Superior Producer, Curaçao’s Iconic Shipwreck
The Superior Producer is Curaçao’s iconic shipwreck and it is one of the most popular dive sites in Curaçao.
This wreck diving site is rated as one of the top 5 dive sites in the Caribbean and certainly an essential Curaçao experience! Dive in with us now as we explore the history of this incredible shipwreck and how the Superior Producer met an untimely end.
Superior Producer sinking
Word of the sinking spread across Curaçao like wildfire! Scuba divers, freedivers and snorkelers alike arrived on the shoreline from all over the island to scavenge the wreck for its cargo.
At the time the scene was described as ‘pure chaos’. Within a few days after the sinking, the newly sunken wreck of the Superior Producer was completely stripped. Even the neglected portholes were gone.
At 16:30 hours on September 30, 1977 – three hours after cast-off – the MV Superior Producer disappeared below the waves and sunk into the turquoise depths about 150m (500ft) from shore.
Superior Producer is a 10 Best Wreck Diving Site!
Today, the Superior Producer sits quietly upright on her keel, located between Double Reef and the entrance to St. Annabaai. Her bow faces west in roughly 30m (100ft) of water and lies about 150m (500ft) from the shoreline in front of the new Curaçao Mega-piers.
As an advanced shore or boat dive, the easiest approach will be from the stern due to the possibility of the prevailing currents. When you begin your descent on the fringing reef, an eerie dark shadow starts to appear.
At first, you will only see the stern, but then the entirety of this magnificent 50m (165ft) mass with it superstructure rising to within 21m (72ft) of the surface reveals itself, covered in a vast kaleidoscope of color.
Dive Site Recommendations
- Dive Type: Shore / Boat
- Snorkel Site: No
- Experience Level: Advanced (Min)
- Depth:70 – 100ft (20-30m)
Special Notes
Due to recreational & commercial boat traffic, an inflated surface marker buoy is mandatory when shore diving. Consult a recommended Curaçao Dive Operator for additional details & recommendations.
Location of the MV Superior Producer
Are you ready to dive into history?
With its wide-open cargo holds and accessible wheel house, the MV Superior Producer has become renowned as one of the Top Shipwrecks in the World. It is rivaled only by the likes of the SS Thistlegorm in the Red Sea and the WWII wrecks in Palau.
Now with roughly a half of a century of growth, the MV Superior Producer is an amazing artificial reef site. It is home to numerous colonies and different species of corals, sponges, gorgonians and sea whips. Because of this, it is a natural attraction for schools of predatory fish such as Tarpons, Barracudas, Snappers and Jacks.
The Superior Producer is also a heaven for macro photographers and anyone who likes to get a close look at smaller stuff too. Caribbean spiny lobsters, parrotfish, French and Queen angelfish, turtles, scorpionfish and even morays. Look even closer for banded coral shrimp, nudibranchs, flamingo-tongue shells and possibly even frogfish. Basket stars, octopus and large spider crabs catch the eye while night diving this beautiful shipwreck too.
For more information about how you can dive this iconic shipwreck, contact Dive Travel Curaçao.
