallow. But it does hide a small gem which is great for snorkeling.

About a 200 metre swim out around the corner of the cliff on the left hand side sits the impressive remains of the ‘Ben Asdale’ which sank during a vicious winter storm in the late 1970’s. The position of the wreck is often battered and can be very swelly, even on calmer summer days. That said, when conditions are right - it is a cracking snorkel and definitely worth doing. We are always happy to lead guided snorkel tours here as this is best done with a guide who knows the site well and more importantly, knows when its time to head back in!

Then there is Durgan. Easily the faffiest dive site in Falmouth to get into and quite time consuming for a shore dive. It’s one of those sites that involves loading all your kit into one vehicle, driving it down and dropping off the kit, drive back up to the car park, walk back down the lane, kit up and dive. Likewise, whoever pulls the short straw will have to walk up the lane after the dive to grab their vehicle, drive back down to pick up the kit, drive back up etc etc you probably get the idea.

So not the simplest dive site if you prefer to just park up, kit up and dive like Swanpool or Gylly.

BUT!

When you do dive Durgan, your mind will be blown away but the sheer amount of marine life here in one very small space! Durgan is owned by the National Trust and the dive site sits in the Helford estuary, very well protected from all the elements. It can get a lot of runoff from rainwater which can reduce the visibility somewhat but Durgan is home to the thickest seagrass beds up and down the river. Dive here at night and you’ll see enormous female conger eels waiting to release their millions of eggs. You are also likely to come across common squid, bobtail cuttlefish, stalked anemones, baby ray species, massive bullhuss, pipefish, spidercrabs, flatfishes, the list goes on and on!

So if you have an interest in marine life and enjoy night diving, Durgan is definitely worth all that faff!

If you plan on diving here without a guide, please have a surface maker buoy inflated from the beginning as Durgan has a lot of boat traffic up and down the river.

A big female conger eel during waiting to lay her eggs at Durgan during one of our many night dives here.