Japanese Wreck is a salt water dive site, located in Banyuning, Bali, Indonesia.
Very little is known about the wreck and how it ended up sank at Banyuning, or even if it really was a Japanese ship…
In fact the only indication I could find about its heritage is that the nearly intact Asian style toilet found on the wreck made somebody in the past think that the ship must have been from Japan.
There was a time when hardly anybody dived the wreck as the general area was considered to be quite remote and the road along the coast was in poor condition and washed out regularly during the rainy season.
But all that has changed and the wreck can get quite crowded at times with both divers and snorkelers – there is even a rental area at the beachside cafe.
Beautiful gorgonian fan on the Japanese wreck
Diving the Japanese Wreck could not be easier as there is now a small car park near the beach where you can kit up and then it’s a short walk down to the beach.
Once in the water it’s a short surface swim over to the buoy that marks the wreck just off the beach and you are there!
The wreck is quite a small one and looks like it used to be a tug, but it is quite hard to tell now given that it is on its side and partially broken up.
The depth on the wreck varies from just 6m, down to about 12m, and it lies on silty sand that can easily be stirred up by too many divers or a change in the prevailing currents, but overall the wreck itself is a very easy & safe dive.
The wreck now sports a fine array of large gorgonian fans, sponges and general marine life – with the area around the stern particularly vibrant.
The large propeller is still attached and is so richly coated with marine growth that it takes a few moments to actually recognize what it is!
Quite how the wreck ended up on the beach at Banyuning would certainly be an interesting story because the condition of the wreck, with its large marine diesel engine sat bolt upright in the deeper water and surrounded by crankshafts and other engine room debris, points to quite a violent end to its life afloat.