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Scuba Diving in the Perhentian Islands – A Rare Piece of Paradise in Malaysia

July 13, 2008 By

By Mark J Burns

The crystal clear waters and brilliant white sandy beaches of the Perhentian Islands in Malaysia have for many years captured the hearts and imaginations of the backpackers and travelers who passed through. Recent years however have seen a different type of traveler coming to the Perhentian Islands, as their reputation as a premier diving destination has slowly increased amongst the scuba diving community.

In fact it would be fair to say that a large amount of the success of the Perhentian Islands as a scuba diving location should be attributed to the neighboring Thailand, and the dive resorts of Koh Tao, Phuket and Koh Samui. Large numbers of travelers who have learned to scuba dive in the larger Thai resorts often find themselves gravitating to the natural beauty of the Perhentian Islands. Looking for one last dive before the hustle and bustle of Kuala Lumpur and Singapore!

The Perhentian Islands comprise of Pulau Perhentian Kecil and Pulau Perhentian Besar, and are located approximately 20 kilometers off the coast of Malaysia. Offering what can only be described as a slice of paradise, the palm fringed beaches encircle these tropical islands, whilst the clear blue waters hide a wealth of marine and coral life below.

The scuba diving in the Perhentian Islands is of a high standard, and a wide range of dive sites has meant that the islands have become a popular destination for people looking to take a scuba diving course. There are approximately ten major dive sites which are regularly visited by the dive centers in the Perhentian Islands. Of these, Tokong Laut (Temple of the Sea) is widely acknowledged as being the best dive site on the islands. A large rocky outcrop of boulders just off the northwest coast of Perhentian Kecil offers some of the best examples of soft coral formations in the region. This carpet of stunning soft corals provides a home to a wide variety of marine life including kingfish, barracuda, nurse sharks and black tip sharks.

For fans of wreck diving, there are two excellent dive sites in the Perhentian Islands. The Sugar Wreck, a 90 meter cargo ship which sank in 2000, and the Vietnamese Wreck were it is still possible to dive inside the wreck itself.

If you are planning to go scuba diving in the Perhentian Islands, the best time to visit is between April to October, when both the visibility and weather are at their most favorable. November to March sees the monsoon season, when the weather becomes poor and access to and from the islands becomes limited due to the rough seas.

The Perhentian Islands offer superb scuba diving, and the shallow nature of the dive sites here make it a good choice for the novice or more inexperienced scuba diver. However what makes the islands so very special is their stunning natural beauty and undeveloped landscapes. You truly feel as though you are diving in your very own piece of paradise!

Mark Burns is Director of Scubaworld, a large scuba diving holidays and scuba diving courses web site.

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Another World – Life Below the Waves

June 26, 2008 By

By Simon Andrew

Man by nature is not designed to breath underwater, and it has taken many years of experimentation for people to create stable, safe life support systems for us to do just that.

Nowadays, the underwater world is open to almost anyone, although it is recommended you have a basic medical first before undertaking any training.

Scuba diving is a multi-million pound leisure industry, and the range and style of equipment available publicly is vast. Should you wish, you can even customise your equipment with style and colour.

With a little special training, you too can experience life under the waves.

Many training agencies exist worldwide for people to gain the skills needed to dive safely.

You can even combine a holiday with your training. The choice of destinations with warm clear waters to dive in is huge. Typical destinations are Australia, The Maldives and Egypt; all are a haven for wildlife and an experience not to be missed.

Once your basic training is completed you are able to participate in any number of dives to wonderful destinations and dive sites. Divers trained to a basic standard however, are usually limited to the depth they can dive to.

You can extend your education beyond basic diving to many levels.

Learn more about advanced techniques that you would need for more challenging and deeper dives, how to cope in an emergency, or, how to train other people to dive too!

It is even possible now to capture memories from dives by using off the shelf camera equipment and housings for the cameras that are now a fraction of the price professionals would have paid just a few years ago. You can then share those memories with loved ones and friends in a variety of ways. The internet allows you to post your images online for all the world to see and comment on.

There are many resources on the Internet to find out more about scuba diving, including forums where people participate in a wide range of subjects from how to start to the very technical aspects of advanced diving.

I have been leisure diving for over eleven years and traveled to Egypt and South-East Asia on numerous occasions and even produced videos to promote tourism and diving in those locations.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Simon_Andrew
http://EzineArticles.com/?Another-World---Life-Below-the-Waves&id=1270753

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Scuba Diving in the Maldives – Thila's, Atolls and So Much More!

June 25, 2008 By

Scuba Diving in the Maldives - Thila's, Atolls and So Much More!
By Mark J Burns

Many of the world's top diving destinations claim to offer a truly unique form of diving, however few are able to substantiate it as easily as the Maldives. From the moment you first enter the water in the Maldives, you are surrounded by an almost magical underwater kingdom. A myriad of colourful reef fish, incredible corals exist alongside a wide variety of larger marine life including manta rays, whale sharks and many, many others. In fact, it is estimated that over 26 different types of shark can be found in the dive sites in the Maldives including the whale shark, the tiger shark and the hammerhead shark.

It is the unique geography of the Maldives that allows it to offer such incredible diving. The tops of an ancient submerged mountain range, the coral reefs and atolls of the Maldives now stretch across some 500 miles of the Indian Ocean from north to south.

The scuba diving in the Maldives tends to fall into two distinct categories, kandu diving and thila diving. Thila diving tends to focus around large coral formations or reefs which top out just under the surface of the water. These thilas allow divers the opportunity to dive or drift with the currents across and around these large reefs, often providing spectacular views of the prolific marine life and coral formations just below the surface. There are a number of excellent dive sites in the Maldives, which offer this thila type of diving. Some of the better known thila dives include Maaya Thila on North Ari Atoll, and Okobe Thila, together with its resident population of huge Napoleon wrasse.

The second type of diving for which the Maldives is well known is kandu diving, where divers can drift with the currents along the channels between the islands or reefs. In a typical kandu dive, the divers will enter the water just outside of the lagoon, allowing the currents to carry them into the calmer waters to be found inside of the atoll. With these currents drawing nutrient rich water into these channels from the open ocean, these kandu dives often provide the best opportunities to spot the various species of rays, sharks and other pelagic marine life which can be found throughout the waters of the Maldives.

Marine life throughout the Maldives is prolific, with an incredible array of tropical reef fish to be found throughout the region. Bannerfish, parrotfish, butterflyfish and surgeonfish mingle easily with the larger Napoleon wrasse and triggerfish which can be found here. Fans of the larger marine life will also find rich pickings in the waters surrounding the Maldives, and a wide variety of sharks and rays can be found throughout the hundreds of beautiful dive sites in the Maldives.

The climate in the Maldives does vary slightly between the north and the south atolls, with the Northern regions experiencing more extreme temperatures, and the southern atolls experiencing a slightly heavier average rainfall throughout the year. Water temperatures in the Maldives tend to remain consistent, ranging from 27 degrees to as warm as 30 degrees. The region experiences two monsoon seasons, which run from December to March, when the Maldives experience the warmer prevailing winds, and the wetter monsoon season which runs from May through to November.

If you are considering diving in the Maldives, it is highly likely that your resort will have an affiliated dive centre on the island. Recent years have seen an increase in the reputation of the region as one of the worlds best dive sites, and today there is a highly developed and extensive network of dive centres in the Maldives.

Mark Burns is Director of Scubaworld.tv, a large scuba diving holidays and scuba diving courses web site.

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Choosing the Right Scuba Gear

June 18, 2008 By

By Asanka Shanki De Silva

Scuba diving is a wonderful experience, but before you attempt it, you have to truly understand the equipment you will be using - because you will trust your life to that equipment and your ability to control it. You have plenty of choices when it comes to scuba diving gear. There are different brands, and the scuba gear you should choose depends on the kind of diving you plan to do, and your level of competence and your skill. The most important consideration, though, is safety.

To scuba dive, you have to wear the wet suit, of course. The sea is of varying temperatures, and you need to be protected at all times. This is what the wet suit does. The material of wet suits is synthetic rubber. Inside, they have a lining of nylon fabric. The wet suit will make sure that your skin remains dry, though he name might suggest otherwise, and makes sure that your body temperature remains within the normal range even in very cold water. It will fit you very closely, right next to your skin.

Now, you have to breathe underwater - for that, you will need an oxygen tank, along with the apparatus that lets you measure how much oxygen you have left in your tank. It will be strapped to your back, and the size of the tank will depend on your dive, and how long you plan to stay under.

The oxygen has to get from the tank to you, of course. This is done through a tube that ends in a mask - a face and eye mask. It is very important to make sure it fits right on your face. To kick through the water strongly, you will need flippers, as well.

Scuba diving can be a wonderful experience, but you do have to put some effort into learning how to do it right with the right equipment before you jump in.

Shanki de Silva is a professional freelance copywriter. Her expertise ranges from travel and hospitality to business and human resources. The current article is merely promotional material for http://www.scuba-necessities.com an online specialized scuba gear store.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Asanka_Shanki_De_Silva
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Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus – SCUBA

June 18, 2008 By

By Asanka Shanki De Silva

Before you actually try scuba diving, which can be one of the most delightful experiences anybody could ever go through, you might want to learn a bit more about scuba diving. The word 'scuba' actually refers to the equipment you use while diving. It stands for 'Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus'.

You need to be certified to be able to scuba dive in the open ocean. Most holiday destinations where scuba diving is an attraction have training facilities. Once you are certified, you will need diving practice. Then, before you can dive wherever you please, you will have to develop your skills. There are plenty of vacation destinations that are great for beginners. These places will still have beautiful sights underwater that you can experience, but the level of difficulty will not be high. The more experienced you become, the more you can venture into trickier areas for scuba diving.

The wonderful thing about scuba diving is that, unlike snorkeling and other such activities, you can go deep underwater and really feel like a part of the sea, which is teeming with life. You will need to carry all the equipment that you need to be safe and to breathe properly underwater, of course. Now, this might seem like a lot, but once you are underwater, it will feel quite light and manageable. If you want to go faster than you can using your fins, there are small devices that can propel you underwater, so that you can scuba dive without much effort. You will probably be diving from a boat - it is wise to use a tether of some sort, so that you do not lose yourself in the sea. Even if you have your compass, things look very different underwater, and it will be easy to get lost.

There are different kinds of scuba diving, each needing specialized equipment - technical diving, recreational diving and military diving, to name just a few. Most people find that recreational diving is one of the most enjoyable and relaxing experiences of a holiday by the sea.

Shanki de Silva is a professional freelance copywriter. Her expertise ranges from travel and hospitality to business and human resources. The current article is merely promotional material for http://www.scuba-necessities.com an online specialized scuba gear store.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Asanka_Shanki_De_Silva
http://EzineArticles.com/?Self-Contained-Underwater-Breathing-Apparatus---SCUBA&id=1250308

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