Freediving Travel: Best Destinations for 2026

Updated for 2026 — Accurate as of February 2026.

Freediving — breath-hold diving without scuba equipment — is one of the world’s oldest and most primal forms of ocean exploration. Where scuba diving requires heavy equipment, boat support, and significant training investment, freediving can be practiced with minimal gear (mask, fins, and wetsuit), and a beginner course produces genuine capability within two days. According to AIDA International (the Association Internationale pour le Développement de l’Apnée), the global governing body for freediving, the sport has grown by 40% in participants between 2020 and 2024.

The appeal is both physical and meditative. Freediving demands complete relaxation — anxiety burns oxygen and shortens breath-hold time. The most skilled freedivers enter a state of deep parasympathetic calm before their dive, producing a result that is part athletic achievement, part moving meditation. At deeper depths (below 10m), the mammalian dive reflex slows the heart rate to 10–30 beats per minute and redirects blood flow to the core organs, creating a physiological experience unlike anything else in sport.

This guide covers the five best destinations for freediving travel in 2026 — from world-record depth sites to tropical coral reefs ideal for beginners — with course recommendations, gear advice, and honest logistics.

Key Takeaway: Freediving is never done alone. The buddy system — where one freediver dives while another watches from the surface — is an inviolable safety rule. Shallow water blackout (loss of consciousness on ascent, caused by oxygen depletion) is the primary freediving fatality mechanism and is only survivable if a buddy is watching.

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Who Is Freediving For?

Freediving is accessible to any reasonably healthy adult who can swim. The prerequisite is not exceptional lung capacity — lung capacity matters less than relaxation quality and diaphragm strength. A beginner freediver with average lung capacity and good relaxation technique will consistently outperform a high-lung-capacity diver who cannot relax.

Medical considerations: Certain conditions contraindicate freediving — specifically asthma, untreated high blood pressure, any condition causing fainting, and recent ear or sinus surgery. A medical assessment by a physician familiar with diving medicine (DAN — Divers Alert Network — has a physician referral network) is recommended before a first course.

The certification pathway: AIDA and PADI offer the two main global freediving certification systems:

• AIDA 2 (Pool and Open Water): The beginner certification, typically achieved in 2 days. Validates 20m depth capability and pool static apnea (breath-hold) of 2+ minutes.
• AIDA 3 (Advanced): Achieves 30–40m depth and pool apnea of 2:30+. Typically 3–4 days of training.
• PADI Freediver / Advanced Freediver: Equivalent certifications with slightly more structured pool progression.

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1. Dahab, Egypt: The World’s Best Beginner Freediving Destination

Dahab, on the Sinai Peninsula’s Gulf of Aqaba coast, is widely considered the world’s best destination for learning to freedive — and the claim is well-supported. The Blue Hole and Canyon dive sites offer immediate deep water access from shore (no boat needed), the water temperature hovers around 22–26°C year-round requiring minimal wetsuit, and the cost of instruction is lower here than at any other major freediving hub.

The Blue Hole: Dahab’s signature dive site is a 100m+ circular shaft in a coral reef, accessible by swimming 50m from the shore. The dramatic underwater architecture — vertical walls descending into deep blue darkness — produces extraordinary visual conditions. World-record depth attempts by professional competitive freedivers take place here regularly.

The Canyon: A horizontal swim-through at 18m depth in an adjacent reef, then a vertical drop into a 40m deep canyon. This is one of the world’s great recreational freediving sites — manageable for AIDA 2 certified divers, extraordinary in atmosphere.

Freediving schools in Dahab (2026 recommendations):

• Carlos Freediving Club (carlosfreediving.com): The benchmark school, German/Egyptian management, excellent safety protocols, AIDA certification
• Dahab Freedivers (dahabfreedivers.com): Strong focus on relaxation technique, good beginner program
• Alchemy Freediving (alchemyfreediving.com): Premium instruction with internationally certified instructors

Course costs: AIDA 2 course: USD 200–280 for two days including certification. Very affordable by global standards.

Accommodation: Dahab is a relaxed small town with excellent budget options (USD 20–40/night for private rooms) and good mid-range guesthouses (USD 50–100/night). The seafront restaurants serve exceptional mezze and fresh fish. Infrastructure is excellent for a diving destination.

Getting there: Fly to Sharm el-Sheikh (SSH, 1.5-hour taxi). Cairo connections widely available from Europe and North America. Sinai entry is straightforward — Egyptian visas available on arrival for most Western nationalities.

Pro Tip: The Blue Hole arch — a swim-through at 55m depth — is one of the most dangerous freediving sites in the world and has claimed the lives of dozens of divers attempting it without adequate training. Under no circumstances attempt the arch without AIDA 3 certification minimum and experienced local supervision. Recreational Blue Hole diving stays above 30m and is entirely safe for certified divers.

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2. Dean’s Blue Hole, Long Island, Bahamas

Dean’s Blue Hole is the world’s deepest known saltwater blue hole — a circular shaft 35m wide at surface, dropping vertically to 202m in a shallow turquoise bay on the west shore of Long Island. The contrast between the 1–3m deep turquoise bay and the immediately adjacent black abyss of the blue hole creates an environment unlike any other in freediving.

This is where William Trubridge has set multiple world freediving records — the current No-Fins world record is 102m. The site hosts Vertical Blue, an annual competitive freediving event in February that draws the world’s top competitive freedivers and is open to spectators.

The experience for non-competitive visitors: Dean’s Blue Hole is freely accessible to any freediver. The site is a 20-minute walk from the road on a quiet section of beach. You drop a surface buoy, rig a descent line, and freedive in one of the world’s most dramatic underwater environments. Depth records are irrelevant — even a 10m free immersion into the blue hole, looking down at 190m of depth below you, is unforgettable.

Logistics: Long Island is reached via Stella Maris airport (SML) with connecting flights from Nassau. Accommodation is limited — the Stella Maris Resort ($200–350/night) and several guesthouses in Deadman’s Cay are the main options. Freediving instruction is available through local operators, though many serious freedivers bring certified buddies rather than relying on local instruction.

Season: Year-round. Water temperature 25–29°C. The Vertical Blue competition (February) is the best time to observe world-class freediving; accommodation must be booked months in advance.

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3. Koh Tao, Thailand: Southeast Asia’s Freediving Hub

Koh Tao is Thailand’s primary dive training island — home to an extraordinary concentration of PADI and SSI scuba schools that also run freediving programs. The combination of warm water (28–30°C), abundant marine life, and genuinely excellent freediving instruction makes it the best value freediving destination in Asia.

Why Koh Tao for freediving:

• Year-round warm water eliminates wetsuit cost and comfort concerns
• Multiple competing freediving schools keep instruction prices competitive: AIDA 2 courses from THB 7,000–9,000 (USD 195–250)
• Excellent snorkeling and shallow reef training sites for beginner sessions
• Sail Rock — a submerged pinnacle 90 minutes by boat with whale shark encounters from November to March
• Strong LGBTQ+ welcoming atmosphere and excellent budget accommodation ($15–25/night dorms, $40–80/night bungalows)

Recommended schools:

• Blue Immersion (blueimmersion.com): The most reputable freediving-specific school on Koh Tao, dedicated instructors, strong safety culture
• Apnea Total (apneatotal.com): Focuses on relaxation and technique over depth, excellent for anxious beginners

Best time to visit: November–April (dry season). May–October brings southwest monsoon winds and reduced visibility.

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4. Raja Ampat, Indonesia: World’s Best Marine Biodiversity

Raja Ampat, in West Papua, Indonesia, sits at the heart of the Coral Triangle — the most biodiverse marine ecosystem on Earth. More species of coral, fish, and marine invertebrates exist in Raja Ampat’s waters than anywhere else on the planet. For a freediver, this biodiversity translates into an underwater experience of extraordinary richness: manta rays, wobbegong sharks, schools of barracuda, bumphead parrotfish, pygmy seahorses, and nudibranchs in extraordinary variety.

The freediving context: Raja Ampat is not a freediving training destination — it is a destination for certified freedivers who want to experience incomparable marine biodiversity without scuba equipment. The advantage of freediving over scuba in these conditions is significant: a freediver produces no bubbles, creating less disturbance to marine life and enabling closer approaches to naturally curious species.

Key dive sites:

• Manta Sandy: The benchmark manta ray cleaning station, where mantas hover stationary while cleaner wrasses remove parasites. Freediving among stationary mantas at 5–8m depth is an extraordinary experience.
• Cape Kri: World record for species counted at a single dive site (374 fish species in a single dive). Coral gardens begin at 1m depth.
• Blue Magic: Deep sea mount where ocean currents bring schooling fish in volumes that beggar belief.

Logistics: Fly to Sorong (SOQ) via Jakarta or Manado. Take a speedboat (3 hours) or liveaboard departure to Waisai (Raja Ampat’s main town) or directly to a resort. Accommodation ranges from budget homestays ($30–50/night) to luxury eco-lodges ($300–600/night). Liveaboard trips are the best way to access the most remote sites — Raja Ampat liveaboard rates: $200–400/night all-inclusive.

Season: October–April (calm seas, excellent visibility). The October–November and March–April windows bracket the season and offer the best conditions at lowest peak-season prices.

Key Takeaway: Raja Ampat has an entrance fee (Raja Ampat Marine Park fee: USD 100 per person per visit, paid at the park office in Waisai). This fee funds coral reef conservation and ranger patrols. It is well worth paying.

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5. Tenerife, Canary Islands: European Freediving Hub

Tenerife has emerged as Europe’s primary year-round freediving destination. The island’s volcanic underwater geography — sheer walls dropping from 5m to 200m+ just offshore, abundant marine life including turtles, angel sharks, and pilot whales, and water temperatures of 19–23°C year-round — creates ideal conditions twelve months a year. The short flight time from mainland Europe (3–4 hours from the UK, 3.5 hours from Germany) makes it accessible for week-long freediving courses.

Key freediving sites:

• El Puertito de Güímar: The benchmark beginner training site, with gentle sloping reef to 20m and consistent calm conditions
• The Anfi area, Gran Canaria (accessible day trip): Dramatic underwater caves and walls
• Garachico rock pools: Natural volcanic pools for shallow training, accessible without boat

Recommended schools:

• Freedive Tenerife (freedive-tenerife.com): Dedicated freediving school, full AIDA program, year-round courses
• Manta Diving Lanzarote (mantadiving.com): Adjacent island option for AIDA courses

The Canary Islands freediving calendar: The annual Tenerife freediving competition (Gran Canaria Blue) takes place in November — the best time to observe competitive freediving without traveling to Egypt or the Bahamas.

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Freediving Gear Guide

Freediving requires substantially less gear than scuba diving. The essential kit:

Item	Beginner	Intermediate	Purpose
Freediving mask	Cressi Nano ($60)	Omer Alien ($120)	Low internal volume for pressure equalization
Long blade fins	Cressi Reaction Pro ($180)	Penetrator FRD ($350)	Efficient thrust, reduced effort
Wetsuit (5mm)	Mares Freediver ($150)	C4 Carbon wetsuit ($350)	Thermal protection, buoyancy
Weight belt	Basic rubber ($25)	Alchemy V-weight system ($120)	Neutral buoyancy at target depth
Lanyard	Cressi safety lanyard ($30)	Alchemy FRD lanyard ($80)	Competition safety (attaches diver to line)
Dive watch/computer	Suunto D5 ($400)	Garmin Descent Mk2 ($900)	Depth, time, dive log
Buoy and line	Basic SMB ($15) + 30m rope ($20)	Purpose-built freediving float ($80)	Surface marker, depth reference

For more underwater adventure options, read our guide to scuba diving destinations and our wild swimming guide for surface-based water adventures.

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Getting Your First AIDA Certification: What to Expect

A standard AIDA 2 freediving course takes place over two days:

Day 1 (Pool/confined water):

• Theory: breathing technique, equalization, mammalian dive reflex, safety principles
• Static apnea (breath-hold floating face-down): build to 2:30+
• Dynamic apnea (underwater swimming): build to 50m on one breath

Day 2 (Open water):

• Free immersion (pulling down a rope without fins): build to 16–20m
• Constant weight (swimming down with fins): build to 20m
• Buddy procedures, rescue practice

The depth achievements sound modest — 20m is the AIDA 2 standard — but the experience of descending to 20m in a single breath, watching the surface light fade and the mammalian dive reflex slow your heart rate, is genuinely transformative. Most AIDA 2 graduates are immediately motivated to train further.

ThrillStays recommends Dahab for a first freediving course — the combination of low cost, world-class sites, and a uniquely concentrated global freediving community makes it the best overall learning environment in the world.

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