Tenerife 2000 - Las Galletas
In September 2000 we ventured to Tenerife. The object of this trip was an inexpensive dive holiday, and as such it really hit the mark. We were based in Las Galletas which is just far enough away from Playa de las Americas to be quite peaceful.
There are dozens of dive stores in and around Las Galletas most providing RIB diving from the harbour. We booked a weeks diving with Tenesubmarine, a Belgian run organisation, who proved efficient, friendly and most importantly in the heat, close to the harbour. The diving, as you may expect, is not as spectacular as we had experienced in the Red Sea, however we enjoyed it. Several sites like Yellow Mountain and "The Rays", where three of the four photos were taken, were a pleasant surprise to us and we would recommend the trip to anyone seeking an economical relaxing getaway. One word of advice though, stay off the local firewater, Pampero!!

The Florida Keys - June 2004
Not a dedicated dive trip this time, but while driving the Florida Keys and visiting the Everglades we figured that some diving would be on the agenda.
Now I have heard Key Largo called 'the dive capital of the world', hhhmmmmnnn! OK so we only had time to complete two dives in Largo and they weren't bad, but they weren't the best in the world.
Keys diving is mostly pretty shallow, our deepest dive was 14 metres but it does mean there is plenty of light. The two dives we had in the Pennekamp Nation Park from Largo were OK but following these we moved on to Marathon in the Middle Keys, again only time for two dives here but they were considerably better. There just seemed to be far more life, lots of sponges, soft corals and other aquatic life.
At Key Largo we dived with Sea Dwellers who are based opposite the Holiday Inn and use their jetty as well as having some good dive/stay deals. At Marathon in the Middle Keys we dived with Captain Hook's who were very helpful and accommodating.
Once we had seen enough of the Keys and spent a few days in the Everglades we decided we had enough time to head north on the Gulf coast to Crystal River for the opportunity to see Manatees. We booked a trip with Bird's Underwater who provided an excellent service. The trip was well worth while and although there are only a few Manatees remaining at Crystal River in the Summer months, our guide managed to locate several animals and we spent several hours with these incredible gentle giants.