When most people think of scuba diving, images of Mexico, the Great Barrier Reef, and the tropical Maldives spring to mind. While these dive spots are renowned for their beauty, array of colourful flora and fauna, and warm climate, if you’re looking for a more unconventional diving experience, here are some suggestions of scuba spots and types of diving to try.
Cavern Diving
A much safer offshoot of cave diving, cavern diving allows scuba enthusiasts to explore natural rock formations while remaining in sight of the cavern’s entrance and being exposed to visible light. Contrarily, cave diving requires artificial light and high levels of diving experience, due to its hazardous nature. There are plenty of great locations for cavern diving in Florida and Cancun, with many offering trained cavern diving instructors to make sure that you’re fully equipped with what you need and that you experience a safe dive.
Freshwater Diving
Although it is certainly less popular than its deep sea counterpart, freshwater diving can be a unique and beautiful experience. One of the perks of this kind of diving is how readily available it is to diving enthusiasts; no longer do you need to go on holiday to get your diving fix. Freshwater diving is possible in many lakes and rivers, but be sure to choose one that has unusual features and intriguing geological formations for you to encounter. Great Britain is home to many lake districts and river systems that freshwater divers like to explore; you can even dive into the famous Loch Ness in Scotland and look for the fabled sea serpent!
What To Remember
Before you dive, there are some things you must consider to be able to enjoy diving safely and securely. Remember to always dive with a certified instructor, if you are not qualified yourself. A proper diving school will prepare you with necessary information, assist you with a knowledgeable and experienced guide, and equip you with the diving gear you need.
Make sure you’ve purchased a scuba diving insurance policy to cover you against accidents and damage to your equipment. Read each level carefully, as it covers divers of different experience and diving needs, and choose the level that is most suited to you to ensure that you are adequately covered while you explore the deep.
Tags: diving insurance, scuba insurance
Scuba diving offers the chance to get up close and personal with many species of marine life. Many of the dive sites around the world attract tourists from all over, eager to explore the crystal clear waters, the coral reefs and the rich variety of life that calls it home.
Many enthusiasts choose to book their excursions through specialist holiday companies, and there are a wide range of resorts that offer boat trips and scuba excursions around the world.
Finding a dive site that suits your experience level is relatively easy, with most dive sites offering lessons for beginners, as well as different types of excursion – which are usually calculated by depth – for the more experienced diver. Everything from reef trips to exploring shipwrecks is available for the budding dive enthusiast, in resorts stretching from Southern California to Sharm El Sheikh.
For beginners, it can be worth taking a short course in order to get yourself acclimatised to the equipment and also the environment. If you are new to scuba diving, it can be worth taking out some travel insurance before you embark on a scuba trip.
There are insurance policies available that cater specifically to scuba and snorkelling trips. Scuba insurance can help to cover not only the cost of any equipment you might be taking with you, but also against more general traits – such as cancellations, travel delay and any medical costs you may incur as a result of an accident.
Scuba excursions can be a rewarding experience, but as with any extreme sport there is an element of danger involved, and having some holiday insurance in place before you travel is worth it if you want to make the most of your trip and put your mind at ease for when you take the plunge.
David is an experienced web author based in the UK
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During the last year, dive watches have become fashionable again with brands like Toy Watch and Ice-Watch pushing the fashion trend for this look. But what about the real diving watch companies like Oris, do they produce anything else and more importantly, are they any good?
Oris are one of the leading Swiss watch brands for creating functional diving watches, examples of these watches range from the Pro Diver to the Dive Regulateur Meistertaucher . Oris make diving watches that can be used in the most difficult of diving situations. Every Oris dive watch offers water resistance at a minimum level of 300 meters and it is difficult to find competitors that offer such great specification for the diving application of a watch. However, Oris are much more than just a dive watch specialist.
Oris are a Swiss watch brand who have been making watches for more than 80 years. Oris watches were originally like so many watch brands; a watch company who specialised in making service watches for airforces all over the world. The diving watch affiliation came much later in the company’s history with the signature of the free diving legend Carlos Costa. One of the biggest moves by Oris during the last 10 years was the move to buy the company back from the all concurring LVMH group and return the company back to a single company making and designing its watches from start to finish. Oris soon re-invented itself abolishing its Quartz collection and pushing Oris as a watch company into a different class of watch manufacture.
The Oris brand has grown from strength to strength adding sports sponsorship to build the brand awareness of Oris as a sports watch manufacturer. Oris are the timekeepers for F1 team Williams Cosworth. Oris have built specific watches for the pit crew of the Williams team and they have created a new watch every season for each of the Williams drivers. There is now a whole range of Williams watches by Oris which are now some of the most popular sports watches that Oris have ever made. This range of watches has cemented Oris as a sports watch manufacturer rather than simply just a dive watch specialist. Oris though, are not only a sports watch manufacturer. They also have a number of classic collections which are all powered by automatic movements. The Big Crown and the Classic range start from as little as £400 and offer a wide section of case sizes and styles. The Big Crown is one of the most popular ranges with is retro 1950′s look and its domed plexi glass.
Oris are much more than Carlos Costa diving watch and the Pro Diver. As the most popular Oris watches ever made it is true that many people will know the Oris watch brand as a dive specialist brand but they are so much more 2010 looks to be a big year for the Swiss company.
Kris Headland likes to write articles for Hot Watches a leading Designer watch retailer. With over 20 years experience in the watch industry he likes to write about new developments in the designer watch industry.
Article from articlesbase.com
Even before man ventured into space, scientists and engineers had begun exploring the deep blue ocean. Explorers were sent in mini-submersibles or in watertight armor with some breathing equipment inside to see what lies beneath the water.
Nowadays, almost anyone can do the same thing. You will just need some diving equipment and certification from a scuba diving organization.
There are three major organizations known throughout the world.
The first is called PADI or the Professional Association of Diving Instructors. Established in 1967, it continues to be a pioneer in teaching new and experienced divers new techniques about underwater exploration.
A student as young as 10 can be allowed to take a basic certification course before being able to move up to the next level. This scuba diving organization boasts to having issued almost a million licenses every year to adventure seeking enthusiasts around the world.
The second is known as NAUI or the National Association of Underwater Instructors. This was established a few years before PADI existed which means it has been in the industry much longer offering more programs.
Some of these include night diving, nitrox, search and recovery, scuba rescue, skin and diving. A kid as young as 8 can start learning the basics and then move up as he gets older.
The third is called SSI or Scuba Schools International. This was established a year after NAUI started operations. It has an official website with tie-ups with different resorts and schools around the world offering the same quality of education to beginners and experienced divers.
In any of the three diving organizations, the only way to move up to the next skill level will be by spending a certain number of hours underwater as well as taking written exams.
Should the student pass, the diver from basic will move up to silver or gold class. The names for the various levels is different and those with a lot of experience can even become a dive masters to also teach beginners about this adventure sport.
Is one scuba diving organization better than the other? The answer is no because each of the three offers the student a similar program allowing the individual to appreciate the wonders of the ocean.
The individual will just have to think which one is the closest to the resort or where one resides to begin the adventure of seeing life under the sea.
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Tags: Diving, Guide., Organizations, Scuba
Scuba diving is a great way to experience the underwater kingdom. It gives you the chance to unveil the mysteries and the wonders of the environment which covers the majority of our planet. It is believed that once you learn all about scuba diving, it will become a lifelong obsession. After I had a private lesson, it is time to take an exam for an open water dive certificate. My exam took place in Boracay Island. Boracay is a famous tourist destination. With its white sandy beaches and blue clear water, it is considered a paradise island. Many wonderful and interesting marine lives can also be found in the dive sites. The marine life is very diversified that a diver will definitely enjoy and love diving in.
During my first dive experience I was really excited but a bit nervous. I really tried hard not panic as I and my instructor went deeper and deeper underwater. This is my chance to overcome my fear. It was not long I felt comfortable. It was really a great experience, seeing the beauty of sea wildlife because of the presence of many varieties of reef fish, with Lagoon Rays and moray eels. It was totally a different world. It is so quite. For me, it is a total relaxation.
Another diving experience that was unforgettable in my lifetime was when I scuba dive in Tulum, Mexico. Tulum offers some of the best reef diving and snorkeling in the Mayan Riviera, together with exciting and cave diving. Around Tulum you will have access to many freshwater caverns known as cenotes, part of an ancient underwater river system running from the deep jungle to the sea throughout the Yucatan Peninsula. A combination of various geological events and climate changes created an incredible and unique ecosystem in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. I am positive that you will not be disappointed with your scuba diving experience in Tulum.
Several things I appreciate about my visit in Tulum are the not so crowded beaches, its white, sugar-like sand and turquoise blue water, and their rustic cabanas. These cabanas are quite unique Tulum accommodations. This place is not for you if you’re looking for luxuries. But since we visited as a group we opted to rent a Tulum beach house.
I am really eager to experience more in scuba diving, to widen my knowledge and explore more.
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Tags: About, Diving, Experience, Scuba
Diving training is defined as the course of increasing skills and developing knowledge regarding the use of diverse diving equipments as well as techniques so that an individual becomes skilled at diving and dive carefully and have fun. There are three components of diving training. These include educational or classroom learning, confined water or pool courses and open water courses. All sessions are conducted under the supervision of trained instructors.
Educational or classroom study
Special academic and classroom sessions are conducted where keen individuals are taught about diving physics, diving hazards and precautions, SCUBA equipment, human physiology, diving signals, buddy system etc. The sessions emphasize on all these topics to make divers aware of all consequences which they can face underwater. This is because they can come across various health risks when they go underwater. They are made trained about the methods of dealing with all such critical situations.
Confined Water or Pool Courses
Confined water or pool course is the second important step of diving training. Confined water refers to a swimming pool or an open water site which provides swimming-pool-like situations. Confined water or pool course is conducted to help divers learn all basic skills of diving safe and sound. As soon as an individual acquires self-confidence, he is moved into deeper water to learn sophisticated and security skills.
Open water Course
Once an individual becomes master at confined water course, open water training begins. Here, individuals along with equipments are made to dive in open water. After completion of this session, they are certified as open water divers.
This way, trained individuals can safely explore the underwater environment easily and quickly.
Diving Locker is a Vancouver-based diving institute which helps enthusiasts learn divergent diving techniques in and around Vancouver BC.
Article from articlesbase.com
Tags: Dive, Scuba, Significant, Steps, Training
Scuba diving is one of the most important forms of underwater diving where the divers use scuba set in order to breathe underwater. It offers a memorable experience as one gets to know about the sea world and innumerable creatures of water. Apart from fun and pleasure, Scuba diving is also a great way to stay healthy and fit. It is a perfect exercise to keep whole body and brain active.
Some of the important benefits offered by Scuba diving are:
Flexibility and strength
This is one of the prominent benefits offered by scuba diving. It offers strength and flexibility. Moreover, it also enhances feet quickness.
Reduces blood pressure
Scuba diving also helps in reducing blood pressure. Individuals who dive on a regular basis are less prone to strokes and heart attacks.
Stimulates circulation
This is another important benefit of this kind of diving. It involves working of all muscle groups thus providing a complete cardiovascular exercise. This way, oxygen reaches every muscle properly thus resulting in increasing heart rate.
Improves concentration and awareness
This is also a vital benefit of scuba diving. It plays an important role in increasing attention, concentration and awareness. In order to swim underwater, one needs to be very careful, attentive and completely focused. A little mistake can result in a big trouble. This kind of diving increases one’s control over body movements.
Thus, it becomes clear that scuba diving offers innumerable benefits to individuals. It is not only a fun sport but also a best way to stay healthy.
Diving Locker is a Vancouver-based diving institute which provides keen individuals with all levels of diving courses to help them become efficient divers within a short time in and around Vancouver BC.
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Thailand is among the most exciting countries to visit. It is world famous for its shopping places, elephant rides, naughty shows among other sites. Thailand also offers great scuba diving areas with its stunning Andaman Sea in the southern coasts, and the Similan Islands up further north.
The best months to go to Thailand is October until April because beyond that, the rainy season could ruin your scuba diving trip. Although if you insist to go diving from May to September, you can do so at the Gulf of Thailand on the eastern side but you may not see the same beautiful corals found on the its west coast.
Being a tropical country, the sea temperature in Thailand don’t change as drastically as those in temperate regions. The average temperature is 28 degrees Celsius.
Here are some of Thailand’s most popular scuba diving sites:
Hin Mouang – this site is famous for its pelagic fish, making it among the most famous diving sites in Thailand. The site features breathtaking underwater peaks, large fish shoals, pretty carpets of anemone, gigantic corals, gorgonia, and other spectacular sights. This site is notorious, however, for its large bryazoan, which could impede your diving enjoyment.
Hin Daeng – this site is quite close to Hin Mouang and thus has similar features. The common creatures you would see here are morays, octopi, shrimps, crayfish, gray reef sharks, leopard sharks, and barracudas. There also some manta rays, whale sharks and nurse sharks if you are lucky.
Koh Kraden Wreck – this site just off Koh Kraden Island’s coast is famous or a sunken Japanese destroyer. Though the boat may not be recognizable, it has become a breeding ground for great flora and fauna. Expect to see sea horses, giant morays, soft corals, lion fish, and great schools of fish.
Koh Dok Mai – this site is very famous for night scuba diving. The great rocky island provides a very colorful view of small caves and huge caverns. There are many great lobsters, moray eels, leopard sharks, sea snakes in this diving site’s sloping reefs.
Breakfast Bend – this is one of the most famous sites in Similan Island, known for its turquoise and crystal clear water that allows great visibility of copious schools of fish. It is called breakfast bend because people usually take this as the first diving site, usually after breakfast. Expect to see leopard sharks, barracudas, surgeon fish, morays, trigger fish, scorpion fish, glass fish, emperor angelfish and other schools of fish.
Thailand is a great scuba diving site. Consider going there on your next diving trip.
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There is nothing quite like scuba diving. I remember my first scuba dive. I was visiting Tobago with a friend and I decided on the spur of the moment that it was something I wanted to do, so I went to the local dive shop and signed up for the class. There were only three of us going on the dive, and the two others accompanying me were fully PADI certified, so they didn’t need any instruction. That particular dive required that I have classroom lessons that lasted 4 hours. There was a lot that the instructor explained to me during that time like how to use the equipment, what decompression is, what to expect, how to use the buddy system, etc. We did a confined dive first, the afterwards went out to the reef for the open dive.
The dive itself was amazing and exhilarating for me even though it was what is called a non-decompression dive, only to 40 feet. I had been a snorkel for years, but had never been that close to a reef and fish.
For those who crave more diving adventure such as deep sea diving and wreck diving which would take them much deeper in the water they would need much more training, and PADI certification.
It’s easy to learn to dive. Not as hard as you might think. PADI certification can be obtained fairly easily, and at your own pace. There are books and videos that you can obtain to help you through the course. Your instructor will give you a short test at the end of each course. After you have completed what is called knowledge training you start diving. You first experience confined dives and then open water dives. Confined dives take place in a pool or a shallow body of water. The first time I put on the equipment and went in the water we were just waist deep. Once you have mastered confined dives and proven yourself to your instructors you will have the opportunity to go on open water dives with the instructor.
Where you will be diving will make the decision for you as to what type of equipment you are going to need. As my dive was in the warm Caribbean waters I didn’t need any type of wet suit. I wore a BC vest. However, on deeper cold water dives you will want to make sure you are equipped with a dry suit that will handle cold.
You’ll need a good mask. One that seals against your face well. A pair of booties and fins. You’ll need a snorkel, a buoyancy compensator vest and a regulator with a gauge and a second mouthpiece.
You’ll want to do a lot of research on equipment before buying. As with most things technology is constantly changing scuba equipment. You’ll want to talk with friends and instructors as to their recommendations. There is a fairly large initial investment and you want to get the best you can for the money you spend. You also want to make sure that you’re comfortable in all the pieces of your scuba gear. If your mask isn’t tight enough and leaks, or if your fins are too tight and rub your heels that is what your mind will be on instead of the wonders of the sea.
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Scuba diving is a great pastime, but some time is lost when travelling by boat to the dive site. However with shore diving, you basically just walk into the sea from the beach.
Grand Cayman has many shore diving sites with a selection of colourful reefs, weird and wonderful rock formations and even shipwrecks. All are clearly marked by buoys.
The following is a list of the more popular sites.
Its not always possible just to walk into the sea, at Turtle Reef access is by ladders. The reef starts around 20 feet from shore and has two walls, a mini-wall closest to the shore, followed by the main wall around 15 feet further out.
Just because the access doesn’t require a boat, there are times when you may need the assistance of a dive master. At Devil’s Grotto there are outstanding caves to explore. As the tunnels to these are not always easy to spot, this is where a local guide will prove invaluable. There is an almost endless list of colourful sea life to observe while diving this reef.
Eden Rock is a neighbour Devil’s Grotto and can be found in Georgetown, not far from the Harbour. Here you can snorkel as well as some of the reefs reach up to only around 10 feet from the surface. There are fairly safe grottos to explore as the exits and entrances are always clearly visible. But watch out for hungry yellowtail snappers, which are less timid than most fish.
There are many companies on Grand Cayman that can hire you equipment and provide the locations of other shore diving sites.
Scuba diving is a great pastime, but some time is lost when travelling by boat to the dive site. However with shore diving, you basically just walk into the sea from the beach.
Grand Cayman has many shore diving sites with a selection of colourful reefs, weird and wonderful rock formations and even shipwrecks. All are clearly marked by buoys.
The following is a list of the more popular sites.
Its not always possible just to walk into the sea, at Turtle Reef access is by ladders. The reef starts around 20 feet from shore and has two walls, a mini-wall closest to the shore, followed by the main wall around 15 feet further out.
Just because the access doesn’t require a boat, there are times when you may need the assistance of a dive master. At Devil’s Grotto there are outstanding caves to explore. As the tunnels to these are not always easy to spot, this is where a local guide will prove invaluable. There is an almost endless list of colourful sea life to observe while diving this reef.
Eden Rock is a neighbour Devil’s Grotto and can be found in Georgetown, not far from the Harbour. Here you can snorkel as well as some of the reefs reach up to only around 10 feet from the surface. There are fairly safe grottos to explore as the exits and entrances are always clearly visible. But watch out for hungry yellowtail snappers, which are less timid than most fish.
There are many companies on Grand Cayman that can hire you equipment and provide the locations of other shore diving sites.
John has completed the on-line training course provided by the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism, which included a trip to Grand Cayman and Little Cayman to visit various hotels, sample some of the restaurants and to take part in a selection of tourist attractions. Your Cayman Islands Holidays expert.
Article from articlesbase.com
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