SMS Cöln
Dive site · UK
Advanced divers and up
Is it worth the trip?
63Good out of 100 for your dates
Best on Tue 3: Sea: flat, Water 11 °C, Wind 1 kn
Mon 2 · 62 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.3 m
- Wind
- 7 kn
- Gusts
- 14kn
- Air
- 12°C
Tue 3 · 64 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.2 mflat
- Wind
- 1 kn
- Gusts
- 3kn
- Air
- 11°C
Wed 4 · 63 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.3 m
- Wind
- 3 kn
- Gusts
- 7kn
- Air
- 11°C
Thu 5 · 63 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.2 mflat
- Wind
- 4 kn
- Gusts
- 7kn
- Air
- 10°C
Fri 6 · 63 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.2 mflat
- Wind
- 7 kn
- Gusts
- 13kn
- Air
- 10°C
Sat 7 · 63 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.2 mflat
- Wind
- 5 kn
- Gusts
- 9kn
- Air
- 9°C
Sun 8 · 61 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.4 m
- Wind
- 9 kn
- Gusts
- 19kn
- Air
- 10°C
Tap a day for sea, wind and water. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 161, good
- Mon 262, good
- Tue 364, good
- Wed 463, good
- Thu 563, good
- Fri 663, good
- Sat 763, good
- Sun 861, good
- Mon 959, fair
- Tue 101, poor
The site in five facts
- Down to 36 mits deepest
- From a boathow you get in
- Advancedand up
- Water 11 °C7 mm semi-dry or a drysuit
- Faces Eswell from there reaches it
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know currents, the visibility on the day or your certification.
Suits Advanced divers and up, as a dive guide states it. Scored for Advanced divers.
| Day | Score | Sea | Wind | Gusts | Air |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 61, good | 0.4 m | 11 kn | 23kn | 10°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 62, good | 0.3 m | 7 kn | 14kn | 12°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 64, good | 0.2 mflat | 1 kn | 3kn | 11°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 63, good | 0.3 m | 3 kn | 7kn | 11°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 63, good | 0.2 mflat | 4 kn | 7kn | 10°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 63, good | 0.2 mflat | 7 kn | 13kn | 10°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 63, good | 0.2 mflat | 5 kn | 9kn | 9°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 61, good | 0.4 m | 9 kn | 19kn | 10°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 59, fair | 0.6 m | 12 kn | 27kn | 9°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 1, poor | 0.8 m | 19 kn | 41knboats in | 7°C |
Sea is the waves near the site, in metres; wind and gusts in knots. "Boats in": gusts that keep dive boats in. More
Tide
- Sun 1 NovHigh 02:07 +0.7 mLow 07:33 −0.6 mHigh 14:14 +0.8 mLow 20:36 −0.9 m
- Mon 2 NovHigh 03:31 +0.5 mLow 08:48 −0.4 mHigh 15:32 +0.8 mLow 22:07 −0.9 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 04:55 +0.6 mLow 10:23 −0.4 mHigh 16:51 +0.8 mLow 23:34 −0.9 m
Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Slack water, the safest time to dive where there is current, is about half an hour either side of each high and low. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.
Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.
Best time to go
No month stands out
Good diving days in a typical week, each month, for Advanced divers, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).
- Jan6of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb6of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar7of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr7of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May7of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun7of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul7of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug7of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep7of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct7of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov7of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec7of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast: the sea and the mean wind of each day, with no gusts or rain in the history.
Map
the site and its town
SMS Cöln on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.
One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
More diving near here
5 places
- SMS Brummer 0.4 km away
- SMS Kronprinz Wilhelm 1.1 km away
- SMS Markgraf 1.3 km away
- SMS Karlsruhe 2.6 km away
- SMS Dresden 3.1 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About SMS Cöln
A wreck dive. It goes down to 36 m. You get in from a boat. It suits Advanced divers and up, as a dive guide states it. The coast faces E: swell from the E reaches it, and wind from the W blows out to sea. No dive centre within 10 km, the nearest 11 km away. The sea is about 8°C in February, its coldest month (drysuit), and 13°C in August, its warmest (7 mm semi-dry or a drysuit). The town to stay in is Houton. Within 5 km we also list 6 dive sites.
- What it is Wreck.
- How deep Down to 36 m.
- Getting in From a boat.
- Who it suits Suits Advanced divers and up, as a dive guide states it.
- Dive centres No dive centre within 10 km, the nearest 11 km away.
Water about 11°C: 7 mm semi-dry or a drysuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).
Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,160–US$2,160 each
about US$1,160–US$2,160 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food.
Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to INV, estimated from distance and season, changing at DUB, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$422–US$871 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$141–US$234 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$281–US$469 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$315–US$583 |
| Total | about US$1,160–US$2,160 |
Guided dives are not priced yet: we have no sourced price, so it is not in it. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Houton
6 min by car · 4 places to stay
about US$107/nightcountry average
About Houton its beds, food and every spot near it
About US$107 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
Getting there: about 18h 45m
About 18h 45m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → INV, changing at Dublin Airport (DUB), then 3h 05m by road
Flights ORD → INV on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
In the water
Dives and courses in Houton · GetYourGuideDive gear hire in Houton · GetYourGuide
Dive centres nearby
The Diving Cellar 11 km
The nearest named dive centres and shops within 25 km, in a straight line; training agencies where the map states them. Listings, not a recommendation. Dive centres: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits
What you might see
Animals divers and surveys have recorded within 2 km of this site in the last 15 years. A record says someone saw it here, not that you will.
Common sea star Asterias rubens
Seen in 42 records, mostly Sep to Nov.
Edible sea urchin Echinus esculentus
Seen in 39 records, mostly Oct to Jan.
Velvet swimming crab Necora puber
Seen in 28 records, mostly Sep to Nov.
Common hermit crab Pagurus bernhardus
Seen in 24 records, mostly Sep to Nov.
Brown crab Cancer pagurus
Seen in 22 records, mostly Sep to Jan.
Crossaster papposus
Seen in 14 records, mostly Sep to Jan.
Butterfish Pholis gunnellus
Seen in 8 records.
Polybius depurator
Seen in 8 records.
Munida rugosa
Seen in 4 records.
Records: OBIS (Ocean Biodiversity Information System, IOC-UNESCO), from the datasets named here, CC0 and CC BY records only. Names: WoRMS, through OBIS; common names from Wikidata. Largest datasets here: Marine Recorder Snapshot extract of surveys entered by SeaSearch; 2023 Seasearch Survey of the Scotland North Coast and the Northern Isles. Credits
What is under the water this week (visibility, current) no free forecast gives. Ask a dive centre before you book.