May 2012 Archives

Last month we promised you an update on Eco Divers Manado’s move into its new home. Well, we’re happy to report that the move is complete and that Eco Divers Manado now provides its full service out of the popular Minahasa Lagoon Resort. 
(The photo shows Andrea with managers, Karl and Saaya, on-board an Eco Divers boat at Minahasa Lagoon Resort.)

Our guests are telling us how much they enjoy Minahasa Lagoon’s peaceful location, its food and the service… and, of course, our boats and service. We dive the islands and mainland sites of Bunaken National Park.

Eco Divers Manado offers competitively-priced dive packages year-round, starting at just EUR 380 (US$ 562) for 3 nights with up to 4 dives and all meals.

To watch Minahasa Lagoon’s promo video: www.eco-divers.com/resort-manado.php.

The season is upon us and we’ve been preparing for it.

Both speedboats in Lembeh have recently undergone full dry-docks and returned to the water sporting a striking new livery. Last week our Lembeh Day Liveaboard had been docked too.

In Manado our boats are also being docked, repaired where necessary and re-painted in readiness to welcome many guests this summer.

We hope you’ll be amongst them and enjoy diving from the best dive boats in North Sulawesi.

Farewell, thanks and good luck in the future, Christian. Welcome, Sam Lewis! They say that time flies and that all good things must come to an end. Well, it’s true. In the past 1.5 years Christian Loader has become an integral member of the Eco Divers Family and a popular photo instructor, having helped many of our guests improve their photo skills. Those of you who follow our FB page will also have witnessed Christian’s considerable talent in photography, through his regular postings of strikingly artistic underwater images.

Now Christian’s time at Eco Divers has sadly come to an end, as ScubaZoo takes him back-to-base (in Kota Kinabalu) to take on a new role as photographer/videographer on film and book projects. 

We’d like to thank Christian for his efforts. We will miss him being here, but still expect him to be a regular visitor to Eco Divers. We wish him success and happiness and look forward to seeing many of his great images and films in the future.

Replacing Christian from ScubaZoo is Sam Lewis. Sam arrived at Eco Divers this week from the Maldives, where he provided photo and video services on-board The Four Seasons Explorer Liveaboard. From the UK, Sam has a Master’s Degree in Animal Behaviour and a Bachelor’s Degree in Zoology, so his knowledge is not limited to taking photos or videos. He specialises in film-making and is proficient with Adobe Premier CS5 and Final Cut Pro to edit videos. Sam has a great passion for all water sports, in particular water polo. He provides photo & video services for The Digital Centre (www.digitalcentreindonesia.com) at Eco Divers Manado & Lembeh. Welcome, Sam!

As Minahasa Lagoon Resort celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, three different Birthday Party Packages have been put together offering many free extra activities:

Month of May


Celebrate North Sulawesi’s natural and culture heritage, through a series of free nature tours, local cultural dances and traditional Indonesian spa treatments.

Fish Geek Week, 01-08 Sep


A free workshop on North Sulawesi’s underwater riches, hosted by three of the world’s most illustrious names in marine biology: Massimo Boyer, Gerry Allen & Mark Erdmann.
 

Learn Underwater Photography week, 24 Nov to 01 Dec


Nightly free workshops by world-renowned photo geniuses 
Jason Isley, Stephen Wong & Takako Uno.

To join any of these free events, simply book a 7-night all inclusive dive package with Eco Divers Manado.

Click here for further details: www.eco-divers.com/special-trips.php or just send a booking enquiry to info@eco-divers.com.
 

You still have time to secure your place on our biology workshop in June with Ned & Anna DeLoach.

The workshop is free when you book a 7-night dive package at Eco Divers Resort Lembeh. The package costs just EUR 1058 (US$ 1390) per person and includes 7 nights’ accommodation in a double room, 6 days of diving (up to 3 day-dives per day), all meals, airport transfers, tax & service.

Full details of the 2012 Lembeh Fish & Critter Hunt are available here: www.eco-divers.com/special-trips.php or just send a booking enquiry to info@eco-divers.com.

Eco Divers first opened its doors to welcome in guests in April 2001, so this month represents eleven years of service in North Sulawesi.

This occasion was marked by delicious celebratory birthday cakes in Manado and Lembeh.

(Any excuse for cake is always welcomed!)