Pulau Hantu (Ghost Island in Malay) is made up of two tiny islands located just off the southwest coast of Mainland Singapore. The islands, only 20-minutes or so out of Singapore Harbour are popular with fisherman and divers due to the calm waters and relatively mild currents that can be found there. Pulau Hantu is in no way a world-class dive destination, but for divers in Singapore looking for a fix to support their diving habit, the island offers just the thing.

Pulau Hantu

The islands of Pulau Hanto are quite picturesque, with patches of healthy greenery, and white sandy beaches, they look like a great spot to hang out for a day and have a picnic. Unfortunately, the islands are currently closed to the public due to the discovery of asbestos. They are also just across from a pretty sizable tank farm, where tankers from around Asia unload chemicals and fuel into large holding containers.

What You Will See at Pulau Hantu

Close inspection of the muddy bottom quickly revealed a pretty sizable population of small nudibranchs and gobies. Crabs and shrimp are still hunkering down in the mud, eeking out an existence in the wasteland.

Nudibranch, Pulau Hantu Singapore

Once upon a time, Singapore was probably home to some truly spectacular coral reefs. Decades of landfill and reclamation activities, and proximity to one of the busiest shipping ports in the world have unfortunately decimated the vast majority of Singapore’s reefs, and today all that is left are a few corals desperately struggling to hang on in the sediment and