News
Regaldive voyages into Palau
As a result of increasingly high demand for liveaboards, UK based diving holiday specialist Regaldive has expanded its collection with the addition of the S/Y Palau Siren. Allowing divers to make the most of the world-class diving on offer in Palau, the boat offers three itineraries, each of which include the unique chance to snorkel in Jellyfish Lake – as featured by the winner of the 2013 Guardian’s Readers’ travel photograph competition. What’s more, to celebrate the exciting new launch, Regaldive has discounted one of the first departures by a huge £338 per person*.
The seven night Palau Islands itinerary, which is currently discounted by £338*, offers the opportunity to explore some of the finest diving in Palau. Undertaking up to 22 dives including four night dives, customers will discover a wide range of sites including the Ulong Channel – a drift dive and one of the best dives in Palau; Blue Corner – home to steep sheer walls and fierce currents; Iro Maru wreck – a Japanese oil supply ship which was sunk during World War II, and Shark City – the name of which speaks for itself. The 4th June 2014 departure has been discounted in celebration of the launch and now costs from just £1,995 per person, to include full board boat accommodation, most drinks, three to four boat dives per day, air/nitrox tanks and weights. Flights are not included but can be arranged through Regaldive.
The 10 night Palau Islands itinerary allows a more in-depth exploration of the sites visited in the seven night itinerary. Divers will have the opportunity to take up to 33 dives including five night dives. Costing from £3,208 per person, the liveaboard includes full board boat accommodation, most drinks, three to four boat dives per day, air/nitrox tanks and weights. Flights are not included but can be arranged through Regaldive.
Alternately, for divers who want to combine the best of the Philippines and Palau, the 13 night Philippines and Palau Combo itinerary does just that. Dividing their time between the S/Y Palau Siren and the S/Y Philippine Siren, divers will log up to 42 dives, including seven night dives, wreck dives and drift dives. Liveaboard highlights include Pescador Island where divers can swim amongst schools of sardines, thresher sharks and giant frogfish, and Blue Corner – one of Palau’s most famous dive sites. Costing from £3,565 per person, the liveaboard includes full board boat accommodation, most drinks, three to four boat dives per day, air/nitrox tanks and weights. Flights are not included but can be arranged through Regaldive.
The new S/Y Palau Siren offers spacious accommodation for 16 guests. The boat benefits from en-suite double and twin cabins, a comfortable indoor lounge, cocktail bar, outdoor dining area with ever changing views and an uncovered sun deck. Divers making the most of their time above the water can also make the most of the yacht boutique, massage service and kayaks available for customer use, offering plenty to keep them entertained round the clock.
Andreas Elia, Managing Director of Regaldive, commented “We’re very excited to be welcoming the S/Y Palau Siren to our already popular collection of liveaboards. It’s no surprise that liveaboards are in such high demand – with so many fantastic dive sites located far off the shore and so many dedicated divers eager to explore them, liveaboards make for a very popular option with our customers”.
He continued, “Over the next few months we are looking forward to expanding our liveaboard collection even further with the addition of the Fiji and Truk Siren. The details are still under wraps, but watch this space – more information will be coming shortly!”
For further information or to book visit www.regaldive.co.uk or call +44 (0)1353 659 999.
Free Octopus with every purchase of a SCUBAPRO regulator system
Just in time for the spring season, divers can save money with the FREE OCTOPUS SPRING PROMOTION! Until July 31st SCUBAPRO offers an Octopus for free
with every purchase of a regulator system!
Get a free S270 OCTOPUS with purchase of these combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with A700
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with S620Ti
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with D420
MK25 EVO Din mit S620Ti-X
Get a free R105 OCTOPUS with purchase of the following combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with G260
MK25 EVO or MK17 EVO with S600
SCUBAPRO offers a 30-year first owner warranty on all regulators, with a revision period of two years or 100 dives. All SCUBAPRO regulators are of course certified according to the new European test standard EN250-2014.
Available at participating SCUBAPRO dealers. Promotion may not be available in all regions. Find an authorized SCUBAPRO Dealer at scubapro.com.
More information available on www.scubapro.com.
Jake Davies boards Ghazala Explorer for an unforgettable Red Sea diving experience…
Overnight, the wind picked up, making the planned morning dive a bit bumpy on the Zodiacs to the drop point on Thomas Reef. There, we would dive along the reef before descending through the canyon and then passing under the arch before ascending the wall with a gentle drift. The site provided great encounters with more pelagic species, including shoals of large barracuda, tuna, and bigeye trevally.
Once back on the boat, it was time to get everything tied down again as we would head back south. This time, with the wind behind us, heading to Ras Mohammed to dive Jackfish Alley for another great gentle drift wall dive before then heading up the coast towards the Gulf of Suez to moor up at the wreck of the Thistlegorm. This being the highlight wreck dive of the trip and for many onboard, including myself, it was the first time diving this iconic wreck. I had heard so much about the wreck from friends, and globally, this is a must on any diver’s list. Fortunately for us, there was only one other boat at the site, which was a rarity. A great briefing was delivered by Ahmed, who provided a detailed background about the wreck’s history along with all the required safety information as the currents and visibility at the site can be variable.
Kitting up, there was a lot of excitement on deck before entering the water and heading down the shoreline. Descending to the wreck, there was a light northerly current which reduced the visibility, making it feel more like the conditions that can be found off the Welsh coast. At 10m from the bottom, the outline of the wreck appeared as we reached the area of the wreck which had been bombed, as our mooring line was attached to part of the propeller shaft. Arriving on deck, instantly everywhere you looked there were many of the supplies which the ship was carrying, including Bren Carrier tanks and projectiles that instantly stood out.
We headed around the exterior, taking a look at the large propeller and guns mounted on deck before entering the wreck on the port side to take a look in the holds. It was incredible to see all the trucks, Norton 16H, and BSA motorcycles still perfectly stacked within, providing a real snapshot in time.
Overall, we had four dives on the Thistlegorm, where for all of the dives we were the only group in the water, and at times, there were just three of us on the whole wreck, which made it even more special, especially knowing that most days the wreck has hundreds of divers. Along with the history of the wreck, there was plenty of marine life on the wreck and around, from big green turtles to batfish, along with shoals of mackerel being hunted by trevally. Some unforgettable dives.
The final leg of the trip saw us cross back over the Suez Canal to the Gobal Islands where we planned to stay the night and do three dives at the Dolphin House for the potential of sharing the dive with dolphins. The site, which included a channel that was teeming with reef fish, especially large numbers of goatfish that swam in large shoals along the edge of the reef. These were nice relaxing dives to end the week. Unfortunately, the dolphins didn’t show up, which was okay as like all marine life they are difficult to predict and you can’t guarantee what’s going to be seen. With the last dive complete, we headed back to port for the final night where it was time to clean all the kit and pack before the departure flight the next day.
The whole week from start to finish on Ghazala Explorer was amazing; the boat had all the facilities you need for a comfortable week aboard. The crew were always there to help throughout the day and the chefs providing top quality food which was required after every dive. The itinerary providing some of the best diving with a nice mixture of wreck and reef dives. I would recommend the trip to anyone, whether it’s your first Red Sea liveaboard in the Red Sea or you’re revisiting. Hopefully, it’s not too long before I head back to explore more of the Red Sea onboard Ghazala Explorer.
To find out more about the Northern Red Sea reef and wrecks itineraries aboard Ghazala Explorer, or to book, contact Scuba Travel now:
Email: dive@scubatravel.com
Tel: +44 (0)1483 411590
Photos: Jake Davies / Avalon.Red
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