In a typical year, we have 52 weekends, 104 days, or I could say so for most of us urban-dwellers who have a five days work week. A typical weekend looks like this – snooze till noon, cafe-hop, shop, go to the movies, hit the club, surf FaceBook and the likes. Occasionally, we throw in a dose of intellectual and physical activities like reading or hitting the gym.
Having more than a quarter of the year for leisure at disposal, how to spend it becomes an important question. For those who have already fallen in love with scuba diving, we have a selection of destinations for you. For those who are not a scuba diver yet, it might be time to get that certification!
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Anambas on Liveaboard MV Nautica
Named Asia’s Best Tropical Island by CNN.com in 2013, Anambas offers unmatchable visibility up to 30 metres and a good mix of things to see, from the occasional Whaleshark sightings and the Igara Wreck on a 4D3N long weekend trip. For 2016, there are monthly trips from March until October even over 3D2N. You can check out MV Nautica’s 2017 schedule to plan your trip ahead!
Eat. Sleep. And dive on MV Nautica Liveaboard. Take that giant stride of convenience and comfort on MV Nautica!
Our leisure diver. Great buoyancy there! -
Tioman
A well-known dive destination, there are two options to Tioman – MV Nautica Liveaboard and the regular land trip. The land trip looks like this – land transfer to Mersing Jetty on Friday evening, about 3 hours ferry transfer to Kampung Genting, where we usually stay at Genting Island Reef Resort. A weekend here brings you back to the good old Kampung days. OR, you could travel hassle-free on the Liveaboard MV Nautica. Where there is a constant supply of food and bottomless snacks!
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Tenggol
We were overjoyed when we found this place. Not that Redang, Perhentian, or the islands nearby are not great. But that little piece of haven, with minimal commercialization, this is it. The trip needs a minimum of 4D3N. If you are not doing anything over the long weekends, or just wanna escape to somewhere where nobody can reach you, Tenggol is the quick dive holiday getaway from the bustle and hustle from the concrete jungle.
The perfect spot for surface intervals -
Bintan
45 minutes away from Singapore, Bintan is the nearest and most easily accessible location in the list. You will reside in Bintan Agro Beach Resort, a three-star resort located at Trikora Beach. The dive sites are only about 10 minutes boat ride away, with two dives scheduled in a day, with the extra time on hand, you can get a massage, head over to the karaoke lounge or curl up with a book by the beach. (Learn more about Bintan diving here!)
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Dayang
About 3.5 hours away from Mersing Jetty, Dayang is a gem in the Malaysia Peninsular. Being the only resort on the island, it feels like you have the whole island to yourself, with a private beach. Dayang is a familiar name amongst local divers. Since the decrease of the Marine Park Fees to RM200 per weekend, divers have been streaming back in throngs. We are waiting eagerly for it to drop even further! (I feel awesome even just doing shore dives. Trust me, I really did last October..)
The boat looks superimposed ain’t it! No filter btw!!