World News & Events

(Dive Travel Business News - January 16, 2012) -- Scores of Italian cave-rescue divers from the coast guard, navy and firefighting service are racing against time to find survivors in the debris-filled partially sunken Costa Concordia since it ran aground on rocks off Italy's west coast. Divers are searching the miles of submerged corridors and more than 1000 cabins for 25 passengers and 4 crew members still unaccounted for after 3200 passengers and 1000 crew were rescued from the hull-torn ship off the coast of Isola del Giglio. The waters off Giglio, popular with scuba divers and snorkelers, form part of the Tuscan Archipelago National Park - a marine protected area for dolphins, porpoises and whales. read more »

(Dive Travel Business News - January 15, 2011) --

With the growing popularity and influence of social media and online review sites, more consumers are using these sites as resources when booking their travel.  According to a new study by Mondial Assistance, USA, 60% of consumers now say they consider travelers’ online reviews when booking a vacation. TripAdvisor, whose tagline is "Get the truth. Then Go",  has become the world's biggest travel site, with more than 50 million reviews, all written by consumers.

"In these tough economic times, consumers want assurance that if they are going to spend on travel, they are selecting the best experiences, and reviews from peers and colleagues act as a security blanket for uncertain travelers," said Daniel Durazo, director of communications for Mondial Assistance. read more »

(Dive Travel Business News - January 12, 2012) -- Wreck divers, shipwreck enthusiasts and marine history buffs will appreciate a Civil War shipwreck poster now available through Tech Diving Limited. From the estate of the late photographer and explorer Rod Farb, the limited edition USS Monitor poster was taken during the Farb Monitor Expeditions in the 1990's.  The photograph was chosen by National Geographic as the image that best illustrated the USS Monitor during that time.  The full color poster is printed on 10 point stock and measures 24x36 inches and is available for US$20.  read more »

(Dive Travel Business News - January 11, 2012) -- The World Ocean Council (WOC) efforts to create an unprecedented cross-sectoral industry alliance for leadership on ocean sustainability has got the attention of the United Nations. WOC will participate in the U.N. Secretary General’s five-person ocean expert group to help shape international efforts for ocean sustainability. In addition to the private sector WOC, the four other experts in the group represent government, academic and non-government organizations will join the Ocean Expert group.

The oceans have been declared as one of 8 thematic priorities for the upcoming “Rio + 20” – the U.N. Conference on Sustainable Development taking place in Rio de Janeiro in June 2012.   The U.N. Secretary General’s ocean expert group will develop an "Oceans Compact" for this event. read more »

(Dive Travel Business News - October 13, 2011) -- A 6.1 magnitude earthquake shook the island dive destination of Bali at 10:16 am Central Indonesia time on Thursday, October 13. The quake caused no deaths and only minor injuries to about 50 people, in part because of the better development standards the tourist industry has pushed, say observers.

The US Geological Survey reported that the quake’s center lay 62 miles south of Denpasar in Southern Bali, and 21 miles beneath the ocean floor and it did not have the potential to trigger a tsunami. Although powerful enough to shake ceiling tiles loose and crumble the walls of Hindu temples, the jolt did not trigger a tsunami warning.  But the quake was felt in East Java to Bali’s west, from Banyuwangi to Surabaya and to its east to the island of Lombok. read more »

(Dive Travel Business News - January 2, 2012) -- Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada advises against non-essential travel to Egypt, except for Sharm El Sheikh, Hurghada, and the main tourist centres of Luxor and Aswan, due to the unpredictable security situation and continuing demonstrations throughout the country. read more »

(Dive Travel Business News - January 6, 2012) --The New 7 Wonders of Nature were recently announced at the N7W headquarters in Zurich on 11/11/11.  Based on the first count of the worldwide vote, Komodo Island National Park (Indonesia) joins Table Mountain (South Africa), the Amazon Rainforest, Halong Bay (Vietnam), Iguazu Falls (Argentina/Brazil), Jeju Island (South Korea), and Puerto Princesa Underground River (Philippines). All hold provisional status (except Jeju Island) where the first step of the verification process is still underway.

Indonesia’s Komodo National Park is an astounding dive destination that includes the three larger islands Komodo, Rinca and Padar, as well as numerous smaller ones, for a total area of 1,817 square kilometers (603 square kilometers of it land). The national park was founded in 1980 to protect the Komodo dragon. Later, it was also dedicated to protecting other species, including marine animals. The islands of the national park are of volcanic origin.  read more »

(Dive Travel Business News - October 28, 2011) -- A round-the-world sailor and avid scuba diver is feared to have been eaten by cannibals during a visit to a South Sea island. Remains found in the embers of a camp fire are believed to be those of 40-year-old business adviser Stefan Ramin. He apparently arranged to go on a traditional goat hunt in the forest after dropping anchor at Nuku Hiva in French Polynesia.

Ramin's girlfriend Heike Dorsch, 37, says she saw him depart with a local guide, named as Henri Haiti. Only the guide returned, she says, and he told her: ‘There’s been an accident. He needs help.’

Before she could rush into the forest, however, she claims Haiti chained her to a tree and sexually abused her. She managed to escape hours later to alert authorities and they began a seven-day search for Mr Ramin. read more »

(Dive Travel Business News - October 23, 2011) -- Colombian environmental authorities have reported a huge shark massacre in the Malpelo wildlife sanctuary in Columbia's Pacific waters, where as many as 2,000 hammerhead, Galápagos and silky sharks may have been slaughtered for their fins.

A team of divers who were studying sharks in the region, reported the mass killing in the waters surrounding the rock-island known as Malpelo, some 500 kilometres from the mainland. The divers spotted 10 fishing trawlers “entering the zone illegally,” said a Colombian environmental official. All reportedly flew Costa Rican flags.

“When the divers dove, they started finding a large number of animals without their fins. They didn't see any alive,” the official said.  The shark kill estimate is based on calculating an average of 200 sharks per boat. read more »

(Dive Travel Business News - October 26, 2011) -- Mexico issued a hurricane watch along the Yucatan coast and readied 1,130 storm shelters in Quintana Roo, the state that includes Cancun and Cozumel.  Authorities are evacuating fishing communities on Mexico’s resort-studded Caribbean coast and some tourists began to leave, as Hurricane Rina took aim at Cancun and the island of Cozumel on Wednesday. 

Rina’s maximum sustained winds remained steady at about 110 mph (175 kph) early Wednesday, said the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami, making it a Category 2 storm. Forecasters predict it will strengthen as it nears the Mexican coast Wednesday night before rolling over the island of Cozumel, a popular dive spot and cruise-ship port, then along the coast to Cancun.

State Tourism Director Juan Carlos Gonzalez Hernandez said there were about 83,000 tourists in the state, with about 45,000 of those on a stretch of coast south of Cancun that includes Tulum and Playa de Carmen, and almost 28,000 in Cancun. read more »