Utila's reefs are mostly unexplored by visitors. Local people coming from the mainland Honduras and lobster divers are people who frequently visit the reefs. The reefs are the biggest attraction that Utila offers its numerous tourists and its fantastic reefs combined with some of the least expensive dive courses in the World. Utila boasts of the largest local population of whale sharks, huge giant fishes that can regularly be seen in the waters around Utila. The Utila Lodge has a whale shark research program, which has successfully tagged several specimens. Utila also has an emergency hyperbaric chamber to insure fast, reliable attention to divers who get ill with decompression during diving. The chamber is run by several local volunteers and is without doubt an asset to the island.

The reefs are both inshore and offshore from the island and they are located mostly to the west and southwest. It is possible to dive from the shore. A wide variety of aquatic life exists in the offshore reef, that has largely been left untouched by visitors. The aquatic life in Utila provides tourists with a feast of underwater experiences. Black and elkhorn coral forests are magnificent. Coral formations loom over sandy bottoms with vibrant coral gardens providing the divers with sheer pleasure. Reefs beginning at a dept of 5 feet can drop sharply to 200 feet. For a diver who seeks pure adventure and who does not need fancy boats, fancy accomodations or mapped dive sites, this place surely provides a satiating experience. In the Island of Utila, a visitor is not just a visitor but becomes an explorer, discovering new sites. Although Utila is world famous for its diving, which is not only excellent, but also very affordable, this does not mean that Utila is necessarily a "cheap" resort. Accommodation and food are much less expensive than at the other islands, but Utila also has some world-class diving resorts, such as the Utila Lodge and the Laguna Beach Resort.