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Blue Hole — illustrative image

Blue Hole

Blue hole · Shore · Cave · Wall 5–40 m Intermediate Malta & Gozo, Malta
AI-generated illustration
Well documented Also known as: Dwejra Blue Hole
Depth
5–40 m / 16–131 ft
Typical depth
16 m / 52 ft
Visibility
20–40 m / 66–131 ft
Water
15–27 °C / 59–81 °F
Current
Mild
Access
Shore
Best months
May–Oct
Recommended cert
Open Water for the hole and archway; Advanced for the deeper boulder field
Typical dive
~45 min

Depth is the range from the top of the site to its usual maximum; "recommended cert" is the mainstream-agency level operators usually ask for, not a legal rule. Currents and visibility change daily — treat everything here as planning ranges.

Gozo's Blue Hole is the Mediterranean's most famous ten meters of water: a sheer-sided pool in the Dwejra limestone that funnels divers down to an archway at about 8 m and releases them onto open blue wall. Since the Azure Window collapsed in a March 2017 storm, the seaward slope holds its enormous remains — clean-edged blocks the size of buildings, already colonizing with algae and schooling damselfish, a dive now known as Azure Reef. A chimney through the rock and the small cave at the hole's base complete the circuit. Mornings belong to divers; by mid-day the pool doubles as the local swimming hole.

The moment you come for: The archway exit into blue, Azure Window boulder field, chimney swim-through

Topography: A collapsed limestone sinkhole opening through an underwater archway onto walls and the tumbled remains of the Azure Window

Entry: A walk across Dwejra's fossil-studded limestone shelf to a natural rock pool entry; boots and calm seas make it comfortable, and swell makes it unwise.

Know before you splash

Hazards: Swell surges through the entry pool and archway in anything but calm weather; boulder terrain drops quickly past 30 m.

Conservation: Within the Dwejra protected area; the collapsed Window's stone is part of the site's story and stays untouched.

For photographers

Wide angle: ★★★★★ · Macro: ★★☆☆☆ — editors' 1–5 rating of what this site gives each style of shooting

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