Being underwater, weightless in a 3D space surrounded by phenomenal views is a really a spiritual experience for me. I once had a conversation with a turtle. True story. Founder of the DiveAdvisor Project.
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Following & Followers
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Matt Draper (mattdraper) Originally from New Zealand, I now reside in the small beach side community of Byron Bay, Australia. With an interest in photojournalism and ocean imagery, photography has allowed me to travel to remote areas of the world-documenting subjects for the purpose of education and positive change for the environment. I started practising underwater photography in 2014 and ever since have tried to use my photographs as a way to spread awareness about environmental issues as well as foster love for the ocean by replacing fear with fascination. I do enjoy to scuba dive, but all my images are taking while free diving under natural light. Matty.
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sumer verma (luminousdeep) Sumer started diving in 1997 and completely fell in love the sea and all its creatures . Since then he has pursued his passion for the oceans singlemindedly and has logged more than 6000 dives and is one of Indias most experienced and accomplished diving instructors and underwater photographers . Through his passion for diving and filming underwater Sumer has travelled far and wide from the Galapagos islands to the far corners of Indonesia and explored most diving sites around Indias Lakshadweep and Andaman islands . He currently manages Lacadives dive schools who were the pioneers of scuba diving in India setting up their first dive school in the Lakshadweep islands way back in 1995 . Sumers underwater photography work has expanded from wildlife to also encompass fashion shoots for vogue magazine , travel stories for condenast traveller and national geographic as well as film shoots for various production houses from Bollywood to the south . .
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Indonesia Bans Manta Fishing, Part 1
Analyzing manta conservation in the context of marine conservation as a whole. (Part 1 of the series)
7 Elements of a Great Dive
There are some dives that I found really awesome, and some that left me wanting to end it early to have a cold beer. In this article I have tried to analyze the difference between the two.
Sights of Tioman, Malaysia Photo essay of 'Alishs' Work
My pick of photographs by one of our most active users - known on diveadvisor as 'Alish'.
ScubaSpa, An Innovative Touch On Liveaboard Diving
An overview of my most recent liveaboard experience onboard ScubaSpa Ying in the Maldives & what it means for the Industry.
Fesdu Lagoon - Legendary Night Dive in the maldives
The Fesdu Lagoon Night Dive in the Maldives is a legendary night dive that is similar to the Kona Night Dive but is significantly less known. Read on!
Indonesia Bans Manta Fishing, Part 2
Thoughts on the recent nationwide ban on manta fishing. Part two of the series.
The 3 Stages of Travel Booking Infrastructure
The dive industry is a dinosaur when it comes to online reservations, we all know it - so how will things look in the future? Here is an insight.
Why Does Pollution Really Happen?
There are many complex problems around living more harmoniusly and importanty - sustainability. This is a brief run into analysis of pollution as a whole.
A Guide To Becoming A Scuba Digital Nomad
A lot of people dream of travelling the world and Scuba Diving, but the question is how to finance this kind of lifestyle? Hopefully this will provide some useful tips.
3 Problems with the scuba diving industry
The Scuba Diving niche of the Travel & Hopsitality Industry is like the dumb kid in class, the last to catch on. Here is a glimpse into the problems it faces & where its lagging behind.
Posted on: May 13, 2013
Part 1: Overview of Scuba Diving in French Polynesia
...airports on: Tahiti, Bora Bora, Raiatea, Huahine, and Rangiroa. There are now many nonstop flights from major cities, making travel easy. For those traveling to a smaller island, there are frequent hops or puddle jumpers available from these airports. French Polynesia has long been a travel destin...
Posted on: May 13, 2013
Part 2: Dive Sites, Marine Life & Environment in French Polynesia
...the local sharks. Taotoi is a popular site where you can also feed sharks as well as dive with moray eels. This magical island was the inspiration for "Bali Hai" in the book Tales of the South Pacific. The island of Rangiroa is the second largest atoll in the world. The waters surrounding Rangiroa...
Posted on: May 13, 2013
Part 3: Dive Shops, Airports & Logistics of Diving in French Polynesia
...uba place of choice. PADI certified, they have locations on six islands throughout French Polynesia including: Tahiti, Bora Bora, Moorea, RAngiroa, Fakarava North and South, and Tikehau. They have introductory dives through advanced, and their staff consists of highly qualified diving instructors ...
Posted on: December 16, 2016
Part 1: Overview of Scuba Diving in Maldives
...ng currents and the need to go deep to have the best encounters, although there are many very easy dives aswell. Channel Diving is particularly challenging. Crossing the channels requires staying below the lip of the channel to avoid being drifted out into the blue; this can often be as deep as 35-...
Posted on: December 16, 2016
Part 2: Dive Sites, Marine Life & Environment in Maldives
...ique that the inside wall is extremely beautiful coral with copious amounts of turtle and other sights. Hafusha Thila – North Ari Atoll: Grey reef shark cleaning station with copious amounts of fusiliers, dog tooth tuna, big eye jacks, and sleeping baby white tip sharks. Lankan Manta Point – No...
Posted on: December 16, 2016
Part 3: Dive Shops, Airports & Logistics of Diving in Maldives
...ood reputation for safety and professionalism and attention to detail. MV Orion Very comfortable and large boat that is 4 years in operation, European-managed with a very multi-lingual team. Free nitrox on board, as well as plenty of safety equipment. Ark Royal & Ark Venture Another well-run liv...
Posted on: February 8, 2016
Part 1: Overview of Scuba Diving in Oman
...usually quite bad. I would say November, december, january and february are far from ideal. The summer is also not ideal since the heat is extreme and frankly being out on a boat for 2-3 dives is simply unsafe as you are risking dehydration and a heat stroke - therefore I would rule out June, July a...
Posted on: February 8, 2016
Part 2: Dive Sites, Marine Life & Environment in Oman
..., the visibility on this site gets worse as the day progresses and it’s best in the morning hours. It’s quite a long site, which curves around a corner. I have noticed large shoals of fish that are usually found on the corner; in other regards it’s quite a standard dive site. Doc's Wall This dive ...
Posted on: February 8, 2016
Part 3: Dive Shops, Airports & Logistics of Diving in Oman
...lity is quite bad. More on general diving conditions in Oman can be found here. You are looking to spend around 120-150 riyals per night (for 2), which is around $350-500, unless you get a special rate. Oman Dive Center The cheaper, yet arguably more charming, option is Oman Dive Center, located ...
Posted on: October 18, 2016
Part 1: Overview of Scuba Diving in United Arab Emirates
..., since finding these wrecks can be rather tricky. With an abundance of highly experienced dive operations, such as Al Boom Diving, The Pavillion Dive Centre and Technical Diving Institute, as well as mostly warm waters, the East Coast of UAE is a great place to get certified up to all possible leve...
Posted on: October 18, 2016
Part 2: Dive Sites, Marine Life & Environment in United Arab Emirates
...diving. Outside of Musandam (technically Oman, but for all extensive purposes of diving there it can be considered a part of UAE), the diving is not spectacular. The visibility on the West Coast - Dubai, Abu-Dhabi, Sharjah, RAK is pretty bad most of the year, partly due to the relatively shallow Ara...
Posted on: October 18, 2016
Part 3: Dive Shops, Airports & Logistics of Diving in United Arab Emirates
...e day in a police station. Plan for a delay of at least 30 minutes at the border. If you hold a UAE residence visa, you need to obtain permission, made 3 days in advance, by the dive operation servicing you. This does not apply to tourist visas. It is not a formal border crossing, i.e. you don't ...
Posted on: May 13, 2013
Part 1: Overview of Scuba Diving in Vietnam
...s can be lacking in some areas other than major cities. A valid passport is required along with a visa or visa exemption document. Visitors to the country will need to get either of these documents from the Vietnamese consulate or embassy prior to their arrival. Vietnam has fees associated with th...
Posted on: May 13, 2013
Part 2: Dive Sites, Marine Life & Environment in Vietnam
...Trang. Hon Mun Marine Park, which is located there, has recently been established and includes the central coastline islands. This typically draws a large crowd, so check with your dive shop for best times to go if you prefer to avoid the crowds. The beautiful Con Dao islands, which are serviced b...
Posted on: May 13, 2013
Part 3: Dive Shops, Airports & Logistics of Diving in Vietnam
...rgain' pricing. On the other hand, westerners own some companies in Vietnam, and planning travel with them may put some more at ease about what to expect. If your travel arrangements require an additional flight from a major airport to an island, you can expect to pay anywhere from USD $75-$150 in ...
Reviews
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I had a great time. I understand where the previous review is coming from. The guys there are a bit relaxed, because I guess they follow an assumption that the divers that come there are more experienced. For example me, I don't like to be helped onboard etc, I prefer to just dive in after brief briefing and be left alone with my buddy :)
Oman
Extra Divers Musandam -
I really hate giving any business a bad review, but was really not impressed with the Emperor Voyager. For one, the room really smelt of Diesel. For 2, there were lots of bugs and cockroaches running around. Thirdly, its quite an aged boat and needs some refreshing.
Maldives
MV Emperor Voyager -
Did my first liveaboard trip with Sheesa beach (2 night trip with 5/6 dives). Very cool experience, liked their boat, liked the food and the setup generally. Will definitely be back the next time. P.s: we only had 6 people and they still ran the trip.
United Arab Emirates
Sheesa Beach Dive Centre -
Oman Dive Center is located in one of the most beautiful lagoons I have seen. The dive centre is big and the boats are well equipped for diving. The diving around the Dive Centre - i.e: within boat rides is also rather decent, often great visibility and lots of marine life.
Oman
Oman Dive Center -
I had a really great time aboard the MV Leo. The boat is large & comfortable. Brett, the cruise director has an excellent sense of humor despite his severe addiction to mars bars. Would gladly be back.
Maldives
MV Leo -
WAOW as a ship, crew and operation is pretty much as good as it gets. Basically its like a 5 star hotel fused with a liveaboard. Jay & crew are well organized and good vibes on board. Will be back shortly.
Indonesia
M/SV WAOW -
Al Boom is a provider of good service consistently. I have gone on quite a lot of their weekend dhow trips to Musandam and they are great fun. There are always plenty of dive guides and a large boat to ensure the diving goes smoothly.
United Arab Emirates
Al Boom Diving -
We were there in off-season so perhaps the review is a little biased but the entire area is over flooded with divers - scares me what its like in peak season. From my observation most of the dive shops make money from open water certifications - I would nut suggest it to experienced divers.
Thailand
Blacktip Scuba -
Very cool vibe at the shop and Sean is one of the most experienced divers on the planet. Perhaps maybe because we were there in off season we didn't get a chance to see anything spectacular but had a great time exploring Tobago and the pretty dive sites around there. The night dive is really cool as well as a little cave dive we did.
Trinidad and Tobago
Tobago Dive Experience -
The SMART resorts, especially the water village part is magnificent - one of the most beautiful hotels I've seen in all my travels. Mabul Island is also the most convenient place to live if you want to dive Sipadan Island aswell. Good team and clean run operation.
Malaysia
Sipadan-Mabul Resort, Sdn Bhd