Travel Agent - March 31, 2008 - (Page DS4) caribbean: Depths of Delight Awsome Adventures The islands of the Caribbean are renowned for their diverse array of cultures, attractions and geographical features, which make island-hopping such a popular pastime for travelers. Such diversity is not confined to the land, however — a fact to which experienced divers can attest and novice divers will delight in discovering. Following is a look at the underwater offerings of a selection of islands. For more information, visit www.caribbeantravel.com. Turks & Caicos Bonaire’s Bounty Continuing its reign as one of the world’s top dive destinations, the island of Bonaire was for the sixth year in a row rated the Top Caribbean/Atlantic Dive Destination overall in the 2008 Readers’ Choice Awards from Scuba Diving magazine [www.scubadiving.com]. Bonaire also received the #1 rating in five other categories: Top Shore Diving, Top Destination for Tourism Corporation Bonaire Beginners, Top Destination for Advanced Divers, Top Destination for Underwater Photography, Top less challenging in Bonaire than other Marine Life, and took second place in the destinations. category of Top Value. Bonaire is a worldIn 1997, Bonaire became Internaclass dive destination with a pristine marine tional Year of the Reef’s first partner in ecosystem and 100-foot visibility. There are the Caribbean to establish a compremore than 85 dive sites accessible from shore hensive plan dedicated to executing and another 24 off Klein Bonaire. The most a program of public education about popular wall dive is the 70-foot Carl’s Hill coral reefs, assessing the conditions of Annex; the most popular night dive is the coral reefs and collaborating with local 60-foot Small Wall. communities and other reef managers Bonaire is also an outstanding destinato develop and implement plans for tion for underwater photography. The great the use of irreplaceable reef resources. abundance and variety of colorful sea life on During that year Bonaire also hosted its reefs offers countless micro and macro the IYOR’s inaugural Dive Festival. subjects. In addition, calm seas and mild For additional information, visit currents make underwater picture-taking www.tourismbonaire.com/diving. BIG TIME IN THE BAHAMAS Top-rated for “Big Animal Encounters,” including shark diving and swimming with dolphins in their natural habitat, the Bahamas offers such unique dive sites as the mysterious Benjamin’s Blue Hole; Tongue of the Ocean, a deep canyon between New Providence and Andros; and numerous great snorkeling sites on Bimini, Eleuthera, Long Island, San Salvador, Walker’s Cay and other isles. Grand Bahama is home to the International Underwater Explorers Society [www.unexso.com], a valuable source of dive information. 4 DIVE SPECIALIST A TRAVEL AGENT UNIVERSITY PROGRAM http://www.caribbeantravel.com http://www.scubadiving.com http://www.unexso.com http://www.tourismbonaire.com/diving
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