The southernmost of the Marianas Islands and a beautifully tranquil place, Rota offers exceptional views and excellent hotels along with great restaurants. With soaring cliffs and gleaming white beaches, caves and tunnels, its topography is unique, providing for some amazing dives that will leave you wanting more. Here are five cave dives that allow you to get up close and personal with the wonders of Rota.
Kings Cave - Rota Dive Sites
Liyang Rai, or Kings Cave has only one entrance and is only accessible when conditions are favorable, as the outer walls are played by strong current and subject to surge. Maximum depth inside this incredible domed cave is 100 feet, and once there, you may encounter white tip reef sharks and lobsters, jacks, and different kinds of cowries. The inner walls are covered with white sponges that appear ghostly in the light that enters via a two-foot hole in the cave’s ceiling. Suitable for expert divers only, trips to Kings Cave require special safety equipment and a safety diver. If you hope to dive here, be sure you are certified to explore overhead environments and be prepared for an open water safety stop.
Pearlman Tunnel - Rota Dive Sites
Created by an overhang festooned with sea fans, sponges, and lovely pink lace coral, Pearlman Tunnel has a hole in the ceiling which allows sunlight to enter and play over the rocky bottom. Home to everything from crustaceans to reef sharks, the site features maximum depth at 80 feet and is only diveable when conditions are perfect. Even then, surge can present a challenge, making the site suitable for experienced divers only. Look for hunting barracuda, jacks, and other large fish outside, and keep an eye out for turtles napping inside or making their way along the site’s outer walls.
Senhanom Cave - Rota Dive Sites
Also known as Rota Hole, Senhanom Cave is a huge grotto which is completely underwater. With its entrance located approximately forty feet beneath the surface, and with currents and surge playing the walls outside, it is a site reserved for experienced divers only. Accessible only via boat, this magnificent cavern is filled with schooling redfish and families of bronze sweepers, and is home to other creatures like lobsters and moray eels. What makes it so incredible though, is an opening in the ceiling which allows sunlight from above to filter in, creating a spectacular effect which has made the site a favorite for award-winning underwater photographs. With maximum depth inside at 80 feet, the chamber’s ceiling is at about 30 feet.
Sailigai Tunnel - Rota Dive Sites
With its exit at 45 feet, and its entryway concealed beneath an overhanging ledge at a depth of 60 feet, Sailigai Tunnel is spectacular. After descending along the wall, watch for the white tip reef shark that sometimes guards the entryway, and be sure to admire the lush anemones, where you can find clownfish colonies and the occasional well-concealed leaf fish. Upon entry, the tunnel curves upward in an elbow shape, first becoming darker and then revealing the illuminated shape of the exit point above. Once outside, the Sailigai Arch awaits, teeming with beautifully colorful reef fish and a superb spot for photography. Watch for stingrays, turtles, and barracuda as you explore this incredible site.
Hobbit House - Rota Dive Sites
Suitable for intermediate to advanced divers, the Hobbit House is an intricately honeycombed rock and reef formation with various chambers to explore and a total of four entrances. Home to reef sharks and some large skipjacks, along with reef fish in a kaleidoscope of colors, it features a maximum depth at 60 feet and is accessed by boat. Watch for the occasional turtle, and be cautious of surge near the entryways.
As with all dives in overhead environments, these sites offer both challenges and rewards. Be sure you are properly certified prior to your trip to Rota – an increased level of confidence and competence will ensure you enjoy safe diving. Last but not least, be sure to plan in advance to ensure your vacation is all you hope it will be.