Coral Island: How to Unlock and Progress With Diving

Cleaning the ocean, collecting kelp, and saving the coral are major focuses during your life in Starlet Town. Diving, however, isn’t immediately available. Here’s how to unlock and progress with diving in Coral Island.

Going Under the Waves: How to Get Diving in Coral Island

When you first start off in Coral Island, you’ll notice that the diving pier is roped off. You have to wait until Spring 8 to read your mail. Ling, the researcher interested in coral, sends you a letter looking for volunteers, which is how you unlock the activity. Meet her at the diving spot near the Inn to get started. She’ll give you a suit in exchange for healing five coral sites. She also sends her bot, Kible, with you. Cute.

How to Dive in Coral Island

To begin diving, you don’t need to change your attire. You simply need to walk to the end of the platform and click when the “Dive?” prompt appears. You’ll load into the water in your suit, with an anchor and Kible.

How to Progress Your Diving Skill

To have a successful diving session, you’ll need your Scythe, as well as your bug net. Clearing through trash underwater is the same as on your plot: simply scythe it away. You’ll also want to slice seaweed and kelp, valuable resources you need for crafting. Coffers can be uncovered from the trash, containing unique gems or artifacts.

How to Catch Underwater Creatures and Items

You catch underwater creatures the same way you do bugs. Wait until you’re close enough with the net equipped, then nab them. Not all critters can be caught, so pay attention to the ones that get the “?” (question mark) reaction. The transparent jellyfish in the image below, for example, can’t be caught, but the purple slug to the left of the anchor can.

There are harvestable items down here, too. Different clams, sea salt, and shells can be found on the ocean floor. Diving has many similar aspects to its above-water counterpart. I personally love exploring underwater, especially since the music is so soothing.

How to Heal Coral Sites and Access New Underwater Areas

Healing the coral is how you can access new areas. To do this, you must find the solar orbs underneath the trash. When found, interact with it to send it to the corresponding altar nearby. From the altar, a bright light will seep out, similar to how lava moves. Kible will typically notify you if trash is blocking the light, but you must be close enough.

Clear the path of debris so another golden altar, identical to the one on the diving pier, rises from the sand. This statue sends out a rainbow-colored thread, and then a golden light emits from the top of it. The coral emits a similar golden light in response. The oil underneath it disappears, the colors become more vibrant, and any black, tar-like roots recede. You now have a new area to explore.

You must do this over and over until you heal all the coral. As you continue further through the map, you’ll see rarer creatures, encounter mermaids, and be able to harvest silver and gold kelp. Healing the coral also increases your town rank, a main focus of the story.

How to Dive Where You Left Off

You don’t have to worry about starting from the beginning every time, however. Before resurfacing, move the anchor to your present location. Next time you dive, that’s where you’ll start. You won’t waste any time going from one location to another if you always update where the anchor is.

That’s how to unlock diving and progress through the underwater story in Coral Island. Save the coral, rescue the ocean, and make friends with mermaids as you dive through the waves. If you’re wondering how to unlock other locations, such as the Hot Springs, or how to get a pet, dive into our growing guides hub for help.