Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome (center), TAT Pattaya office director Niti
Kongkrut (2nd right) and friends announce the Pattaya Dive Festival will
take place Nov. 13-14.
Vimolrat Singnikorn
More than 500 scuba divers from Bangkok and Pattaya
will hunt for treasure, clean coral reefs and plant new coral during
this weekend’s Pattaya Dive Festival.
Sponsored by Mermaid’s Dive Center and Aquanauts Dive
Centre in Pattaya plus four Bangkok scuba shops, the Nov. 13-14 festival
is aimed at introducing Bangkok divers to Pattaya’s island dive sites
and raising awareness about the importance of marine conservation.
“This is the grandest collaboration ever between the
Tourism Authority of Thailand’s Pattaya office and the dive industry,”
Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome said at the event’s Nov. 3 kick-off press
conference at the Reflection Condominium sales office in Jomtien Beach.
“Six well-known dive centers, including Aquanauts and Mermaids in
Pattaya, as well as Wahoo Dive Center, Dive Indeed, Dive Innovation and
Dive Now in Bangkok are working to encourage people to be conscious of
environmental preservation while engaging in a fun activity.”
While bookings were still open until Nov. 8,
organizers said Nov. 3 that more than 400 scuba enthusiasts had already
paid the 2,400 baht fee for festival tickets. They hope to bring more
than 500 divers to the area. Most the bookings so far, planners said,
came as hoped from Bangkok.
Activities start early with divers assembling at Bali
Hai Pier for breakfast and safety briefings at 8 a.m. From there, the
16-boat armada will head to Koh Krok for an underwater photography
contest and treasure hunt, with prizes donated by the city, TAT, PADI,
Divers Alert Network, Major Development Co., and other sponsors.
After lunch, the group will converge on Koh Sak for
an underwater reef cleanup, then return to port and prepare for a party
at Reflection Condominium in Jomtien Beach.
The following day will be an invitation-only day for
sponsors and political leaders who will plant coral at Koh Larn.
“Pattaya’s proximity to Bangkok has become an
important variable in drawing a large number of diving fans to Pattaya,”
said TAT Pattaya office director Niti Kongkrut. “Bangkok shops often
bring their students to Pattaya to complete coursework started in the
capital. However, many other divers don’t realize the non-course,
fun-diving opportunities that Pattaya also offers.”
Kongkrut added that TAT, the city and local dive
operators hope the festival will spur more business during the
just-begun high season.
The Dive Festival is the latest effort by the five
PADI dive centers united under the Pattaya Dive Club banner to raise the
profile of Pattaya - the home of three undersea shipwrecks - as a
premier diving destination. The group, supported by the city, PADI and
the Royal Thai Navy, aims to sink as many as five more wrecks over the
next 10 years.
While the official booking deadline has passed,
divers still interested in joining the festival can inquire with
Mermaids Dive Center in Jomtien Beach or Aquanauts Dive Centre on Soi 6
in Pattaya if any spaces remain available.
