The world's best scuba diving resorts 12/12/2011

SCUBA DIVING HOLIDAYS: THE BEST DIVING RESORTS IN THE WORLD
 
Scuba divers looking for a luxury all inclusive diving holiday should consider visiting one of our recommended diving resorts. Staying at a dedicated diving resort is the best way to really make the most of a diving vacation, as you can enjoy unlimited scuba diving in a picture perfect setting, with exceptional food and service.
 
Here is our selection of the top 5 diving resorts in the world.
 
Wakatobi Diving Resort, Indonesia
 
This award-winning luxury eco dive resort is situated in Southeast Sulawesi in Indonesia, an area known for its exceptional diving. The diving resort offers fantastic service, accommodation and food in a remote and tranquil setting. Wakatobi is best known for its amazing shore diving, thanks to its very own pristine reef, which runs for three miles along the coast next to the diving resort. The dive team also offer a boat service that will take divers to one of over 40 dive sites that the resort uses. Wakatobi has recently pioneered an innovative type of diving, ‘Fluo-diving’. This new dive style allows divers to see coral reefs and their inhabitants in an extraordinary way, thanks to underwater fluorescent beams. Wakatobi dive resort has a unique conservation program, which has ensured not only that its reefs are not declining, but that they are actually flourishing. The diving here is without a doubt some of the best in the world.
 
 
Barefoot Cay Diving Resort, Roatan, Honduras
 
Honduras and its surrounding islands have long been considered one of the best places for scuba diving in the world. Barefoot Cay is situated on the island of Roatan, about 30 kilometres away from the mainland. This luxury diving resort has just 9 high quality boutique accommodations, allowing guests to enjoy serenity, privacy and seclusion. The diving resort offers visitors excellent service, top class amenities and superb food. Barefoot Cay has its own PADI 5-star dive centre, Barefoot Divers. The dive school offers a full range of PADI scuba diving courses, in one of the world’s most idyllic diving locations. Roatan is surrounded by part of the second largest barrier reef in the world, making it a true diver’s paradise. Scuba divers can enjoy exceptional dive sites, with a wide variety of corals, sponges and marine life, including dolphins, sharks and whale sharks. There are caves, crevices, thousand-foot walls, the wreck of an aeroplane, and much, much more for divers to explore.
 
 
Hamanasi Adventure and Dive Resort, Belize
 
Hamanasi diving resort is one of the best places on earth to enjoy a luxury diving holiday. Nestled between the Maya mountains and the stunning turquoise Caribbean Sea, Hamanasi is perfectly situated to make the most of all that beautiful Belize has to offer. The diving hotel is an intimate boutique resort, situated on the beach to the south of Hopkins village, one of the best areas to dive in Belize. The staff are extremely friendly, and will go out of their way to ensure that your diving holiday in Belize is perfect. Hamanasi has its own PADI 5 Star Diving Resort, and offers regular diving trips to all the best local dive sites around the islands. The Hamanasi resort is known for more than just its excellent diving. Visitors can also partake in an exciting range of inland adventures, such as rainforest tours, caving, bird watching and horseback riding.
 
Sipadan Kapalai Dive Resort, Pulau Sipadan, Malaysia
 
This beautiful diving resort in Malaysia is situated a few minutes boat ride away from the islands of Sipadan and Mabul. The idyllic diving paradise is made up of a series of huts supported on stilts over the water. The resort has a sandbank made up of a mile of fine white sand, positioned next to crystal clear turquoise water. The dive resort is close to many excellent dive sites, which are home to a wide variety of interesting marine creatures. Kapalai is one of the best places for micro diving, whilst Sipadan is where to dive if you want to see big fish and turtles. Mabul is one of the top places in the world for ‘muck diving’. Sipadan offers diving enthusiasts a true paradise for an unforgettable diving holiday.
 
 
Nakia Resort and Dive, Taveuni Island, Fiji
 
Nakia Resort and Dive is one of the top-rated diving resorts in Fiji, and is perfectly situated to enjoy some of the world’s finest diving. The PADI dive centre at the diving resort offers the most comprehensive, safest and best-equipped dive service on the whole of Taveuni island. The dive masters are able to teach new skills to divers of all abilities. The scuba diving opportunities here are some of the best on earth, thanks to the narrow channel of the Somosomo Straits, which acts as a large funnel to deliver plankton and nutrients to the pristine reefs nearby. The waters around the Nakia Resort and Dive are home to 390 species of coral and over 1500 types of fish. Divers can expect to see sharks, tuna and barracuda, as well as hundreds of smaller creatures. This diving resort is noted for its warm, friendly atmosphere; its excellent food; and its top class accommodation for diving holidays.