Scuba St. Lucia wins PADI Green Star Award

ST. LUCIA'S longest-running dive operation, Scuba St. Lucia, has received the PADI Green Star Award for its dedication to conservation.

Founded in 1981, Scuba #StLucia is located at the water's edge of the 600-acre Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain resorts. Consistently voted among the top hotels in the Caribbean by leading travel authorities, both hotels were designed with a commitment to sustainability and environmental preservation.

Now, the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) is recognizing the resorts' efforts to keep its scuba diving operation clean and green. The region around Anse Chastanet is part of an award-winning marine reserve run by the Soufrière Marine Management Association. Scuba St. Lucia strictly follows the marine reserve policy of "look but don't touch," to ensure protection of the area's coral reef and other marine life.

www.scubastlucia.com

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Picture Credit: Mark Edley flickr.com/photos/34980062@N08/10249879286 stlucia2013195  via photopin.

Underwater Adventure

DUE to open in 2017 the 5-star #ShimaoWonderland Intercontinental Hotel is being built in an abandoned quarry located in the Sheshan National Tourism Resort area of Songjiang near Shanghai, #China.

The 328 guestroom 5 star hotel is located in a deep water filled quarry with 2 levels of the hotel above and 16 levels below ground level.

The 2 lowest levels will be under water with one level utilised as guest rooms and public areas such as restaurants, facing underwater aquarium and the other for mechanical plant rooms.

The hotel will also feature a conference/ballroom centre and extensive leisure facilities with swimming pools on the quarry bottom water level. The hotel also features a spectacular 'glass waterfall' structure to house the vertical circulation core with observation lifts.

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Greater Fort Lauderdale welcomes latest diving wreck

GREATER FORT LAUDERDALE, #Florida – home to the largest group of warm-water wrecks in the Western world – has a new addition to the collection. It’s Lady Luck, a 324-foot tanker that is one of the biggest contributions to the state’s artificial reef system, 

The ship has been sunk one mile from the fishing pier at Pompano Beach, where it will be the centrepiece of what will become Shipwreck Park, surrounded by 16 other wrecks.

It will be the world’s first underwater art gallery. Artist Dennis MacDonald has created a casino-themed installation allowing divers to navigate poker tables and slot machines as they explore the vessel, which has 16 staterooms, the captain’s deck, galley, engine room, and holding bays.

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Under the ocean waves …

HEAVEN ON OCEAN TOURISM has unveiled its ‘Coral Safari’ submarine venture on the Andaman Islands in India’s Bay of Bengal.

With its 100-seater, air-conditioned cabin, the semi-submersible Coral Safari will take travellers on tours around the islands, allowing them to explore the deep ocean habitat.

The vessel, designed by US-based Subsea Systems, has large glass windows to provide views of the underwater eco-system at close quarters.

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Dive in Murcia

#SCUBA-DIVING enthusiasts are being invited to get in the swim this summer to discover the many underwater delights in the Murcia region.

The #Murcia coastline in south-east Spain has a wealth of marine life, underwater landscapes, and shipwrecks to explore in some of the country's most acclaimed dive sites, including Cabo de Palos – recognized as one of Europe’s best scuba areas.

Some of the region's best dive sites can be found by the port of Águilas, set amidst majestic cliffs and beautiful Sandy beaches, these sites are well protected from the weather which means there is always a sheltered spot for diving.

The region also has plenty for novice divers, with La Azohia a place for beginners to experience safe diving. It is also a renowned spot for whale watching.

Complementing the dive options are other sports and leisure activities, including watersports on shallow waters of the Mar Menor, Europe's largest salt-water lagoon.

www.murciaturistica.es

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Heading to Australia? . . .

Fancy a bite with a great white? - Adventure Bay Charters on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula has launched an aqua submarine for observing sharks in their natural environment without getting wet. The trip costs from AU$395 (£206) per adult and AU$285 (£150) per child (3-15 years), plus AU$100 (£52) to step into the cage or AquaSubmarine. 

Take tea with the dolphins - TEMPTATION SAILING in South Australia is offering an afternoon tea experience with a difference. Sail from Glenelg’s Marina Pieron board a 58-foot catamaran. The cruise offers dolphin-spotting opportunities with an afternoon tea platter. Prices start from AU$50 (£27.85) per person.  dolphinboat.com.au

Whitehaven Beach in the Whitsundays, Australia, has again taken out the top gong for the South Pacific's Best Beach in the 2015 TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice Awards. In the Great Barrier Reef, the turquoise waters and silica sand of Whitehaven Beach stretch over four miles along Whitsunday Island off the Queensland coast.

Where to see the whale sharks - Whale shark swim tours will begin from Coral Bay and Exmouth from mid-March until August, allowing visitors the opportunity to have a face-to-fin encounter with whale sharks – which can grow up to 59ft in length.

AUSTRALIA’S Great Beach Drive - has been launched to provide 125 miles of motoring along Queensland’s Sunshine and Fraser coasts. The drive starts in Noosa on the Sunshine Coast.

Bushwalking - NEW SOUTH WALES is Australia's most popular bushwalking region, with more than 5.5 million visitors trekking on the state's bushwalk trails, according to Destination NSW. 

Tuck into some croc - AYERS ROCK RESORT has devised a Bush Tucker Trail highlighting indigenous Australian flavours. ayersrockresort.com.au

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Picture Credit: Great white aqurium by Brocken Inaglory - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons, Dolphins Swimming Near Catalina Island, CA by Jameyson MacDonald - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons, Whitsunday Island - Whitehaven Beach by Damien Dempsey from Melbourne, Australia - Whitehaven Beach. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons, Requin baleine ningaloo reef by Chewb62 - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons, Bushwalking in the rain at Kosciuszko National Park by Michael Jordan - IMG_0030. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons 

Try a sub dive in Malta

EVER wanted to learn to pilot a submarine, but didn’t know who to ask? The place to go is Malta, where Netherlands-based Waterproof Expeditions and U-Boat Worx will be running submarine pilot courses in August. 

The sub is a U-Boat Worx C-Explorer 3, capable of an underwater speed of three knots and a diving depth of 3,280 feet.

The two-day, hands-on introductory course gives learners guided tour of off-shore Malta, clearly seen through the sub’s 360-degree acrylic canopy sphere. The course comprises six dives.

People interested in a supervised pilot licence can opt for a four-day course and the opportunity to operate the craft for 12 dives, accompanied by an instructor. There are also six- and ten-day programmes for those wanting a career in subs.

www.waterproof-expeditions.com/expeditions/Submarine_Pilot_Course

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Picture Credit: waterproof-expeditions.com