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Australasian Dive Festival Sep and Oct 2011

May 2nd, 2011 by

Join the “Australasia Challenge” – at the 5th Underwater Festival 2011 

Over A$ 100 000 worth of prizes to be won!

What: Go diving and take pictures
When: 2-11 Sep 2011
Where: Anywhere in over 20 Australasian countries or at one of the designated “fringe” events

The Underwater Festival 2011 will be the biggest one yet. It will be lots of fun and activities. Many dive operators are offering special “Underwater Festival Fringe Events” anything from photography workshops with Photo & Video Pros to photo shootout competitions, is available!

Fringe Events announced so far:
AUSTRALIA

Heron Island Dive Festival 2011

Christmas Island & Cocos Keeling Islands, Indean Ocean
Underwater Photography Workshops with Underwater Festival judges Stephen Wong www.stephenwong.com/ & Takako Uno www.takakouno.com/.

Ribbon Reefs, Coral Sea, Cairns, Great Barrier Reef
Workshops with Photo Pro with Mike Ball Dive Expeditions on 2 liveaboard departures between 2 and 11 September 2011

Julian Rocks, Byron Bay Dive Centre, Byron Bay
Photo clinics with acclaimed compact camera guru, Lawrence Alex Wu with Byron Bay Dive Centre – details to be announced soon.
www.byronbaydivecentre.com.au/

Great Victorian Nudi Hunt with Dragon Mouse Diving
Dragon Mouse Diving offers photographic and identification guided underwater tours for Certified Divers.
www.dragonmouse.com.au/diving/
FIJI
Matava Resort, Kadavu Island, Fiji
Underwater Photography Workshop with Underwater Festival regular Mathieu Meur at MATAVA – Fiji’s Premier Eco Adventure Resort on Kadavu Island.
INDONESIA
Gangga Island Resort, Manado, North Sulawesi
The 2011 Gangga Shootout is an official Fringe Event of the 2011 Underwater Festival. 

KunkunganBay Resort, Lembeh & Tasik Ria Resort, Manado, North Sulawesi
A fantastic combo of diving at the reefs of Bunaken National Park and the critters of Lembeh Strait with two of the longest established operators in the area.

Arenui, 11 night Liveaboard Cruise, Komodo, Indonesia
Underwater Photography Workshop with underwater photography legend and Violinist William Tan on a 11-day cruise on The Arenui to the Komodo islands. The Arenui is a magnificent wooden vessel that raised its anchors in June 2008 to explore the majestic underwater world of Indonesian archipelago.
MALDIVES
Ark Royal, 10 night Liveaboard Cruise, Maldives
Underwater Photography Workshop with underwater photography legend and Underwater Festival judge Michael Aw on a 10-day cruise on the Ark Royal to the Maldives. The Ark Royal is a 115-feet luxury cruiser traversing the crystalline waters of the Maldives.
PALAU
Fish’n Fins, Palau
Diversity Fiesta at Fish ‘n Fins in Palau. Diversity Fiesta celebrates the unique combination of great diving during the day and gourmet cuisine and wine at night! Located in the western pacific and under Japanese rule for decades, combined with culinary influence from Philippines, USA, Malaysia and Indonesia, Palau’s cuisine is a truly Pacific fusion of sea food, fresh fruits and vegetables and spices.
PHILIPPINES
ABWonderdive, Puerto Galera, Philippines
TONGA
Vava’u, Tonga
Humpback Whale Swim Fringe Event with big animal underwater photography guru Tony Wu in Tonga.
YAP, Micronesia
Mantaray Bay Hotel & Yap Diver, Yap
Manta Fest with Tim Rock and others in Yap, the premiere dedicated dive resort on the island of Yap in Micronesia, designed by divers and built for divers. Photo & Video Pros • Seminars • Photo Contest • Daily Presentations. 

If you want to take part in any of the shootouts please send us an email!

Posted in Dive Shows, Dive Travel, U/W Photography, Uncategorized | No Comments »

Beach walk with the sharks

Apr 7th, 2011 by



We just checked into our room. It’s 4 pm (2nd April ’11) and we rush back out again to the beach. Finally we have arrived. We dip our feet in the balmy turquoise waters surrounding Heron Island. Before we can get our bearings, 5 tiny little creatures hobble through the sand towards me. Their little flippers plough the ground like freestyle swimmers. Seagulls, turns and shearwaters watch the race with interest. Only minutes ago these green turtle hatchlings picked through the soft shell of their egg casings, dug through layers of sand to the surface, and now follow an ancient instinct to reach the sea. Looking at their tiny shapes one must wonder where they get the energy from for such a strenuous task. As soon as the turtles reach the water for the first time in their life they dive beneath the light surf and swim into the great ocean.
 
What an amazing event to start our visit. We continue our stroll along the beach watching the sky change between black storm clouds and blue sky as the sun slowly sets in the east. Our shadows grow longer. Only two, three meters from the shore in shallow waters another migration is happening. Cowtail stingrays, blue spotted stingrays and giant shovel-nose rays travel in large groups and sift the sands for shells and mollusks. Observing the water closer we now see a magnificent triangle cutting the surface.  A resident lemon shark is patrolling the beach. Together with blacktip sharks and leopard sharks they come close to the beach this time of year to get their share of he turtle hatching season. Dinner time for them! We are only 60 minutes on the island, haven’t even unpacked our masks and snorkel and already have seen more rare marine creatures then on some dives.
 
Heron Bommie, just outside the harbour is one of the islands signature dives. The consistent currents around the 5-10 m coral heads attract thousands of fish from small to very big. Diving here is never boring.  We saw schools of jacks, circling rainbow runners, a large green turtle and countless colourful reef fish. There is hardly a dive without turtles on Heron Island.  At Coral Grotto we were greeted by a Manta Ray gently “flying” past. The coral life is varied and healthy. Some dive sites still recover from storm damage sustained 5 years ago when cyclone Larry left its mark. Still, the marine life is thriving! The channel between Heron Island and Wistari reef compresses the tides into constant currents which provide plenty of nutrients to all marine life around. The deeper parts of the channel are hunting grounds for the big stuff: sharks, rays, barracudas can be watched here.
The dive boats easily cater for up to 20-24 divers each. All dives are guided, experienced divers and snorkelers are well catered for. Together with the Coral Sea and the Ribbon Reefs, Heron Island is a must see experience for any diver visiting Australia.

On the island thousands of seabirds can’t be overheard. Their distinct calls tell of their daily life on the island. Protecting chicks, nesting places, relationships… all is accompanied by their decisive songs and screeches. The turns, rails, mutton birds and seagulls create a soothing background score of Heron Island. The birds for sure use certain aspects of the resort to their advantage.
 
Heron Island Eco Resort is located right in midst this display of nature. It features various grades of comfortable accommodation, an excellent restaurant, the Aqusoul spa, an activity center and a big marine center. In the restaurant 90% of only seafood served is sustainably caught according to the sustainable seafood guide by AMCS (Australian Marine Conservation Society).
Families, honeymooners as well as nature lovers and hardcore divers all find their favourite niche on Heron Island. Center stage is the unparalleled nature experience.
 
Guided bird walks or reef walks on the outgoing tides are a must for all visitors. Scuba divers can choose from three scheduled boat dives daily. Up to 30 dive sites are within 10 minutes reach of the jetty. Or just grab a mask and snorkel and discover the beautiful inhabitants of the tropical coral reefs. Snorkeling off Heron Island is so easy and really outstanding, it is one of the unique places where snorkeling is as good as diving.
 
One definite highlight for all visitors is to just watch the sharks and rays patrolling the shallow waters of the sea from your room, the pool or the jetty.
 
Would we go back? In an instant! Not only for the diving, but also for the great resort, the friendly staff and the topside nature experience which make Heron Island a unique gem on the Great Barrier Reef.
 
Heron Island Dive Festival 5-11 September
Heron Island is celebrating its status as one of Australia’s top dive destinations with the launch of the Dive Festival. A perfect time to visit and explore the fantastic diving available:

+ photo shoot out as part of the ODEX underwater festival
+ prizes to a total value of $ 100.000 to be won.
+ Presentation by diving legends
+ great food, service and diving.

 3 night package from AUD 908/person (triple share)
5 night package from AUD 1464/person (triple share)
7 night package from AUD 1979/person (triple share)

Includes: Turtle Room triple share, 2 Dives Daily (per diver booked), 3 meals daily, return launch transfers from Gladstone, tanks and weights.
Check our Heron website for details

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Posted in - Dive Resorts, Dive Travel, Trip Report | No Comments »

Are Fish Dumb?

Mar 28th, 2011 by

Image courtesy of http://all.worth1000.com/artists/ManoleJrA study at Muluk in PNG reveals that fish may not be as dumb as most people think. Scientists have measured how close a diver can get before fish take flight in protected and non protected fishing areas. The research showed that “Inside protected areas, the fish tended to move off when the diver closed to within 2-3 metres of them. However those outside the protected zone, where hunting was common, mostly fled when the diver came within 4-5 metres of them.”

– http://www.labspaces.net/109701/Fish_know_to_avoid_the_spear

Muluk is on the eastern side of Karkar Island in Madang province,

(Latitude: 4 39′ 0 S, Longitude: 146 4′ 0 E)

Source: “PNG Gossip Newsletter”

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3 New Species of Reef Fish Discovered in Raja Ampat

Mar 4th, 2011 by

Raja Ampat’s biodiversity never fails to astound. Three new species of reef fish were discovered at Misool Eco Resort by Dr Mark Erdmann during Fish Geek Week, February 11-18th 2011. This brings the total number of identified species in Raja Ampat up to 1414. Wow! Mark found 2 new cardinal fish from different genuses, Siphamia and Apogonichthyoides. The 3rd was a type of Ptereleotris dartfish.
 
 Mark also recorded 5 species of reef fish never before seen in Raja Ampat, and perhaps most exciting of all, identified 3 species of Flasher Wrasse on our House Reef. For those of unfamiliar with their antics, these tiny wrasses are usually rather drab in appearance. Just around sunset, the males start their impressive courtship number. In the space of milliseconds, they transform themselves from pedestrian little reef dwellers into spectacularly flamboyant fellas. Quite a strategy to get the ladies’ attention, but it seems to be working!

The flasher wrasses identified on Misool Eco Resort’s House Reef were Paracheilinus cyaneus (pictures at left), Paracheilinus nursalim (found only in Misool and Kaimana), and Paracheilinus filamentosus.

To celebrate all this gorgeous bidiversity, Misool Eco Resort held raffle on the last night of the trip. All the proceeds were collected to support the local Ranger Patrol, which enforces the boundaries of their newly expanded 1220 sq km No-Take Zone. They managed to raise over 2000 Euros! And one lucky winner won a free trip to Misool Eco Resort. Congratulations, Michael and Alison!

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Posted in - Dive Resorts, Marine conservation, Uncategorized | No Comments »

Dive Raja Ampat & the Banda Sea with Valerie Taylor!

Mar 4th, 2011 by

Join dive legend Valerie Taylor on an exciting trip combining the best of Raja Ampat and the Banda Sea from 15-27 April this year.

Valerie Taylor with hawksbill turtle

Valerie and her husband, Ron Taylor pioneered underwater photography and filmmaking in Australia and around the world.

Film and TV credits include Shark Hunters, Blue Wilderness, Blue Water, White Death, The Wreck of the Yongala, Shadow over the Reef, Shark Pod, the TV series Barrier Reef and Taylors’ Inner Space, footage for Jaws, Orca, Blue Lagoon, Return to the Blue Lagoon, the National Geographic film Sharks, as well as numerous education films and footage for many dramatic feature films and documentaries, including the Blue Wilderness series.

Two films about Valerie and Ron’s lives include Sea Lovers, In the Realm of the Shark, and Shadow of the Shark.

Honors awarded to Valerie Taylor include:

  • NOGI award for Arts (1981) from the Underwater Society of America
  • Rider of the Order of the Golden Ark by His Royal Highness, Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands (1986) for her work in Marine Conservation;
  • American Nature Photographer of the Year award (1997) sponsored by National Geographic, Kodak, and the American Press Club;
  • Honoree in the American Women Divers Hall of Fame (2000);
  • Centenary Medal (2001);
  • Australian Senior Achiever of the Year (2002);
  • Patron of the Marine Division of the National Parks Association of New South Wales;

Joint Awards and honors to Valerie and Ron include:

  • Gold Palm Award (1998) at Antibes Underwater Festival for their book Blue Wilderness
  • Jury Award (1997) at Antibes Underwater Festival for Shark Pod
  • Members of the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame (2000), Cayman Islands;
  • Serventy Conservation Award (2002) from the Wildlife Preservation Society of Australia;
  • Lifetime Conservation Medal (2008) by the Australian Geographic Society.

Due to a cancellation, eight berths are available for this wonderful opportunity to sail and dive with Valerie Taylor in Raja Ampat and the Banda Sea! Prices on request!

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Posted in - Liveaboard Dive Cruises, Dive Travel, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »

The Australasia Challenge: u/w shootout

Feb 14th, 2011 by

Join the “Australasia Challenge” – at the 5th Underwater Festival 2011

Over 100.000,00 AUD worth of prizes to be won!

What: Go diving and take pictures
When: 2-11 Sep 2011
Where: Anywhere in over 20 Australasian countries or at one of the designated “fringe” events

The Underwater Festival 2011 will be the biggest one yet. It will be lots of fun and activities. Many dive operators are offering special “Underwater Festival Fringe Events” anything from photography workshops with Photo & Video Pros to photo shootout competitions, is available!

Entrants do not have to participate in Fringe Events, they simply can go diving and shoot with a buddy, the dives can be anywhere in over 20 countries as long as they are diving during the designated shootout days 2 to 11 September 2011. Your favourite backyard dive, a fancy trip to a dive resort you always wanted to go, one of the many Festival Fringe Events that will be offered, the choice is yours. The aim is to make it possible for anybody with any budget to participate.

The organisers want people to feel that they are part of creating a snapshot of the underwater beauty but also the issues of our amazing region have lots of fun. The social aspect of the Underwater Festival has always been an important element of the event and by spreading the shootout part of the festival over a larger region, much of the socializing on the large scale will take place during the associated dive & travel trade show ODEX in Brisbane (7-9 October 2011). Here it is where the whole festival will come together to showcase and celebrate its achievements.

Fringe events are happening all over Australasia as part of the Underwater Festival 2011
To name a few of the Fringe Events which we feature in our program:
Australia: Heron Island, Spoilsport, Cocos Keeling and Christmas Islands.
Fiji: Matava Resort
Indonesia: Gangga Island Resort
Yap: Manta Ray Bay Resort
Palau: Fish’n Fins
Philippines: ABWonderdive
PNG: Tawali Resort

These 25 countries are part of Australasia for this competition:
Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, Cook Islands, East Timor, Fiji, French Polynesia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Federated States of Micronesia, Myanmar, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Tonga, Vanuatu, Vietnam.

For more information, check out:

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Posted in - Dive Resorts, - Liveaboard Dive Cruises, Dive Shows, Dive Travel, U/W Photography | No Comments »

Thai coral bleaching update

Jan 25th, 2011 by

There are many rumours floating on the state of the diving in Thailand. We received this update from our partners MERMAID in Thailand

  1.  There was a coral bleaching that hit Malaysia and Thailand in May/June 2010. It did not go as far as Burma nor the Andaman Islands India.  
  2. Shallow water hard corals down to about 15 metres on fringing reefs have been affected (fringing reefs are reefs around islands )
  3. It has not affected  Soft Corals and has not significantly affected  the granite boulder sites – which the Andaman Sea diving are famous for. eg Richelieu Rock has barely been touched at all and is as awesome as ever ! 
  4.  The Thai Government has decided to close some reefs and we applaud their efforts to help protect the reef            a.       They have closed approximately 18 dive sites all along the coast of west Thailand (only 2 sites in Similans have been closed) - there are more than 30+ dive sites in the Similans.  There are many good dives to replace this. 
    b.      A number of shallow water bays around Surin Island have been closed – these were not on Mermaids itineararies 
    c.  No sites of our Hin Daeng/Hin Muang trips have been closed 
  5. Our guests are coming back from their trips with big smiles and great reviews, having had an excellent trip with Mermaid Liveaboards our super service crews, yummy foods, fabulous boat and of course, great diving.

Summing up, the bad news is that the bleaching is significant, that dive sites have been closed by the government to protect the reefs. The good news is that the government is acting and that our preferred liveaboard operators have still plenty of exciting healthy dive sites to choose from.
We can confirm the excellent client feedback from recently returned clients.

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Posted in Dive Travel, Marine conservation | No Comments »

Heared of Divo?

Jan 2nd, 2011 by

DiVo (short for Dive Voluntourism) is an Australian-based non-profit network whose aim is to bring active marine conservation participation to the recreational scuba diving market.

DiVo identify marine conservation groups whose activities are suited to the . Divo identfies conservation programmes where recreational dive tourist can participate. This way, more recreational divers get introduced to marine conservation and research.

The ”dive voluntourist” will have a dive with a difference to make a difference.

In December 2011 they have a 7 day programme with the LIZARD ISLAND RESEARCH STATION For a full week you can join scientists to conduct a survey of the reef life  on the Great Barrier reef near Lizard island.
Date : (10-17 December 2011).
Cost AUD 3.000.00
Check the DiVo website for more information or send us an email: info@diversiondivetravel.com.au

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Where is Tingwon Island?

Oct 20th, 2010 by

You maybe excused if Tingwon is not part of your standard Geography.
You can find the real answer by joining this trip organised by Lissenung Island Resort in Papua New Guinea.
 - or you can cheat and scroll to the bottom :)

9-day/8-night Exploratory Trip,
Tingwon Island, 21-29 May 2011 

During this 9-day trip, we will visit areas rarely if ever dived. Accommodation will be at Lissenung Island Resort and at the guest house at Tingwon Island, west of New Hanover. We will take our dive boat to explore some new dive sites and visit some other sites that we know are very good, but rarely have the chance to dive. Weather depending these may include Chapman’s Reef with its resident Giant Groupers or a ship wreck and a Midget Submarine at New Hanover.   

Sample 9-Day Itinerary: 
Day 1:  · Arrival at Kavieng and transfer to Lissenung Island · Overnight at Lissenung Island Resort 
Day 2:  · 2 boat dives on some of Lissenung’s famous dive sites such as Albatross Passage, Helmut’s    Reef as well as exploring some new sites · Night Dive at Lissenung Island · Overnight at Lissenung Island Resort
Day 3: · 2 boat dives on some of Lissenung’s famous dive sites such as Planet Channel, Byron Strait as    well as exploring some new sites · Night Dive at Lissenung Island · Overnight at Lissenung Island Resort 
Day 4: · Depart for Tingwon Island. We will drive to the west coast of New Hanover and then make the    crossing to Tingwon. The boat ride over will take approx. 3.5 hours · 2 boat dives, one along New Hanover and one at Tingwon Island · Overnight at Tingwon Island Guest House 
Day 5:  · 2 boat dives around Tingwon Island where we will explore some new reefs · Overnight at Tingwon Island Guest House 
Day 6: · Depart for Lissenung Island with 2 boat dives, one at Tingwon Island and another one    somewhere along New Hanover · In the afternoon, return to Lissenung Island Resort · Night Dive at Lissenung Island · Overnight at Lissenung Island Resort 
Day 7:  · 2 boat dives on some of Lissenung’s famous dive sites such as Albatross Passage, Helmut’s    Reef as well as exploring some new sites · Night Dive at Lissenung Island · Overnight at Lissenung Island Resort 
Day 8: · Rest day · If you are flying at lunchtime tomorrow, possibility for 2 more boat dives · Overnight at Lissenung Island Resort 
Day 9: · Depart Lissenung Island Resort or stay on for some more awesome diving! (Normal accommodation and diving rates apply!)  

This is a sample itinerary only and it is subject to change without notice, depending on weather conditions. Satellite phone, Oxygen and First Aid equipment and spare parts kit are on board the dive boat. Please note that the guest house visited might be very basic. However, the experience you will gain during this trip will be very much worth the effort!

Cost: A$ 3,159.00 per person in twin/double accommodation 

Inclusions: 
Return flight from Cairns to Kavieng on Air Niugini · 6 nights accommodation in a double/twin room with private facilities at Lissenung Island Resort · 2 nights accommodation with share facilities at Tingwon Island guest house · Return airport transfer · All meals · 6 days with 2 boat dives per day · Tanks, weights, dive guide, snacks onboard dive boat · Complimentary shore diving on Lissenung House Reef · Complimentary night dives on Lissenung House Reef · Complimentary “sun-downer” wine · Complimentary image downloading and CD/DVD burning · Complimentary Lissenung Island and New Ireland DVD · Complimentary Lissenung Island Resort T-Shirt  
Minimum 4 divers, maximum 6 divers Single rates and rates for non-divers on request  
 

Please inquire with us for more information and package rates from other cities then Cairns

Tingwon Island is a small island of New Hanover in Northern Papua New Guinea. It is inhabited by local Island people and rarely get’s overseas visitors.  Check it out on Google maps: http://goo.gl/maps/olK9

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Posted in # Fly&Dive Packages, - Dive Resorts, Dive Travel, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »

Philippines: Family Diving Trip August 2011

Aug 6th, 2010 by

We are now offering families the opportunity to join the Siren Fleet in the South Visayas, Philippines during in August 2011.

This trip is dedicated to families who up until now may have been put off joining such a trip. The trip will allow both parents and their children to dive together (dependant on age and qualifications), to try scuba diving if not qualified and to enjoy many other activities. We have kayaks, water skiing, wakeboarding, treasure hunts, visits to stunning beaches and much much more. On board the yacht children will be able to eat healthy but favourite and familiar food such as burgers, fish fingers and more. Soft drinks are included in the price. We have many films that kids love such as Disney films and these can be viewed on each cabins personal computer or in the saloon on the large plasma screen whilst enjoying pop corn.

The dates are:
3rd August to 13th August 2011 – South Visayas on the Philippine Siren.

Price per adult (16years and over) 2,400 Euro (~ AUD 3,499.00)
price per child (up to 15 years) 1,200 Euro  (~ AUD 1,74900)
(when accompanied by full paying adult).
Please note: Children are only charged if they require a bed for themselves. If they are at an age where they do not need a bed there is no charge.

Special features of the family trip include:
Nannies to look after children.
Baby cot if required*.
Children’s size snorkeling equipment*.
Specially catered children’s menu.
Fancy dress pirate night with prize for best dressed (make the crew walk the plank).
Fun but educational talks on the marine environment.

* = Limited numbers. Cot should be ordered at time of booking. It is advised parents purchase their child(rens) snorkel equipment prior to the trip to ensure a perfect fit.

PS: If liveabords are not your family’s thing – the Philippines have a wide range of great dive resorts which are perfect for an fun, affordable family dive vacation, with excellent diving. Please ask our consultants for details

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