🇹🇼 Green Island (Ludao), Taiwan – Shilang & Dabaisha
綠島（石朗・大白沙） · 뤼다오(녹도)
Location
Overview
Green Island (Ludao) is a volcanic island off Taitung that sits directly in the path of the Kuroshio Current, which keeps visibility routinely in the 20–30 m range and water temperatures around 24–29°C year-round. It is the centre of Taiwan's freediving scene: the shore-entry sites at Shilang and Dabaisha in the south and Chaikou in the north cover everything from 5 m terrain features to the Steel Reef, whose tops sit near 20 m and whose base reaches about 31 m, so recreational divers and depth trainees can work the same island on different lines. As of 2026 AIDA and SSI courses and dedicated freediving guide (導潛) services are well established here, though a run of drownings and one disappearance in Green Island waters during 2025 has pushed operators and customers toward stricter checks on certification and safety cover.
Shilang shore entry — a gentle coral slope that deepens in stages from the shallows, the default warm-up and line-training start point on the island
Steel Reef (鋼鐵礁) — four sunken steel fish-attracting structures, tops around 20 m and bottom near 31 m, where batfish and goatfish school; an advanced, guide-required site
Time Tunnel (時光隧道, 5–6 m) — a short swim-through of roughly 50 seconds, most striking in afternoon light, but unmistakably an overhead environment
Underwater Cross (7–16 m), Clownfish Island (10–12 m) and the large old coral head known as Da Xianggu — distinct sites at different depth bands within a short radius
One of the world's deepest underwater postboxes at about 11.5 m, plus the white sand of Dabaisha — the island's most photographed stretch
Peak-season clarity from May to September, when a well-set Kuroshio can push visibility past 30 m
Good to know
SafetyThe leading cause of freediving deaths is not depth but shallow water blackout (SWB) and loss of motor control. The danger window is the last 10 m of ascent and the first 30 seconds on the surface, which is exactly when a safety diver must meet you and a buddy must be watching at the surface. Diving alone, without a one-up-one-down system, is unacceptable regardless of your certification level.
SafetyDepth work here assumes a buoy, a down line and a lanyard, and anything past 20 m needs counterballast or an agreed rescue procedure in place before the first dive. The Steel Reef (20–31 m) and the Underwater Cross sit in current strong enough that local operators advise against entering without a buoy; be willing to cut your target depth on the day if heat, sleep or equalisation are off.
SafetySwim-throughs like the Time Tunnel and the sea caves around Blue Cave are overhead environments with no direct route to the surface. Their shallow depth makes people casual about them, but the real hazard is the distance still to be covered if something goes wrong mid-passage. Do not attempt a swim-through unless your condition, your breath-up and your team are all solid.
SafetyThere is a concrete accident record. Two of the four drowning incidents in Taitung waters during May–June 2025 happened at Green Island; a woman in her forties died on a commercial snorkelling programme on 10 June, and a foreign visitor snorkelling near shore at Dabaisha was swept away and went missing on 30 May. At least one incident occurred with an instructor present, so ask any operator directly about safety-staff ratios and rescue equipment.
SafetyThe island takes the Kuroshio head-on, and Dabaisha in particular has sharp depth changes and unpredictable current — a few dozen metres offshore can be far enough to make an unaided return impossible. Always run a surface float and line, never dive inside boat traffic lanes, and hold position by your buoy when a boat approaches. Falls on the reef platform during entry and exit are also common in swell.
RulesBooking a freediving guide normally requires a level-appropriate AIDA or SSI certification, or documented proof of course completion, and guides typically cap groups at four divers each. Participants are generally expected to be 18 or older (minors need guardian consent), and anyone with cardiovascular or respiratory conditions needs medical clearance. Check your travel insurance carefully — freediving and depth limits are frequently written as separate clauses. Note too that Shilang and Chaikou are designated fishery resource conservation areas where collecting, spearfishing and taking marine life are prohibited; never stand on or touch coral, and use the marked diving trails.
SeasonThe season runs roughly from mid-March to October, with May to September at its best. Winter northeast monsoon winds and summer typhoons cancel ferries and light aircraft often enough that you should build a buffer day into any trip. From 30 June 2026 check-in for the Green Island and Orchid Island routes moved to the Fugang Port passenger terminal, so confirm the current notice before you travel.
Practical info
There are no direct international flights; route via Taipei or Kaohsiung to Taitung, then take the roughly 50-minute ferry from Fugang Port to Nanliao Harbour, or a 15–20 minute light-aircraft hop. Ferries, accommodation and guides sell out early in the May–September peak, so book ahead, and verify certification requirements, schedules and prices with the shop and the ferry operators at the time of booking, as they change by season and by operator.
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