Seven hours south of Queen Creek, the Sea of Cortez opens up into some of the best diving you can reach from Phoenix by car. San Carlos is packed with life at every depth, from shallow reefs to blue-water walls and a handful of wrecks, and it's a standout for divers at every certification level.
Jacques Cousteau famously called the Sea of Cortez "the world's aquarium," and San Carlos is one of the easiest places to see why without getting on a plane. Warm water, big marine life, and dive sites that suit brand-new divers and technical divers alike make it a favorite destination for the Dive Arizona crew.
The Sea of Cortez swings from cool and clear in winter to bath-warm in late summer, and what you dive in depends on the season.
This is the reason divers keep coming back. The Sea of Cortez is one of the most biologically rich bodies of water on the planet, and San Carlos delivers big animals and dense reef life in the same trip. Sea lions are the headliner, curious and playful, and they're notorious for showing up uninvited on a dive, which is exactly as good as it sounds. Rays and sea turtles move through the water around the islands, while the reefs and shallows stay busy with color year-round.
Sites here range from easy shallow reefs to deep walls and wrecks, often within a short boat ride of each other.
Most sites start off shallow, which makes San Carlos an excellent choice for newer divers and for anyone easing back in after time away. Reef sites like Las Cascaditas, Martini Cove, Lalo's Cove, San Antonio, and Window Rock are full of color and marine life, and they're where you'll want the camera. Comfortable, easy diving with plenty to look at.
Many sites drop quickly from shallow reef into deep blue water. The Wall at the north point of San Pedro Nolasco Island and the Sea Mount pinnacle are the standouts, and they make San Carlos a strong choice for technical and rebreather divers looking for serious bottom time. The same site that works for a beginner on top can offer real depth just a short swim away.
A boat ride out to San Pedro Nolasco Island puts you in the water with curious, acrobatic sea lions, one of the most memorable dives in the region. Sites around the island include The Lighthouse, La Lobera, and the South Point, and the payoff is close encounters with animals that come to check you out rather than the other way around.
San Carlos has a growing collection of wrecks, which makes it a great place to earn your SDI Wreck Diver certification. The older pair near Punta San Pedro are the Presidente, a former ferry of about 350 feet, and the Albatun, a roughly 100-foot tuna boat. The newest is the Santos, a 220-foot former WWII minesweeper sunk in 2022 as the first wreck in the Sonoran Artificial Reef System, an ongoing project bringing more and larger wrecks to the area.
San Carlos sits on the Sonoran coast near Guaymas, roughly seven hours south of Queen Creek by car, heading down through Nogales. It's one of the few world-class ocean dive destinations you can reach from Phoenix without flying, which is a big part of the appeal.
A passport is required to cross the border, and you'll need Mexican auto insurance for the drive. We caravan down as a group, so you're never making the trip alone, and we arrange lodging once we're in San Carlos. That takes the guesswork out of an international dive trip and lets you focus on the diving.
We run regular trips to San Carlos and take care of the logistics so the trip is about the diving, not the planning. Whether you're logging your first ocean dives, chasing sea lions, or working on a wreck or technical certification, there's a place for you on the next trip.
Check our trips page for upcoming dates, or call us to get on the list.
Warm water, sea lions, walls, and wrecks, all within a day's drive of Phoenix. Reserve your spot or call to get on the list for the next San Carlos trip.
San Carlos is about seven hours south of the Phoenix area by car, on the Sonoran coast near Guaymas. You drive down through Nogales, which makes it one of the best ocean dive destinations reachable from Arizona without flying.
Yes. Most sites start off shallow and are well suited to newer divers, while the same areas often drop into deeper water for advanced and technical divers. It's a destination that works for a whole group at mixed certification levels.
The Sea of Cortez is one of the richest dive environments in the world. Common sightings include sea lions, sea turtles, sea horses, rays, moray eels, and colorful reef fish, especially around San Pedro Nolasco Island.
Yes. San Carlos has multiple wreck dive sites and is a great place to earn an SDI Wreck Diver certification. Many reef sites also drop quickly into deep water, making the area a strong choice for technical and rebreather divers.
Summer and fall bring the warmest water, often into the 80s Fahrenheit, along with excellent conditions for warm-water diving. Winter and spring are cooler and call for a thicker wetsuit or a drysuit. Dive Arizona runs trips at the times that make the most of the season.
