Maldives liveaboard 2019

For the Underwater adventures dive club’s big trip next year we’re literately off to paradise with a dive trip to the Maldives to check out the best diving this Island nation in the Indian Ocean has to offer.
We will be flying out on the 15th November to Male before catching a seaplane transfer to the island where we will be picking up our amazing liveaboard ship which will be our home for the following week while we scuba dive some amazing coral gardens and dive deep down drop-offs and into currents to find the abundance of sharks and other pelagics which call the Maldives home.
We are hoping to see manta rays and whale sharks along with the reef sharks and hammerhead congregations which some of these Island are known for.

  

Itinerary includes;

DEPART FROM LONDON – HEATHROW                   21:30 15/11/2019             ARRIVE AT COLOMBO INTERNATIONAL 12:45 16/11/2019     Baggage allowance of 30kgs per person  
SRI LANKAN AIRLINES UL504 ECONOMY

DEPART FROM COLOMBO INTERNATIONAL          13:35 16/11/2019             ARRIVE AT MALE INTERNATIONAL            14:30 16/11/2019       
SRI LANKAN AIRLINES UL115 ECONOMY

•             7 nights onboard Emperor Voyager for 20 people in 8 x lower deck and 4 upper deck shared cabins with 3 meals a day, afternoon snacks, unlimited drinking water, tea & coffee, 6 days diving with a total of 17 dives (inc 1 night dive), guide, tanks & weights, free Nitrox, 1 BBQ dinner on uninhabited island (weather allowing), Male city tour (on request), all local taxes.

•             Return airport transfers.

•             ATOL (once flights are booked) and full financial protection.

Not included: Diving equipment, alcohol, soft drinks & juices, crew gratuities. 

 The trip we are doing is the ‘Best of the Maldives’

Rasdhoo Atoll:                   Hammerhead Dive, Beautiful Reef with Pelagics

North Ari Atoll:                  Grey Reef Sharks, Maaya Thila Night Dive, Multiple Manta Cleaning Stations

South Ari Atoll:                  Whale Sharks, Beautiful Pinnacles

South Male Atoll:             Grey Reef Sharks, Eagle Rays, Other Pelagics, Beautiful Macro Wreck.

Vaavu Atoll:                        Beautiful channels with magical soft corals and pelagic delights. Action packed night dive with Nurse Sharks and others.

North Male Atoll:             Beautiful Pinnacles.
DEPART FROM MALE – INTERNATIONAL                 09:25  23/11/2019             ARRIVE AT COLOMBO INTERNATIONAL  11:20 23/11/2019
SRI LANKAN AIRLINES UL102 ECONOMY

 DEPART FROM COLOMBO INTERNATIONAL          13:05 23/11/2019             ARRIVE AT LONDON – HEATHROW            20:00 23/11/2019
SRI LANKAN AIRLINES UL503 ECONOMY

The cost for this once in a lifetime trip is just £2385 for club members and £2495 for non-members. (if you would like to join the underwater adventures dive click and take advantage of this trip discount which is almost a years dive club subscriptions anyway please click here for details)

To confirm your booking we will need £100 deposit now with another £400 to be paid in February with the remainder due 12 weeks before we go. If you would like more details of this trip or you would like to book your place, please contact Steve at underwater adventures on 07805045867 or use the contact us page by clicking here.

  

 

Dive trip to Cyprus
 
This Year the Underwater Adventures end of Season dive trip was to Cyprus to dive the wreck of the Zenobia which is said by many to be one of the best wreck dives in the world and it didn’t disappoint.

               

Our trip didn’t start off brilliantly with a delayed flight and a mix up with the transfers from the airport to our accommodation in Pissouri which lead to a bit of fun sorting out taxis for all 14 of us at 01:00 after a really long day but fortunately, that was the only thing to go wrong on what turned out to be a great holiday.
Out first days diving was spent doing a couple of shore dive at Cynthiana, a lovely little bay a short car ride from our accommodation, a couple of shallow dives just so everyone can get used to the conditions and how everything was working. The next days we had a bit further of a drive to the other side of the Island for another couple of lovely dives, this time a little deeper around the Island of St Georges which was surrounded by loads of life.

Our third day's dive was our first on the wreck of the Zenobia, the main reason we had traveled here. The boat ride was at most a 10-minute boat ride out from Larnaca and it was a big boat which was good seeing as we were sharing it with 4 other groups but good planning by our guides meant we dived the wreck without the hassle of being surrounded by the other groups.

               

First impressions of the wreck were literally “WOW”. This is truly an impressive wreck. Laying on its side in just over 40 metres of water and with its highest point at around 16 metres, you can see it as soon as you enter the water. We dropped down on to the stern section by the prop and made our way around the stern to check out the loading ramps and it was all full of life, and maybe a few too many divers.
Our second dive of the day was on the bow of the wreck from where we headed in through the cafeteria and on through a hallway to end up just above the cargo decks. Two excellent dives enjoyed by everyone.

Our penultimate days diving we went out of Limassol to dive two especially sunken wrecks put there in 2015 to attract more divers to the Island. These were the wrecks of the Costandis, a Russian trawler, and the Lady Thetis, a German Pleasure boat, both just over 20 metres in length and sitting in just over 20 metres of water and on our first dive we came across a very large grouper, proof that the Mediterranean still does have large fish.
You can check out the videos of these wreck dives by clicking on the links below (don’t forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel while you are there.
Video of the wreck dive on the Constandis
Video of the wreck dive on the Lady Thetis
 
               

For our final day's scuba diving, we were back at the Wreck of the Zenobia. Again the boat was busy but because the wreck is so large it seemed like we had the place to ourselves most of the time. Has a bonus on our first dive we came across a turtle who gave us the pleasure of a swim by at the end of our first dive.
Check out the Video of the Turtle here

Our second dive of the day and our last dive of the holiday was a penetration of the lift shaft and down into the cargo bay and to be honest, if I tried to explain what it was like here I wouldn’t be able to do it justice so please just take a look at these two videos from that one dive and enjoy the immenseness of the Zenobia Wreck 

Through the lift shaft
Into the hold



A big thank you to everyone who made the trip so enjoyable :-)


 

22 things your Scuba diving instructor didn't tell you (but probably wanted to...) 
 

                               



1) Everyone pees in their wetsuit – everyone, eventually (except your instructor of course!)

 

2) Yes, you have tan lines on your neck and hands from your suit but as long as that’s all that people can see when you are back at work it’ll look like you’ve been on Holiday, and don’t worry, those odd lines on your face will disappear in time but you wouldn’t get them if you didn’t overtighten your mask.

 

3) Waterproof makeup was intended to withstand a good cry and not scuba diving in a cold lake in the middle of England.

 

4) The person on the boat flashing the most certification cards and the newest equipment is usually that biggest **** on board.

 

5) You will be buddied with them, and they will be a nightmare.

 

6) Going on your first open water dive is scary, but it’s OK, your instructor and the rest of the dive team are there for you and they have done this a lot of times before and know what they are doing, well, most of the time anyway.

 

7) ‘This is my favourite site,' translates as ‘we come here ALL THE TIME because it’s close and easy.’

 

8) You won’t always see the shark/barracuda/scary marine inhabitant approach; but when it does have your camera ready otherwise, we won’t believe you.


                              


 
9) I do love night diving, but please don’t point your torch in my face when talking to me.

 
10) You should do the deep/navigation/DSMB course just so that I can have a break and do something different.


11) if you touch the wildlife you will be in my bad books for a very long time!
 

12) No, I don’t have a boyfriend/girlfriend.

 

13) ‘The last time I was here I saw a whale shark.’ translates as ‘I’ve scuba dived here hundreds of times, and my mate on the other dive boat new some who once said he saw a whale shark here.’

 

14) You are going to, at some point, flood a dive camera, drop a flashlight, get blisters from your fins, buy a leaky mask, it happens.

 

15) Diving is not for everyone; some people should remain on land yet some slip through the cracks, and…

 

16) See point five.

 
                              



17) If you do not listen to dive briefings and then mess up because of it, or repeatedly ask questions whose answers were in the briefing, then I will be very tempted to turn your air off.

 

18) Interfering in my dive course will get you thrown back in the water without your wetsuit; at least in my evil fantasies.

 

19) At some point you are going to have ear issues; equalization problems, ear infections, and burst eardrums are in your future.



20) The only way to guarantee you'll see a shark is to leave your camera on the dive boat.

 

21) Fish really are attracted to shiny jewellery.

 

22) I don’t care about your video clip from the last dive, but I will happily come to the bar and watch it if the beers are on you.