Great Blue Hole

Facts about Great Blue Hole:

The Great Blue Hole is a large underwater sinkhole off the coast of Belize. It lies near the center of Lighthouse Reef, a small atoll 70 kilometres (43 mi) from the mainland and Belize City. The hole is circular in shape, over 300 metres (984 ft) across and 124 metres (407 ft) deep. It was formed during several episodes of Quaternary glaciation when sea levels were much lower - the analysis of stalactites found in Great Blue Hole shows that formation has taken place 153,000; 66,000; 60,000; and 15,000 years ago. As the ocean began to rise again, the caves were flooded. The Great Blue Hole is a part of the larger Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, a World Heritage Site of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).


Lying near the center of Lighthouse Reef, the Great Blue Hole of Belize was started to develop as a limestone cave system during the last ice age when sea levels were much lower and as the ocean began to go up again the caves flooded and the roof collapsed. A featured attraction of diving in Belize is the opportunity to explore the famous Blue Hole, part of the Lighthouse Reef System. Dive boats visit it every day. People in Belize think it should be one of the seven wonders of the world.It was declared as a World Heritage Site in the year 1997.
This site was made eminent by Jacques-Yves Cousteau who proclaimed it as one of the top ten scuba diving spots in the world. He brought his ship, the Calypso, to the hole to record its depths in 1971.

Diving in Blue Hole:

This is one dive that beginners better avoid, and experts must do at least once a dive to the Great Blue Hole. The deeper you go, the clearer the water becomes, opening in front of your very eyes a world inhabited by Carribean Reef sharks, Nurse sharks and the Blacktip shark, and hundreds of other species. They move in and out of a wonder waterscape formed of stalactites and other limestone formations. One dive in this unearthly paradise and you clearly get to understand why the people of Belize think that the Great Blue Hole, the large underwater sinkhole off the coast of Belize, should be enlisted among the Seven Wonders of the World.
A featured attraction of diving in Belize is the opportunity to explore the famous Blue Hole, part of the Lighthouse Reef System. This is a mecca amongst the recreational scuba divers. Usually, the memorable dive trips to the Great Blue Hole are full-day trips and they include one dive in the Blue Hole and two further dives in nearby reefs.
Recently diving is also offered from the island Long Caye in the Lighthouse Reef only a couple of miles away from the Great Blue Hole. They offer 2 dives in the Blue Hole: North side and South side.