Yonaguni Island, mysterious jewel to the southwest, is a glorious place for diving! With over 70 dive sites to choose from, Yonaguni is guaranteed to scratch any diving itch. Throughout the year there are schools of Big eye Trevally and Barracuda, Dogtooth Tuna, Turtles, large Cuttlefish, and much much more. Between the months of April and September, Marlin and Sailfish are on the menu and between December and May, Hammerhead Sharks can be seen at certain dive locations. Of special interest are the large schools of Hammerheads (100 or more at times) that congregate around the island from January through March. Most dive sites are located on steep cliff-like dropoffs, allowing for great visibility, big pelagics, and strong currents to drift with.

While in Yonaguni, Reef Encounters will be diving with Mr. Kihachiro Aratake - the man who discovered the world famous underwater ruins in 1987. These ancient formations lie underwater on the southeastern edge of Yonaguni at various depths. With clean geometric lines and flat surfaces, the ruins have ignited an interesting debate about their origins. If they are truly man-made, they are likely that of an ancient temple predating all known buildings. However, some geologists claim that the structures result from simple erosion processes.
Doug has been leading diving trips to Yonaguni for many years and is an expert in diving the underwater ruins. His wealth of knowledge about the history of the area will make your dive excursion a memorable one. Some of Doug's favorite sites are Southwest Point and Grand Castle. Read about these dive sites and others in our Yonaguni Dive Sites page.
.jpg)
NAUI Tech Comes to Okinawa!!
Reef Encounters will now be offering the full range of NAUI Tech courses for you to further your diving explorations. Classes from Intro to Tech through Trimix Level II and Technical Wreck Penetration will now be part of the regular schedule of classes offered at Reef Encounters.
Get Certified at Reef Encounters!!
The water temp is still warm and classes in the first week of December will be on sale- ask for special pricing for all classes from Dec 1-15th.
Yonaguni Tours
We have tours scheduled for Feb 13th for sharks and Ruins. Or get your group of 5 together and we will shedule a custom tour for you!!! Pricing starts at Y126,000 for three nights up to 8 dives. We have many open dates in January if you are looking to go also.
Also Reef Encounters is hiring instructors and DM's email doug for more info!!!