Carpenter's Reef
Dive site · Antigua and Barbuda
Advanced divers and up
Is it worth the trip?
92Good out of 100 for your dates
Best on Mon 9: Sea: flat, Visibility over 30 m, Water 29 °C
Tue 3 · 89 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.5 m
- Wind
- 12 kn
- Gusts
- 16kn
- Air
- 29°C
Wed 4 · 91 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.4 m
- Wind
- 7 kn
- Gusts
- 11kn
- Air
- 28°C
Thu 5 · 92 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.3 m
- Wind
- 4 kn
- Gusts
- 8kn
- Air
- 28°C
Fri 6 · 92 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.3 m
- Wind
- 7 kn
- Gusts
- 12kn
- Air
- 28°C
Sat 7 · 92 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.2 mflat
- Wind
- 8 kn
- Gusts
- 14kn
- Air
- 28°C
Sun 8 · 92 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.2 mflat
- Wind
- 7 kn
- Gusts
- 10kn
- Air
- 29°C
Mon 9 · 93 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.2 mflat
- Wind
- 2 kn
- Gusts
- 7kn
- Air
- 28°C
Tap a day for sea, wind and water. Full forecast
Forecast: next 9 days
Full forecast- Tue 389, good
- Wed 491, good
- Thu 592, good
- Fri 692, good
- Sat 792, good
- Sun 892, good
- Mon 993, good
- Tue 1093, good
- Wed 1192, good
The site in five facts
- Down to 24 mits deepest
- From a boathow you get in
- Advancedand up
- Water 29 °Crash vest or 1 to 2 mm
- Faces Sswell 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 3Nov | 89, good | 0.5 m | 12 kn | 16kn | 29°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 91, good | 0.4 m | 7 kn | 11kn | 28°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 92, good | 0.3 m | 4 kn | 8kn | 28°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 92, good | 0.3 m | 7 kn | 12kn | 28°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 92, good | 0.2 mflat | 8 kn | 14kn | 28°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 92, good | 0.2 mflat | 7 kn | 10kn | 29°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 93, good | 0.2 mflat | 2 kn | 7kn | 28°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 93, good | 0.2 mflat | 4 kn | 7kn | 28°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 92, good | 0.2 mflat | 6 kn | 10kn | 29°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
- Tue 3 NovLow 05:37 −0.1 mHigh 13:28 +0.1 mLow 19:10 +0.0 mHigh 23:58 +0.1 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 06:33 −0.0 mHigh 13:27 +0.1 mLow 19:45 −0.0 m
- Thu 5 NovHigh 01:46 +0.1 mLow 07:18 +0.0 mHigh 13:31 +0.1 mLow 20:23 −0.1 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, its town, photos
Carpenter's 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.
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One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Photos of Carpenter's Reef
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More diving near here
2 places
- Cades Reef 11.9 km away
- Ariadne Shoal 23.1 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Carpenter's Reef
A drift dive. It goes down to 24 m. You get in from a boat. It suits Advanced divers and up, as a dive guide states it. The coast faces S: swell from the S reaches it, and wind from the N blows out to sea. No dive centre within 50 km on the map: book a liveaboard or a boat from further off. The sea is about 27°C in January, its coldest month (3 mm wetsuit), and 29°C in August, its warmest (rash vest or 1 to 2 mm). The town to stay in is Old Road. Within 5 km we also list 1 wind sports spot and 1 dive site.
- What it is Drift.
- How deep Down to 24 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 50 km on the map: book a liveaboard or a boat from further off.
Water about 29°C: rash vest or 1 to 2 mm. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
Visibility over 30 m. Typical for the time of year, estimated from ten years of NASA satellite water clarity, not a forecast. Clearest in Jan, Feb, Mar, Nov and Dec (over 30 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$812–US$1,520 each
about US$812–US$1,520 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 2 November 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to SXM, estimated from distance and season, 2 airlines on the route, with a hold bag | about US$289–US$604 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$101–US$174 |
| 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$812–US$1,520 |
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: Old Road
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
about 15 min by car · 4 places to stay
About Old Road 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 12h 05m
About 12h 05m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → SXM, direct, then 3h 20m by road
Flights ORD → SXM 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 Old Road · GetYourGuideDive gear hire in Old Road · GetYourGuide
Dive centres nearby
No dive centre mapped within 50 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.
Blackbar soldierfish Myripristis jacobus
Seen in 15 records, mostly Jan.
Foureye butterflyfish Chaetodon capistratus
Seen in 10 records, mostly Jan.
Blue tang Acanthurus coeruleus
Seen in 9 records.
Bluehead wrasse Thalassoma bifasciatum
Seen in 9 records.
Ocean surgeon Acanthurus tractus
Seen in 8 records.
Spiny urchin Diadema antillarum
Seen in 7 records.
French grunt Haemulon flavolineatum
Seen in 7 records.
Rock urchin Echinometra lucunter
Seen in 5 records.
Sally lightfoot Grapsus grapsus
Seen in 5 records.
Sergeant major Abudefduf saxatilis
Seen in 4 records.
Spanish hogfish Bodianus rufus
Seen in 4 records.
Schoolmaster snapper Lutjanus apodus
Seen in 4 records.
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: iNaturalist Research-grade Observations; Understanding the color variability and resolving taxonomic confusion in the sea cucumber Isostichopus badionotus (Echinodermata, Holothuroidea): a revision of the genus Isostichopus. 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.