El Malinal
Dive site · Mexico
Advanced divers and up
Is it worth the trip?
77Good out of 100 for your dates
Best on Mon 9: Sea 0.4 m, Visibility about 10 m, Water 29 °C
Wed 4 · 76 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.6 m
- Wind
- 3 kn
- Gusts
- 5kn
- Air
- 28°C
Thu 5 · 77 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.6 m
- Wind
- 2 kn
- Gusts
- 6kn
- Air
- 28°C
Fri 6 · 76 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.6 m
- Wind
- 5 kn
- Gusts
- 9kn
- Air
- 28°C
Sat 7 · 77 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.5 m
- Wind
- 3 kn
- Gusts
- 8kn
- Air
- 28°C
Sun 8 · 77 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.5 m
- Wind
- 1 kn
- Gusts
- 9kn
- Air
- 28°C
Mon 9 · 78 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.4 m
- Wind
- 1 kn
- Gusts
- 10kn
- Air
- 28°C
Tue 10 · 77 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.4 m
- Wind
- 7 kn
- Gusts
- 11kn
- Air
- 28°C
Tap a day for sea, wind and water. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Tue 377, good
- Wed 476, good
- Thu 577, good
- Fri 676, good
- Sat 777, good
- Sun 877, good
- Mon 978, good
- Tue 1077, good
- Wed 1177, good
- Thu 1276, good
The site in five facts
- Down to 30 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 | 77, good | 0.6 m | 2 kn | 7kn | 30°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 76, good | 0.6 m | 3 kn | 5kn | 28°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 77, good | 0.6 m | 2 kn | 6kn | 28°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 76, good | 0.6 m | 5 kn | 9kn | 28°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 77, good | 0.5 m | 3 kn | 8kn | 28°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 77, good | 0.5 m | 1 kn | 9kn | 28°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 78, good | 0.4 m | 1 kn | 10kn | 28°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 77, good | 0.4 m | 7 kn | 11kn | 28°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 77, good | 0.4 m | 5 kn | 11kn | 28°C |
| Thu 12Nov | 76, good | 0.5 m | 6 kn | 11kn | 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 NovHigh 06:11 +0.4 mLow 12:10 −0.1 mHigh 17:48 +0.4 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 00:10 −0.4 mHigh 06:37 +0.5 mLow 12:51 −0.3 mHigh 18:46 +0.4 m
- Thu 5 NovLow 00:46 −0.4 mHigh 07:02 +0.6 mLow 13:26 −0.5 mHigh 19:33 +0.4 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
El Malinal 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.
More diving near here
2 places
- La Puntilla 2.3 km away
- Love Rocks 2.6 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About El Malinal
A pinnacle dive. It goes down to 30 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. 1 dive centre or shop within 10 km, the nearest 2.0 km away. The sea is about 24°C in March, its coldest month (5 mm wetsuit), and 30°C in July, its warmest (rash vest or 1 to 2 mm). The town to stay in is Corral Del Risco. Within 5 km we also list 5 surf spots and 2 dive sites.
- What it is Pinnacle.
- How deep Down to 30 m.
- Getting in From a boat.
- Who it suits Suits Advanced divers and up, as a dive guide states it.
- Dive centres 1 dive centre or shop within 10 km, the nearest 2.0 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 10 m. Typical for the time of year, estimated from ten years of NASA satellite water clarity, not a forecast. Clearest in Aug (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$731–US$1,350 each
about US$731–US$1,350 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 PVR, estimated from distance and season, 2 airlines on the route, with a hold bag | about US$255–US$523 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$94–US$154 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$181–US$295 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$201–US$376 |
| Total | about US$731–US$1,350 |
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: Corral Del Risco
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
about 5 min by car · 55 places to stay
about US$67/nightcountry average
About Corral Del Risco its beds, food and every spot near it
About US$67 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 2 November 2026.
Getting there: about 8h 55m
About 8h 55m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → PVR, direct, then 50 min by road
Flights ORD → PVR 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 Corral Del Risco · GetYourGuideDive gear hire in Corral Del Risco · GetYourGuide
Dive centres nearby
SPEARMEX 2.0 km
Oceano Adventure 15 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
Too few records at this site itself, so these are the animals divers and surveys have recorded at other sites within 25 km in the last 15 years. A record says someone saw it there, not that you will.
Humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliaeWhale or dolphin
Seen in 15 records, mostly Dec to Feb.
Ophiactis simplex
Seen in 18 records.
Ophiothrix spiculata
Seen in 13 records, mostly Jan to Jun.
Diadema mexicanum
Seen in 12 records, mostly Mar to Jul.
Savigny's brittle star Ophiactis savignyi
Seen in 10 records, mostly Feb to Jul.
Ophiothela mirabilis
Seen in 10 records.
Ophioblennius steindachneriCombtooth blennies
Seen in 9 records.
Cortez rainbow wrasse Thalassoma lucasanum
Seen in 8 records.
Ophiocomella alexandri
Seen in 7 records.
Giant damselfish Microspathodon dorsalis
Seen in 6 records.
Giant hawkfish Cirrhitus rivulatus
Seen in 5 records.
Sally lightfoot Grapsus grapsus
Seen in 5 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: Inventario de la fauna arrecifal asociada al ecosistema de Pocillopora en el Pacífico Tropical Mexicano; Inventario de ofiuroideos del Pacífico mexicano; iNaturalist Research-grade Observations; Happywhale - Humpback whale in North Pacific Ocean. 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.