Posted on Aug 19, 2009 under Scuba Diving |
Diving is becoming a world wide sport Fad! Scuba diving has started to take over the world, now at every corner of the planet people are diving there. However there is a slump in the amount of people that are learning to dive. There aren’t in actual numbers that many beginners starting up Diving every year, there are however many professionals. The main problem suggested by some is that they don’t know who to go to, to learn.
Some people won’t even have a clue where they need to go to learn, or who to contact? In actual fact, there is only one group that is best to dive with and that is PADI. The Professional Association of Diving Instructors offer some of the best possible instructors to teach you how to dive. But you don’t have to go to a PADI centre to learn with them. The majority of all tour operators offer a PADI course with the holiday you book.
The most important thing to remember is that when booking diving holidays, you check that the Instructor is PADI qualified, otherwise you could be falling into a dive holiday that could not necessarily work out the way you want it. However it isn’t just PADI that can be trusted. The BSAC, also called the British Sub Aqua Club are a very well known diving organisation. They are happy to teach new divers and to help more experienced ones to reach higher diving qualifications.
If you want to try something a little more adventurous than just diving in the ocean, then I would recommend booking a holiday with a tour operator that has a PADI instructor, shark diving requires an instructor with some high profile skills.
If you are going on a Liveaboard diving holiday, then you need to make sure you have a qualified diving instructor with you, although it’s not as dangerous as wreck diving, it does have risks!
Technorati Tags: diving, Diving holidays, holidays, learning to dive, liveaboards, PADI, scuba, shark diving, Travel
Posted on Mar 19, 2009 under Scuba Diving |
Considered by many the diving destination of a lifetime, the magical and awe inspiring Komodo Islands National Park is approximately 340 nautical miles east of the beautiful island of Bali, Indonesia. The national park is in the center of the Indonesian archipelago, between Sumbawa and Flores Islands, and is most easily accessed by Komodo Liveaboard diving from Bali or Labuanbajo. An area of legend from the time of Dutch sailors in the seventeenth century to the present day, Komodo was declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco in 1986. Initially, the main purpose of the park was to conserve the habitat of the magnificent Komodo dragon, but efforts have now been expanded to include the entire biosphere, marine and terrestrial. It is finally understood by the scientific and diving communities that this small area of Indonesia is one of the most biologically diverse environments on the planet and great effort should be made to preserve it for future generations.
Komodo Liveaboard diving is not new by any stretch of the imagination, but it is only recently that the biological importance of the area has come to the attention of experienced divers and established Komodo as a world class diving destination. The challenging diving conditions of the area and the proliferation of marine life rivals the planets top dive destinations and truly elevates the Komodo Islands National park to another level. Geologically part of Flores Island, the Komodo and Rinca Islands are separated from Sumbawa to the west by the strait of Sape. In the middle of the strait, the dark blue water only drops to a maximum of 300 meters. It is these relatively shallow seas and the obstruction created by the many small islands between Flores and the west coast of Komodo that often create raging currents during tidal changes when the higher tidal waters of the Pacific Ocean in the north flow through to the Indian Ocean in the south. In addition, the upwelling’s from the deep surrounding seas bring nutrients and plankton to keep the Komodo waters rich and teeming with life. These unusual conditions have created a diving environment that is truly outstanding and at times adrenaline filled.
From calm and colorful shallow reefs teeming with thousands of colorful fish and unusual invertebrates, to current swept deep water sea mounts, walls, and massive pinnacles patrolled by sharks, tuna and other big pelagic’s Komodo has it all for the most experienced of divers.There are few places left on the planet where divers can experience such a bounty of marine life and such extraordinary diving conditions. Whale sharks, sunfish, giant mantas, eagle rays, pygmy seahorses, ornate ghost pipefish, clown frogfish, nudibranchs, and the blue-ringed octopus are all at home here among a spectacular range of dazzling sponges, sea squirts, tunicates, and corals. The Komodo Islands has been declared by many as a macro enthusiast’s paradise found.
One of the highlights of every Indonesia Liveaboard safari to Komodo is the rare opportunity to walk with the ominous Komodo dragon. An alert and agile predator these awesome beasts can reach 2.5 meters in length and weigh and an astonishing 125 kilos. Known to the locals as ‘Ora’ there are about eleven hundred of the world’s largest flesh eating lizard living on Komodo Island and another five hundred on nearby Rinca Island. Hiking through the bush of Komodo is an experience that should fill you with anticipation and will not soon be forgotten. World Class Diving and a rendezvous with one of the world’s last surviving dinosaur descendants all on one amazing dive safari, what more is there?
When should you dive the Komodo Islands? The Komodo Liveaboard diving season is year round, with the best diving conditions from April thru December. It is during these months that the seas are most calm, the visibility is incredible, and there are unbelievable congregations of large pelagic’s. Diving Komodo is best accomplished on a world class Komodo Liveaboard from beautiful Bali or Flores Islands. Be one of only a few to explore this legendary and thrilling diving location. Macro to massive there is no better liveaboard diving anywhere in the world, Komodo has it all.
Technorati Tags: adventures, bali, diving, indonesia, komodo, liveaboard, scuba
Posted on Mar 17, 2009 under Scuba Diving |
Consisting of nine spectacular and un-inhabited islands that run from north to the south off of the coast of amazing Thailand, the Similan Islands National Park has quickly become one of the top ten diving destinations in the world. Most easily accessed by Similan Islands Liveaboard, the diving around the Similans and further north to the dive sites of Koh Bon, Koh Tachai, and world famous Richelieu Rock are widely regarded as the crown jewels of diving in Thailand. Liveaboard Diving Thailand is an experience that should not be missed by divers seeking the best diving in Southeast Asia.
What truly distinguishes the spectacular Similan Islands from other top ten dive destinations is the tremendous variety of underwater terrain and the choices in diving it provides to divers of all levels. Dive sites on the eastern side of the islands are characterized by an almost overwhelming collage of color, it is like being part of a beautiful Monet landscape. Imagine sloping reefs, brilliantly colored anemones, crystal clear bays, monstrous rock formations, combined with an explosion of tropical fish and you will have the picture. This is a macro photographer’s dream world come true and the photo opportunities are boundless.
West facing dive sites are decidedly different than those on the east side of the islands, and will certainly provide a challenge for the more discerning diver looking for an adrenaline rush. Massive granite boulder’s covered with anemones and soft corals litter the white sandy bottom. Many of these monoliths plummet well beyond recreational diving limits. These dives are certainly deep and not for the faint of heart. Currents here are much stronger as well, providing an ample and rich supply of food for the larger pelagic’s such as Giant Mantas and the elusive Whale Shark. There is also an abundance of macro life to be found. Inspect the over hangs of coral bombies for ghost pipe fish, crabs, and a variety of frog fish. Frog fish, although masters of disguise can be found by those with keen eyes and patience.
The diving season in the Similans is from October to early May, every year. It is during this time that the seas are glass like, the visibility is outstanding, and the large pelagic’s, Whale Sharks and Manta Rays, are making their annual migrations to feed on yearly plankton blooms. The water temperature around the Similan Islands varies between 27 and 29 degrees Celsius, so most divers prefer a 3 mm wetsuit. Depending on environmental factors the water clarity ranges from 10 to 40 meters. Diving the nine islands of this archipelago is often combined with a few days diving the increasingly popular dive sites of the Mergui archipelago, which is further north in Burma. The Similan Islands National Park closes from May to October when western Thailand is experiencing the southeastern monsoons.
Thailand is one of the top dive travel destinations in the world and has something to offer to divers of every level. Booking your dive holiday in advance is a must when visiting this destination. The Similan Islands are in a protected national park and space on a quality Similan Islands Liveaboard is limited. Reserve your cabin months in advance. We recommend diving on Similan Liveaboards rather than by a day trip because there is so much to see. One day is not enough to truly experience the totality of this world class diving destination, but it is an option for those limited on time. Macro to massive the Similans justifiably rank as one of the absolute best diving destinations to be found anywhere in the world.
Technorati Tags: adventures, diving, Islands, liveaboard, liveaboards, scuba, similan, similans, thailand
