Banzai Cliff

Banzai Cliff is a breathtakingly dramatic, deep-water ocean wall dive located off the northernmost tip of Saipan. Unlike the calm lagoons on the west coast, this site faces the open Pacific Ocean, offering elite divers a massive vertical drop-off and the chance to see large deep-sea predators. When you look at the cliffs from the dive boat, you are viewing a highly sacred historical site. At the end of the Battle of Saipan in July 1944, hundreds of Japanese civilians and soldiers tragically leaped from these 200-foot cliffs into the raging surf below to avoid being captured by U.S. forces. Today, the cliff top is heavily lined with peace memorials and shrines dedicated to those who lost their lives.