The Top 100 Gold List of operators, resorts, liveaboards, experiences (such as best wall, shore and artificial-reef sites), beach bars, topside attractions and more was determined on a “popularity contest” basis. Rankings are based on the total number of responses regardless of category. Don’t see your favorite site, operator or topside activity? Visit www.scubadiving.com/top100 and vote for next year’s Gold List and Top 100 winners.
- 1. Best Wall Dive - Bloody Bay Wall, Little Cayman
- 2. Best Dive - Blue Corner, Palau
- 3. Best 24/7 Diving - Bonaire
- 4. Most Diver-Friendly Airline - Continental
- 5. Best Live-Aboard - Cayman Aggressor IV
- 6. Best Dive Resort - Anthony’s Key
- 7. Best Wall Dive - Santa Rosa, Cozumel
- 8. Best Purpose-Sunk Wreck - Spiegel Grove
- 9. Best Animal Encounter - Whale sharks, Gladden Spit, Belize
- 10. Best Night Life - San Miguel, Cozumel
- 11. Best Night Life - Key West
- 12. Best Dive Operation - Stuart’s Cove
- 13. Best Beach - 7 Mile Beach, Grand Cayman
- 14. Best Night Dive - Kona Manta
- 15. Best Bar - Carlos & Charlie’s, Cozumel
- 16. Best Bar - Domino Club, St. Croix
- 17. Most Unusual Dive - Au naturel
- 18. Best Dive Site - London Bridge, Tobago
- 19. Best Dive Site - Darwin’s Arch, Galapagos
- 20. Best Animal Encounter - Hammerheads, Cocos
- 21. Best Marine Park - Bonaire
- 22. Best Marine Park - Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
- 23. Best Topside Attraction - Mayan Ruins, Riviera Maya
- 24. Best Live-Aboard - Star Dancer, Papua New Guinea
- 25. Most Romantic - Anse Chastanet, St. Lucia
- 26. Best Dive Operation - Ocean Encounters, Curaçao
- 27. Best Dive Operation - Buddy Dive Resort, Bonaire
- 28. Best Live-Aboard - Truk Odyssey, Truk
- 29. Most Diver-Friendly Airline - Singapore Airlines
- 30. Best Animal Encounter - Stingray City
- 31. Most Diver-Friendly Airline - American Airlines
- 32. Best Dive Site - Gran Cenotes
- 33. Best 24/7 Diving - Wakatobi
- 34. Best Live-Aboard - Galapagos Aggressor I and II
- 35. Best Animal Encounter - Mantas, Yap
- 36. Best Dive Operation - Sam’s Tours, Palau
- 37. Best Animal Encounter - Sea lions, Channel Islands
- 38. Best Dive Site - Liberty Wreck, Bali
- 39. Best Animal Encounter - Cod Hole, Great Barrier Reef
- 40. Best Marine Park - Bunaken, Indonesia
- 41. Best Wall Dive - Browning Wall, British Columbia
- 42. Best Live-Aboard - Paradise Dancer
- 43. Best Dive Operation - Ocean Frontiers, Grand Cayman
- 44. Best Wall Dive - Palancar, Cozumel
- 45. Best Beach Bar - Da Conch Shack, Provo
- 46. Best Dive Site - SS Thistlegorm, Red Sea
- 47. Best Wall Dive - North Wall, Grand Cayman
- 48. Best Live-Aboard - Kona Aggressor
- 49. Best Wall Dive - Great White Wall, Fiji
- 50. Best Dive Site - Breakwater, Monterey
- 51. Best Dive Site - Superior Producer, Curaçao
- 52. Best Dive Operation - Sunset House, Grand Cayman
- 53. Best Dive Site - Pixie Pinnacle, Great Barrier Reef
- 54. Best Live-Aboard - Mike Ball Spoilsport
- 55. Best Purpose-Sunk Wreck - Hermes, Bermuda
- 56. Best Dive Site - Cocoa Thila, Maldives
- 57. Most Unusual Dive - Bonne Terre Mine, Missouri
- 58. Best Beach Bar - Treetanic, Utila
- 59. Best Dive Site - Hilma Hooker, Bonaire
- 60. Best Marine Park - Flower Garden Banks, Texas
- 61. Best Dive Site - Molokini Crater, Hawaii
- 62. Best Animal Encounter - Shark Feeds, Bahamas
- 63. Best Animal Encounter - Jellyfish Lake, Palau
- 64. Best Shore Dive - Place of Refuge, Hawaii
- 65. Best Live-Aboard - Belize Aggressor III
- 66. Best Shore Dive - Basura, Anilao, Philippines
- 67. Best Animal Encounter - Sand tiger sharks, Papoose, North Carolina
- 68. Best Live-Aboard - Taka
- 69. Best Animal Encounter - Dolphins, Roatán
- 70. Best Dive Site - Yongala, Australia
- 71. Best Wall Dive - The Dropoff, Sipadan, Malaysia
- 72. Best Animal Encounter - Great white shark, Baja California
- 73. Best Wall Dive - West End Wall, Roatan
- 74. Best Purpose-Sunk Wreck - Yukon, San Diego
- 75. Best Dive Site - Cannibal Rock, Komodo, Indonesia
- 76. Most Unusual Dive - Champagne, Dominica
- 77. Most Diver-Friendly Airline - There isn’t one!
- 78. Best Animal Encounter - Manatees, Crystal River
- 79. Best Purpose-Sunk Wreck - Oriskany, Florida
- 80. Best Dive Site - Fujikawa Maru
- 81. Best Night Dive - Flashlight Fish, Pacific Gas, PNG
- 82. Best Animal Encounter - Mimic octopus, Lembeh Strait, Indonesia
- 83. Best Dive Site - Bianca Sea, Grenada
- 84. Most Unusual Dive - Chandelier Cave, Palau
- 85. Best Wall Dive - Lekuan, Indonesia
- 86. Best Dive Operation - Dive Locker, Panama City
- 87. Best Beach Bar - Bomba Shack, Tortola
- 88. Most Unusual Dive - Silfra Fissure, Iceland
- 89. Most Romantic - Sandals, St. Lucia
- 90. Best Purpose-Sunk Wreck - USS Vandenberg
- 91. Most Unusual Dive - The Passage, Raja Ampat
- 92. Best Shore Dive - President Coolidge, Vanuatu
- 93. Best Live-Aboard - Komodo Dancer
- 94. Best Animal Encounter - Frogfish, Bonaire
- 95. Best Night Dive - Maaya Thila, Maldives
- 96. Most Unusual Dive Site - Noonachuk Rapids, BC
- 97. Most Unusual Dive Site - Seaventures, Malaysia
- 98. Best Resort - Scuba Seraya, Bali
- 99. Most Unusual Dive - Not fit for print!
- 100. Best Topside Attraction - Santa Cruz, Galapagos



