 Why do we travel? Television travel channels bring us sensational images of the hottest destinations — both above and below water — without our ever leaving our couches, and the abundance of ethnic restaurants and cafes makes aku poke and jerk pork almost as easy to get as a hamburger and fries.
If you’re like most people, you travel to break out of the routine of everyday life, to simply get away from it all and to get wet doing what you love. And it’s good for us. Evidence shows that people who take annual vacations live longer than those who don’t. It’s literally just what the doctor ordered.
Maybe you’re in search of warm, white powder beaches, leisurely drift dives among colorful tropical fish and nights being lulled to sleep by the rhythmic lapping of ocean waves. Maybe shark watching off Grand Bahama Island or an icy wreck dive along the shores of Lake Superior is more your style.
Whatever your particular brand of diving paradise, you’ll get more enjoyment out of a destination if you take the time to go beyond merely booking airline tickets and hotel reservations (where most vacation planning ends) and learn about a place in advance.
Traveler vs. Tourist
To Peter Greenberg, in his book “The Travel Detective,” the definition of a tourist is a “victim waiting to happen,” amateurs who wear colorful shirts, khaki shorts, big hats and sunglasses, conspicuous with their nose in a guidebook and a paper bag full of trinkets while the sights, smells and sounds of a place pass them by. But a new breed of tourist has arisen: the traveler.
To travel is to live the life of another place, to truly experience other cultures, customs, cuisines and celebrations. If you wish to be welcomed as a traveler, instead of merely tolerated as a tourist, learn and know the local ground rules before you go.
Learning about a destination can enhance your dive experience as well. Knowing what to expect as to visibility, bottom composition and depth can help you prepare physically and mentally for the type of diving you’re likely to do. In addition, you can be on the lookout for marine creatures specific to the area.
Yet many people treat vacation planning and research like studying for a final exam: cramming it all in at the last minute and hoping for the best. So if the thought of researching your vacation conjures up nightmarish images of sixth-grade geography reports, here is an easy way to get started.
First, start planning your vacation as early as possible. By spreading it out, you not only give yourself time to get the best deals, but you also spread out the excitement, turning that one official week into months of fun and anticipation.
In addition to dive and surface destinations, ask and read about the customs of any foreign country you plan to visit. Pay extra attention to eating, personal space, punctuality, sanitation, gestures and relationships between men and women. And while you probably won’t dress exactly as the natives, do plan to dress in accordance with local custom. So where do you go for this kind of information?
Local Dive Center — Firsthand, fresh information is the best. Some of the most useful recommendations for sightseeing, dining, accommodations and, of course, diving will come from your local dive center. Divers love to share their adventures and the travel lessons they’ve learned. Chances are, someone from the dive center has been to the destination, and you’ll be able to glean a lot of insider information that you’ll never find published in any book.
Dive Travel Specialist — A dive travel agent has the resources to pull together all the details of your trip from airline tickets and room reservations to complete tour packages.
Guidebooks — There are general guidebooks to almost any destination, catering to most budgets and interests. Get the latest edition and compile a list of must-see attractions. Guidebook writer Rick Steves recommends cutting out the sections of the guides that you’ll actually need on your trip and binding them into one small, personalized trip book.
A word of caution: Even the most current editions of guidebooks are published as much as one to two years after the author visited and a lot may have changed. Also, guidebooks are aimed at a general, mass audience and may not include areas of interest to you. So look through the book before you buy. Does it promote smart travel? Does it emphasize hotels and restaurants over cultural sights and attractions? What is the author’s experience and objective for traveling? Does he or she address your interests?
Dive Guides — Where a general guidebook will lead you to fun and adventure above water, dive guides are more specifically aimed at the traveling diver. They also talk about cultural history, but more importantly, a good dive guide is designed to give divers a detailed overview of the many diving opportunities in the area. From locations of wrecks and reefs to diving regulations and charter operators who know their stuff, the best of these books are written by divers for divers to help you save time and effort in planning your underwater adventures.
In addition to locations, a good dive guide will prepare you for the type of diving you will be doing including water temperature, bottom composition, visibility and marine life as well as currents, tides and other hazards you might encounter.
Fish ID Courses — Don’t know an angelfish from a damselfish? A flounder from a snapper? Fish watching is one of the fastest growing underwater activities, making every dive a fish-filled treasure hunt with new discoveries around every coral head. A great way to get started is by taking a fish-watching course at your dive center or resort. But you can get started on your own by purchasing a fish identification book for the area you will be diving. Aquariums are also excellent places to learn about marine life and ecology.
Specialty Course — Dive centers offer a variety of specialty courses designed to help you safely enjoy a variety of different diving conditions. Whether you’re planning to visit a location that offers wreck diving, deep or wall diving, or some other exciting fare, enrolling in a specialty course will help you get the most out of your dive trip.
Tourist Office — These government-funded offices can be a wealth of free information. Contact the local tourism bureau several months in advance to request maps, brochures and a calendar of events and festivals. Let them know you are interested in diving sites.
Tourist offices may also be able to share listings of privately owned homes that welcome people as guests for a small fee. If sharing breakfast — and a bathroom — with a family is your cup of tea, this can be an excellent way to meet local people and learn about the country.
Dive Center, Library or Bookstore — Travel literature has the power to transport us word by word out of our lives and into the world, usually for less than 20 bucks. Stop by your local dive center, bookstore or library for a couple of fun fictional or travelogue reads about your destination. This literary journey will put you in the mood to enjoy the sights and experiences to come.
Phrase Book — Travelers know that if you can’t be fluent, settle for polite. Knowing a few expressions in the language of the country you visit will help you during your stay there. Learn the local words for hello, please, thank you, you’re welcome, goodbye and excuse me. For your convenience, you’ll also want to learn how to ask for the restroom, ask how much something is and how to let someone know you are not feeling well.
Restaurants — Eat out at a local restaurant that serves authentic food from the country you plan to visit. This will give you an idea of the kinds of food to expect on your travels. Plus, chances are the owner and/or wait staff are expatriates who can provide you with lots of valuable information and maybe even some local contacts to look up when you arrive.
While doing a little research can help ensure that you come back from your travels with more than just a great tan, there’s often so much to do and see, you can spend an entire vacation rushing around trying to get it all in.
As a traveler, give yourself permission to change course and go with a better idea. Because anyone who sets their plans in stone based on even the most meticulous research, risks becoming a tourist and, at the very least, missing out on some of travel’s unexpected pleasures.
Instead, use your research to focus on the activities you enjoy most. After all, the more you know about where you’re really trying to go, the more likely you are to get there.
Recommended Reading
“Reef Fish Identification”
by Paul Humann and Ned De Loach
“Do’s and Taboos Around the World” by Roger E. Axtell
“Traveler’s Tool Kit” by Rob Sangster
“Falling off the Map” by Pico Iyer
On the Web
The Internet is a good place to start to find basic information on the places you plan to visit:
Immunization and Health Info
Travel Advisories and
Passport Information
Tourism Offices Worldwide Directory
Directory of Festivals and Events
Weather
(Click on Travel then Vacation Planner)
Fish Watching
Guide to the Guides On-line
Best Read Guides
Lonely Planet
Through the Back Door
Fodors
Aqua Quest Publications
Budget Travel
Michelin Travel Guides
Rough Guide Travel
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