I try to get away from the UK once every year on a dedicated diving holiday and if you can find a good scuba diving resort to head to it can make all the difference as to whether or not you will have a lasting memory or not. These are some of my recent experiences:

2005 – I splashed out and went to the Red Sea for the first time. I dived from a liveaboard out of the scuba diving resort of Marsa Alam. What a fantastic week. The six days on the boat and the final day in the resort was a superb combination.

2006 – Enjoyed Marsa so much that I did it again – this time with my usual diving buddy so some fantastic dives!

2007 – I took my daughter to Majorca with my BSAC club and we had 6 pretty mediocre dives there. It was out of season and though the weather was fine during the day, both my daughter and I slept in our fleecey undersuits we were so cold at night time.

2008 – This time my daughter stayed at home and I went to Minorca again with my dive club. Again it was out of season and the dive centre was very quiet. Not to be repeated.

2009 – My buddy and I decided to return to the Red Sea, this time on a live-aboard out of Sharm El Sheik. What a fantastic 6 days diving the wrecks of the northern Red Sea. However, Sharm as a resort was a dump and as for the airport – I will never go there again and intend heading for Marsa again the next time.

2010 – Next year? Well my buddy and I have decided to give the Red Sea a break until 2011. Next year we are doing Scapa Flow – the UK Mecca for divers. My buddy dived there two years ago and I was last up in 1994!

Without a doubt the whole aspect of the scuba diving resort will affect your trip. Look for a good destination and ensure that you have a good time!

Scapa Flow is graveyard to a number of massive battleships and cruisers that it is impossible to do justice to in a single dive each. With visibility ranging from 3 metres to as much as 15 meters at certain times of the year it is impossible to take in the size of these ships, each hundreds of feet long. However, their immensity is apparent – and absorbing their mysterious presence is possible by swimming away from the wrecks and viewing their massive prows from a couple of metres away.

The wrecks are typically at depths of 35 to 40 metres and are not suitable for novices. To get the best out of the dives planning for at least a little decompression will give you a little more time to take in some of the detail revealed by a good bright torch at these gloomy depths. The scuba diving equipment used must of course be suitable for this.

I first visited Scapa fifteen years ago in July. The visibility was poor at that time of year, perhaps 3 or 4 metres at best. It was still a moving experience, to see these mighty ships at rest. The plan is to return next year in October when the visibility is hopefully at its best, the summer plankton blooms being over. It is hoped that the Scottish weather is not too inclement topside also!

A trip to Scapa Flow should be on your list – the journey up is a long one, depending on the area of the UK in which you live. Coming from farther afield means that you will definitely have to fly in. Flying means that you will be unable to bring your own scuba tanks within your scuba diving gear. However, most boats out of the local port Stromness have their own scuba tanks on board. Of course if your own diving gear includes more technical configurations the trip becomes harder, though it is possible to hire twin 12s and 10s from some operators. Other dive gear can also be hired from the local dive shop.