Diving in Europe - The Top 10 Dive Sites

Europe boasts some world class dive sites, with great visibility and masses of underwater life. Readers of the SCUBA Travel diving guide have voted these the ten best dive sites in Europe.

1. The Zenobia, Cyprus

The pristine wreck of a huge ferry. Lying on its port side, the wreck starts at about 15 m and descends to 42 m. One of the best shipwreck dives in the world in recreational depths. 20 m plus visibility and some great swim-throughs. Needs several dives to see it all.

2. Blue Hole, Gozo

A beautiful sharp drop off into the blue hole with what seems like limitless visibility and literally feels like you are on the very edge of the world. A most extraordinary dive.

3. Cirkewwa, Malta

Features the wreck of the Rozi MV as well as stunning underwater topography. Visibility is very good and there is sea life in abundance: barracuda, morays, octopus, cuttlefish and even dolphins...[InternationalBusinessTimes]

Take the plunge in Murcia

Chloe Griffiths visits the watersports haven of Spain

FEASTING on an eight-course banquet is hardly the best preparation for going beneath the ocean waves. It certainly doesn’t make it any easier to squeeze into a wetsuit, nor heave on an air tank.

But when the scuba-diving is as acclaimed as it is on Spain’s Costa Calida (Warm Coast) a little thing like a full stomach is no deterrent.

The warm seas off the rocky coastline of Cabo de Palos, on the most easterly tip of the region of Murcia, offer some of the best diving in Europe.

In fact, so impressive are its little-known charms that it’s one of only five ZEPIM zones or Special Protected Zones of Importance for the Mediterranean.

While British divers normally have to resort to cold, dingy quarries or breaking the bank on a long-haul flight to far-away seas in the winter months, those who make the short hop over to this balmy corner can be treated to year-round warm water, great visibility and abundant aquatic life.

Add to that 320 days of sunshine a year and an average temperature of 18c and this watersports paradise is the perfect antidote to a long British winter.

The sparkle of the winter sun off the water as I devoured a selection of seafood tapas from El Pez Rojo’s waterside veranda was all the encouragement I needed to take the plunge.

Ever since I first tried scuba at the tender age of 12, I have been addicted to the magical experience of entering the underwater world, as alien and intriguing as the moon...[LiverpoolEcho]

Eiffel Tower Offers Free Scuba Lessons

The weather was nippy and overcast and the water just chest-high, but a new scuba-diving pool in Paris has something Bali, Belize and other diving hotspots don't: a terrific view of the Eiffel Tower. To promote the sport, scuba instructors began offering free lessons Friday — with wet-suits, scuba gear and even a biodegradable towel — at the foot of the French capital's famed landmark.

"Through the water you can see the monument. It's magnificent," said New Zealand tourist Adrian Carter, one of the first to try it. He and a group of friends had planned to go up the 1,063-foot high Eiffel Tower, but opted for a dip instead. "This is better than the Eiffel Tower," said Carter, a 28-year-old computer programmer, his hair dripping from the 30-minute dive — his first ever.

The lessons include a safety lecture and a how-to demonstration in which instructors share tips. One first-time diver did a double-take when his guide told him to spit into his goggles to help keep them from fogging up.

The above-ground pool is under the Tower, between its four legs. It's small, at 50 feet by 50 feet, about half the size of a basketball court. Just 4-feet deep, it's safe for beginners and children aged 8 and older, said the event's organizers, an umbrella group of scuba associations. To add a touch of realism, the bottom of the pool is studded with waterproof photos of fluorescent fish...[SanFranciscoChronicle.com]