Hurghada

Hurghada was founded in the early 20th century, and until a few years ago, remained a small fishing village. But today, it has gone on to become the foremost tourist resort of the Red Sea coast and an international centre for aquatic sports. If it takes place in or on the water you can do it here: windsurfing, sailing, deep-sea fishing, swimming, but, above all, snorkeling and diving. The unique underwater gardens offshore are some of the finest in the world, justifiably famous amongst divers. The warm waters here are ideal for many varieties of rare fish and coral reefs, which may also be observed through glass bottom boats. This area has many fine accommodation, usually offering warm and efficient service. Restaurants are mostly along the main road. While in Hurghada, don't miss the museum and aquarium, with their complete collections of flora and fauna of the Red Sea. Today, Hurghada is known as a party town, particularly among Europeans. Locals and others will tell you that life begins at night in Hurghada, with the many, many clubs. They are particularly frequented by the young, but certainly many others of all ages. One may often find a rousing party centered around the visitors from a tour group taking over the action of a particular bar. They are easy to find along the main street, along with loads of inexpensive and expensive hotels. It is also a beach resort, where thousands of older Europeans and others come with their families to enjoy the sun and fun of private resort beaches, some all inclusive. Many of these hotels offer so many activities and facilities that one may never need to leave the resort. Often, the larger resorts have zoos, playgrounds, discos, bars, a number of pools and even small theaters. Hurghada is also a city under development. Many new hotels and construction are taking place, and we can expect to see some great new hotels, restaurants and other facilities in the near future. Actually this is a busy section of the Red Sea in general. Safaga is just south of Hurghada, and Soma Bay with its beautiful Sheraton is even closer to the South. To the North is El Gouna, a highly organized resort community. Together, these communities and resort areas offer just about everything a visitor might wish for, from raucous parties to isolated scuba diving, with golf, bowling and fishing in between. Islands near Hurghada offer all kinds of fun and excitement. Take a day trip to Giftun Island for snorkeling and a fish barbecue, or view the Red Sea from a submarine! When you're not in the sea you can shop in the boutiques, relax in the luxury holiday villages or visit the Roman Mons Porphyrites (mountain of porphyry) remains at nearby Gebel Abu Dukhan (Father of Smoke). Day-trips or safaris to explore the Red Sea Mountains by camel or jeep are also available. Other nearby islands and destinations include the Shadwan Island (Diving, snorkeling, fishing but no swimming), Shaab Abu Shiban (Diving, snorkeling and swimming), Shaab el-Erg (Diving, fishing and snorkeling), Umm Gammar Island (Diving and snorkeling), Shasb Saghir Umm Gammae (Diving), Careless Reef (Diving), Abu Ramada Island (Diving), Shaab Abu Ramada (Fishing), Dishet el-Dhaba (Beaches and swimming), Shaab Abu Hashish (Beaches, diving, snorkeling, swimming and fishing), Sharm el-Arab (Diving, swimming and fishing and Abu Minqar Island (Beaches and swimming).

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Kuredu, Maldives
Maldives, a nation of islands across the equator in the Indian Ocean. It is one of the last unspoilt places on earth, with sparkling white beaches, turquoise lagoons and coral reefs teeming with marine life, a unique tropical paradise for the diver. ProDivers operates PADI Dive Centers on three island resorts. With us you can experience the best of diving and diving education from the first steps of a beginner to a professional instructor. The Dive Center is equipped with five electrical compressors and a workshop with necessary spare parts and tools.
Store and rinse your dive gear in our large equipment room, complete with three water basins and hangers for equipment and wet suits. We have more than 300 Air and Nitrox tanks and 95 regulators and BCD's for the use of our students and guests. For those of you with private equipment we will provide weights and weight belts. The diving on our coral reefs is unique due to the variety of dives sites and especially the narrow atoll channnels nearby. Located far away from civilization and the fact that tourism is new in the area compared to the rest of the Maldives makes this a divers paradise. Lhaviyani atoll is the only atoll in the Maldives where you can dive two very nice wrecks on the same dive.
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Manado, Sulawesi
A dominating volcanic landscape creates a unique backdrop for you to discover North Sulawesi, one of the world's best yet least known dive destinations. The year-round diving here is all about amazing variety and exotic surroundings. The deep seas give excellent average visibility (25m). They are also home to many unusual species, for example the prehistoric fish "coelacanth" as well as some household names: reef-shark, turtles, eagle rays, napoleon wrasse, even dugong and orca!
The majority of sites are conveniently accessed within one hour from your hotel and yet North Sulawesi's remote location means that the sites are never crowded with other divers. Our diving program takes you to 22 peaceful dive sites, where you'll enjoy warm-water dives on dramatic walls and snorkelling on teeming reef-flats, with the intense colours of hard and soft corals. Marine life is varied and prolific, with resident turtles, reef sharks, tuna, barracuda, shoals of pelagics and teeming species of butterflyfish, angelfish and triggerfish. Invertebrate life in the park is truly amazing, whilst our house-reef boasts frogfish, nudibranches, Mantis Shrimp, Mandarinfish, Ornate Ghost Pipefish, seahorses and Ribbon Eels. We arrange special trips to Lembeh Strait to search for the elusive Mimic Octopus, Pygmy Seahorse, Ambon Scorpionfish and countless other unusual species. Bangka Island has an explosion of soft-coral colours and an intriguing variety of reef fish lying off its sand-fringed shores, to round off this truly world-class diving heaven. Our quality purpose-built dive boats are fitted with full safety and comfort features, allowing you to dive in complete relaxation. Our dive staff will look after your every need.
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Layang Layang, Malaysia

The Dive centre is operated by PADI qualified Instructors or Divemasters. Your Dive package includes 3 dives per day except on the first and last day. The dive centre is very large with ample space for storing and setting up kit. The boat departures are staggered to ensure that there is not a bottleneck of enthusiastic divers trying to get to the boats or congestion on the dive sites. The dramatic underwater topography of this unique atoll, combined with its remote location , accounts for the abundant marine life and pristine corals. Large shoals of pelagics, including massive numbers of barracuda, jacks, mobula and of course the hammerhead sharks that frequent these waters. The reefs and walls are also home to some of the finest and most spectacular displays of hard and soft corals in the world. They also harbour many species yet to be identified and named. Dives are staggered through the day 08.15hrs, 11.15hrs and 15.00hrs with unlimited diving available from the shore. Night dives can be arranged subject to numbers and is payable locally. Nitrox is available and payable locally. Having witnessed this diving paradise I can safely say that this resort has some of the best diving opportunities in the world. And your stay there will be a fantastic diving experience. I am sure you will have some very memorable diving.

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Puerto Galera, Philippines

Puerto Galera is rapidly gaining a reputation as a "macro heaven" with rare Pygmy Seahorses, different types of frogfish, Flamboyant Cuttlefish, Pipe Fish and many others, not to mention diving the "Canyons" or "Hole in the Wall". There are 10 kilometres of unspoiled reefs right in front of the resort and more than 30 dive sites within 15 minutes' travel. Diving takes place from convenient boats and dives are guided in maximum group size of six. Divers will be provided with their own crates to store equipment, as well as a comfortable changing and showering area. Nitrox and technical diving is also available. For nearly 50 years Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro, Philippines has attracted scientists studying the Eco-structure of micro-organisms, animals and plants. The diving is famous for its diversity and divers return time after time to marvel at creatures large and small. There are dives for all levels, from easy training dives amongst pristine coral to high-voltage drift dives. Diving is a year-round activity. The 30+ dive sites are all within a 10-15 minute boat ride from the beach, which makes for easy and convenient dive planning. Groups are kept to six divers or less and are always lead by Atlantis' experienced guides. Visibility varies between 40m/130' to 12m/40'. Temperature is varies between 22C and 30C. There follows a brief overview of some of the dive sites in Puerto Galera. Be aware that all the dive sites are replete with huge numbers of splendid fish (triggerfish, parrotfish, pennantfish, moray eels, surgeonfish, snappers, groupers, Moorish idol, lizardfish, gobies, batfish, lionfish, trumpetfish, pufferfish, filefish, emperors, wrasses, fusiliers and trevally). Invertebrates from the tiniest transparent shrimp and neon-coloured nudibranchs to huge basket sponges adorned with hundreds of multi-coloured crinoids; anemones, sea cucumbers, starfish, worms and fire corals reside with vast numbers of hard and soft corals and gorgonian sea fans. Turtles, octopus, cuttlefish, Manta rays, Eagle rays and sharks make guest appearances

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Gozo, Malta

The three Islands that make up the Maltese Archipelago - Malta, the largest; Gozo, the mythical isle of Calypso; and tiny Comino, famous for its Blue Lagoon - form a very special diving site at the heart of the Mediterranean. The Islands offer excellent sport for both beginners and experienced open water and cave divers. With their natural harbours, bays, sheltered creeks, cliffs, reefs and wrecks, the Islands invite you to explore. The possibilities are endless. With dive sites just a stone's throw away from each other, you will be able to explore a variety of underwater worlds. At just a couple of hours' flight from the UK, Gozo is easily accessible for long weekend diving breaks as well. Sea temperatures average around 23°C in summer and drop down to around 13°C to 15°C in December to March. The prospect of an active sun and sea sport holiday is just as tempting in winter. At this time of year, you can see some wonderful species; fish such as the John Dory come closer to shore in winter. The waters here are some of the most limpid and clear in the world. Visibility is excellent down to around 30 metres. So Malta is a dream destination for underwater photography. Marine life flourishes in a vibrant display of colours. You are likely to come across groupers, gunards, octopi, red mullet, flying fish, corals, conger eels, and even the rare sea perch which has all but disappeared from the Mediterranean. For more excitement, try a night dive or dive deeper to 30 or 40 metres. Colours appear almost fluorescent by torchlight. For the more experienced, these dives offer a unique adventure.

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L'Estartit, Costa Brava, Spain

The coastal zone of the Costa Brava begins 4kms north of Barcelona and extends to the French border. It is well known for its beaches and resorts, with a scenic and rugged coastline: a succession of coves, cliffs and mountaintop lookouts dotted along. L'Estarti itself is a tourist resort and one of the attractions are the Marine Reserve of Les Medas. These islands are a protected nature reserve, with an important colony of Herring gulls and fabulous underwater life. Divers from all over visit the islands on a regular basis although there are restrictions on the access to the area. The diving is suitable for all levels and is ideal for completing the qualifying dives on your Open Water Course. The underwater world in the Med is very diverse with large Grouper, Octopi, Rays, Scorpion fish, Nudibranchs, Shrimps, Crabs and Lobster. All are in abundance. Dive sites can be visited either by shore of boat.

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Palau, Sardinia

There are 40 dive sites to be visited around the Maddalena Archipelago, the Reserve of Lavezzi and the Bonifacio Strait. Palau is in a strategic location and we can easily reach both East and West sides of the Archipelago, while Lavezzi (Corsica) is just 12 miles from the harbour. Most of the dive sites can be reached in a few minutes or maximum 40 minutes. The presence of many islands and islets in the area offer sheltered places to dive, even with bad weather conditions. The dive sites are generally represented by rocky shallows rising from the bottoms around the islands and a few meters from the surface and granite walls starting from the surface. Nearly all the dive sites are suitable for any level of certification. The water temperature varies from 15 degrees in early Spring to 25 degrees in Summer and Autumn with visibility ranging between 15 metres to 30 metres. The Bonifacio Strait is a wide shallow bottom area, the waters between the islands are no deeper than 70 metres. Such an extension of shallow and well lit bottoms, swept by currents, represent a perfect cradle for rich and diversified marine life. Most of the sedimentary bottoms within 40 metres are covered with prairies of Posidonia Oceanica, a superior plant with flowers and fruits. The Posidonia Oceanica are huge nurseries to different species of fishes, crustaceans and molluscs. Among those prairies, you will dive along enormous granite rocks, drop offs, overhangs, swim through, caves all covered by spectacular marine life, sea fans, sponges, tube worms. Those incredible landscapes offer habitats to a large variety of fishes, molluscs and crustaceans like moray eel, stone fish, dorades, conger, barracudas, groupers, octopus, crabs, lobster and lots of nudibranches.

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Maratua Island Resort, Indonesia

Maratua, about an hour from Sangalaki by boat is a large island with a massive lagoon. The island only rims part of the lagoon, the rest is fringed by reef and wall. A channel into the lagoon is an incridible drift dive and the surrounding walls are loaded with hard and soft corals. Imagine you are sitting on a ringside seat, the arena an underwater colosseum at 100 feet, beneath you and abyssal plunge beyond the depth of mortal endurance. The arrival of a lone 7 foot great barracuda heralds for the show to begin. A dark cloud emerges from the distance, like an uprising tornado, as it twirls toward you, the dark mass metamorphosizes into silvery screen of barracudas, thousand... uncountable. Eight spotted eagle rays pear from the liquid information whilst heavy bodied gray sharks arrive at an electrifiying velocity to break up a school of big tooth trevalley. Large Dog-tooth tunas and mackerels make up the chorus line to fleeting appearence of hammerheads and mantas, this show is the greatest show on earth beneath the sea, the performance limited to twice daily everyday of the year.

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Vilamendhoo Resort, Maldives

The Maldives is famed for its rare underwater beauty. The profusion of psychedelic colours and the abundance and variety of life underwater have fascinated divers and snorkellers since Maldives was discovered as a diving destination. The highest level of visibility that one could expect- sometimes exceeding 50 metres - and warm temperatures throughout the year makes diving in the Maldives a delight you would want to experience over and over again. The Maldives has some of the best dive sites in the world and many visit the Maldives repeatedly for the sole purpose of diving. There are many excellent house reefs. Just a short swim from the beach and snorkellers too can experience the same pleasures from the surface.

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Brothers & Wrecks, Egypt

Translated from Arabic, El Akhawein means The Two Brothers. Located on the same latitude to El Quoseir on the Egyptian mainland, two small islands rise from an abyss over 300m deep in the middle of the Red Sea. Exposure to strong currents has left the islands, particularly the smaller of the two, with an abundance of soft corals and giant gorgonians, which are considered by many to be some of the best in the world. These pinnacles allow for breath-taking underwater scenery, with wall diving along their perimeter, and the possibility to spot a wide variety of pelagic action. Their walls are covered in a kaleidoscope of soft corals of all imaginable colours, black corals, forests of fan corals, making every dive a true feast for the eyes. Big tuna, shoals of jack fish and snappers cruise in the blue, shadowed by hammerheads, grey reef sharks, silvertip, silkies and oceanic whitetip sharks; manta abound during the cooler months. The thresher shark, an oceanic species, very rarely spotted close to reefs, circles the walls of the Brothers on a regular basis. Little Brother This island offers some spectacular coral diving, with the most colourful soft corals and delicate gorgonian forests at around 30m. As you turn your head away from the drop-off, you are bound to see sharks gliding into the deep. The brothers attract several species of sharks, including hammerheads, silver tips, oceanic whitetips and even tiger sharks. Big Brother - The Namibia Freighter & Aida II A huge Freighter lies on the northern plateaux of Big Brother with the stern wedged in to the island at a depth of 80m. This wreck is adorned with spectacular soft coral dancing in strong currents. This dive is only for the experienced. The Aida II is a supply ship that hit the reef circa 1957. The stern section only remains and lies between 30 to 70 m. its structure is heavily colonised with soft and hard coral encrustation. This makes an interesting dive not only for the wreck but also the large pelagic fish and schools of barracuda that glide around it.

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Muscat, Oman

Just 7 hours away from the UK, Oman is situated on the southeastern corner of the Arabian Peninsula and was until recently something of an enigma, closed off to the outside world. Over the past few years the country has opened its borders to travellers and is rapidly gaining a reputation for the quality of it's diving. Oman enjoys great natural assets. Breathtaking mountains plunge directly into the Arabian Sea along large sections of the countries 1700 km of coastline. Once inland, the mountains give way to extensive sand dune fields and desert. The country has a rich history, much of which is visible to visitors. Diving in Muscat Divers of all experience levels can enjoy the dive sites accessible from Muscat, the capital of Oman. The diving here is well established, with over forty recognised sites. There are few currents and dives range in depth from ten to thirty metres. Plankton rich waters attract a large amount of marine life, which includes many pelagic species. Dive boats on route to dive sites occasionally encounter both Pilot whales and Whale sharks. Five species of turtle are found in Omani waters, including sometimes the elusive Hawksbill. In addition to turtles divers often see both Devil and Eagle rays. Ultimately though, the sheer amount of life found on the reefs of Oman leaves the most lasting impressions on the memories of most divers.

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