Scuba Dive Panama City Beach Destin Fl

How deep can you dive without a suit


It's easy to see why Panama City Beach is second in Florida for divers. To experience the beauty of the Gulf of Mexico's marine life and beautiful underwater landscapes, you can also jump fin-first.


A 100' long Navy hovercraft sank in 1985. The twin aluminum pontoons are still in good shape and rise 10' off the ocean floor. Although the hovercraft is unusual, it probably wouldn’t be a feature dive site, except it’s so close to the Black Bart. It’s still fun to swim laps around the structure and float up and down the stairs.

Travel


Our definition of inshore diving is less than 8 miles from St Andrew’s Pass and generally safe of open water divers. Notable dives here include the Red Sea, a 125' tug boat installed in 2009, and the historic wreck of the E.E. Simpson Tug that sank in 1929. Other interesting sites include Stage 2 (a Navy platform that was demolished in 1984), the Fontainebleau Boxcars (two boxcars and associated reef material), and a pair of Voodoo jets anchored in Seltzer Reef. Below is our table of inshore dive sites in Panama City Beach with associated bottom depths.

Travel
What happens if you fart while scuba diving

What happens if you fart while scuba diving


Scuba Dive Panama City Beach has the best Dive Center and Aquatic Training Facility in Florida. Divers have direct access miles of unbroken white sand beaches, shipwrecks natural reefs, freshwater springs, and more at Scuba Dive Panama City Beach. Our staff will prepare you to swim with sharks, see beautiful aquatic life, and visit hidden treasures deep below.

Guided Scuba





Absolutely perfect! This is the perfect place to go. Scuba Diving Panama City Beach gave us a refresher and once again we have fallen in love with diving. The team were friendly, knowledgeable and accommodating. It is evident that they are passionate about diving. All of their gear is brand new and maintained with care. They are experts in Customer service!

Why can't you scuba dive with whale sharks

Why can't you scuba dive with whale sharks


The site's structure is extraordinary. Divers are able to explore the wheelhouse 40 feet down. The deck is located at approximately 66' below sea level and contains accesses to cargo holds. The ship's toilet (head) rests on the sand outside the wreck. It has a smiley skull. The Warsaw Reef, which is nearby, has plenty of marine life.

Equipment





Members of the Mexico Beach Artificial Reef Association and Florida Wildlife Commission generated a report assessing the impact to the reefs. They discovered that the reef adjacent to the Varmar (not shown on our dive map because it’s off Mexico Beach) experienced the most impact since it was in 25' of water, with only 35% of the reef material remaining in the original reef patch. However, the artificial reefs in moderate and deep water remained undisturbed. Below is a graphic from that report showing the path of the hurricane through the reefs and wrecks of Panama City Beach.

Frequently Asked Questions

Never hold your breath

As every good entry-level dive student knows, this is the most important rule of scuba. And for good reason — breath holding underwater can result in serious injury and even death. In accordance with Boyle's law, the air in a diver's lungs expands during ascent and contracts during descent.

As you become a qualified scuba diver, you learn the basics of an essential scuba system. A cylinder, weights, an exposure suit, regulators, BCD gauge and timing device, mask and fins are the bare essentials.