Buoyed by the success of 2017’s Blue Planet II, this March sees a new Blue Planet Live series arrive on BBC One.

Hosted by Chris Packham, Steve Backshall and Liz Bonnin and coming live from the Bahamas, Australia’s Great Barrier Reef and the USA’s east coast, the week-long show will take viewers to the depths of the world’s oceans bringing them closer to the marine world than ever before. Here’s a couple of trips from specialist dive tour operator Dive Worldwide inspired by the forthcoming programme.

BAHAMAS

The Bahamas is a diver’s paradise with over 1,000 regularly-visited sites offering pristine reefs, a multitude of exciting wrecks, spectacular walls, blue holes, caves and the chance to dive with dolphins and sharks. Just outside cosmopolitan Nassau, guests stay at Orange Hill Beach Inn, set on a hilltop overlooking the ocean, just 50 steps from a white sandy beach. Accommodation comprises 32 rooms, ranging from cosy studio rooms to a spacious cottage complete with kitchenette. Facilities include a swimming pool and small restaurant and bar. Diving is with world-renowned Stuart Cove’s Dive Centre and includes six days’ diving, guests will look out for the James Bond wrecks and Caribbean reef sharks as well as Nassau grouper. This is a great destination for divers of all abilities, as well as non-diving partners.

Price: from £1,875pp sharing, including 7 nights’ room only accommodation, return flights from the UK, 6 days diving (12 boat dives), and tanks and weights.

AUSTRALIA

Stretching over 3,000km off the coast of Queensland, the Great Barrier Reef is one of the natural world’s most remarkable, and threatened, structures. Explore the very best of the Reef on this luxurious liveaboard adventure, departing from Cairns. The first stop is the Ribbon Reefs, a collection of coral reefs well beyond the reach of day boats where, at the famous Cod Hole, divers come face-to-face with huge groupers. Two days are spent in the remote Coral Sea, where there are incredible shark encounters, including with hammerhead, and plunging drop-offs down to 1,000m. The trip ends with a final day on the Barrier Reef, with the possibility of heading to Bougainville Reef, home to impressive caves, canyons and the wreck of the Antonio Tarabocchia.

Price: from £2,275pp sharing, including 7 nights’ full board liveaboard accommodation, 26 dive package, tanks and weights and transfers from Cairns. International flights extra.

For further information contact Dive Worldwide via www.diveworldwide.com or telephone 01962 302 087.