Local operator guidance confirming offshore boat access and Bay of Islands site selection based on conditions.
New Zealand · Bay of Islands
Boat-only sea cave with rays, eels, and blue-water walls.
Boat-only sea cave with rays, eels, and blue-water walls.
Cathedral Cave is typically dived from Paihia or nearby Bay of Islands boats rather than as an independent shore dive.
Cathedral Cave is the tall sea cave inside Motukokako's Hole in the Rock, reached by boat on settled Bay of Islands days. Divers follow a dramatic chamber with light pouring in from above, steeper walls near the entrance, and a shallower back section that makes the cave feel bigger than its footprint suggests. The site is known for stingrays, eels, nudibranchs, schooling fish, and small critters tucked into the rock, while clearer days add the blue-water contrast outside the cave mouth. Although the route is straightforward in calm conditions, it remains an overhead environment in open water and is best treated as an experienced local boat dive rather than a casual swim-through.
Site Conditions
Safety Notes
Open-water cave environment; plan for overhead conditions and depth, and manage gas and buoyancy accordingly.
Access Restrictions
Cathedral Cave is a boat-access site at Motukokako in the Bay of Islands and is normally dived with a local operator in settled weather.
Legal Notes
The Hole in the Rock area sits inside a controlled maritime and marine-mammal area, so operators follow local boating and wildlife-approach rules and may skip the site when conditions or vessel traffic make entry unsafe.
Community notes to help plan your visit.
Scuba Diving
Most scuba dives treat Cathedral Cave as a controlled pass through the chamber, staying aware of overhead space, changing surge at the mouth, and boat timing around the offshore islands.
Freediving
Freedivers need very calm weather, strong surface support, and comfort working around surge and boat-based pickups near the cave entrance.
Species commonly reported at this site, with direct links into their wildlife guides.
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Last Updated
Research Sources
Local operator guidance confirming offshore boat access and Bay of Islands site selection based on conditions.
Site-specific description of Cathedral Cave inside the Hole in the Rock, including approximate entrance and back-of-cave depths plus common wildlife.
Official context for Motukokako and protected-area management in the Hole in the Rock area.
Regional tourism guidance on the Hole in the Rock area, including weather and sea-condition sensitivity.

Expert outer-island wall dive with deep ledges and arch.

Boat-access advanced boulder slope off Motukokako.