Tea House Reef South, Ricketts Point

Shore Dive | Shore access

Tea House Reef South
© Phil Watson

Depth: 1 m (3.28 ft) to 5 m (16 ft)

Level: Open Water and beyond.

Tea House Reef South is the main diving and snorkelling site at Ricketts Point, Beaumaris facing south-west into Port Phillip. It's part of Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary, a 115-hectare area located at Black Rock and Beaumaris, in north-eastern Port Phillip. Tea House Reef is 'Dive Central' at Ricketts Point.

Tea House Reef South is a great site for experienced snorkellers and night dive enthusiasts. It's so close to the Melbourne CBD, thus very convenient for those living in Melbourne. Great for getting back in the water, a night dive after work, or just an excuse to get wet!

Diving and Snorkelling at Tea House Reef South

Southern Fiddler Ray (aka Banjo Shark)
at Tea House Reef | © David Reinhard

Tea House Reef is the inter-tidal reef immediately south of the disabled access ramp. The seaward side of Tea House Reef provides a range of habitats in approximately two metres of water. It isn't easy to find the turning points but this doesn't seem to matter too much to most divers. The depths further out can be up to five metres. Fish life is prolific once you get beyond the Tea House Reef.

At low tide it is always best to swim out to the Yacht Club marker and then back to the Corner rather than from the disabled ramp, as it can be a struggle over the shallow reefs otherwise. However, the site is a better experience as high tide approaches.

Bryozoans at Tea House Reef
© David Reinhard

There is also an 'outer lagoon' and a swim around its reef edged perimeter, which can also be rewarding.

The fish life is quite varied. Snapper, flathead, octopus and stingrays are seen here on a regular basis. However, this is a no-take zone as it is covered by Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary.

Tea House Reef South Dive Site Map | © The Scuba Doctor

Tea House Reef Parking
© Google Street View

Location: Beach Road, Beaumaris, Victoria 3193
MELWAY Ref: Page 86 B8
Beach Marker: B17

Parking: Parking is usually available in the Beaumaris Yacht Club car park off Beach Road. You may need to buy a parking ticket. Before gearing up check out the water. If you see lots of white water, head on home.

Facilities: Public toilets are available. Wheelchair access is available via the access ramp and a shower and toilet for disabled snorkelers are also available.

Warning: Always go with a buddy and carry a dive knife. Make sure you tow a dive buoy with dive flag.

Dive Entry: Make your way from the car park down onto the beach, and then walk north until you're in front of the yacht club. To protect the reef from people trampling over it and you from slipping over and injuring yourself on the reef, the best and safest option is to enter and exit the water in front of the Beaumaris Yacht Club where there is sand and it's deeper. Head out to the double markers, which is a good spot to have a long look around, and then turn left and head towards Tea House Reef.

Ideal Conditions:
Tea House Reef South is best dived with offshore northerly to south-easterly winds. Avoid diving with strong onshore southerly to north-westerly winds. Just before the high tide will give the clearest water. See WillyWeather (Ricketts Point) as a guide for the tide times and the height of the tide.

Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary

This dive site is located within Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary. There are actually a number of diving and snorkelling sites here including:

Ricketts Point Bathymetry
Source: Parks Victoria

McGregor Rock, Quiet Corner (Melway Map 85 K6)
Banksia Point (Melway Map 86 B7)
Tea House Reef North / Beaumaris Yacht Club (Melway Map 86 B8)
Tea House Reef South / Beaumaris Yacht Club (Melway Map 86 B8)
Tea House Bay (Melways 86 C9)
Middle Reef (aka North Arm Reef) (Melways Map 86 C9)
Triangle Reef, Ricketts Point (Melway Map 86 C9)
Table Rock, Ricketts Point (Melway Map 86 D10)
Sea Scouts Jetty (Melways 86 E9)

Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary is on the north-east coast of Port Phillip and is approximately 20 km from Melbourne CBD. It abuts the Bayside City Council Foreshore Reserve from Table Rock Point in Beaumaris to Quiet Corner in Black Rock. It extends from the high water mark to approximately 450 m offshore.

Aboriginal tradition indicates that the sanctuary is part of Country of Boon Wurrung people.

Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary Map | Source: Parks Victoria — Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary Management Plan, November 2005, page 67

You are not permitted to carry a spear gun while snorkelling or scuba diving in Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary.

Boon Wurrung / Bunurong country

Traditional Owners — This dive site is in the traditional Country of the Boon Wurrung / Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation. This truly ancient Country includes parts of Port Phillip, from the Werribee River in the north-west, down to Wilson's Promontory in the south-east, including the Mornington Peninsula, French Island and Phillip Island, plus Western Port. We wish to acknowledge the Boon Wurrung as Traditional Owners. We pay respect to their Ancestors and their Elders, past, present and emerging. We acknowledge Bunjil the Creator Spirit of this beautiful land, who travels as an eagle, and Waarn, who protects the waterways and travels as a crow, and thank them for continuing to watch over this Country today and beyond.

Tea House Reef South, Ricketts Point Location Map

Latitude: 37° 59.353′ S (37.989215° S / 37° 59′ 21.17″ S)
Longitude: 145° 1.655′ E (145.027579° E / 145° 1′ 39.28″ E)
Datum: WGS84 | Google Map | Get directions
Added: 2021-03-17 12:35:23 GMT, Last updated: 2022-04-19 04:47:55 GMT
Source: Google Earth
Nearest Neighbour: Tea House Reef North, Ricketts Point, 23 m, bearing 350°, N
Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary.
Beaumaris, Bayside, Port Phillip.
Depth: 1 to 5 m.

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DISCLAIMER: No claim is made by The Scuba Doctor as to the accuracy of the dive site coordinates listed here. Should anyone decide to use these GPS marks to locate and dive on a site, they do so entirely at their own risk. Always verify against other sources.

The marks come from numerous sources including commercial operators, independent dive clubs, reference works, and active divers. Some are known to be accurate, while others may not be. Some GPS marks may even have come from maps using the AGD66 datum, and thus may need be converted to the WGS84 datum. To distinguish between the possible accuracy of the dive site marks, we've tried to give each mark a source of GPS, Google Earth, or unknown.