Sipadan is a ‘Robinson Crusoe’ style Island set in the Celebes Sea, Malaysia. You aren’t permitted to stay on the Island (any longer) and most of the diving takes place on the wall that descends, in a fairly vertical column, from the white beach sand to the sea floor 1000 feet (600m) below.

The diving was beautiful.

Sipadan is mostly wall diving and generally with strong currents. The viz. was mostly excellent and we dived Sipadan Island twenty three times from the Celebes Explorer liveaboard in the week we were there, (which you’re unlikely to get right if you’re staying in one of the many resorts in the area – this is a detail you must definitely pay attention to…) It means you get to dive the same sites several times and when we are talking about Barracuda Point (which CNN Travel rates as the top dive site in the world – ok, that is always going to be a matter of opinion) or North Point (huge shoals of jacks and batfish) or Turtle Cavern (the infamous turtle graveyard) then, trust me, you will want to visit the same sites as often as possible. We also saw innumerable white tip reef sharks, leopard sharks and spent quality time with the huge school of bumphead parrotfish that regularly feed in the shallows – fascinating-to-observe coralivores. And, of course, the turtles are omnipresent - the extent of the turtle action has to be seen to be believed. It is deeply gratifying to see them in such numbers, relatively safe from exploitation.

Turtle Cavern – discovered by Jacques Cousteau apparently – is as unusual a dive as you are likely to come across in the sea. You enter the cave-mouth from the sea at 22m and penetrate approximately 70m ‘into the Island’ and you’re inside for approximately 50 minutes. Believe me I am no cave diver, but it was absolutely fascinating and I was astounded that time was up ‘so quickly’. Apparently turtles enter the narrow throat of the cave to sleep and when it is time to surface for air they are unable to find the exit in time and drown. So at every turn there is a turtle carcass in some state of decomposition. You definitely wouldn’t want to contemplate Turtle Cavern without a (very) experienced guide and a good quality torch is also useful…

There is also plenty of macro activity, especially in the shallows. We saw pygmy sea horses although try as I might I couldn’t get a decent photo! (One of the reasons I upgraded to DSLR this year!) And the corals are varied and beautiful. Having said that Sipadan is ideal for divers who prefer open water and big shoals of pelagic fish… it isn’t Lembeh.

Every evening we travelled from Sipadan to anchor off Mabul Island. This because overnighting on / near Sipadan is not allowed (in any case the water is very deep so anchoring would be impossible.) The night-diving off Mabul was diverse: the biggest turtle I have ever seen seems to live there and we saw sea horses, pipe fish, mandarin fish, frog fish and cuttle fish – what a privilege.

I don’t like flying very much – and it took four flights to get from my home in Durban, South Africa to Tawau, Malaysia where they collect you. And, believe me, it takes a special effort to find a beer in Tawau. And, the liveaboard we stayed on leaves much to be desired. But the diving and the photographic opportunities make these inconveniences seem minor. It is a special place.

Sipadan really should be on your bucket list.