Where and when to see stingrays

Bottom-dwelling rays found on sand flats and reefs, from the friendly southern stingrays of the Caymans to giant short-tail and small-eye stingrays in cooler or remote waters.

This guide documents sightings in 7 Good Dives regions. The most regions are in peak season in December–February.

Colored-pencil illustration: one southern stingray (Hypanus americanus).

Stingrays sighting calendar

Calendar months, every year

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
TofoMozambique	Peak	Peak	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	Peak
Poor Knights IslandsNew Zealand	Peak	Peak	Peak	●	●						●	Peak
BonaireCaribbean Netherlands	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Canary IslandsSpain	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Cayman IslandsCayman Islands	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Cocos IslandCosta Rica	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Northern Red SeaEgypt	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●

Peak = best odds · ● = regularly seen · blank = unlikely.

Calendars describe animal presence, not weather or site access; check each region’s dive season. For grouped animals, a marked month may apply to only one member of the group. Sightings vary by site and dive.

Where and when to see stingrays

Stingrays sighting calendar

Explore all 7 documented regions