|
Newsletter
/ May 2002
Online
HTML version (English) | Online
HTML Version (deutsch)
(Die
deutsche Version ist nur online zu lesen!)
G'day from Diversion Dive Travel,
Many exciting things have happened within our region and
in our company since we published the last newsletter. Here
are the topics of this mail out:
New
faces at Diversion Dive Travel:
 Ken
Edwards joined our reservations team in mid-2001. Ken is
an International Travel Consultant and PADI IDC Staff Instructor
who has dived extensively in Australia/Asia/The Pacific
and the Caribbean. For those of you from the USA, Ken will
even attempt to translate his replies into pounds, Fahrenheit,
feet & inches rather than that pesky metric system.
Check
out the rest of the
team
New
look webpage
After many, many long days and even longer nights, our new
webpage is on-line. Everyone in the DIVERSION office has
contributed to the huge task of getting all the information
up to date and into a readable format. This is a continuing
task, and we all take a lot of pride in what we write about
our dive destinations. Some of the text might sound familiar,
where the operators have helped us out with providing the
basic texts to describe their services.Let us introduce
some features:
 Full
Product Index
Here you find your boat/resort/ land tour hotel by name
or location.-
FAQ's for our
destinations - Does it rain in Kavieng in March
? Can I use my ATM card in Australia ? Will I need a special
socket to recharge my camera batteries ? All these plus
many more questions answered.
- FAQ's
particularly about diving - Will dives be guided
? Can I dive solo ? What wetsuit should I wear ? All these
plus many more questions answered here.
- New
thorough dive
training section - How many logged dives before
I can start my Rescue Course ? Can I teach as a Divemaster
? How many ocean dives do I get on my Open Water Course
? All these plus many more questions answered on Dive
Training page.
- Online
Travel insurance
section - Please don't forget to take out travel insurance
for your diving holiday. Travel insurance is strongly
advised for each and every journey.
- Planning
your trip section - Where do I start ? Here's
a guide.
Exciting
new dive products:
With the new webpage we have also broadened the scope of
dive destinations
on offer. Micronesia has been addes as an entirely new,
but exciting region and there are a number of new Australian
destinations to be checked out.
Detailed country/region and dive region Information about
all our destinations are a major component of the site:-
Can I see Nudibranchs in Milne Bay ? Where is Osprey Reef
? Each country/region has specific dive area/site descriptions.
Check out the Northern
Coral Sea in the Australian destination pages as
example.
Australia
Diversity
- sets a new standard among live-aboard dive vessels in
Far North Queensland. It is the feeling of space that
is most noticeable on-board Diversity (maximum 12 guests
only). She has been designed with special notice to giving
her visitors a sense of modern open-plan cruising. Based
out of Port Douglas, she's much closer to the Coral Sea
than most vessels.
 Lady
Elliot - Southern Queensland's "home of the
Mantas" has joined our program in 2002. A true eco-tourism
resort in every sense of the word, Lady Elliot will unwind
your modern-day stress and replace it with a sense of
living in harmony with nature. Leave your mobile phone
at home, it won't work here.
Cocos
Keeling/Christmas
Island West Australia - Ningaloo Reef's Whale
Shark have to travel through somewhere else first, right
? Blink and you could be in the Maldives. Well, the Maldives,
with 100 million red crabs for company. Isolated, pristine
and a genuine off-the-beaten track experience. Accessed
through Perth or even Jakarta.
Papua New Guinea
 Jais
Aben Resort - Madang's favourite dive resort is
ever-changing and always amazing. The massive project
of upgrading every bungalow with Air-Conditioning is almost
complete and the bar by the dive shop has been extended.
The specials are still in force for 2002.
Golden
Dawn - Remains PNG's only live-aboard vessel with
both rebreathers and Nitrox on-board. Stay away from the
crowds and go on a true live-aboard adventure to great
sites with professional, knowledgeable, fun crew.
Moonlighting
- Is the vessel for your small group charters of 6 and
less for remote area diving.
Dive cruises
on FeBrina - best time of the year - special
rate
We do have secured space on two exciting FeBrina Cruises
at the prime diving time for that region:
· 11-21
Oct 2002 10 nights
From/to
Walindi Destinations: Witu Islands and Father's Reef
·
13-23 Nov 2002 10 nights
From
Walindi to Kavieng, diving Kimbe Bay, Fathers Reef
and the Reefs around Kavieng.
US$2860.00/person cabins 3, 4
US$3060.00/person cabin 5 (with ensuite)
Solomons
The Civil unrest in the Solomon
Islands is well-documented. Solomon Airlines schedule
has become a victim of the state-of-flux in the region
and is changing regularly and without warning. Great patience,
time and flexibility is required for travellers to the
Solomon Islands at the moment. A combination of those
3 elements will still reward you with one of the dive
experiences in the SW Pacific.
If you have limited time and a schedule that can't be
altered without warning, then perhaps PNG can provide
you a more manageable schedule for your dive vacation.
Micronesia
Continental Micronesia now offers twice weekly direct
flights from Cairns to Guam connecting to all points in
Micronesia ( Yap, Truk, Palau, Kosrae, Majuro etc ) and
even further afield to Honolulu, Manila, Tokyo, Osaka
and Los Angeles
Trukstop
Hotel- For those of you who suffer seasickness
on live-boards,
or just prefer a land-based option and still would like
to experience the wonderful wrecks of Truk Lagoon, then
the Trukstop Hotel is for you ( don't miss the Hard Wreck
Café & Bar ).
Eclipse -
Ideal for a full boat charter, Eclipse offers a great
alternative to some of the larger "Dive, dive, dive"
live-aboards in Palau. If you're looking for a little
diving and a lot of relaxation, then Eclipse could be
exactly what you're after.
Other
Topics:
Malaria
- Papua New Guinea/ The Solomon Islands are malaria
zones. Please check with your physician or medical centre
on the type of prophylactic you should use and ask:
- Is
it compatible with diving?
- What
are the known side effects?
Make
sure you take the appropriate medications in time before
you start the trip. Medications which have proven to be
problematic include LARIAM. Medications which are popular:
Doxycycline, sometimes in combination with Maluprin.
New
advances have been made recently in anti-malaria drugs.
One such development is the drug Malarone,
very effective and with little side effects. Have a look
at their web-page ->
A good general source for information on Malaria comes from
the US
Department of Health
Anecdotal
evidence shows that homeopathic treatments, e.g. derived
from Chincona Bark, have been very successful as prophylaxis
without the nasty side effects of some pharmaceutical drugs.
Consult your local homeopath for details.
As always, the best preventative is not to get bitten by
covering up (particularly at dusk) and using repellents.
 Irikanji
stingers in North Queensland
Contrary to popular belief, the recent spate of stings from
the Irikanji jellyfish have NOT taken place in the main
live-aboard diving areas of the Great Barrier Reef. Most
of those stings have occurred on the inner reef, frequented
by day trip vessels or close to the coast.
Little is known about the Irikanji jellyfish, as it only
occurs in the North Queensland region during periods of
prolonged northerly winds. ( "Irikanji" is an
Aboriginal word meaning "from the north" ). As
the Great Barrier Reef area is subject to prevailing South-Easterly
tradewinds, it is not expected that the recent Irikanji
proliferation will continue.
Of course, if snorkelling/diving in the affected areas during
the summer months (September - April), it is always wise
to use a lycra skin or wetsuit for protection.
 Win
a dive trip competition
Please tell us what you think of our new webpage and you
might win a Dive Trip on the GBR on NIMROD EXPLORER.
(until 20 Jul 2002)
"Free
market" on the Reef
For a slightly different take on the structure of symbiotic
relationships on the Reef, New
Scientist report on an interesting approach. (courtesy
of New Scientist Magazine)
Specials
Please bookmark the following link for all the latest and
greatest specials.
You
are welcome to forward this newsletter to a friend or dive
buddy.
How
to subscribe
/unsubscribe
This Newsletter is hosted by Topica.
Just log in with your e-mail address and follow the menu
to change your subscription status
|
New
faces at Diversion Dive Travel
