Both coasts of Canada, and several places in between, are worthy if not top scuba diving destinations. In the east, the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, including Halifax Harbour, there are excellent places to view shipwrecks--the province has the highest density of shipwrecks per linear mile of any location in the world, and almost 150 lie beneath the harbor of the capital city. Plenty of beautiful marine life lurks in and about those wrecks, as well. Another favorite diving site in the east is Québec's Les Escoumins, on the north side of the St. Lawrence River, not far from its confluence with the Saguenay. The nutrient-rich waters of this spot host a dazzling variety of marine species. The spot where the rivers meet is also a prime feeding area for many kinds of whales during the summer.

In the west, an amazing array of colorful marine life flourishes amid the 2,000 shipwrecks that have become artificial reefs off the coast of British Columbia. Divers from around the world visit the area year-round to see the Pacific Northwest's unique underwater fauna and flora, and to swim among the ghostly remains of 19th-century whaling ships and 20th-century schooners. The Pacific Rim National Park's Broken Group Islands is home to a multitude of sea life, while the waters off the park's West Coast Trail are known throughout the world as "the graveyard of the Pacific" for the hundreds of 19th- and 20th-century shipwrecks. Nanaimo and Campbell River, on Vancouver Island, are both centers for numerous dive outfitters.