Niche Markets

Diveheart To Hold Adaptive Scuba Diving Symposium in Conjunction with OWU Show 2012

(Dive Travel Business News - January 29, 2012) -- Diveheart will conduct its 3rd Annual International Adaptive Scuba Diving Symposium on February 17, 2012 , from 1 pm - 4 pm at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare, in the Hyatt Midway Room as part of the Our World Underwater Show in Chicago, Ilinois. Featured speakers include, Sara Klass (Director of Spinal Cord Injury Service, Shriners Hospital for Children), Dr. Richard A. Roller (Center for Hyperbaric Medicine, Duke University Medical Center) and Jim Elliott (President & Founder of Diveheart). The program is proudly Sponsored by Our World-Underwater, Midwest Dive News and Diveheart.

Founded in 2001, Diveheart Foundation is a non-profit tax exempt 501 (C) (3) national organization chartered in the state of Illinois. The purpose of Diveheart is to provide and support educational SCUBA diving and snorkeling experience programs that are open to any child, adult, or veteran with a disability with the hope of providing both physical and psychological therapeutic value to that person. read more »

Family Dive Adventures Announces 2012 Kids Sea Camp Schedule.

(Dive Travel Business - January 28, 2012) -- Kids Sea Camp has announced its Family Dive Adventure destinations for 2012: The list includes eight family-friendly dive holidays in Yap, Palau, Costa Rica, Grand Cayman, Galapagos, Bonaire, Utila and St. Vincent.

Kids Sea Camp gets kids excited about the ocean when they are young. Established by Dive Travel Pro Margo Peyton in 2001, the objective of Kids Sea Camp is to promote an awareness of marine related issues, with a strong focus on conservation. During Kids Sea Camp, students enjoy multiple activities and the enthusiasm of a staff dedicated to teaching new and fun things about the oceans with both education in a classroom environment as well as hands-on programs that teach age appropriate curriculum.

The Kids Sea Camp Line-Up for 2012 is: read more »

Boston Sea Rovers Show Attracts Non-Diving Friends and Family.

(Dive Travel Business News - January 27, 2012) -- The upcoming Boston Sea Rovers Show, to be held at the CoCo Key Hotel & Water Resort in Danvers MA on the weekend of March 10-11, has created many incentives for attendees to bring along non-diving friends and family. read more »

Dive Within - A Week-long Retreat Combines the Synergies of Yoga and Diving

(Dive Travel Business News - January 19, 2012) -- The Dive Cooperative, a dive operation and training academy in Cozumel on a mission to bring a higher consciousness to diving, is launching an innovative new retreat entitled "Dive Within". This unique 7-day program brings together the synergies of scuba diving and yoga in an integrated program that allows for exploration of many aspects of day-to-day life.

Meditation, breathing and visualization exercises will help participants achieve a sense of calm, peace and expanded awareness under water, while the physical elements of yoga will help them to prepare and recover from the strenuous diving activity.

The Itinerary: read more »

Guy Harvey Outpost Resorts to Open 2nd Bahamas Resort in Spring 2012.

(Dive Travel Business News - January 13, 2012) -- Sumner Point Marina & Villas on Rum Cay in the southern Bahamas is under renovation and will reopen as the Guy Harvey Outpost Club & Marina, Rum Cay in Spring 2012. Renovation plans include rebuilding the marina, adding a dive shop, refurbishing the four beachfront cottages and upgrading the Out of the Blue restaurant. A new marina, beachfront suites, a small spa and a freshwater pool with patios and a beach bar will be added next fall.

Rum Cay, population 60, is 50 miles southeast of Georgetown in the Exumas, and is known for its diving, fishing, surfing and kiteboarding. Airlift to Rum Cay is via scheduled charter flights from Fort Lauderdale and Nassau. The resort plans to offer an air taxi service between Georgetown and Rum Cay. read more »

Scuba Sport Magazines Hits Stands, Online Version Available

(Dive Travel Business News - January 5, 2012) -- The bi-monthly scuba diving/underwater lifestyle magazine that made its debut at the 2011 DEMA show in Orlando, Florida hit news stands at 200 participating dive centers in three countries on December 23, 2011. While Scuba Sport Magazine focuses on diving destinations, diving news, equipment and issues, the magazine finds a niche with the non-diver. At the end of every destination article about activities to engage non-divers while their significant others are out on the dive boat. read more »

Little Cayman Beach Resort Reopens Nature Spa

(Dive Travel Business News.com - December 3, 2011) -- Little Cayman Beach Resort has opened it newly remodeled Nature Spa. Housed in a cottage built in the traditional Caymanian style, the new design captures the island’s tranquility with island themed colors and textures to excite your senses. The spa environment includes a nature inspired waterfall and contemporary surroundings and furnishings designed by Sherry Fickling of the Crown Point Design firm located in Greenville, North Carolina.

The Nature Spa is situated on Little Cayman’s Booby Pond Nature Preserve that has the largest breeding colony of red footed booby birds in the Caribbean. Guests are invited to relax on the deck before or after their treatment and enjoy the splendor and beauty of the nature preserve. The Nature Spa’s highly trained staff provides Deep Tissue, Hot Stone, Swedish Massage or reflexology with facials, waxing or nail treatments - a welcome addition to a dive traveler's itinerary to Little Cayman. read more »

Fairtrade Organisation Aims to Bring Transparency and Standards to Voluntourism

(Dive Travel Business News - January 9, 2012) -- With the increase in popularity of Voluntourism as a saleable travel product, there has been a substantial increase in the range of experiences, destinations and projects available for the prospective dive traveler. With the majority of these, volunteers are expected to make a payment for their placement, which may go towards covering their living costs, support while on placement, ongoing support for the project or as a fee to the organisation which has placed them. This niche has become particularly popular where a portion of the travel costs are tax deductible. read more »

Exclusive Resorts Fight Spa Ban in Maldives

(Dive Travel Business News - January 6, 2012) -- A spa ban in the Maldives is one of the threats to tourism at this popular Indian Ocean dive destination which sees celebrities and honeymooners flock to its many atolls. Exclusive resorts in the Maldives are fighting the ban on their luxury spas and health centers after the president of the Indian Ocean archipelago issued a decree on December 31, 2011 that shut them down. Islamic opposition parties argued the spas were a front for prostitution.

'The government has decided to close massage parlors and spas in the Maldives, following an opposition-led religious protest last week calling for their closure,' President Mohamed Nasheed's office said in a statement.

But head of Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI), Sim Ibrahim said the move threatened tourism which was crucial for the national economy and hoped the ban would be overturned. MATI's lawyer Azima Shukoor said: 'The circular violates the lease agreement signed between the government and resort owners and the constitution rights to protect investors.' read more »

Young Affluent Travelers Don't See Luxury Like Boomers

Millennial Luxury Travelers not the fly and flop generation.

(Dive Travel Business News - January 3, 2012) -- A new generation of travel buyers is embracing definitions of luxury that pose significant challenges to how luxury has been viewed and presented. But simply knowing the values and preferences of this new generation of high-end traveler is not making it easy to actually accommodate them.

Suppliers and buyers alike are beginning to realize that travelers younger than the 45- to 55-year-olds who make up the bulk of the market bring with them a different set of standards than their elders. Such travelers are concerned less with opulence and pampering and more with value, authenticity and truly local experiences. They know much more about travel, the destination and what they want from the experience.

For younger, wealthier travelers it's not about ‘fly and flop.’ It’s about ‘find and seek.’ They are looking for one-of-a-kind, nature-based experiences that tried and true luxury brands don't normally accomodate a more modern, less traditional sense of luxury. They are less awed by legacy luxury brands like Astoria, Fairmont and Four Seasons. read more »