Great Escapes Diving Holidays

23/07/2024

I had a fantastic time at Golden Rock Resort, Dive & Nature Resort - St. Eustatius Here are some of the highlights from my trip, and recommendations for must-do activities on the island.

Hike the Quill volcano – this is a must-do. Hot and sweaty, yes, but well worth the climb to reach the rim and to gaze into the crater to see the incredible and lush rainforest.

Go diving – of course you must! The marine park here is larger than the island itself and the diving was a mix of very healthy coral reefs and wrecks. Fish numbers are high and so many turtles!

Historical tour of the capital town, Oranjestad – this island has so much history! With no customs rules enforced at the time, it became known as the Golden Rock by traders during the 17th and 18th Century. The dark side of this free trading meant that the island was to become infamous for the trading of contraband and slaves.

Enjoy the resort – how could you not! This is a stunning resort, set within 40 acres of beautiful gardens, with two restaurants and two pools. A perfect place to relax, eat amazing food and to watch the hummingbirds buzzing around the flowers and plants.

I highly recommend you consider a trip to this resort. Check it out on our website https://www.greatescapesdiving.com/golden-rock-dive-nature-resort/ and if you want to find out more, please do give us a call at the office or drop us an email.

14/07/2024

It is great to be here at Golden Rock Resort, Dive & Nature Resort - St. Eustatius. If you are looking for something a bit different in the Caribbean then this might just be it. St Eustatius - or just Statia as it is known by locals - is a hidden gem in the Caribbean. An island with a small population of around 4500 that has avoided mass tourism to offer a true and authentic slice of the Caribbean.

Statia's landscape is dominated by the Quill; a 600m high dormant volcano now covered in lush rainforest, which is the backdrop to the Golden Rock Dive & Nature Resort - a contemporary resort, set within 40 acres of beautifully landscaped gardens. With a mission to be the Caribbean's leading sustainable, lifestyle resort, it includes its own 20,000 square feet greenhouse - where organic herbs and vegetables are grown and served in its two restaurants - and 2240 solar panels to provide the resort with 24hr electricity.

I will be doing a few posts over the next few days to let you know what I am up to whilst here. For now, first impressions are wow! Stunning.

Check it out on our website https://www.greatescapesdiving.com/golden-rock-dive-nature-resort/

12/04/2024

If you are not enjoying this wet weather (unlike our office dog Noodle) why not think about escaping to the Caribbean?
Our Tobago page is now live and includes the wonderful Blue Waters Inn and Manta Suites at Tobago Dive Experience
Contact us for more information!
https://www.greatescapesdiving.com/tobago/

09/04/2024

We are all working really hard to add new destinations to our ever expanding website, and are excited to be able to offer the Golden Rock Resort, Dive & Nature Resort - St. Eustatius. Graham met up with Natasha from the resort recently to learn more about this beautiful undiscovered island in the Caribbean, nestled between St. Baarts, St. Maarten and St. Kitts. The page will be going live this week so keep an eye out - it's definitely one for the bucket list!

05/03/2024

It was great to catch up with Kevin and Cody from All Star Liveaboards at last weekend’s Go Diving Show. They have a fantastic fleet of liveaboards covering Cuba, British Virgin Islands, Bahamas, Indonesia, Philippines and the Red Sea. Do contact us to find out more about these great trips. 👍

05/03/2024

It was great to share a stand with Alphamarine Photography Ltd again at the Go Diving Show over the weekend. If you fancy joining Phil and Anne on their next Photography Workshop to Dive into Lembeh in Nov 2025, do get in touch with us to get yourself booked onto the trip. Head on over to our website to find out more: https://www.greatescapesdiving.com/exclusive-escapes/

A big thank you to everybody who came to speak to us on our stand, attended the workshops and listened to our Photo Stage presentation at this year's Go Diving Show. For us the show was probably our busiest ever, we really didn't stop both days. If you didn't get chance to speak to us because we were busy do drop us an email at [email protected] or message us. We're now looking for to the Dive Ireland Expo next month.

04/03/2024

We had a great time at the Go Diving Show this weekend - it was lovely to see our wonderful repeat guests and to meet some new ones!
It was also a great opportunity to catch up with our friends in the dive industry including Lani, Kay and Joanne from the brilliant Mermaid Liveaboards - Asia's Premier Liveaboard Fleet - who never stop smiling 😁

26/02/2024

Wondering what to do this weekend?...
How about taking a trip to Coventry to visit the Go Diving Show at Stoneleigh Park?!
We will be on Stand No. 308 with Alphamarine Photography Ltd and would love to see you!
Tickets can be purchased in advance at; https://godivingshow.com/

22/12/2023

It's that time of year again...
Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year full of adventures!

15/12/2023

After their recent amazing trip to Lembeh, we are very pleased to announce that Phil and Anne Medcalf will be hosting another Alphamarine Photography Ltd Workshop at Dive Into Lembeh Resort in November 2025!

You can join Phil and Anne on this fantastic and exclusive 12 night trip to photograph the amazing critters of Lembeh Strait from 26 Nov – 08 Dec 2025 for 12nts, with 11 days diving / 3 guided boat dives per day at Dive into Lembeh

This will be a great chance to hone your photography skills and to gain tips from Phil and Anne, who will be on hand to help you get the best possible shots throughout the trip.

For further details please see our Exclusive Escapes page: https://www.greatescapesdiving.com/exclusive-escapes/

For more information about Alphamarine Photography, visit their website: alphamarinephoto.com

These trips are very popular so contact us now to secure your space 🐠

07/07/2023

It’s Friday and the sun is shining! And to make things even better, the Master Liveaboard fleet are offering up to a huge 40% discount on various sailings until November 2024! Choose from various dates and explore the Galapagos, Palau, Indonesia, the Philippines, Bikini Atoll, Thailand, the Bahamas, Truk or the Solomons!

Contact us now and we can help you get to that destination you have always dreamed of! Or make the most of these incredible discounts and tick a few bucket list diving destinations off your list!

Flights available from most UK airports can be added to create an ATOL Bonded package. Saving is on boat only and available on any new bookings confirmed by 31st August 2023.

05/07/2023

The Aggressor Fleet are celebrating their 40th Anniversary and offering a massive 40% SAVING on the following Aggressor Yachts for travel from 1st July to 31st December 2023!

Bahamas Aggressor, Belize Aggressor III & IV, BVI Aggressor, Cayman Aggressor IV, Galapagos Aggressor III, Indo Aggressor, Palau Aggressor II, Philippines Aggressor, Raja Ampat Aggressor, Roatan Aggressor, Rock Islands Aggressor and Turks & Caicos Aggressor II.

These popular trips are a fantastic way for divers to enjoy exciting adventures around the world from the comfort of an Aggressor liveaboard.

Contact us NOW to find out more and make the most of these incredible offers.

Flights from most UK airports can be added to create an ATOL Bonded package. Saving is on boat only for booking until 13th July 2023.

04/03/2023

We've had a great first day at the Go Diving Show, if you're wondering what to do with your Sunday, come and see us on Stand 144!

03/03/2023

We're here in Coventry at the Go Diving Show, looking forward to seeing you all over the weekend!

27/02/2023

We will be at the Go Diving Show in Coventry this weekend if you fancy a day out!
Come and find us on Stand No. 144 for a long overdue catch up!
You can get your tickets here... https://www.godivingshow.com/tickets/

24/06/2022

As it is almost the weekend, here is a bit more good news to help us through Friday!
From the 1st June Australia's New South Wales state are banning all single-use bags. Single-use plastics make up a massive 60 per cent of all the state's rubbish and after seeing the impact plastic pollution is having on the environment, NSW is leading the way in making major changes.
Not to be left out, Tasmania has become one of the first places in the world to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve net carbon negative emissions by cutting down logging activities! To date, only two countries have successfully gone carbon negative: Bhutan and Suriname.
Good on you mates 🐨

12/06/2022

Still undecided whether to book your next liveaboard?... Don't put it off any longer as Master Liveaboards are offering a MASSIVE 50% DISCOUNT on all worldwide departures up to the end of 2022!

How about a trip to Truk Lagoon, the Galapagos, Indonesia, the Philippines, Palau, the Solomon Islands or the Bahamas?! YES PLEASE!

Get in touch as soon as possible to take advantage of this limited time special offer!

01/06/2022

We hope you are all getting ready for the long Bank Holiday weekend to celebrate the Queen's Jubilee!
Is it too early to crack open the prosecco?!
👑🇬🇧🥂

23/05/2022

As it’s a grey Monday we thought we’d share another good news story to cheer us up. Or, in this instance, make us feel incredibly guilty for not being this selfless!
We all love to talk about what we would do if we won the lottery. Most of us would think about buying a house by the beach, a stupidly fast sports car (electric of course!), take off on a round the world trip or go to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel and order the most expensive bottle of champagne! However, one man chose to use his huge €200million EuroMillions pay-out to make the world a better place by launching Anyama – an environmental foundation aimed at protecting forests and boosting biodiversity. Amazingly, the man behind this incredible act doesn’t want any recognition, instead choosing to remain anonymous, but just made a statement saying ‘from my point of view, our main priority today is to save the planet, or rather to ensure that humans can continue to be hosted by our beautiful Earth.’

I might not have won the lottery, but I’ll drink to that!

19/05/2022

** INDONESIA IS NOW FULLY OPEN FOR TRAVEL **
From the 18th May, Indonesia have further relaxed their COVID safety measures by dropping all testing requirements for vaccinated travellers. Time to get the passports out!

17/05/2022

As if you didn't need more of a reason to visit Komodo...

Through a collaborative effort including the public, scientists from the Marine Megafauna Foundation and Murdoch University are reporting a large number of manta rays in the waters of Komodo National Park, an Indonesian UNESCO World Heritage Site, suggesting the area may hold the key to regional rec...

13/05/2022

After the last few years of doom and gloom, we thought now is a good time to start sharing some good news from around the world, starting with Panama!

Panama has taken a significant new approach to environmental protection. Scientists, politicians, and lawyers have come together to assign rights to nature granting the “right to exist, persist and regenerate its life cycles” meaning Panama’s parliament will now have to consider the impact of its laws and policies on the natural world.

Panama now joins countries including Colombia, New Zealand, Chile and Mexico which have granted nature legal protection, either through their constitutions or the court system.

10/05/2022

If there was one place you could go back to where would it be? Wild, beautiful, welcoming, remote and colourful. For Chris few places on earth can touch PNG. Now open for international visitors!

26/04/2022

It's time to explore again! As well as diving holidays we offer incredible overland adventures too. The world is beautiful, let us help you see it. www.greatescapesdiving.com

21/04/2022

Look out for this incredible programme on BBC1 from Sunday 24th April at 7pm to see more on mantas and their conservation.
If you wanted a more personal experience, we can help! Check out the 'Where In The World' page on our website for the best places and times to visit, to increase your chances to become part of your very own nature programme; www.greatescapesdiving.com/where-in-the-world/

Manta rays (Mobula birostris) will deliver one offspring after a long gestation period of over a year, although, in some cases, twins may be born. A study in...

21/12/2021

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Please note that our office will be closed from 4pm Wednesday 23rd December, but we will be back on Tuesday 4th January ready to get you over those January blues!

We would like to wish each and everyone of you a wonderful Christmas time, and thank you for your continued support over another challenging year.

From all of us here at Great Escapes Diving Holidays.

20/12/2021

We have just installed a new phone system for our office, which we hope will bring more convenience to our clients!

Our office address remains the same, but please make a note of our new number:

01449 535010

This is in operation now! Our existing number of 01473 921888 will no longer be operational from 1st January 2022.

Speak to you soon!

25/10/2021

Who needs to escape after the half term madness?!
We can offer a fantastic 7 days diving on board the Carpe Diem in the Maldives from 29th October to 6th November 2021 at just £1250 (including domestic flight) excluding international flights.
Contact us on 01473 921888 or [email protected] for more information!
🐙🐳🦀🐠🐡🐟🐬🦐🦈

20/10/2021

It's your last chance to swap our rainy skies for the sunshine of the Maldives!

We still have limited spaces left on our exclusive charter onboard the Carpe Diem with Matt & Anne-Marie Kitchen-Wheeler, taking in their favourite manta and shark points around the Central Atolls.

The trip dates are 22nd Oct to 6th Nov, so please contact us on 01473 921888 or email [email protected] for more information!

07/10/2021

The world is ready to be explored again!
47 countries are being removed from Red List next Monday including The Philippines, Mexico, Thailand and Indonesia! So it's time to put away the comfy jogging bottoms and slippers you've lived in for the past 18 months, and dust off your passports, flip flops and dive gear!