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Winning Trip: A blog from the Scubaverse holiday competition winner
When I opened an email from Scubaverse advising me I had won the Scubaverse diving holiday to Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei, little did I think that I would be on a Royal Brunei Airlines flight a mere eleven days later. Thanks to the efficiency of In Depth Tourism Marketing, my husband and I found ourselves enjoying a trip of a lifetime where everything had been organised for maximum enjoyment and minimum stress.
Our trip began with a night in Singapore. New to this city, we took the advice of the friendly Furama Hotel concierge and went to Clarke Quay for a Singapore Sling and a bite to eat. Singapore is fascinating: spotlessly clean, safe and vibrant, it comes alive at night when the skyscrapers light up the skyline.
Next morning’s transfer to Mersing in Malaysia was an enjoyable and comfortable car ride through palm oil plantations and jungle. Headed for Rawa Island Resort, by lunchtime we had arrived by boat and were enjoying a delicious buffet. Owing to its close proximity to agricultural land, Rawa’s dive sites do not enjoy the best visibility, but there is an abundance of soft corals and a plethora of marine life. It was encouraging to see entire families being taught to dive together by Orca Scuba, as it is very safe, relatively shallow and non-taxing diving. Orca Scuba also took us to wreck and coral reef dive sites by boat and shore dives around the jetty, but the best dives were actually shore dives at the north end of the island where there are even more corals. The dives with Orca Scuba were not part of the prize, but my husband and I were happy to pay for them ourselves.
After four nights on this tropical paradise, we returned to Mersing and were taken back to the Furama Hotel in Singapore. This time, armed with local knowledge gleaned from fellow divers, we headed straight to the Fullerton Hotel’s roof top bar “The Lantern”. Drinks here were not cheap, but we had the perfect viewing point for the Marina Bay Sands Hotel’s light and laser show, a sight I am glad we did not miss.
The next day we flew from Singapore to Brunei and, yet again, everything went smoothly and exactly to plan. Poni Divers in Brunei collected us daily for boat dives, and in two days we had dived three, coral-covered boat wrecks, an oil rig and a coral garden. The diving off Brunei is wonderful: colourful, full of life and with good visibility. Puffer fish, sting rays, huge shoals of fish and every type of coral are in abundance. I would thoroughly recommend adding Brunei to any diver’s wish-list of places to visit, especially as it is still relatively unknown and therefore in pristine condition.
The ten days we spent on holiday were spectacular! Thank you to Scubaverse, In Depth Tourism Marketing, Royal Brunei Airlines, The Furama in Singapore, Rawa Island Resort, Orca Scuba, The Radisson in Singapore, and Poni Divers in Brunei.
Lucy McCorkindale
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
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MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with A700
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MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with G260
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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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