Buck Island Reef
Dive site · United States Virgin Islands
Is it worth the trip?
78Good out of 100 for your dates
Best on Mon 9: Sea 0.3 m, Visibility about 15 m, Water 29 °C
Tue 3 · 77 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.5 m
- Wind
- 10 kn
- Gusts
- 14kn
- Air
- 29°C
Wed 4 · 78 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.4 m
- Wind
- 5 kn
- Gusts
- 9kn
- Air
- 28°C
Thu 5 · 78 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.4 m
- Wind
- 7 kn
- Gusts
- 10kn
- Air
- 29°C
Fri 6 · 75 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.3 m
- Wind
- 12 kn
- Gusts
- 18kn
- Air
- 28°C
Sat 7 · 78 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.3 m
- Wind
- 12 kn
- Gusts
- 16kn
- Air
- 29°C
Sun 8 · 73 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.3 m
- Wind
- 2 kn
- Gusts
- 9kn
- Air
- 28°C
Mon 9 · 80 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.3 m
- Wind
- 2 kn
- Gusts
- 7kn
- Air
- 29°C
Tap a day for sea, wind and water. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Mon 273, good
- Tue 377, good
- Wed 478, good
- Thu 578, good
- Fri 675, good
- Sat 778, good
- Sun 873, good
- Mon 980, good
- Tue 1080, good
- Wed 1179, good
The site in five facts
- Down to 12 mits deepest
- From a boathow you get in
- Open Waterand up
- Water 29 °Crash vest or 1 to 2 mm
- Faces Nswell 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 Open Water divers and up, as a dive guide states it. Scored for Advanced divers.
| Day | Score | Sea | Wind | Gusts | Air |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 73, good | 0.6 m | 14 kn | 18kn | 30°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 77, good | 0.5 m | 10 kn | 14kn | 29°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 78, good | 0.4 m | 5 kn | 9kn | 28°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 78, good | 0.4 m | 7 kn | 10kn | 29°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 75, good | 0.3 m | 12 kn | 18kn | 28°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 78, good | 0.3 m | 12 kn | 16kn | 29°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 73, good | 0.3 m | 2 kn | 9kn | 28°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 80, good | 0.3 m | 2 kn | 7kn | 29°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 80, good | 0.4 m | 2 kn | 7kn | 29°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 79, good | 0.4 m | 5 kn | 11kn | 28°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
- Mon 2 NovLow 05:59 −0.1 mHigh 15:56 +0.1 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 08:27 −0.0 mHigh 16:30 +0.1 mLow 23:46 −0.0 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 06:09 +0.0 mLow 10:43 +0.0 mHigh 16:45 +0.1 mLow 23:48 −0.0 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.
Map
the site and its town
Buck Island Reef 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
1 place
- Salt River Canyon 14.9 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Buck Island Reef
A reef dive. It goes down to 12 m. You get in from a boat. It suits Open Water divers and up, as a dive guide states it. The coast faces N: swell from the N reaches it, and wind from the S blows out to sea. No dive centre within 10 km, the nearest 29 km away. The sea is about 27°C in January, its coldest month (3 mm wetsuit), and 29°C in July, its warmest (rash vest or 1 to 2 mm). The town to stay in is Christiansted.
- What it is Reef.
- How deep Down to 12 m.
- Getting in From a boat.
- Who it suits Suits Open Water divers and up, as a dive guide states it.
- Dive centres No dive centre within 10 km, the nearest 29 km away.
Water about 29°C: rash vest or 1 to 2 mm. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
Visibility about 15 m. Typical for the time of year, estimated from ten years of NASA satellite water clarity, not a forecast. Much the same all year (about 15 m).
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$758–US$1,420 each
about US$758–US$1,420 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, 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 2 November 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to STX, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bag | about US$289–US$597 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$47–US$81 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$201–US$329 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$221–US$416 |
| Total | about US$758–US$1,420 |
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: Christiansted
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
about 20 min by car · 20 places to stay
About Christiansted its beds, food and every spot near it
Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.
Getting there: about 9h 20m
About 9h 20m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → STX, direct, then 40 min by road
Flights ORD → STX on your dates · AviasalesAdeSIM for your phone · Search on AiraloAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
In the water
Dives and courses in Christiansted · GetYourGuideDive gear hire in Christiansted · GetYourGuide
Dive centres nearby
No dive centre mapped within 25 km.
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.
Mustard hill coral Porites astreoides
Seen in 304 records, mostly Jun to Aug.
Lettuce Coral Agaricia agaricites
Seen in 268 records, mostly Jun to Oct.
Orbicella annularis
Seen in 164 records, mostly Jun to Oct.
Finger coral Porites porites
Seen in 154 records, mostly Jun to Aug.
Pseudodiploria strigosa
Seen in 152 records, mostly Jun.
Massive Starlet Coral Siderastrea siderea
Seen in 133 records, mostly Jun.
Orbicella franksi
Seen in 115 records, mostly Jun to Oct.
Orbicella faveolata
Seen in 111 records, mostly Jun to Aug.
Great star coral Montastraea cavernosa
Seen in 107 records, mostly Jun to Oct.
Blushing Star Coral Stephanocoenia intersepta
Seen in 76 records, mostly Jun.
Lowrelief Lettuce Coral Agaricia humilis
Seen in 59 records, mostly Jun to Oct.
Boulder brain coral Colpophyllia natans
Seen in 58 records, mostly Jun to Nov.
Records: OBIS (Ocean Biodiversity Information System, IOC-UNESCO) and GBIF.org (1 November 2026, doi:10.15468/dl.jeesns), from the datasets named here, CC0 and CC BY records only. Names: WoRMS and GBIF; common names from the Catalogue of Life, the GBIF Backbone and Wikidata. Largest datasets here: USVI Territorial Coral Reef Monitoring Program Database; NOAA National Coral Reef Monitoring Program, Coral Demographic Data; NOAA National Coral Reef Monitoring Program, Benthic Cover Data; DFO NE Newfoundland Acoustic Array and Atlantic Cod Tagging. Credits
This week's visibility and the current no free forecast gives. Ask a dive centre before you book.
Saved: this link opens the same trip
The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.