Port Macquarie sits on the New South Wales north coast where the East Australian Current brings warm water and occasional tropical visitors into an otherwise temperate reef environment. All four sites, Yabbies, the Wall, Old Faithful, and Cathie Wall, are boat-access reef and wall dives, with depths spanning from the upper reef to just over thirty metres at Yabbies. Grey nurse sharks, green sea turtles, eagle rays, humpback whales, Port Jackson sharks, and eastern blue gropers are among the recorded species. Water temperature is warmer here than at Sydney sites, with the coolest months sitting around twenty degrees and summer peaking in the mid-twenties. Conditions are generally calm across the sites, and all are listed as suitable for beginners.
Monthly water temperature across Port Macquarie's sites, from satellite sea-surface data corrected for depth. The band shows the site-to-site spread.
Water temperatures remain around twenty degrees through the cooler months and climb to the mid-twenties in summer, making Port Macquarie one of the warmer temperate diving areas on the New South Wales coast. Visibility is highly variable across the sites, ranging from negligible to thirty metres depending on conditions, with the clearer days particularly rewarding on the wall sites. The East Australian Current delivers tropical species as seasonal visitors, broadening the species range through the warmer months.
Water temperature around Port Macquarie ranges from about 20°C in July to 24°C in January, based on satellite sea-temperature data for its dive sites.
In the warm season (about 24°C) a 3mm full suit is comfortable in Port Macquarie; in the coldest months (about 20°C) step up to a 5mm suit.
Fin maps 4 sites in Port Macquarie (4 scuba diving sites).
Across Port Macquarie's dive sites, January, February and March are most often reported as the best months to visit.
