Two dive operators in South East Asia offer specialised trips for people with disabilities to either learn or continue to enjoy scuba diving

Something that deserves to get more attention is the how great scuba diving is as a sport for people with disabilities. The weightlessness of the water means that even if someone has severe problems with their legs or arms, they can still learn an adaptive way to scuba dive and enjoy the freedom of neutral buoyancy. Similarly, the silence of the underwater world means that it's equally open to deaf divers too - who already have a headstart on the whole signalling thing through sign language. Scuba diving is immensely pleasurable for the freedom it brings to all of us, so it's great to see there are dive operators specialising in taking disabled people diving within South East Asia, which is not generally famed for its enlightened attitude towards providing disabled access in everyday life.

There are at least two dive outfits I know of who specialise in helping disabled people - HandiDivers in Bohol in the Philippines, whose website is currently undergoing a refit but who can still be contacted; and Worldwide Dive And Sail based in Phuket, Thailand, which is a yacht running to the Similan Islands and also, twice a year, down one side of the Malay peninsula and up the other!

HandiDivers say they specialise in diving with "motor handicapped people, amputees and sight impaired people in Alona Beach, Panglao Island, Philippines." Worldwide Dive And Sail is owned by Frank, a great Dutch guy a met a few years ago when he was based in Khao Lak - along with Naomi, a British deaf scuba diving instructor and Marine Biology graduate who fluently lip reads English and French (!), Frank has been running dive trips for deaf and hard of hearing people for several years. Check out the testimonials on their website - it's clear that scuba diving provides a huge boost for people with disabilities in terms of their self-confidence and sense that they can take on anything. Which is pretty much what diving seems to do for everyone, come to think of it.

If you know of any other diving schools and operators specialising in helping disabled people in the Asia / Australia region, please leave a website address in the comments below. Thanks!

Thailand's Similan Islands remain a spectacular - and cheap - place to scuba dive, with liveaboards offering the chance of close encounters with manta rays and a host of other amazing underwater creatures

Just back from two back to back 4 day liveaboards in the Similan Islands. These were my fourth and fifth liveaboard trips in the Similans, and I'm happy to report that the diving there is as spectacular as ever. I've dived quite a few other places in Asia and elsewhere, but I have to say that the Similans offer the best consistent dive experience I've had. I think it's the combination of a four day liveaboard with a variety of great sites with good visibility - reefs, big boulders, and ocean pinnacles - a plethora of amazing underwater creatures, from seahorses to manta rays, and, of course, reasonable prices. A liveaboard with my friends at Phuket-Diving-Safaris.com will cost 17800 Thai Baht, which is less than $500 US - it's difficult to think of anywhere else you could enjoy such great diving for such a low price without cutting corners.

One of the reasons why diving the Similans is such a great experience is because there's a natural sense of build up over the four days of the liveaboard . You start off in the Similan Islands proper, doing some easy reef dives that offer spectacular bommies like East Of Eden, which is so covered in fan and soft corals and alive with different fish species that it's been regularly filmed and photographed by the likes of National Geographic. By the second day, you get to dive the more challenging big boulder sites like Elephant Head Rock and North Point, where truly huge rocks several storeys high have rolled together to create a labyrinth of swimthoughs and shelter for the fish. There's something exhilarating about being at 20 metres passing over the top of one of these rocks - and then watch it drop away another 30 metres below you as you fly off the side. Turtles chewing on coral hide around them, and within the canyons formed by the rocks you can find clown triggerfish, probably my favourite fish of all.

By the afternoon of the second day the liveaboard heads north from the Similan Islands and arrived at Koh Bon, "The Island Of Hope", and where most divers hope they'll get to see Koh Bon's resident manta rays. It's not guaranteed but if you get lucky, you'll be finning along Koh Bon's sheer wall and suddenly see a manta coming towards you out of the blue. As you can imagine, for many divers on the boat, the expectation of seeing mantas is the highlight of the trip, and if it actually happens, the sense of collective euphoria after the dive is palpable.

On the third day the boat reaches Richelieu Rock, possibly the finest dive site in all of Thailand, an ocean pinnacle ina horseshoe shape that has a plethora of creatures living around it. When my dive buddy Clive and I dropped in first thing at the morning - just before 7 am and before any other divers - we were lucky enough to see a manta ray circling the rock's apex. We simply hovered there at 10 metres, watching the manta swing round us and pass over our heads, unbothered by our presence. It's hard to articulate just how mesmerising these creatures are to watch - they move with an unearthly grace that is incredibly difficult to tear your eyes away from.

There's two more dives on the way home on the fourth day, the final dive being at Koh Bon again if you're lucky - given you are in the open ocean, it's up to the boat captain which sites you go to as he has to ensure it's safe.

During my two trips, we enjoyed the Similans' usual excellent visibility - a minimum of 15 metres viz on each dive, usually more. The journey out for the second liveaboard was uncharacteristically rough due to a cyclone crossing over Thailand and Burma - usually conditions are pretty calm, although if take seasickness tablets if you're susceptible.

Sadly the cyclone meant that it was too rough for us to go to Richelieu Rock on the second liveaboard, but to be honest, I don't think anyone was particularly bothered as the dive at Koh Bon had been truly amazing. There were five manta rays present and we were the only dive boat there. I was guiding my two friends Rachel and Paul and was furthest along the wall when a manta simply appeared out of the blue, coming in and circling right around us - it couldn't have got any closer. It was joined by a second one, so as the first left us the second came if for a look as well. I heard every other guide frantically banging their tank to signal the arrival of the mantas - a little later we went and sat in the blue at 10 metres or so and watch the mantas wheel around us below - two of them seemed to be courting or simply playing around. When I got back on the boat, I was followed by a German girl with the biggest grin on her face who looked at me and simply said: "Unbelievable!"

Far from satiating my desire to dive the Similans, doing these two liveaboards made me want to definitely go back again next year. After the relief of discovering that most of the sites were undamaged by the tsunami - see my original article about diving the Similan Islands six weeks after the tsunami - it's great to return to the Similans and find that everything is the same, only better. These sites are so rich in their marine diversity and topography that they repay repeated diving.

The dive season for the Similans is drawing to a close at the moment due to the monsoon season, which makes the seas too rough for safe diving. The dive season begins again in mid-October 2006 and runs through to May 2007. So you've got plenty of time to plan out a visit to the Similans, which to my mind still live up to their reputation as one of the best dive destinations in the world.

More on: Similan Islands | Thailand Scuba Diving

The Similan Islands remain one of South East Asia's most impressive and affordable dive destinations, offering spectacular encounters with manta rays and more

Just back from two glorious liveaboards in the Similan Islands - had some stunning close encounters with manta rays and leopard sharks, and even managed to capture some of the action on my new Nikon D70s and Ikelite underwater housing combination. I'll be writing up a full report of my Similans experiences soon, but this is just to say that the reefs are thriving, the mantas seem even more prevalent than in previous years and now is the ideal time to start planning your own visit to the Similans for when the season begins again in October this year.

Right now the season is winding down - liveaboards will stop running around mid May. I went with my friends at Phuket Diving Safaris for the fifth time and their service was as good as ever - great boat, great food and great staff.

You can read my previous, post-tsunami report about the Similan Islands here on Divehappy too.

Thailand has so many world class dive sites, it can be difficult deciding which ones to visit. Here's a quick overview to help you make your choice.

I was flicking through Paul Lees' excellent book The Dive Sites Of Thailand recently and marvelling at the literally hundreds of dive sites around Thailand's coastline that are worth visiting. It's a pretty overwhelming selection - and for first time visitors to Thailand, it can be a bit confusing about which areas to make sure you dive, particularly as you have to be here at the right time of the year to go diving in some parts of the country.

Here, then, is my completely subjective, thumbnail guide to the best dive sites in Thailand, in order of priority:

1) Similan Islands (October to May each year)
The Similans are renown as one of the best scuba diving destinations in the world. Whale sharks, manta rays, reef sharks, leopard sharks, barracuda, octopus, cuttlefish, lionfish, clownfish - you name it, you'll probably find it here. The sheer abundance of life out around these remote, uninhabited islands is breathtaking, as is the visibility - 20 metres viz is the norm. Virtually all liveaboards go beyond the Similan Islands proper and take in Koh Bon, a cleaning station for mantas, Koh Tachai and Richelieu Rock, a hot spot for whale sharks. [See my previous post on the best dive sites to see whale sharks in Thailand]. The remoteness of the islands means that most liveaboards typically last 4 days. For some people this is too much time to commit to diving, but I'd say it's perfect - 4 days on the boat lets you completely relax and do nothing but eat, dive and sleep, with maybe a little sunbathing too.

I wrote a complete report about diving in the Similan Islands in early 2005. I'm going back there in May this year, for my fourth time. I can't wait to see it again. The Similans really are a magical place to dive.

2) Hin Daeng / Hin Muang and Koh Haa (October to May each year)
Accessible on day trips from Phuket, Koh Lanta and Koh Phi Phi, these two dive sites rival anything the Similans have to offer. Koh Haa is a collection of 5 enormous rocks that forms a natural lagoon in the middle of the ocean - and is also a haven for marine life to gather around. There are so many amazing little critturs around here, which an experienced dive guide can point you towards. Hin Daeng and Hin Muang are two pinnacles close to one another and are a manta ray cleaning station. The mantas here are not shy of divers and if you are lucky enough to dive here when they are present, you are in for an unforgettable experience.

I wrote a complete report about diving at Koh Haa, Hin Daeng and also Koh Bida Nok last year. I'm going back there in April, just before the Similans, so am really hoping I might see the manta rays again.

Both the Similans and Hin Daeng are only accessible during October to May each year - the rest of the year is monsoon season when conditions are too rough in the Andaman Sea for safe diving (or boat travel, for that matter).

3) Koh Tao (All year round)
The most popular place to learn to dive in all of Asia Pacific, after Cairns in Australia, Koh Tao has some great dive sites and some great apres-dive action. If you want to dive and party, then this is the place to come. The short travel times from the shore to the dive sites - typically half an hour or less - make diving extremely convenient. While the diving is not quite as spectacular as the Similans, (no manta rays here), there are some amazing encounters with sharks to be had at Chumphon Pinnacle and also, if you're very lucky, whale sharks too.

Because Koh Tao is in the Gulf Of Thailand, it's possible to dive all year round. The weather gets a bit crappy around October/November, but it's pot luck really - last year whale sharks were arriving at Koh Tao during November.

I wrote a comprehensive guide to Koh Tao on Divehappy a few weeks ago that runs through learning to dive and also the various dive sites.

4) Pattaya (All year round)
Pattaya is not somewhere that gets much coverage as a dive destination. Thailand's second biggest city after Bangkok, Pattaya is a sprawling mix of sun, sea and sand. Visibility is pretty poor and a lot of the coral has been damaged on most sites. However, there are two excellent wreck dives, on the Khram and the Hardeep, which definitely make diving in Pattaya worthwhile if you're interested in wreck diving.

I wrote about Peter Walker's new DVD about the Hardeep recently here on Divehappy.

So there we have it - my top four picks for Thailand diving. There are lots more sites in Southern Thailand I have yet to explore - or even know about - and Koh Chang, also in the Gulf Of Thailand, is meant to be nice with some pleasant diving. But these four are the ones I've dived a fair bit myself, and the ones I keep going back to.

The Similan Islands have survived the tsunami, and are poised to strengthen their reputation as Thailand's premier dive destination

[This article originally appeared in Asian Diver magazine, Apr/May 2005, under the title A Drop In The Ocean]

It was the moment everyone had been hoping for. Gliding beside Koh Bon's wall was a four-metre wide manta ray, which seemingly appeared from nowhere and was unfazed by the gaggle of divers scattered in pairs around it. The manta cruised parallel to the wall, every diver mesmerised by its size and grace. Then it broke from its path, shot up vertically to show off a snow-white underside, and twisted back out into the blue.

Although it was only a fleeting encounter, everyone felt blessed twice over: the sighting was a magical moment for those who saw it; and the manta in some small way symbolised how well the Similan Islands are thriving in the wake of the tsunami.

Back on board the boat, the divers grinned delightedly. "I'm saying nothing," the owner of the MV Dolphin Queen said ironically, flapping his arms to the mock indignation of Melissa, the one dive guide whose group missed out on the main event. It was the first time mantas had been seen all season. And beyond a magical encounter, it lifted the mood immensely.

Lonely Planet Thailand [new edition]

The sense of celebration was in marked contrast to the excited, but slightly apprehensive atmosphere on board the MV Dolphin Queen when it departed Khao Lak two days earlier. Many of those on board the four-day trip had dived the Similans before the tsunami, and were concerned about the widely differing damage reports. Hoping for the best but preparing for the worst, from the very first dive everyone was taken aback by the excellent health of the reefs. As Thailand's premier dive destination and a protected marine park, the uninhabited Similans - and the additional sites of Koh Bon, Koh Tachai and Richelieu Rock - had, we discovered, escaped relatively unscathed.

Storm in a Teacup
The very first dive was at East of Eden, a rightly revered Similans site thanks to the huge bommie that is its centrepiece. A sandy slope drops from five metres down to 35m, allowing divers to devote their full attention to the stunning diversity of the corals and creatures living amongst them.

Visibility in the Similans is typically 20m, at least, making the bommie the stuff of photographers' dreams. To our surprise, East of Eden remained wholly unaffected by the tsunami - towering out of the slope it's a riot of colours between hard and soft corals, with scores of different fish species hovering around it. Indeed, without wanting to sound blasé, East of Eden is a microcosm of every Similans site - an abundance of aquatic life that will have divers reaching for the fish identification books after every dive.

Above water, the islands have been noticeably affected by erosion, but the pristine beaches remain intact - perfect for a surface interval visit. With the heat of the day tempered by sea breezes under brilliant blue skies, plus spectacular Thai sunrises and sunsets, life aboard this Similans' live-aboard was like living in a dream.

Bruised But Not Battered
The Similans' sites divide roughly into two categories - sandy slopes like East Of Eden and Breakfast Bend, with spectacular swathes of coral; and more challenging, big boulder sites like North Point and Elephant Head Rock. The boulders provide cover from strong currents (which do occur) while offering up some scenic swimthroughs. On this trip North Point was one of my most memorable dives. I spotted a grey reef shark at 30m, and watched as a turtle headed for the surface during the safety stop.

One site that didn't escape the tsunami is Deep Six, located off Similan Island Seven. According to the crew, the site's been comprehensively destroyed - the boulders tossed around and smashed open. Similarly, we avoided Snapper Alley and the Boon Sung wreck, which is closer to Khao Lak's shore. Previously a haven for a large variety of fish, and a great last dive location for returning live-aboards, the wreck has been ripped wide open by the tsunami. A scattering of exposed girders sticking up from the sand over a much wider area is the only remnant of the former dredger. Given that the visibility has deteriorated close to the shoreline, it makes for a hazardous dive.

Beyond the Similans, Koh Bon's exhilarating wall dive escaped the tsunami and remains the best site to see manta rays. Koh Tachai has been affected by the tsunami, albeit minimally - the coral on the plateau itself is battered and bruised, but not to the point where it's undiveable. Koh Tachai is also a spotting point for mantas, so few were going to argue with paying it a visit. We didn't see any on our lone dive there, but the site offered up a group of leopard sharks on the sand at 25m.

Richelieu Rock marks the climax of most Similans' live-aboards because it's the furthest geographical point. The tip of this horseshoe-shaped rock sticks out of the sea at low tide - its mid-ocean location makes it susceptible to strong currents, but also a haven for underwater life. Outside the horseshoe, divers can disappear to 30m quite easily in search of the sharks, and even seahorses that are known to live at the end of one of the horseshoe's edges. Enter the rock and there's a plethora of stonefish and lionfish seeking shelter, along with innumerable shoals of other species. Richelieu, then and now, is a breathtaking site: there was no evidence the tsunami has caused it any harm. Indeed, Richelieu was the best I'd seen on three separate visits.

Homeward Bound
As the boat steamed back to port, we encountered a remarkable piece of luck. On the last day the captain began yelling incomprehensively. In between excited breaths he explained he'd seen a manta ray near the surface. None of the divers gathered on the deck needed any prompting - everyone dropped straight into the ocean with mask and snorkels a few seconds after the boat came to a standstill.

And for a few glorious minutes, we were privileged to see a single manta as it swooped below us, spiralling downwards to the depths in a pirouette that made it seem as if it was showing off. It would be hard to ask for more as a finale to the miraculous expedition.

Back on shore, we dispersed to our separate hotels. Khao Lak was badly damaged by the tsunami, but the town is no longer the disaster area portrayed by the media. There are still over a thousand hotel rooms available in Khao Lak, and the businesses along the town's main road have nearly all reopened.

There's been no shortage of news coverage about the terrible events of the tsunami, but there has been a definite lack of reporting on how those communities affected are getting their lives back together. As Clive White, an English dive instructor based in Khao Lak who witnessed the tsunami and its aftermath succinctly puts it: "The real tragedy for the Thais is starting now. If no tourists come, they can't rebuild their businesses and get on with their lives." Simply by choosing to spend a holiday diving the Similans, divers can help those coming to terms with the disaster.

The Similan Islands have been irrevocably changed by the tsunami, and some might argue irrevocably damaged in places. But are the Similans still worth diving? The answer can only be an emphatic "Yes!" The abundance of marine life remains staggering; the damaged corals are certainly noticeable at times but not heartbreaking; and the Similans provide a spectacular live-aboard experience at prices that are hard to match anywhere else in the world. For me, as for the other happy divers who disembarked that glorious February afternoon, the Similans remain one of the most memorable places to dive in Southeast Asia.