Occupying a total surface area of 14 square kilometres, the atoll of Layang Layang is situated in the South China Sea about 300 kilometers off the coast of Borneo, in the heart of the Indo-Pacific area, which has the richest wildlife and greatest marine biodiversity in the world. Geographically, it belongs to the oil-rich and disputed Spratley Archipelago, but politically it is part of Malaysia. In fact, the Malaysian government has deliberately transformed a tiny portion of the emerging coral reef into a small artificial island to affirm its political and military presence here.

The unusual origins of the area - the construction of a Malaysian Navy base was followed by the development of a modern tourist resort - have made it a destination virtually unprecedented for divers. Indeed, the Layang Layang reef offers all the advantages of a site accessible only by live-aboard boat (absolute isolation, virgin seabeds, large specimens of pelagic species and very few visitors) without the problems related to life on board.

The surrounding seabeds offer at least a dozen excellent diving sites, characterized by shallow depths with extraordinary coral gardens teeming with reef microfauna, full of steep drop-offs into the abyss and the almost constant presence of pelagic species.

The coral reef that encircles the atoll’s immense lagoon has remained untouched for thousands of years, has never been fished, has experienced no pollution of any kind, and has never suffered the devastating kicks of hordes of enthusiastic but inexpert divers. The dry land portion of the atoll also hosts an amazing rookery teeming with thousands of terns and boobies, nesting on the bare ground and offering a spectacular opportunity for close observation to divers and birdwatchers alike.

The coral gardens (especially in the diving sites known as Crack Reef, Wrasse Strip and Navigator’s Lane) boast colonies of Acropora, Xenia, Montipora, Turbinaria, Porites and Sarcophyton of astounding richness and incredible complexity, among which intact and fragile branches swim hundreds of different species of fish, crustaceans and mollusks, some common, others less so, and yet others extremely rare or even still unclassified.

Here are multihued clouds of butterflyfish from the genus Chaetodon , shoals of red-tooth triggerfish Odonus niger flanked by elegant angelfish Pomacanthus imperator and xanthometopon, numerous species of garishly hued parrotfish from the genus Scarus , large anemones Heteractis magnifica with symbiotic clownfish from the genus Amphiprion , porcelain crabs from the genus Neopetrolisthes and shrimp of many different species belonging to the genus Periclemenes.

 

The atoll of Layang Layang arises from the abyss like a gigantic tower isolated by waters more than 2,000 meters deep, and its well-known distance from the continental shelf makes it possible to dive in water which is generally crystal clear, with horizontal visibility that exceeds 50 meters, all quite unusual in this part of the world.

Every wall of the atoll (especially in Gorgonian Forest, The Point and Dogtooth Lair) provides thrills and spectacular encounters: giant mantas Manta birostris, schools of enormous dogtooth tunas Gymnosarda unicolor, eagle rays Aetobatus narinari, grey reef sharks Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos, squadrons of Sphyraena barracuda , qenie and flavicauda barracudas, shoals of batfish from the genus Platax , rare pelagic thresher sharks Alopias oceanicus, gigantic schools of scalloped hammerhead sharks Sphyrna lewini, and sometimes even an occasional whale shark Rinchodon typus, or a solitary oceanic whitetip shark Carcharhinus longimanus.

And there’s more. Some diving areas on the wall (in particular “D” Wall, Crack Reef and Shark’s Cave) have balconies and terraces that interrupt the drop-off at a depth of about 30 meters, providing an ideal setting for encounters with rare nudibranchs, shrimp gobies, huge marbled stingrays Taeniura melanospilos and blue-spotted ribbontail stingrays Taeniura lymma, leopard sharks Stegostoma fasciatum, and whitetip reef sharks Triaenodon obesus.

All this in a fascinating panorama dominated by enormous barrel sponges Xestospongia testudinaria, gigantic yellow and orange gorgonians wreathed by crinoids in a thousand colors and formidable colonies of red seawhip corals from the genus Eunicella. To complete the picture, even the less-frequented sites characterized by coral formations crumbled by the surf (such as in The Valley) or by deep fissures in the walls (such as The Tunnel, ideal for interesting night explorations) can offer unexpected excitement: in fact, we were the first anywhere to spot and photograph a huge oceanic thresher shark at a cleaning station while diving at The Valley a few years ago.

 

All the day dives take place from twin-engined boats in areas which are only a few minutes from the diving center’s small pier. The set schedules must be followed scrupulously, with groups as homogenous as possible, and a detailed briefing always precedes each dive.

The divemaster acts as an observer only, and divers must use the buddy system. Strong currents and high waves can be occasionally expected - this is the closest to blue water diving you can have without going on a liveaboard trip. As might be imagined, the use of a dive computer is requested (maximum permitted depth is 30 meters, but be careful - in water so clear it is easy to accumulate excessive decompression times), and the consumption of alcohol during the day is discouraged. Remember, there’s no hyperbaric chamber on the island, and safety is paramount for all.