Dive The Isles Of Scilly - A Fantastic Diving Experience
If you're looking for a unique diving adventure, visit the Isles of Scilly, located 28 miles off the Cornish coast of England provide excellent diving, coupled with a quiet getaway for you and your entire family. For divers, there are many opportunities to see coral reefs, shipwrecks and other natural wonders found under the sea. You can learn how to dive or snorkel in various places off the islands and swim with wild grey seals.
Because only five of the islands, are inhabited by a population of just over 2,000 people, you will be able to completely escape the everyday rush, and stresses of your normal daily life. With campsites, guest houses, and small hotels there is a variety of accommodation choices for your stay. If you are planning on diving during your vacation, you should contact the dive charter service that you are planning to use and ask them what equipment you will need to bring or what equipment is supplied. While some charter services may supply equipment, others do not.
Getting to the Isles of Scilly
You can travel to St.Mary’s the largest island of the Isles of Scilly, by ferry on the Scillonian III or British international helicopter, both from Penzance or Skybus a fixed-wing aircraft charter plane from St.Just, situated a few miles away from Penzance but if you're planning to bring bulky or heavy diving equipment with you, travelling by ferry is probably the best option. Storage containers are available for shipping of your diving equipment.
Once you arrive on St.Mary’s you will notice that there is much less traffic than you are probably used to and because these islands are small, most have taxi services, local buses or bicycles for rent. Making arrangements in advance for your accommodation is essential because usually by February each year most summer accommodation is already fully booked. If you would like to visit some of the other beautiful islands, whilst on St.Mary’s there are water taxi and ferry services available.
One of the main Island attractions is the spectacular Abbey Gardens on the island of Tresco these sub tropical gardens attract visitors from all over the world eager to see the beautiful vast array of rare plants from over 80 countries.
The Diving
Diving around the Isles of Scilly, gives you the opportunity to dive on a variety of ancient and modern shipwrecks that have been scattered around the islands rocks and reefs. In addition to the shipwrecks, there are a variety of natural wonders to be found underwater. The geographical location of the islands, being on the edge of the nearby gulf-stream means the sea water is extremely rich in nutrients that allow the sea life to flourish. The islands are known for their crystal clear underwater visibility and are an outstanding memorable experience for divers.
