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Summer is upon us and we are ready for some warm weather and outdoor activities. The last thing you may want to do is plan a winter vacation but now is the time to do it!  There are some amazing dive vacations that are perfect to visit during the winter months and the longer you put off booking your holiday the fewer choices you will have. What are you waiting for? This is the perfect time of the year to escape the winter chill and relax on a scuba diving vacation!

 

There are plenty of scuba diving vacation packages on sale from January to March. One of the best scuba diving vacations you will ever book is a trip to Cozumel, Mexico. The waters around Cozumel are host to an amazing selection of fish. The visibility is stunning – you can dive 80 feet down, look towards the sky and it still feels like you can raise your arm out of the water. The large bodies of coral and swim-throughs are amazing to dive over and through. If Cozumel sounds tempting, book your vacation for February 23- 28 for the Mexican carnival. Carnival in Cozumel is similar to New Orleans Mardi Gras, complete with parades of masked dancers and marching bands.

 

If it’s a new and exciting dive destination you seek, check out Roatan, Honduras. The island of Roatan is home to many well-established dive shops and exceptional diving. The valleys of coral and swim-throughs are exciting for divers of all levels and the abundance of pillar coral, vase sponges, tube sponges, and barrel sponges create an amazing landscape. Roatan divers can expect to see turtles and grouper almost daily, cowrie shells are often found if you look closely. Scuba divers interested in going beyond the average 60 ft dive may find themselves among Eagle Rays.

 

If you’re ready for an adventure, on land and in the water, head to the Similan Islands in Thailand. The warm, clear waters of the islands offer both gentle sloping reefs and deep, jagged trenches. The diving is quite relaxed as most currents tend to be fairly weak, giving you plenty of time to take in the view and observe the abundant marine life. Amazing coral formations and swim-throughs create a dazzling landscape and an interesting dive every time you hit the water. Watching the whale sharks and manta rays common seen in these areas will make this dive destination a scuba diving vacation to remember.

 

There are many months of cold, winter weather, why not give yourself something to look forward to and head somewhere where the sun is shining and the water is warm and full of life. There are plenty of interesting scuba diving vacations; the hardest part is picking just one.

 

Ultimate Dive Travel is the world’s premier scuba dive travel agency. We book dive trips to only the best dive resorts and liveaboard destinations worldwide.
Full-Service Scuba Diving Trip Planning Services
Go on a scuba diving adventure you’ll never forget! Contact the scuba diving experts today to book your trip.

 

What can be a more adventurous and fulfilling scuba diving vacation experience than liveaboard luxury yacht cruising and scuba diving in the tropical islands of Bali?

 

Contrary to what many scuba divers think, liveaboard scuba diving may not be as expensive as you think. In fact, if planned properly, live onboard diving vacations may even save you money and inconveniences. Firstly, you will on transportation time and costs traveling to your dive operator’s boat and then after your dive, returning to your hotel or resort lugging your cumbersome scuba diving gear with you and repeating the same process for the next couple of days during your vacation in Bali.

 

Next, you save money on hotel or resort accommodation because since that you are living on the dive boats, there will be no need for hotel or resort bookings. Furthermore, you do not need to hunt for expensive meals in your hotel or resort since all liveaboard scuba diving packages will include delicious meals which will also mean that you will be probably having very fresh and delectable seafood caught by the crew while you are enjoying your cruise or are scuba diving.

 

The highlight of your liveaboard Bali vacation is that you can dive in many exotic dive locations instead of only the dive spots near where you stay. This is because since that you need not return to your resort or hotel to retire for the day, the liveaboard dive yachts will cruise away to far off scuba diving locations while you are sleeping. This again saves you time and best of all, you get to save more money by diving in more places for the same price.

 

Ultimate Dive Travel is the world’s premier scuba dive travel agency. We book dive trips to only the best dive resorts and liveaboard destinations worldwide.
Full-Service Scuba Diving Trip Planning Services
Go on a scuba diving adventure you’ll never forget! Contact the scuba diving experts today to book your trip.

 

Scuba flippers are one of the most important things a diver must-have. Fins help divers glide through the water. Without the help of scuba flippers, pushing through the water below would be much more difficult. The effort of moving forward would cause the divers to use up a lot of air. This would significantly shorten their stay underwater, making their dive less enjoyable. This is the reason why choosing the right pair of fins is important.

 

CBBR 356How Paddle Fins Work

 

Paddle fins are the most used scuba flippers. With each kick, these scuba flippers move the water upward and downward just like a paddlewheel steamship. This can be very helpful to divers who are fighting through currents. Although the mechanics of paddle fins are fairly efficient, some improvements in their structure can lessen the drag that may cause a person to exert more effort when diving.

 

A Slight Modification to Minimize Effort

 

In order to make it easier for divers to move underwater, the original design of scuba fins have been modified to cancel out the sources of this drag. Some paddle fins now have angles that would allow divers to have a stronger kick at a certain position. This will also cause the water to slide down instead of accumulating on top of the fins. The downside of using these fins is that a person may have to exert some effort during the part of a stroke when the fins are in a certain position.

 

A New Breed of Scuba Flippers

 

Most of the fins available today have splits, cut outs and vents that can improve their efficiency underwater. The split fins, for example, have a vertical split in the middle. Because of their structure, these fins can cut through the water like a propeller that creates a lift and forward propulsion. Instead of accumulating on top of the fin, the water goes through the opening between the blades, reducing the drag. This allows the diver to cover a certain distance with lesser strokes.

 

Some fins have horizontal splits or cut-outs which allow them to push the water back. They also have well-placed vents that ensure that the water does not accumulate on top of the flippers.

 

Proper Care of Scuba Flippers

 

The efficiency of scuba flippers is maintained by proper care. As proven by the science involved in the design of scuba flippers, a change in the structure can decrease their efficiency. For this reason, they should not be stored vertically because this will cause them to become bent. Also, when packing these fins, one should make sure that they are lying flat on a surface.

Ultimate Dive Travel is the world’s premier scuba dive travel agency. We book dive trips to only the best dive resorts and liveaboard destinations worldwide.
Full-Service Scuba Diving Trip Planning Services
Go on a scuba diving adventure you’ll never forget! Contact the scuba diving experts today to book your trip.

 

If you want more adventures in diving, Bonaire will provide a variety of dive sites.  World-class divers give Bonaire a rate of 10 out of 10. The place has more than 100 dive sites.  Each of these with strict diving levels – novice, intermediate, and advanced.

 

Come On, The Diving’s Great

 

Scuba diving enthusiasts are directed to the appropriate sites for diving.  Bonaire officials are strict about this.  Novice and intermediate divers are prohibited from sites with strong currents, and only those with solid years of certified scuba diving experience are allowed to dive here.  Happily, there are several drop sites where all levels can take the plunge.

 

For the diving, the Town Pier is a popular dive site for diving.  Bonaire diving aficionados of all levels – novice to advanced – enjoy the depths of 20-40 feet.  Again, there are restrictions.  Divers must present the permission of the harbormaster and they must be accompanied by a dive guide from the locality.

 

Calabas Reef is another site for all-levels diving.  Bonaire also takes pride in the Angel City, a site teeming with angelfish, and in Alice in Wonderland, where divers can see schools of parrotfish and French Angels.

 

Going to Bonaire?

 

Aside from the great diving, Bonaire has much to offer on land.    In Gotomeer, flamingos converge to feast on the shrimps in the brackish waters, and nest on the salt flats.    Interesting bits and pieces of the island’s history are preserved – the 1837 lighthouse, and 1838 obelisks built to aid mariners find anchor.

 

After a day of diving and hiking the trails, you can go kayaking, windsurfing, bird watching, mountain biking, horse-back riding, and deep-sea fishing.  There is no end to the wonderful and interesting possibilities in this Antilles Island.  Family members will enjoy the stress-free environment, and children can learn from the environmental efforts to protect the island’s natural resources.

Ultimate Dive Travel is the world’s premier scuba dive travel agency. We book dive trips to only the best dive resorts and liveaboard destinations worldwide.
Full-Service Scuba Diving Trip Planning Services
Go on a scuba diving adventure you’ll never forget! Contact the scuba diving experts today to book your trip.

 

If you are in the market for a new diving watch, here are some qualities you should look for before you spend a lot of money on a new diving watch.

  1. Water resistance.

All diving watches are going to be waterproof; they wouldn’t last for a minute otherwise. But how much water resistance is really needed? After all safety limits recreational divers to a maximum depth of  130 feet, so any diving watch that meets or exceeds 130 feet should be good enough, right? Wrong!

When companies test the water resistance rating of a diving watch, the test is completed in controlled conditions. The tests do not consider any other potential events that could play into the water-resistance of the watch. They tell the resistance to water penetration assuming there is no movement of the watch or the water, at a particular depth. These test conditions do not simulate real diving conditions where your watch is likely to be repeatedly jarred. If your watch is hit when it is near the extremes of its depth rating, it may fail.

To guarantee that your diving watch does not give out at depth, make sure you purchase a watch with a depth rating of at least twice the maximum depth to which you intend to dive.

  1. The band.

For a diving watch, there are three types of bands you should consider: rubber, titanium, and stainless steel.

If you are thinking about choosing a rubber watch band, make sure it is actually rubber and not some cheap imitation. Rubber bands are convenient because they are easy to adjust so they can easily be worn directly on your wrist or over your wet suit. One negative with rubber diving watch bands is that they can be sliced; if you take part in a lot of wreck diving, you may want to consider a metal band.

If you prefer a metal band, it should always be titanium or stainless steel since these metals are immune by corrosion and rust. Stainless steel has been well tested over the years and it is still an excellent alternative for diving watches. Of late, titanium has become an option. It is stronger than stainless steel and one half the weight. Regardless of the metal selected, make sure to get a wet suit extension so that watch can be worn over your wet suit when you are using one.

  1. Analog or digital

Most dive watches fall into one of two categories (although some combine both): analog or digital.

The analog watches are the traditional dial-faced watch. If you are considering this type of watch, make certain it has a unidirectional bezel (for dive timing) and bright luminescence (so that it can be seen in the dark) including on the bezel. Analog watches tend to be nice looking, but they usually have fewer diving-related features compared to digital watches.

Digital watches almost always offer a slew of sophisticated functions to help divers keep track of their dive status. Features such as water temperature, depth readings, separate gauges for timing the breathing mixture in one’s tank, and programmable alarms. Many digital watches also can record dive data which can then be uploaded from your watch to your computer.

  1. General Ease of Use

Look for attributes that will help make your new dive watch easy to use in actual dive conditions. Things such as a non-scratch crystal (so that you can actually read your watch), large and easily accessible buttons for use with gloved hands, and hardy construction so that your watch will give you years of use.

Lastly, look at the reviews for the diving watch you are looking at. Looking at a watch in the store or online, it’s really problematic to know for sure how well it will work in the water. By looking into the reviews of people that have used the watch, you will get a much better idea if this diving watch will work for you.

Ultimate Dive Travel is the world’s premier scuba dive travel agency. We book dive trips to only the best dive resorts and liveaboard destinations worldwide.
Full-Service Scuba Diving Trip Planning Services
Go on a scuba diving adventure you’ll never forget! Contact the scuba diving experts today to book your trip.

 

For many scuba divers, the Red Sea is one of those ‘must dive at least once in a lifetime’ destinations.  It is a very unique place to dive especially with the desert background visible from the dive boats.  The excellent diving with the many awesome sights of Egypt make the Red Sea a dream dive trip for any scuba diver.

There are two major scuba diving areas in Egypt, Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada.  Sharm El Sheikh at the northern part of the Red Sea is the more established center having been a popular vacation resort area as both Egyptians and Europeans have been vacationing here for many years.

As expected, the marine life in the Red Sea is spectacular.  There are many species of fish, crustaceans and marine plant life.  In fact, many of them are indigenous to the Red Sea only.  While lionfish can be extremely rare sightings elsewhere, they are quite abundant in the Red Sea which is a real treat for scuba divers.  It is also not unusual to jump in the water to be among a large school of tuna or other fish.  Many night divers will see coral reefs here to be more spectacular than in the Caribbean.

One very different aspect of the Red Sea compared to other dive destinations in the world is that the coral reefs here can extend up to very shallow depths.  As a result, the standard safety stops at 15 feet are done drifting among many of these sloping reefs along with the accompanying marine life.   Therefore, these are some of the most scenic safety stops scuba divers will ever do. One thing to note is that the maximum allowable depth for recreational scuba divers in Egypt is 30 meters which is about 90 feet.

The Red Sea has a higher salt content than Caribbean waters so it is recommended to add 4 to 5 more pounds to the amount of weight divers usually use.  Like most European diving, the scuba community here in Egypt uses the metric system so weights will be in kilos while air pressure will be in bars.  Most dive computers should be able to display both metric and imperial systems.

Many scuba divers turn their Red Sea diving trip into a major extended holiday in order to both dive and see the many wonderful ancient Egyptian sites such as the pyramids.

Ultimate Dive Travel is the world’s premier scuba dive travel agency. We book dive trips to only the best dive resorts and liveaboard destinations worldwide.
Full-Service Scuba Diving Trip Planning Services
Go on a scuba diving adventure you’ll never forget! Contact the scuba diving experts today to book your trip.

 

Some of the most enjoyable diving you may ever do is wreck scuba diving. Because travel by ship was the main way of going from continent to continent prior to the development of air travel, and because the technology used on ships and in weather forecasting was not advanced at all, many ships sank in waters around the world providing dives that are interesting and fun. There are so many wrecks that only the Florida wreck diving will be covered in this article.

In fact, there are so many Florida wreck scuba diving spots available, you’ll have plenty of difficulty choosing which ones to dive. Hurricanes, coral reefs, shoals and pirates all help sink the ships that are often quite near the shores.

One great wreck scuba diving destination is Pensacola in the Panhandle of Florida. There are lots of ships in a small area. In Pensacola Bay, eleven ships were to become victims of a hurricane during 1500. The colonists that were becoming settles on the shore at what is now known as Pensacola Bay were unloading vessels when the massive storm overtook them. The result of the loss of the eleven ships was to soon become the demise of the colony which only lasted 60 years.

The Trinite is another great wreck scuba diving spot. This French wreck lies off St. Augustine and went down during a storm in 1565 while the Frenchmen were preparing to attack the Spaniards who had colonized this section of the northeast Florida coastline.

In 1700 the Henneta Marie, a slave trade vessel that had unloaded slaves in Jamaica and was in the Key West to load sugar from the plantations sank. Today you can visit Key West during your wreck scuba diving vacation and see the oldest know wreck of a slave trading vessel that has been identified by name.

While you are in the Florida Keys for wreck scuba diving, go see the San Pedro which was one of the last vessels from the New Spain fleet to cross to what is now the United States. In 1733, this ship was taken victim by a hurricane along with several other ships traveling with her. There are wrecks covering over 80 miles of the Florida Keys oceanscape from this storm.

Florida is a great place to go wreck scuba diving and you will find the waters warm enough to dive even in the winter. In fact, the winter is the peak season in this southern state. You can obtain discount rates if you choose to travel to Florida during the off-season which is May through November. You’ll also enjoy less crowded areas and beaches with fewer visitors.

While wreck scuba diving, remember that safety must always come first when in the water. Don’t take unnecessary chances. Be sure to stay with your dive party and your trip will be a great success

Ultimate Dive Travel is the world’s premier scuba dive travel agency. We book dive trips to only the best dive resorts and liveaboard destinations worldwide.
Full-Service Scuba Diving Trip Planning Services
Go on a scuba diving adventure you’ll never forget! Contact the scuba diving experts today to book your trip.

 

Similan, Thailand – Mu Koh Similan National Park has been rated first by the U. S. publication Skin Diving of the top ten dive sites in the world. The Similan Islands in the heart of the Andaman Sea are indeed unparalleled in their exotic beauty. If planning a visit, keep in mind that anytime between December to April is recommended, with the best month being March, because the monsoons are over and the water is clear.

 

Similan is really the Malaysian word for nine, as there are nine islands in the Similan group: Kohh Bangu, Koh Similan, Hin Huwagralok, Koh Payu, Koh Ha, Kohh Hok, Kohh Miang, Kohh Payan, Kohh Payang, and Kohh Huyong.

 

Shark Ridge Rocks are pinnacle rocks near Kohh Payan or Kohh Sam (Three). Here, several species of sharks like Silvertip, Leopard Shark, and Reef White tip can be found.

 

Fantasy Rocks are another scuba-diving site consisting of several large rocks totally covered with soft corals, sea fans, and many species of fish. They are located to the west of Kohh Similan or Kohh Paed (Eight), and are one of the more popular diving sites. The beach here is white like powder. Snorkeling is possible from here. To the right is found the towering ‘Sailing Rock’, a symbol of Kohh Similan which can be climbed in order to take in a panoramic view of the bay.

 

Christmas Point Rocks are another scuba diving site, a complex of rocks full of soft corals and sea fans found to the northwest of Kohh Ba-ngu or Kohh Kao (Nine).

 

Kohh Bon is located between the Similan Islands and Kohh Tachai. There is no beach and the underwater scenery here is not as beautiful as elsewhere, but scuba divers may often find Manta Rays.

 

Kohh Tachai is located at the northernmost tip of the park. There is a beautiful white beach on the island but no accommodation. The water is suitable for scuba diving, and Whale Shark is often found here.

 

Ultimate Dive Travel is the world’s premier scuba dive travel agency. We book dive trips to only the best dive resorts and liveaboard destinations worldwide.
Full-Service Scuba Diving Trip Planning Services
Go on a scuba diving adventure you’ll never forget! Contact the scuba diving experts today to book your trip.

 

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No doubt you are a member of DAN or have heard divers sing their praises. For some, it may come to a surprise when I tell you this: your DAN membership does not cover you or your medical expenses incurred for SCUBA diving related accidents.

Those membership dues you’ve been dutifully paying every year, or right before that big bucket list trip to dive with Whale Sharks in the remote regions of The Galapagos, have merely given you the opportunity to “access” their Dive Accident Insurance and your membership only covers medical evacuation. That’s not to say you have been throwing money away. Your membership also includes assistance with their TravelAssist service, (SCUBA diver support hotline), a subscription to Alert Diver Magazine, (interesting articles for those who enjoy learning more about the science behind this amazing sport) and access to online safety seminars. However, further action (AKA more money) must be taken for your medical expenses to be covered for more than just transporting you to treatment.  Depending on how severe the accident and quality of care available, you are looking at a potential out of pocket expense in the tens of thousands of dollars, if not more. Now unless you struck it rich while finding lost treasure on an undiscovered wreck dive, I’m guessing those medical expenses would sink you.

Knowing this information, how many divers have been flying under the radar with just the membership status? With more and more dive resorts and liveaboards requiring dive accident coverage, it’s a surprise this information isn’t more commonly known.

However, the word is spreading and showing up without the required coverage could keep you out of the water until a proper policy is obtained and proven.

A client of ours recently fell victim to this misunderstanding and was looking at spending the weekend topside until an agent from DAN could be contacted the following Monday (they do not have agents available on the weekend). As you can imagine, it was not a blissful start to the long-awaited holiday. Moreover, the resort failed to communicate this requirement to the client and agent. If more resorts start to go this route and fail to mention this until check-in, this will not be the last we hear of this type of scenario. Luckily, this diver went online and purchased the additional coverage, but what happens in the more remote regions where internet many not be as accessible?

DAN has also now partnered with Travel Guard and extended their products to include trip insurance. What appears like a convenient “one stop shop” created further confusion for another diver when a representative of Travel Guard claimed dive medivac was included in the trip insurance policy and they did not need the dive accident coverage. This is not true. You still need a dive accident policy to cover you for a SCUBA related injury, even if you go through DAN for trip insurance.

To be clear, our point here is not to disparage DAN. We have the upmost respect for the research and advances they have made in the diving industry. Advances that wouldn’t be possible without the funding from its loyal members, so your dollar is being put to good use.  Our goal is to make sure our divers are informed of the potential pitfalls from not fully understanding the coverage they are buying and the kinks they need to work out with the addition of Travel Guard.

In the end, we encourage you to do your homework, read the fine print, compare the competition, but mostly, make sure you are truly covered for diving incidences. We hope you never need to use it but you will be glad it is there if you do. Safe diving everyone!

Safety Warnings about possible fire hazard. Please read

Safety Warnings about possible fire hazard. Please read-

Safety Warnings about possible fire hazard. Please read-

Check with your airlines if flying with new Mac Book Pro. Emirates has also put out warnings. Once 1 does it, all airlines will most likely. Call your airline directly if you have questions about this. We have not been informed what they are looking for in way of upgraded batteries.

Important Announcement From Garuda Airlines Indonesia

We need to make all of our guests aware of an important announcement by Garuda Airlines which may be relevant to you effective immediately.

MAC BOOK PRO (Retina 15-inch) are now prohibited from being taken on-board any Garuda Indonesia flights. Please see official announcement below for specific information.

If you do have this laptop (purchased between the stated dates) we would suggest that to avoid having it confiscated you leave it at home and you bring a large external hard drive plus plenty of SD memory storage cards. We can back up your photos for you using a computer on-board.

We appreciate that this is not ideal as you will not be able to do any photo editing on-board but it is a situation out of our control….

GARUDA INDONESIA PROHIBITED PASSENGERS BRING LAPTOP MACBOOK PRO (15-INCH) INTO AIRCRAFT FOR SAFETY

Tangerang, August 29, 2019 – In connection with the policy of withdrawal of MacBook Pro (Retina 15-Inch) products by Apple, the national airline of Garuda Indonesia issued a ban for passengers to bring the product into the aircraft both in the cabin, luggage and cargo services as a form of anticipation and safety management on Garuda Indonesia flight services.

The policy is in line with regulations issued by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) as well as regulations from the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations (Special Provisions A154) related to a ban on carrying MacBook Pro (Retina 15-Inch) following the discovery of problems with laptop batteries in Apple products. which has the potential to cause interference with aspects of aviation safety.

The ban on carrying MacBook devices is intended for certain series (serial numbers) that were sold in the period September 2015 and February 2017. For more information on detailed product specifications that are prohibited from entering the aircraft, please visit https://support.apple.com/15-inch-macbook-pro-battery-recall

Garuda Indonesia will continue to coordinate with regulators and other stakeholders to follow up on the ban on carrying the laptop device until further development.

PT. GARUDA INDONESIA (PERSERO) TBK
VP CORPORATE SECRETARY
M. IKHSAN ROSAN

Trip report, 2019 trip to Cocos Island

Trip report, 2019 trip to Cocos Island

Article and Images by Erwin Poliakoff

I just finished a wonderful trip to Cocos Island off the coast of Costa Rica on the Argo liveaboard. It was excellent diving, and a very well-run dive operation. I recommend it highly. The trip was chartered by Ultimate Dive Travel, and I use them frequently to arrange my diving trips. Ken Scarbrough asked me to write up a brief summary of the trip; I am happy to do so. I have been very happy using Ultimate Dive Travel to arrange our trips, both for their recommendations of good diving locations, and for their service. That is the end of the advertising section of this write up.

I flew into San Jose. Costa Rica a day early, and overnighted at the Marriott near the airport, a very nice hotel. I met up with Ken, and some of the other divers on our trip. The next morning, our group was loaded into a bus and taken to the port at Puntarenas. with a couple of stops on the way. It was about a 2.5 hour drive. We got on the Argo liveaboard, and it was very nicely laid out and well-maintained. The lounge area was comfortable and spacious, which was good, as it was a 36 hour ride to Cocos Island. The conditions of our boat ride to Cocos Island were mild, but I have heard that it can be rougher. My cabin was comfortable, and on the spacious side for a liveaboard. The food and service on the boat were great. We did three dives a day, which suited me fine. The water was warmer than I expected (81 F mostly), although there were some significant thermoclines that made a hood a good idea. We saw a lot of sharks, including schools of hammerheads. They were the highlight of the trip for me. I have also been on a trip to the Galapagos a few years ago, and I would say that the trip to Cocos Island was similar, insofar as the hammerheads were frequently sighted, and were the central attraction of the dives. Here is a picture of a hammerhead to give an impression of what we would typically see.

Typical view of a beautiful scalloped hammerhead shark at a cleaning station at Cocos Island.

This was not an atypical sighting. The dive guides instructed us carefully as to where they would position us, and how to wait. The point is that they really knew the behavior of the sharks well, and knew how to maximize the likelihood we would spot them, and up close. Typically, we would start our first couple of dives positioned at a cleaning station, where we would wait for the hammerheads to swim by to be cleaned by the angelfish and butterflyfish. The hammerheads were cooperative most of the time, and we would see them swim by. As usual, they were more shy than a photographer would like, but relatively cooperative. There were also several other types of sharks. There were too many white-tips to count. We also saw a  number of Galapagos sharks, and an occasional tiger shark. We also saw several whale sharks, which was a first for me.

Whale shark sighting from one of the Cocos Island dives. We saw several of these, which was a first for me and a couple of the other divers.

The schedule for the day was typically: 7am breakfast, 8 am first dive, 11am second dive, 1pm lunch, 3pm third dive. This made for a comfortable and relaxed schedule that worked well for me, and all of the guests on the boat. On most dives, the visibility was okay, but we were told it is typically better at Cocos Island. I would estimate we had about 60′ vis on most dives. I was pleased to see relatively attractive and healthy reefs (hard coral), and lots of fish life.

MV Sea Hunter

School of grunts at the Submerged Arch dive site, one of many islands and pinnacles surrounding Cocos Island.

In addition to the usual fish life, there were tons of peacock flounders on most dives. This was unusual and fun. Also, there were a lot of marble rays, which was very unusual in my experience. Everything about the trip made for a number of special memories. I want to make a point of complimenting the crew. I have been on several liveaboards in the past ten years, including two others in 2019. While all of the crews that have been good, the dive crew and the rest of the Argo crew made everything run perfectly, and they made the guests feel welcome and comfortable while working really hard.

MV Sea Hunter

Peacock flounder from a Cocos Island dive. These critters were everywhere.

In addition to the scuba diving, many of the guests also did the submarine ride that went to a depth of 1000 foot. It was ridiculously extravagant, but it was still a lot of fun, and a definite bucket list item. I think that about eight guests did this, and all were glad that they had done it.

After 7 days of diving, we headed back to Puntarenas. Some of the guests were able to get afternoon flights and headed home; about half of us, myself included, could not catch a flight late enough to get out easily, and overnighted before leaving the next day. It was the definition of an excellent trip for me in that I had a lot of fun, really enjoyed the diving, and felt sufficiently satisfied that I was ready to head home and start thinking about my next diving trip.

Erwin Poliakoff

How Scuba Diving Helps You Live Longer

The Health Benefits of Frequent Diving

Most non-divers may think that scuba is a relaxing, leisurely hobby. However, as divers, we understand that scuba diving is an adrenaline-boosting sport that requires experience and savvy. The general public may also be surprised to learn the different health benefits scuba divers gain from many hours under the waves.

Whether you have just started your certification process, or if you’re an experienced deep-sea explorer, diving provides numerous health advantages to divers of all skill levels:

Strength & Flexibility

As you swim through the water on your dive, your muscles work harder to propel your body through the water and currents. The resistance from the water and currents strengthen and lengthen your muscles to develop endurance and flexibility. Scuba also strengthens your core to provide better balance and posture, both underwater and on land.

Optimized Breathing

While underwater, it is imperative your breathing is slow, deep, and steady. This is essential when conserving and optimizing your air consumption. This deep breathing technique is excellent for lowering your heart rate, calming your mind, and staying focused. Additionally, optimized breathing reduces the risk of lung injury and mucus build-up, and it’s been known to help with existing conditions such as asthma.

Sunlight Exposure

It is crucial for the human body to be exposed to sunlight in order to create Vitamin D. Vitamin D helps the rate of absorption of calcium, and helps the cells pass calcium to each other, resulting in strong and healthy bones. Being outside in the sun on the boat and under the water gives your body plenty of time to soak in that precious Vitamin D.

Stress Relief

Ask any diver and they’ll tell you how calming it feels to be under the water. This is due to an instinctual feeling of being back in your mother’s womb. This feeling of security, calmness, and well-being is extremely beneficial for your mental and physical health. When under the water, you’re able to see life from a whole new perspective and your everyday issues are left at the surface. Giving yourself this time to reflect and reset is one of the best health benefits diving provides.

Explore Under the Water with Ultimate Dive Travel

Reserve Your Scuba Diving Trip Today!

Now that you’ve seen some of the benefits of scuba diving, it’s time you booked your next adventure! Check out all of our diving destinations to find your next dive site before finding all of the latest dive specials for resorts and liveaboards all over the world.

To reserve your next trip, contact our diving travel experts today!

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