Kakaban Island is an uplifted coral atoll in the Derawan Archipelago of the Celebes Sea, and it offers two quite different diving environments. The island's landlocked brackish lake, Danau Kakaban, holds a population of stingless jellyfish and is one of the region's most distinctive sites. Outside the lake, the outer walls and reef sites range from shallow beginner dives through to advanced wall and drift dives reaching considerable depth, with Blue light cave requiring technical overhead experience. Giant trevally, eagle ray, whitetip reef shark, whale shark, blue-ringed octopus, and flamboyant cuttlefish are all recorded across the island's nine sites. Water stays warm year-round.
Monthly water temperature across Kakaban Island's sites, from satellite sea-surface data corrected for depth. The band shows the site-to-site spread.
Water temperature is consistently warm across all months, with only marginal variation. The lake and shallower reef sites suit beginners and snorkellers at any time of year, while the outer wall and cave dives require advanced certification and careful current planning.
9 operators
Water around Kakaban Island stays near 30°C all year, based on satellite sea-temperature data for its dive sites.
With water around 29–30°C, a rash guard or 3mm shorty works in Kakaban Island year-round.
Fin maps 9 sites in Kakaban Island (8 scuba diving sites and 4 snorkelling spots, with some suited to both).
6 more sites to explore
