Home › Dive Sites › Thailand › Krabi › Nongasem

Nongasem

📍 Krabi, Thailand

Ocellaris Anemonefish (Amphiprion ocellaris) — recorded at Nongasem

Nongasem is a dive site in Krabi, Thailand. It lies within the Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park. The sea floor at the site position lies at about 8 meters. Currents typically run at 0.6 km/h and reach 1.1 km/h on the strongest days. Water temperatures range from 29°C in January to 31°C in May. The typical daily tidal range is about 1.9 m. Species recorded in the area include Boring Giant Clam, Ocellaris Anemonefish, Blue-spotted Cornetfish, Warty Jellyfish and Similar Damsel.

Dive Conditions

⬇️
Seabed Depth
8m
💨
Current
0.6 km/h (1.1)
🌡️
Water Temp
29–31 °C

🤿 Book a Diving Tour in Nongasem

Tours powered by GetYourGuide. FindADive may earn a commission on bookings.

Typical Current 0.6 km/h (up to 1.1)
Seabed Depth 8 m
Water Temperature 29–31 °C
Tidal Range 1.9 m (typical daily)
GPS 7.7379°, 98.7528°

Data sources: currents and water temperature from Open-Meteo Marine (CC BY 4.0), hourly model values 2024; seabed depth from the GEBCO 2020 Grid, sampled at the site coordinates (grid resolution about 450 m). Tidal range is the median daily range of modelled sea level from Open-Meteo Marine, hourly values 2024. Protected area boundary from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Species observations from iNaturalist, checked against the World Register of Marine Species.

Conditions at Nongasem through the year

Sea surface temperature at the site coordinates, averaged per month from hourly model values for 2024. The water is warmest in May at about 31 °C and coolest in January at about 29 °C, a spread of 2.7 degrees across the year.

Monthly sea surface temperature at Nongasem (°C)
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
28.7 29.0 29.7 30.9 31.4 30.6 30.2 30.2 29.6 30.0 29.9 29.1

Ocean current at the site runs at a typical 0.6 km/h. In the strongest tenth of the hours modelled for 2024 it reaches 1.1 km/h, which is when entries are normally timed to slack water at the turn of the tide.

The tide moves the water level by a median 1.9 m over a day, and by up to 2.7 m on the largest days of the month. That range drives how much water is exchanged over the reef and when the current turns.

In the open sea off Nongasem, the highest wave of the day exceeded 1.5 m on 0.9 % of days between 2015 and 2024. The roughest month was August (4 % of days), the calmest January (0 %).

Share of days with waves above 1.5 m, open sea near Nongasem (%, 2015–2024)
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
000000343000

The seabed directly under the site coordinates sits at about 8 m. This is a bathymetry grid value with a cell size of roughly 450 m, so it describes the depth of the area rather than the deepest point a dive can reach.

Nongasem lies inside Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park. Protected areas can carry their own rules on entry fees, permits, anchoring and fishing; check the current rules with a local operator before you dive.

How Nongasem compares

These comparisons use only the measured values above, set against the 376 dive sites published on findadive.com. A percentage shows the share of other sites with a lower (or higher) value, so it reads the same way wherever the site is. Nongasem sits with its mean water temperature in the top tenth and its peak current in the bottom tenth of all listed sites.

Nongasem compared with all listed sites and with Krabi
MeasureThis siteCompared with all sitesMedian in Krabi
Mean water temperature29.9 °Cwarmer than 92 % of the other 375 sites29.9 °C (22 sites)
Water temperature in the coolest month28.7 °Cwarmer than 72 % of the other 375 sites28.7 °C (22 sites)
Typical current0.6 km/hweaker than 88 % of the other 375 sites0.6 km/h (22 sites)
Current in the strongest 10 % of hours1.1 km/hweaker than 93 % of the other 375 sites1.1 km/h (22 sites)
Median daily tidal range1.9 mlarger than 89 % of the other 375 sites1.9 m (22 sites)

Water temperature, current and tide from Open-Meteo Marine (CC BY 4.0), hourly model values for 2024 at 7.7379°, 98.7528°. Seabed depth from the GEBCO 2020 Grid. Protected area boundary from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Wave statistics from ERA5-Ocean via Open-Meteo Marine (contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2015–2024), daily maximum wave height on a 0.5° grid; land shelter tested against Natural Earth coastlines.

Marine life recorded at this site

Research-grade observations from iNaturalist within about 12 km of these coordinates.

Boring Giant Clam (Tridacna crocea)
Boring Giant Clam Tridacna crocea A brightly coloured giant clam with a thick, heavy shell, often embedded in coral rock with only its colourful mantle visible.to 15 cm · 0-20 m · day and nightembedded in living coral or coral rockLook for a patch of intense blue, green or brown tissue flush with the reef surface; it retracts quickly if shaded. (c) Donald Davesne, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Ocellaris Anemonefish (Amphiprion ocellaris)
Ocellaris Anemonefish Amphiprion ocellaris A small orange damselfish with three white bars, living among the tentacles of host anemones, which it rarely leaves.to 11 cm · 1-15 m · by dayhost anemones on sheltered reefApproach the anemone slowly and wait; the fish returns within seconds and will circle back to the same spot. (c) Donald Davesne, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Blue-spotted Cornetfish (Fistularia commersonii)
Blue-spotted Cornetfish Fistularia commersonii A very long, thin fish with a tubular snout and a long tail filament, often seen hovering motionless above the reef or sand.to 1.6 m · 1-100 m · by dayreef edges, seagrass beds, and open sandLook for its distinctive silhouette; it often freezes in place, making it easy to approach slowly for a closer look. (c) Ben Costamagna, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Warty Jellyfish (Versuriga anadyomene)
Warty Jellyfish Versuriga anadyomene A large, translucent jellyfish with a warty, frilled bell and eight thick, trailing oral arms that are often folded.to 60 cm bell diameter · day and nightopen water, often near the surfaceObserve from a distance to avoid contact with tentacles; its slow pulsing motion is easiest to see from the side. (c) Ben Costamagna, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Similar Damsel (Pomacentrus similis)
Similar Damsel Pomacentrus similis A small, pale blue damselfish with a yellow tail and a black spot at the pectoral fin base. It is territorial and darts quickly.to 8 cm · 1-12 m · by daycoral-rich areas of sheltered lagoons and inshore reefsLook for it hovering above small coral heads or branching corals, which it uses for shelter. (c) Donald Davesne, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Banded Sea Urchin (Echinothrix calamaris)
Banded Sea Urchin Echinothrix calamaris A large sea urchin with long, sharp, banded spines that are often black and white or dark with pale rings.to 30 cm diameter · 0-70 m · at nightcoral reefs, rubble zones, and reef flatsOften hides in crevices during the day; look for its spines protruding from holes at night when it forages. (c) Donald Davesne, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Common Mushroom Coral (Fungia fungites)
Common Mushroom Coral Fungia fungites A solitary, free-living coral shaped like a flat disc or mushroom cap, often found resting on the seafloor.to 25 cm diameter · 3-30 m · day and nightsandy or rubble substrates on reef slopesLook for a single, fleshy polyp with a ridged surface; it may retract its tentacles during the day. (c) Donald Davesne, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Moorish Idol (Zanclus cornutus)
Moorish Idol Zanclus cornutus A strikingly patterned reef fish with a deep, laterally compressed body, a long white dorsal filament, and bold black, white and yellow bands.to 23 cm · 3-180 m · by daycoral reefs and rocky areasOften seen in pairs or small groups swimming in the water column above the reef, browsing on sponges and tunicates. (c) Иван Ковтун Ivan Kovtun, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation