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Coral
reefs thrive in the seasonally calm and clear waters of the
Thai seas. There are a great variety of coral outcrops of
all shapes, sizes and colours extending over large areas.
Some grow to very impressive sizes, such as the spectacular
giant sea-fans.
Visibility
is also second to none. Visibility can extend as far as the
eye can see, particularly in the Andaman waters.
Accessibility
and travel time are also important considerations. The dive
sites around Thailand are within easy reach and are easily
accessible by air, by sea or overland by road and rail in
a matter of hours, rather than days. Most of the key diving
destinations around Thailand have decent service infrastructure
and offer a reasonable degree of comfort and convenience.
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are also a wide variety of dive products and packages
featuring beach dives, day dives, and live aboard options,
to meet varying needs and budgets. Ranging from budget
travel backpacking packages to top-end luxury products
such as the Dive Master Live-aboard packages, there
is extensive choice in the range and pricing of products
and services on offer.
Divers
consider the Thai sea to be a "friendly sea". Of moderate
depths ranging between 60-120 feet or 15-35 metres,
with moderate wind and wave conditions, there are no
extreme conditions. Thai seas are peaceful and diver-friendly.
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| The
best time to be in the Gulf of Thailand is between May
and September while the Andaman is at its best between
October and April. With access to one of the two locations
at various times of the year, snorkelling and diving
conditions are ideal all year round.
An
exotic culture, a nation of friendly people, the Thai
tradition of hospitality and impeccable service are
significant pluses adding to the natural appeal of the
dive destination and the dive experience itself. The
added luxury of Thai food and Thai massage offered on
live-board packages are just a few of the creative touches
incorporating a "Thai touch" that transforms a dive
trip or holiday into a total cultural experience. |
Please click to expand |
"Dive
industry standards in Thailand are based on internationally-recognised
standards. In recent years, industry operators have made significant
efforts to offer improved standards of facilities and services
and various conservation projects have been implemented. There
is a much higher level of state and private sector awareness
of environmental issues and increased participation and involvement
in initiatives taken to promote environmental protection and
conservation. For example, marine national parks are closed
as a pro-active measure to restore the balance of nature and
to allow nature to revive before irreversible environmental
damage and degradation occurs. The natural wonders are protected
while at the same time, they are accessible to those wishing
to explore the beauty of the world of the deep without upsetting
nature's delicate balance.
"Such
initiatives to achieve higher standards have also contributed
to an improvement in environmental quality, as well as the
quality of the destination and the service offered overall,
thereby increasing Thailand's attractiveness and competitive
edge as a dive destination.
"On-going
promotions by individual dive operators and publicity and
promotional campaigns by the Tourism Authority of Thailand
keep the international dive audience interested and well-informed
of the latest developments in Thailand's dive scene.
| The return of the Asia Dive Exhibition, ADEX, to Bangkok
in 2003 raised Thailand's visibility as a dive destination
within the local as well as international community and
continues to generate a high level of international interest
in Thailand as one of the world's finest dive destinations. |
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News
Room:
Your love of diving - how did it all start? What do you recall
about your first experience of diving and how did it lead
to the establishment of Dive Master?
Pornchan
- Dive Master:
"I was
not a particularly strong swimmer, but I've always loved the
sea. I loved going to the beach, and enjoyed jet-skiing, boating,
and snorkelling. I used to think to myself as I snorkelled
just how much more breathtaking the marine world would be,
if I could venture to greater depths. However, it wasn't until
I saw the divers feeding the sharks in the tank during a trip
to the Monterey Bay Aquarium that I became fascinated with
diving. I bought a book on diving which I read on the flight
back. By the time I arrived home, I had decided I was going
to learn to dive."
Pornchan
vividly recalls her first dive experience in Pattaya, eleven
years ago.
"Beyond
the magnificence of the underwater scenery, and the thrill
of the dive, you experience total physical freedom. A sense
of weightlessness as you 'glide' through the water. You have
to experience this yourself to truly appreciate what an exhilarating
(sensational) feeling it is.
"In those
days, just over ten years ago, when we went diving, we had
to plan the logistics of the trip and make travel arrangements
ourselves. We also had to travel overseas to either Singapore
or Hong Kong to purchase our dive equipment as the selection
in Thailand was very limited. So for convenience, and to serve
our own diving interests and needs, we set up Dive Master.
We soon discovered that the more we dived, the more we wanted
to share this tremendous experience with others. So as time
progressed, we began to offer more and better products and
services to others who shared in our diving interests." This
led to the steady expansion of Dive Master's operations."
News
Room:
How has your love for diving affected your personal outlook
on environment/environment-related issues and led to your
personal involvement in the preservation of the marine environment
and environmental awareness?
Pornchan
- Dive Master:
"As a
diver, I believe that diving increases your awareness of the
environment and leads to personal commitment to help preserve
the marine environment. Divers tend to be passionate, environmentally-conscious
individuals. Once you've descended to the depths and have
set eyes on its amazing underwater treasures, you instinctively
want to protect and preserve it for eternity. Divers opt to
pay for their diving lessons and they have to pay to go on
dive trips to be able to enjoy this natural beauty. So it
makes no sense whatsoever for divers to destroy the very thing
they venture out to admire. The increasing popularity of scuba
diving in fact contributes to a growing number of conservationists.
"While
it is true that, occasionally, divers and snorkellers do cause
some damage to the environment, the damage inflicted is, in
most cases, unintentional. Through their dive school environmental
awareness training, most scuba divers are highly knowledgeable
about the marine environment and tend to be natural conservationists.
In the case of snorkellers, especially those who are not strong
swimmers, it is quite possible that they are not as careful
and end up stepping on coral outcrops in an attempt to stand
or balance themselves.
"Knowledge
is vital to environmental conservation, and education is fundamental
to the process of promoting increased environmental awareness
and conservation. Not just for the divers and snorkellers,
but also for the local folk. Overall, incidents of vessels
dropping anchor near coral reefs, and illegal fishing with
the use of dynamite or cyanide, account for far greater destruction
to the marine environment.
"Prior
to diving, I viewed environmental conservation as being a
good thing, but felt somewhat detached from it. It was not
obvious to me what I had to do. Now that diving has become
my life and love, we're actively involved in various conservation
projects and related activities such the setting up of boat
mooring buoys around the islands of Phuket, Chumphon, and
Phang-nga, voluntary "Clean-Up the sea expeditions" in Phuket,
Trang and Pattaya, the WildAid whale shark conservation project
and other projects promoting the conservation of protected
and endangered species.
News
Room:
How have you translated your personal principles into operating
guidelines for the Dive Master operation?
Pornchan
- Dive Master:
"At Dive
Master, we are deeply committed to this education process.
We have incorporated Dive Master's "BE BEST" principle and
best practices into the course material. Our "BE BEST" approach
consists of 6 key elements.
- "B"
stands for "Beautiful. The ability to move gracefully in
the water.
- "E"
stands for Education. It is important to have sound knowledge.
- The
next "B" is for Buoyancy. The ability to dive or stay afloat.
- "E"
is for Environment.
In our environmental awareness classes, we emphatically
advocate "respect for the reef". Generally speaking, the
areas in which Dive Master operates have escaped the ravages
of the recent El Nino events, and still have an abundance
of fish, coral and other aquatic life. At Dive Master, we
are committed to ensuring that it stays that way.
As responsible divers, we need to try to minimise damage
to the environment we cherish. This is achieved by imparting
knowledge and providing information about marine life and
how to respond appropriately in this delicate environment.
For example, in our environmental awareness classes, we
stress that many of these life forms have taken hundreds
of years to grow, and can be killed by a single touch. So
we advise divers to try to avoid touching the reef at all
times.
- "S"
stands for Safety, and
- "T"
stands for "To be continued ."
The open-water dive is merely the beginning. Next is to
be able to dive for fun, and to be able to dive with a buddy,
dive safety and the ability to rescue others. To be able
to do all of this, an individual has to become an "Advanced
diver". In some cases, a diver will be required to present
certification for advanced dives before he or she is permitted
to dive at certain sites such as in the case of wreck dives.
Pornchan
feels very positively about the future of the dive industry
and praises the government for the introduction of new tourism
reforms, particularly the establishment of the Ministry of
Tourism and Sports and the Ministry of Natural Resources and
Environment with direct responsibilities for the management
and conservation of resources, bringing about increased stability
and continuity, and future promise for the industry.
The addition
of the "Dive" category to the 2002 Thailand Tourism Awards
presented by the Tourism Authority of Thailand, further reflects
a genuine commitment to raise (dive) industry standards in
service, safety, as well as in environmental preservation.
Pornchan
believes that there is still room for further sustainable
growth and development of the industry.
Dive Master
Co., Ltd. was started up in 1992 by a group of passionate
divers and diving instructors. Their ambition is to share
our passion with others by providing a complete set of diving-related
services to enable others to enjoy the magnificent underwater
world with ease, comfort and safety.
Dive Master
is a PADI 5 Star Diving Centre that offers a complete range
of Courses from Open Water Diver right through to IDC, a wide
range of diving equipment available in all colours and sizes
and can offer advise on what equipment you may need for the
type of diving that you like to do.
Diving
day trips are available to Pattaya and Koh Chang on the east
coast of Thailand which is close to Bangkok, as well as Phuket
in the South.
Live aboard
diving is becoming very popular and we have two fully equipped
live aboard boats that make regular trips to Similan, Surin,
Koh Tao, Burma, Andaman Islands, & Sipidan.
Contact
information:
Dive Master
E-mail: info@divemaster.net
Web site: www.divemaster.net
Phone: 66-2-259-3191
Fax: 66-2-259-3197
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Dive Master, the number one concern is safety. This
is reflected in the attitude towards on-boat safety
as well as in the dive planning.
SAFETY
ON-BOARD THE BOAT
- On
Dive Master 1, there are four 15-person life rafts
(double the number needed to safely evacuate all passengers
and crew), plus two tender craft which can also be
used for evacuation in the case of an emergency. On
Dive Master 2, there is a life raft for 25 persons,
plus a tender craft that easily accommodates 15 persons.
- In
case of power loss at night, there is emergency lighting
at ceiling level on the inside decks of the crafts.
- There
are also a large number of fire extinguishers located
at various points throughout the boat. Passengers
are asked to note each of the locations.
- On
the top deck, there are 2 life rings, with water-activated
lighting systems, for use in case of man overboard.
- The
vessels are equipped with the standard emergency location
and signalling devices, and a full complement of navigational
equipment, including backups.
- There
is also a lifejacket located under the bed.
- In
the event of an emergency, repeated blasts will be
made on the vessel's siren. Please don your lifejacket
and assemble on the upper deck for further instructions.
Please note that a BCD should not be used as a lifejacket
unless no alternative is available.
- Several
areas of the vessel are out-of-bounds for safety reasons.
However, a guided tour of any of these areas can be
made, upon request.
- The
vessels are equipped with a substantial first aid
kit, kept in the Saloon. Motion sickness pills and
O2 valves are also kept in the saloon. The saloon
is the only dry area on the boat.
- For
health and safety reasons, all inside areas of the
vessel are Non-smoking areas.
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DIVE
SAFETY
Both tender handlers have radio communication with the mother
ship. In addition, there is a CCTV (Closed-circuit television)
camera on the dive deck, linked to the wheelhouse, to ensure
that the vessel is not moving when divers are in the water at
the rear of the boat. There
is a large supply of emergency O2 onboard, together with both
a continuous flow and a demand valve delivery system.
Dive Master
has emergency evacuation insurance coverage* through the American
Insurance Group (AIG), and is a member of the Phuket Hyperbaric
Chamber Association.
Remarks
*Please note that there are some locations where it is impossible
to provide a rapid evacuation service. Individuals are also
recommended to ensure an appropriate level of personal insurance
coverage.
Dive
Master ©
All images © Dive Master |
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