Up-to-date list of "world's top scuba destinations" that are not "wiped out" yet?

[graham_s]

I'm going to throw Egypt into the pot.
Ignore the news reports, the trouble is largely in the north. The dive resorts are unaffected.
(Plus the Egyptian pound is falling at the moment, good deals are to be had)
I just came back from a 2 week holiday and loved every minute.
As for the diving,
Ras Mohammed national park, Tiran Island, SS Thistlegorm, you can find pretty much any type of dive you want here.
There are lots of good wrecks, reefs, wall dives, drift dives, nightlife, big marine life (Hammerheads, Dolphins, Mantas and Whale sharks) and lots of small stuff as well.

 

[Julieofthesea]

I can give the travel agency perspective here... Bali is indeed great diving and "other stuff."

The top destinations that we send people to recently are:

Indonesia: Raja Amapt, Komodo, Sulawesi
Philippines
Micronesia: Chuuk, Palau, Yap
PNG
Fiji

We have an extensive list of the best places on our website if you want to check it out.

 

[Bryan Cunningham]

Hi Miley

I am a Dive Travel Specialist, and can help you plan what you want. I agree that many dive destinations are just better advertised, not better diving. But then again, large populations and best diving do not co-exist. Run off from cities and hotel districts destroy reef, as do too many divers. This is not to say that your perfect dive destination does note exist.

South Africa. Although a long flight, it has a diversity of diving. You can start in Cape Town (one of the most beautiful cities in the world) but with good diving in False Bay nearby. You can move up the Garden route viewing whales and getting in some great white shark diving. Skip up to Durban and dive Aliwal Shoals just South (with the city of Durban just 40 minutes away). Finally head North to Sodwana Bay for great Reef diving and combine it with a big five game safari in the nearby HluHluwe-Umfonlozi game park (one of the oldest and best in Africa)

For other great diving destinations you have to go off the beaten track. There are destinations that offer good food and other activities, but you'll have to leave the "large populations" behind you.

Cheers,
Bryan
SCUBA DESTINATION DEALS - HOME

 

[Wingy]

I like Vladimirs list but would also add F. Polynesia - Rangiroa is worth every cent to get there for big stuff and shark and dolphin action. It's far enough away from the rest of the world for the rubbish of daily life not to wash up on its shores..in more ways than one. No nightlife or other activities but that's what tahiti, moorea and bora bora are for. Also Fakarava on next trip.
I find myself looking further and further afield because off mass tourism but have loved diving Papia New Guinea, West Sumatra, Bangka/Sauhong island just across from Lembeh..will be mined next year so there will be impacts, Similans, and while several have mentioned the great barrier reef, I prefer Ningaloo Reef.
Thailand always has some nice dive/activity tourism in low season for a cheap holiday.

 

[Doc]

Miley hasn't signed-on to :sblogo: in 50 days as of this moment.

She may be lurking under a bridge, using the previous 22 posts of input and typing "her" next article for Scoober Diving Magazine.

Just a guess.

 

[Miley Cyrus]

Oh no, please do continue... these are all really helpful suggestions. Hannah Montana is not evil, and definitely not a journalist!! Just got buried in lots of deadlines. Only seeking good ideas to make personal vacation plans... ok, now here's the complete spec. Sorry, thanks, but not interested in travel agencies, I prefer to personally make my own plans.

Diver 1: looking for extreme experiences, likes nature more than city life, will dive anywhere, all day, and every day... doesn't like to spend evenings eating, drinking, and lying on a couch in a hotel room, looking for alternative sources of enjoyment that involve plants, rivers, mountains, snake bites, running from a bear or from local folk, local culture, some sightseeing, etc.

Diver 2: deep love for diving conditional on the following: good hotels and excellent food, and lots of variety: people, places, some shopping, etc. definitely needs time to dry out, and rest, and will permanently wrinkle up, get upset, break apart, and collapse for the rest of the week if dragged into the boat every day, twice a day.

Diver 1 and Diver 2 are inseparable, looking to spend 90% of the time together.

 

[drrich2]

I've got a feeling something is going to have to give on your list of criteria. If nothing else, if he wants to dive all day, every day, and you need time to dry out, yet you want to spend 90% of the time together, you'd better dry fast or in your sleep!

People have put out quite a range of suggestions. How about looking at, oh, say, 3 of the most promising in detail & telling us what you think about them. Bali keeps coming up. How about that?

And how about a short live-aboard, followed by a land resort trip (with or without charter boat dive trips)? I ask since the Great Barrier Reef keeps coming up, with the outer reef in mind, and also they say Belize diving is best done by live-aboard, so your willingness to spend some time on a boat could be a factor.

Richard.

 

[danvolker]

Oh no, please do continue... these are all really helpful suggestions. Hannah Montana is not evil, and definitely not a journalist!! Just got buried in lots of deadlines. Only seeking good ideas to make personal vacation plans... ok, now here's the complete spec. Sorry, thanks, but not interested in travel agencies, I prefer to personally make my own plans.

Diver 1: looking for extreme experiences, likes nature more than city life, will dive anywhere, all day, and every day... doesn't like to spend evenings eating, drinking, and lying on a couch in a hotel room, looking for alternative sources of enjoyment that involve plants, rivers, mountains, snake bites, running from a bear or from local folk, local culture, some sightseeing, etc.

Diver 2: deep love for diving conditional on the following: good hotels and excellent food, and lots of variety: people, places, some shopping, etc. definitely needs time to dry out, and rest, and will permanently wrinkle up, get upset, break apart, and collapse for the rest of the week if dragged into the boat every day, twice a day.

Diver 1 and Diver 2 are inseparable, looking to spend 90% of the time together.

Hi Miley,
I am going to suggest Palm Beach County Diving….. First, the diving is world class….see
[video=youtube;BbppKZ3qxfk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbppKZ3qxfk&feature=share&list=UUsM5Za9Kc3 DbP7Qo3-Zmz9w[/video]
Considering the 2 interests, I would suggest the Marriott Resort and Spa On Singer Island.The Diveboats you would use are less than a mile away, and aside being a top 4 star hotel, they are evolving themselves into a Dive Resort Hotel this year—meaning that they will go out of their way to deal with the needs of divers. Special early breakfasts, box lunches if you want for the boat trip, if you need something, they will customize for it. Also a plus for this Resort, it is on an Island that does not feel at all like Florida, but much more like a tropical wilderness as you head north on the Island just a few hundred yards from the Hilton—where in fact you will reach John D. MacArthur Beach State Park , where you can be surrounded by a huge tropical mangrove forest. Great for hiking, great for Birding….



The best Birding will be on one of the Diveboat Birding trips run 4 p to sundown… Little Deeper is your best bet for this from the Marriott, or Splashdown if you want to try this in the Boynton Beach area.
For more adventure, there is a KAYAK or Canoe trip down the Loxahatchee River…The river has a dark canopy covering it, and winds along with the feel of a Amazon River trip. Amazing birds, aligators, and lots of excitement. It is about a 3.5 hour trip, and the Outfitter brings you back to your car at the end.

The Wild and Scenic Loxahatchee River - Canoe Outfitters of Florida


For Dining and Nightlife and Shopping, you will not find another World class diving destination in this hemisphere to compare to Palm Beach. Our food will be better, and the music, the clubs, the artsy-ness of the Entertainment Districts of Clematis ( Downtown West Palm) or Atlantic Ave( Delray) will be fun for you no matter how world traveled you are.


You can see alot more about diving Palm Beach at www.sfdj.com
Let me know if you want more on any of this.

 

[caribean-ted]

Oh no, please do continue... these are all really helpful suggestions. Hannah Montana is not evil, and definitely not a journalist!! Just got buried in lots of deadlines. Only seeking good ideas to make personal vacation plans... ok, now here's the complete spec. Sorry, thanks, but not interested in travel agencies, I prefer to personally make my own plans.

Diver 1: looking for extreme experiences, likes nature more than city life, will dive anywhere, all day, and every day... doesn't like to spend evenings eating, drinking, and lying on a couch in a hotel room, looking for alternative sources of enjoyment that involve plants, rivers, mountains, snake bites, running from a bear or from local folk, local culture, some sightseeing, etc.

Diver 2: deep love for diving conditional on the following: good hotels and excellent food, and lots of variety: people, places, some shopping, etc. definitely needs time to dry out, and rest, and will permanently wrinkle up, get upset, break apart, and collapse for the rest of the week if dragged into the boat every day, twice a day.

Diver 1 and Diver 2 are inseparable, looking to spend 90% of the time together.

never been but cayman islands has some nightlife and good diving
not over exciting but has something to do
the diving in cuba was nice havana quite the city and veradero very safe and beautiful beaches. i loved it stayed at the riu veradero. iberstar is there but good dives are couple hoursbaway. good and bad i guess in every location

 

[Miley Cyrus]

Thank you. Bali sounds quite exciting, but it looks like I may have to postpone faraway destinations until winter this time, I will likely need to cut this visit short :-(. People bring up Caribbean destinations and Cozumel, and I really like Caribbean for this summer because it is so close, but is the first week of July really a good time to go there? I am worried about bad weather ruining my plans... Grand Cayman appears to be in the hurricane belt. In fat, almost everything except Aruba is. People also seem to talk a lot about windy conditions closing dive sites, heat and humidity during this time. How bad is it, really? Which part of the Caribbean (and neighborhood) is a reasonably safe bet in the first week of July?