Discounts on Luxury Accommodation in Koh Tao

With the lead up to High Season we have some awesome accommodation offers for you here in Koh Tao. In addition to our Backpacker Freebies we are also offering affordable luxury at discounted prices! We  have discounts on our Studio Villas with swimming pool & all mod cons. The Studio is now just 1500Bt for the months of May & June & the 3 person Villa costs just 2500Bt for May & June. The villa includes your own kitchen so perfect if you're a family. Absolute bargains. Selling like hot potatoes too so if you are interested you'd better get emailing us This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Leading the way in Social Networking

Great to see this social media thing is working so well for us. We have the highest amount of reviews on Trip Advisor with around 600 reviews & although we aint first we have double the amount of reviews as the top rated Dive center. We are Number One on Lonely Planets Must Do Activities in Koh Tao with Koh Tao being the Number One Must See Place in Thailand. On top of that we are in the Top 5 of almost every search term you can think of on Google, Yahoo & Bing & our Facebook page is coming up to almost 4000 fans & our website is attracting 15000 viewers per month. We've also got some great write ups on www.scubaboard.com & www.tauchernet.de And just to make sure we stay on top of the game we are also going to be changing our website to make it more updated. Big Blue Diving, Koh Tao's Number One Dive Center staying on top of the game!

The Best SSI Dive Center in the World

Its over 21 years since we first opened & I think its fair to say we can be proud of what we've achieved in that time. We've gone form a little shop at the end of the pier in the center of town to one of Koh Tao's most recognised & respected Dive centers, not only here but Thailand wide! We have 2 beautiful beachfront resorts with their own Bars & Restaurants offering varying pricing for accommodation. Our newest Resort also has the largest Diver designed swimming pool on Koh Tao. We also have a great little Guesthouse in between our 2 resorts offering affordable luxury & about 2 minutes from there we have 3 private Villas with a shared Swimming Pool which is perfect for families or groups. Our Internal Branches have reached enormous success over the last few years with our Big Blue Pro Instructor Training arm becoming the Worlds largest SSI Instructor Training Center, Big Blue Tech, the island leaders in Tech, wreck & cave exploration, Big Blue Conservation our eco arm who organise major Marine Conservation projects like the GO Pro sponsored Swim for Sharks as well as our weekly land & beach clean ups. Then this year we opened Big Blue Freediving with 2 of the worlds most recognised Free Divers from Spain & Brazil who between them hold numerous national records & medals. Top this off with our West coast Dive center offerring Speedboat & Liveaboard trips to the Similan & Surin Islands & our new boat here in Koh Tao offerring 6 Full Day Trips per week to Sail Rock, Angthong Marine Park & Chumphon Marine Park I think its fair to say by choosing Big Blue Diving as your center to explore Thailands underwater world you'll have made a pretty good choice!

Saturday 30th March 2013-

So its finally here! Big Blue Freediving. This isn't the first time we've launched BBFreediving but this will be the last! And thats because now we really have a team who know exactly what it is they're doing! Pepe Arcos from Spain is a Gold Medal holder & held the National record at the indoor Freediving World championships with a distance of 179 Meters & also holds a personal Record at Constant weight with a depth of 80 meters. Flavia Eberhard holds the National record in Brazil with a depth of 69 meters & holds 8 static apnea records including her 6 minutes on a single breath. Both Pepe & Flavia are the only AIDA International Judges on Koh Tao. With these 2 as your Big Blue Freediving Instructors  we're ready to show you how you too can be as cool as them! Contact us immediately at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it for your chance to Freedive like a champion.

“Great value and such friendly people.” Reviewed on Trip Advisor March 26, 2013- Definitely the friendliest place I've been. Feel like you are with people you've known for years. The dorm rooms are clean and safe and everything you need a dorm room to be. And the diving is amazing. Such friendly instructors and other divers. I did lots of fun dives and every one lived up to its name. Would go back in an instant if i could.

Thursday 28th February 2013-

 Team Big Blue went out to fix some of the mooring lines around Koh Tao last week, including deploying a new line at King Kong and fixing one of the mooring lines at Japanese Gardens from an old polystyrene box to a proper buoy as supplied by the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources. But why do we make buoy lines on Koh Tao? Well, dropping anchors can cause massive structural damage ot the reefs around Koh Tao, and so to reduce this damage, The Save Koh Tao Group and the Thai Navy began a marine zoning and mooring line project in March 2009. Since the start of this project, nearly every dive site has the appropriate mooring lines and buoys. Snorkelling areas, small boats tie offs, boat lanes, and ‘no boat’ areas also have their own particular markers, such as yellow buoy lines for snorkelling areas, as part of the island zoning project. It is hoped that by working with the local community for the installation, maintenance, and repair of these buoys that we can increase the amount of education and awareness about human impacts on coral reefs and reduce those impacts for Koh Tao. At Big Blue, we use these buoys everyday at the dive sites. By replacing and maintaining the existing lines, we help ensure this project's success. A big thanks to the nine Big Blue DMTs and Marine Conservation Interns who joined the project and thanks to Save Koh Tao for putting on the fantastic mooring line workshops last week.

“Best Dive Shop in Koh Tao” Reviewed on Trip Advisor February 24, 2013 - Would highly recommend Big Blue to all travellers, whether you are back-packing or looking for a more family oriented hotel. They make scuba diving as easy, fun and comfortable as can be. The best place to start or further your dive experience in Koh Tao. Would definitely recommend the instructor I had for my Open Water and Advanced course, Ben. He was helpful every step of the way! 

Wednesday 31st January 2013- 

“100% recommend this place” - Reviewed on Trip Advisor January 28, 2013 - 3 of us just finished our advanced open water with big blue last week. It came highly recommended and we'll be sure to send our mates to the same spot. Great food accommodation etc and the staff are really cool. Massive thanks to Petra! (Best instructor on the island) Defiantly go to big blue!

 Monday 31st December 2012-

 Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! From all of us at Big Blue Diving. I hope you have been enjoying your festive season so far, including eating silly amounts and celebrating in the most festive way - whilst being as eco friendly as possible of course! At Big Blue, we never fail to be Eco friendly - even our Christmas tree is recyclable!  Understandably, we have to drink bottled water in Thailand - so what happens to the thousands of used plastic bottles every day? We recycle all our plastic bottles at Big Blue, and not just to make Christmas trees! In fact, the Thai Government pay 12 baht a kilo for recycling them, and so some Thai's make a living recycling. So when you've finished, find the nearest recycling bin, or re-fill them. What about our straw and plastic bag tinsel? A trip to 7 Eleven for a can of coke and a water and you get separate bags and 2 straws. But do we really need all that plastic? Unfortunately, plastic bags and straws contribute significantly to the plastic content in the sea, to the point were plastic plankton now exceeds normal plant plankton. So if you can, please say no to straws and plastic bags! Do you like our battery ball-balls?? I think they look great on the tree, but in the sea they leak sulphuric acid and can affect the water as much as a kilometre away. Not too nice for the fish. We recycle our batteries, as do most places around the world, including supermarkets, so find your local battery recycle depot when you have a chance. And finally our ring-pull star! Ring pulls are collected by a Thai charity which melts them down to make the hinges of prosthetic limbs! so help us donate to them and deposit your ring-pulls in the box next to our counter in the restaurant. Cheers! So have a very merry-eco-friendly-recycling-crazy-Christmas everybody!

Hi, I just wanted to take a moment to say thanks for the dive instruction.  We recently took the basic, and advanced course with Neil and couldn't have been happier with the instruction.  He always made sure we understood the sequence of events clearly before going down and made sure to debrief us and answer any questions on top.  I know I speak for the 5 of us, that did the open water course with him, that we truly believe we had the best instructor you guys had to offer. Thanks again, Wes. P.s. tell that short little blonde instructor she has a killer smile ;)

Never one to say but Bryan has gone green with jealousy knowing what James is up to right now! No James isn't huffing through trimix penetrating the unicorn or teaching Advanced wreck in total silt out! For some reason what James IS doing is shrouded in mystery and shall remain that way until a later date...What's happening that we can talk about are re-breather check dives and tech fun dives! Stuey is playing at twins giving his recreational trimix student a good shake down whilst our new arrivals are just settling in doing some twin set fun dives. For anyone that's interested we start an extended range course on the 3rd of January 2013 (not a bad start is that) Any folks that want to jump on it better be quick as the places are filling up fast, sign up with James at the tech shack by the 2nd of Jan please. Bryan is currently picking fragments of sand from his private parts sat at home, come on mate there can't be that much in there, your missing out on all the fun!!!

Wednesday- 7th November 2012- 

 Like the sands through an hourglass ... sunshine, suntan, sunburn, sun shades, sunglasses, 30 degree water temperature, 30 degree air temperature, deserted beaches, golden sands, swimming pools, flat seas, ocean clarity, bountiful marine life, Whalesharks, Bull Sharks, turtles, schools of Barracudas, twisting typhoons of trevally, eels, sting rays, bikinis, topless sunbathing, apres dive, sunsets, sunset beers, Scuba diving, Open Water Courses, Advanced Courses, Rescue Courses, Divemaster Courses, Instructor Training, Fun divers, certified Divers, Scuba Instructors, Tech Diving, Deep Diving, Wreck Diving, Nitrox Diving, beach side parties, Full Moon Parties, beach side bars, beach side restaurants, cheap beer, great food... these are the days of our lives!

“Can't wait to go back!”- Reviewed on Trip Advisor November 5, 2012- I did my open water certificate at Blue Big, and couldn't be happier!!! My instructor Skui was amazing! She made sure we are well prepared, and also made sure we had fun! Our last dive was with a whale shark!!!!! Can't beat that!!! Everyone in the resort was nice and friendly, location was beautiful!!! We upgraded our accommodation to a private room with hot shower and AC for only 800 baht a night, which was worth it! We wanted to be away from all the noise and get some well needed rest after each day. Already planning our return trip to Big Blue!!! 

 Friday 21st September 2012-

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration less than five percent of the world’s oceans have been explored, meaning that 95% of what lies deep underwater on Earth has yet to be seen by human eyes. One person who has dedicated his life to uncovering the mysteries of the deep is Japanese photographer Yoji Ookata who obtained his scuba license at the age of 21 and has since spent the last 50 years exploring and documenting his discoveries off the coast of Japan. Recently while on a dive near Amami Oshima at the southern tip of the country, Ookata spotted something he had never encountered before: rippling geometric sand patterns nearly six feet in diameter almost 80 feet below sea level. He soon returned with colleagues and a television crew from the nature program NHK to document the origins what he dubbed the “mystery circle.” Here is what they found: Using underwater cameras the team discovered the artist is a small puffer fish only a few inches in length that swims tirelessly through the day and night to create these vast organic sculptures using the gesture of a single fin. Through careful observation the team found the circles serve a variety of crucial ecological functions, the most important of which is to attract mates. Apparently the female fish are attracted to the hills and valleys within the sand and traverse them carefully to discover the male fish where the pair eventually lay eggs at the circle’s center, the grooves later acting as a natural buffer to ocean currents that protect the delicate offspring. Scientists also learned that the more ridges contained within the sculpture resulted in a much greater likelihood of the fish pairing.

Fancy learning all about the underwater realm, learning to dive, and carry out life-changing conservation work in a tropical paradise? Whether you are looking for a life experience you won’t forget, a career break, gap year, improving you CV, starting a career in conservation, voluntary work abroad or just simply looking to broaden your horizons and try something new and exciting, we have the opportunity of a lifetime for you. Our Conservation expedition and Skill Development programme is 4 weeks, including diver training (normally the Open water and Advanced course, but if you already have these we can offer other training such as Rescue or Nitrox), Marine Biology lectures and underwater science training, BSAC Marine Conservation Training, Emergency First Response First aid training, accommodation in one of our air conditioned dorms, and dive equipment rental included. Then, if that's not enough of a life experience or for the CV, you will have the opportunity to complete a project of your own during the last week, whether it's a fundraiser, education tool, or marine research project. And did I mention the huge celebration we will have at the end?? Now here's the best bit - normally 28,500 baht, if you book with us before October 30th, all this is only 25,000 baht! Contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it to find out more and for dates of our expeditions in 2013, or have a look at our Conservation Expedition page . As a leading diver training centre, you will be taught how to dive by experienced qualified instructors. During your first week, volunteers take part in SCUBA training they will be qualified as divers at both open water and advanced open water level. If you are already qualified, no worries! For volunteers that are looking to improve their diving qualifications beyond the advanced open water level this too can be achieved whilst volunteering, such as Nitrox, Deep, Wreck qualifications, or further your diver training and become a Rescue Diver. Any volunteers that do not require dive training can join the expedition as part of the main group a week later, and fin dive in the first week instead with our excellent Divemaster team. So why Big Blue? Big Blue Conservation offers a unique experience in the world of Marine Conservation and Diver training. Not only do we have trained scientific staff on board with academic verification and years of experience, we have gifted and experienced instructors to offer an incredible range of extra diver training.

Updated Thursday 30th August 2012-

Must have done something right over recent years! Seems to me that our turtle releasing projects organised here in Koh Tao through our friends at the Save Koh Tao Group could actually be somewhat responsible for the massive increase in turtle sightings we've been getting round Koh Tao. There were 3 of the little fellas at Hin Wong Pinnacle today. Nice. With all these wreck sinkings, sharks, whales. whalesharks & turtle sightings we've been getting round here lately can only help cement Koh Tao as a major international Dive destination! 

You'd be forgiven for walking into the shop today thinking that either Tosh was in a very deep important stressful mobile phone conversation or that he was expecting a baby the way he was pacing back & forward & to & fro, chewing his fingernails off, the nervous laughter & the weird facial tick. But actually no its far worse than that. He has to spend the next 2 1/2 days waiting to find out if his first 6 Instructor Candidates have passed their SSI Instructor Exam! Nervous times! That'll probably account for the wet patch round your crotch Tosh! Good luck guys. 

“Life-changing!”5 of 5 stars Reviewed on Trip Advisor- The people working at Big Blue are the most wonderful mix of personalities I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. They are all so unique, but they share a common passion... and that is an unquestionable love for diving. Their enthusiasm and dedication is inspiring... and their blatent 'love of life' is infectious. I could not have chosen a more wonderful environment to do my Divemaster course in. Big Blue's lively atmosphere, superb location, diverse selection of dive sites and wondeful staff made my training there one of the most enjoyable experiences of my life. The people at Big Blue became more than just friends.. they became my family. 

Bullsharks are Back!

The Boys are back! Remember the days when you'd head out to the Divesite first, get in the water first, head out away from the Pinnacles, out into the wide blue yonder until you start seeing the hulking shadow of one  followed quickly by another & then another untill you realise they are all around you! 20 sometimes 30 of them. Bull sharks. Surrounded in Bull sharks. One of lifes most exhillerating experiences imagineable. Diving with Bull Sharks. Well I have good news! 3 Bull sharks spotted at Sail Rock yesterday! AND.... 1 Tigershark! Let the good times roll! The Boys are back in Town!

The Dive School is by far the best on the island!

SSI Instructors pay for their Training within the first month!

Save Our Sharks!

Today is a huge day for marine conservation in Australia, with the federal government expected to announce plans for marine parks to cover 3.1 million square kilometres of Australia's oceans. Will this finally mean an end to the annual slaughter of 78000 sharks on the Great Barrier Reef? Let's hope so. You can't ignore the growing international pressure to ban this abhorrent industry any longer Aussies! And when you do it you'll find a lot more countries following suit especially in the Pacific! Do the right thing. Save Our Sharks!

A Very Professional Setup

“The best place to learn to dive!” 5 of 5 stars Reviewed on Trip Advisor June 28, 2012 - I arrived on Koh Tao intending to do my Open Water and move on but ended up staying almost 2 weeks. I can only say good things about Big Blue, i had such an awesome time. It's a very professional set up. I'm not the most confident diver but with guidance from my instructor i felt completely safe. After the OW I went on a few fun dives and my confidence grew. The dive masters were very enthusiastic and pointed out lots of marine life. I stayed in the dorm room which was clean, tidy, quiet and with aircon. The food in the restaurant is also really good. Well done Big Blue. Thanks for making my stay on Koh Tao so amazing! x

SSI Crossover on 4th July

SSI Crossover with SSI Instructor Training leg end Simon Garrity & his trusty steed Paul 'Tosh' Tanner starting on Wednesday 4th July for any exisitng Scuba Instructors out there who realise they've made a serious but honest mistake & become an Instructor with the wrong agency! All PADI, BSAC, CMAS & NAUI Instructors welcome. & get this! Jobs for everyone who attends! Unfortunatley not with us as we are fully staffed already but we have jobs all over the world so just let us know where you want to go & we'll get you there! Become a real Diving Professional! Join the Revolution! It pays better! For more infodrop us a line This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or check out our new super cool Instructor Training Website www.bigblueinstructortraining.com

Aung Sang Suu Kyi in Thailand

So the big news in Thailand at the moment which effects sooooo many of our behind the scenes staff here at Big Blue is that legendary Democracy Leader Aung Sang Suu Kyi the hope for so many millions of freedom loving Burmese people has arrived in Thailand. The Burmese people are an amazing bunch. They're so friendly, so accommodating, hard workers, reliable & live on virtually nothing & those who work here literally work over 12 hours a day 7 days a week & then send their money home to their famillies in Burma who have nothing. Soon we all hope that Burma will become a real democracy again & these boys can all be reunited with their famillies. All the best boys. In the immortal words of Hollywood superstar Mel Gibson- "Freedom!"

SSI Instructor Trainer Simon Garrity

"I did my course with the professional, highly focused, humorous, thoughtful, strong, muscular, virile, incredibly good-looking Simon Garrity! I teach almost exactly as he taught me. It works brilliant! and by the way it has been really fun! I recommend this man and Big Blue Diving anyway! THANK YOU! Tobi O. "  Good on you Tobi. Thanks so much for writing in to our Facebook Group & expressing these comments. We don't know how much Simon paid you to write this but we appreciate it anyway!

Hilarious Big Blue Diving Instructor Tosh Tanner

“Best thing I've ever done!” 5 of 5 stars Reviewed on Trip Advisor- I finished my dive at big blue just over a week ago and I am still reminiscing! I can honestly say it is one of the best experiences of my life. Me and my friends were instantly made to feel welcome and our accomodation was much better than we had ever hoped. The staff are all really efficient and professional and went out of their way to ensure that our needs were met. However, a special mention needs to be given to our instructor, Tosh. There is no question that he made the experience for us. Not only was he hilarious, but he was patient, attentive and calming. Definitely a character I will remember! Despite not having any previous diving experience, we all learnt really quickly due to the excellent quality of teaching. I would recommend this dive school to anyone and am already planning my return trip. Thanks Big Blue!

Updated Thursday 31st May 2012-

Saturday 28th April 2012-

Save Koh Tao Festival:

Save Koh Tao Festival Day today & tomorrow. An outdoor festival rivalling those like Woodstock, Glastonbury, or Monstors of Rock but Koh Tao style! You know there'll be food, & drinks, & live music & fashion shows & I'm sure there'll be sex, drugs & rock'n'roll tho maybe best leave that for the confines of your own home. And as ever Big Blue is leading the way with another live action song & dance compillation. You may well remember when 'Grease' was the word, & then we Zombie strutted our stuff to Thriller, & last year we jigged and jagged our way thru River Dance. Well this year we're evolving The Evolution of Dance & taking it a step further! Come watch. We're on stage tonight at 9pm!

What? Another Whale Shark on Koh Tao?

“Best part of our trip so far!” Reviewed on Trip Advisor April 21, 2012 - best dive instructor ever! (Med) had such a good time we ended up paying out to do our advanced aswell as our openwater. the staff made everything much more enjoyable. the resort is right on the beach and a seven eleven right at the top of the road with an atm. great local bars. incredible dive sites and we saw a whale shark! we got free on site accomodation because we dived with big blue. started in a fan room but because it was too hot we moved to an aircon dorm (still free) with no hassle. lockers for use just need a padlock. would definately reccomend to ANYBODY going anywhere near thailand. I'll be back!

 
Friday 30th March 2012-

There's got to be very few things in this world that quite literally take your breath away and unarguably Free diving is one of them! Next month Big Blue Freediving will be launched with International Free Diver Akim Adhari a man who can, not only hold his breath for over 7 minutes, but has also freedived to a depth exceeding 100 meters which makes him one of the best Breathhold divers in the world & we are very proud to have Akim launching our new Breath-hold Diving School with soon to be Freediving Instructors Serena & Tosh here at Big Blue Diving! So next time you want to hold your breath & go diving with Whales look us up first!

"New BSAC Instructor at Big Blue Diving! Congratulations to Emma who has just finished her BSAC Open Water Instructor crossover. At the same time as qualifying has a BSAC Instructor, Emma also qualified as a BSAC Oxygen Administration Instructor. Emma who is currently working at Big Blue Diving, crossed over to BSAC as she is involved in numerous Marine Conservation projects and she thought that BSAC was a great vehicle in achieving her goals in these projects. BSAC Thailand would like to take this opportunity to wish Emma all the best in the future and her diving career." Les Skelton - BSAC Thailand Director.

Come dive with sharks!!! in the last 5 days Ant, DM, has dived with a whale shark for over 50 mins on Sail Rock, the best dive site in the Gulf of Thailand!! & 15 black tip reef sharks at a secret location! We'll be returning to Sail Rock tomorrow where the vis has been a crystal clear 25m+ and would love to have you join us. Another reef tip shark dive is planned within the next 2 days.... Better pop down to Big Blue for your piece of the action!

 Tuesday 28th February 2012-

Photographed near Oslob in the Philippines, these images show the once-in-a-lifetime behaviour of a half dozen whale sharks up to 25ft long and the 12 or so fishermen. The food-based friendship centres around the brine shrimp the fishermen are catching and the trust between man and the world's largest fish is evident to see as a whale shark approaches a local fisherman to be hand-fed brine shrimp in shallow waters approaches a local fisherman to be hand-fed brine shrimp in shallow waters. The local fisherman see the whale sharks as good luck charms for their catch. They are also charging £1.50 to let photographers capture the friendship to supplement their incomes. 'It was a lifetime moment, just me, the fishermen, and these gentle whale sharks. What was most touching was the relationship between the fishermen and the sharks. The fishermen clearly cared for these animals, and the whale sharks demonstrated such trust in them. Having witnessed the slaughter of whale sharks at the hands of fishermen elsewhere in the region, this interaction was a beacon of hope for me, a message that both man and whale shark could co-exist, could develop trust, and even appreciate one another.'

Well today is the closing day for Blue Season Bali's Best Dive Job in the world. After today no more entries will be accepted and starting March 1st, one name of the final cut will be released each day for 10 days. The final winner will be announced on March 15th. Finally, after 5 long months of campaigning and harrasing everyone,it's almost over. We still need to push to the finish line since it's not over until it's over. Please continue to like my Joe Zeiler's fanpage, comment on her application page and post photos, videos and general whacky, fun support. Please take a moment to leave a comment :) We're almost there everyone!! Let's keep it up!!! THE FINAL PUSH!! LET'S GO OUT WITH A SPLASH!!!

Big Blue's divers has done it again - diving with turtles, turtles and more turtles!!! The last week we have had the great pleasure to dive with hawksbill and green turtles all around the island, from Green Rock and Shark Island to Mae Haad (!) and even on our coral nursery on Sairee Reef! We have said it before and can't help but repeating ourselves: want to see a turtle? Then come diving with Big Blue!

Latest News 21^st December

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Courtesy of our most hobbit like instructor, Little “Massive” Dave, the long awaited Big Blue challenge went off at Vibe Lounge last night, and what a night it was!  It saw Big Blue’s finest battle it out against a rival dive school (no names I’m afraid) in round after round of farcical challenges to decide who would be crowned the ultimate champions of the rock!  Mental challenges, physical challenges and the usual, mandatory drinking challenges we fought harder than we ever have and we kicked arse!!! Well done to everyone that showed up and participated, you did us proud!  Big Blue Champions!  Better luck next time Crystal!  Oh, I didn’t did I…

So congratulations are in order this week for our slim, trim, strawberry blonde instructor Paul Toshy Tanner and his lovely wife Vicky on the arrival of their beautiful baby girl, Grace Mary Tanner!  She weighed in at 4kg and measured 51cm and was born around 6pm Thai time on 12^th December (it’s a bit late I know but that’s what happens when you leave Pi Roz in charge!).  Big Blue and every member of staff here would like to say big congratulations to the three of you and we wish you all the best in your long and happy future together!  A wonderful new addition to the big blue family!  Babys head wetting time soon then…?

"I was really apprehensive about diving before arriving on Koh Tao as after contacting other Dive schools i was told i may be too big to dive.  Big Blue assured me that i had nothing to worry about and they were right.  All in all i had an amazing experience and i fully recommend diving with Big Blue to anyone. Diving is such a unique an unforgettable experience that it's changed the way i think about my holidays.  It's opened my eyes to some countries which i had never ever considered visiting but would love to now because the diving is meant to be amazing there.  Thank you Big Blue for an amazing 4 days and for believing in me and convincing me i could do it when other dive schools didn't."  Jaz, Birmingham, UK.  No worries Jaz, maybe next time we'l be able to find you a whaleshark.  Just keep rubbing those nipples!

Saturday 26th November-

Ros booked the day off for Thanksgiving so she could cook Curtis, her All American Boy a turkey. So Ros, here's what you do: First, buy the turkey and a bottle of whiskey. Pour yourself a glass of whiskey and put the turkey in the oven. Take another 2 drinks of whiskey, and set the degree at 375 ovens. Have 3 more whiskeys of drink and turn the oven on. Take 4 whisks of drinky and turk the bastey. Stick a turkey in the thermometer, and glass yourself a pour of whiskey. Bake the whiskey for 4 hours, take the oven out of the turkey, and floor the turkey up off the pick. Pour yourself another glass of turkey. Now just tet the sable, and turk the carvey! Happy America Day!

Jim is off tomorrow for another month long holiday with his family. This time he's off to Munich! From the sweaty pant wearing 30 degree temperature of Koh Tao to the testicle shrinking minus 13 degrees of Munich this should be quite an experience for him. So Jim's off for Christmas but back for New Year so Ros is back in charge, despite her piss poor performance last time Jim went on holiday when Ros set fire to the kitchen & then flooded the whole Resort. So lets be honest she can't exactly faff it up anymore than she did last time! Watch this space.

And another Whaleshark! That makes six thousand nine hundred and twenty twelvety whale shark sitings this year! Which makes your chances of seeing a Whaleshark in Thailand as about as high as seeing a monk in Thailand! & I guess this amount of Whaleshark visits here this year would also rank Koh Tao as being one of the most common places to go on holiday & dive with a Whaleshark! Mexico, Australia, Philipines & Thailand! Nice holiday destinations! At least they have good taste in holidays! Wouldn't really be the same if you had to go to Belgium!

 
Saturday 29th October 2011-

So whats the latest on the Bangkok floods situation? Well word is that unfortunatley despite all efforts to save it Khao Sarn Rd is actually flooding. Which is obviously catastrophic news for those businesses & stalls in that area including our very own Big Blue Bangkok office! Everyone is fine but we have been forced to shut up shop for a few days I'm afraid. Unfortunately this flooding will also disrupt the bus services with Lomprayah & Seatran down to Koh Tao as well So again... please spread the word too all weary & worried travellers about to arrive or stuck somewhere wet & unpleasant right now. Get the fuddleduck outta there & get yourselves to the main International airport & go to the Bangkok Airways counter or www.bangkokairways.com & get yourselves a ticket to Samui & then the boat to Koh Tao. Beautiful weather here. Awesome conditions & no flooding whatsoever! Have yourselves a holiday! You've earnt it!

" Big Blue Diving is one of the biggest diving center in Koh Tao and one of the most serious. The staff is comopsed of great guys, thais and foreigners, who are really friendly, cool and professional. I passed the SSI Open Water with Iain, Koreen and Pete. They were really good instructors, very helpful and pros. I recommend you to ask for them if you want to pass diving certifications. The Open Water was 4 days of academics and practice: 1 exam and 5 dives (1 in a deep pool and 4 in the ocean). The dive sites are totally amazing! You'll see a lot of tropical fishes and corrals! One of my best activity during my trip to Thailand! Prices are fair: I payed 9000 THB including the Open Water and the accomodation in dormitory. It worth it! The dorm is clean, the diving equipment really good and the dives really awesome! There is a big and animated bar close to the diving center were you'll pass academics, have beers with lot of potential friends and eat good food (hai and international). At the end of your Open Water, they will film you (during your last dive) and propose you to buy a DVD. The dvd quality is really pro but the price is a little bit expensive (around 2500THB) but if you have enough money, buy it! Really! The center is located on the Sairee beach so during your free time you'll be able to swim, snorkle quite easily. They also rent snorkelling equipment if you don't have your own. Really close to the center, you'll find all the commodities: bars, pubs, 7Eleven (supermarket), shops ans internet cafes. And also massages (count about 300THB for an hour). If you want to discover the island, the easiest way is to rent a motorbike or a quad (you can rent motorbike directly in Big Blue Diving center - prices are fair). So, YES, I highly recommend you to go the Big Blue Diving! Don't hesitate to negociate the prices on the Lomprayah boat, on your way from Chumphon to Koh Tao, with the big blue guy promoting it. If I go back to Koh Tao, I will definitely go there to do my Advanced courses! Really cool." Zetraist, Poitieres, France- Trip Advisor.

 
Friday 30th September 2011-

In just 25 years, our consumption rate of plastic bags has grown from almost zero to our use of over 500,000,000,000 (that’s 500 billion) plastic bags annually … almost 1 million per minute.
- According to The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually. An estimated 12 million barrels of oil is required to make that many plastic bags.
- Four out of five grocery bags in the US are now plastic.
- Plastic bags cause hundreds of thousands of birds, sea turtle and other marine animal deaths every year because these creatures mistake plastic trash for food.
- Countries like China, Ireland, Australia, Bangladesh have banned or have placed restrictions on single use plastic bags.
- Taiwan banned plastic bag and plastic utensils as a way to reduce 60,000 metric tons of waste per year they deal with each year
- According to the BBC, only 1 in 200 plastic bags in the UK are recycled.
- Target, the second-largest retailer in the U.S. purchases 1.8 billion bags a year. They just announced a new program to give consumers a nickel back for each reusable bag they bring into their stores when they shop.
- Target (Australia) completely banned single use plastic bags in their stores in 2008.
- The average family accumulates 60 plastic bags in only four trips to the grocery store.
- Each high quality reusable bag you use has the potential to eliminate an average of 1,000 plastic bags over its lifetime.
- Americans use 2.5 million plastic bottles every HOUR.. Each of us creates 1,500 lbs of trash every year that has to be disposed of that could be recycled with a little effort.
- Now you know … time to pitch in and do your part!
Remember every piece of plastic ever produced and not recycled still exists!

Well its another full on weekend of World Cup Rugby especially for the English & Scottish & we're doing what we can to juggle those interested students whose countries are playing so that they can be on land & watch the matches. It also means there won't be any blog for a few days either so I'd better predict whats coming up over the next couple of days or so. It will be hot, bright & sunny with a chance of showers. Sea temperatures will be around 30 degrees. Visibility will be as much as 30 meters tomorrow & Sunday at Chumphon & Southwest Pinnacles & down to around 20 meters at most of the dive sites around Nang Yuan Island & the wreck & there will be baracudas, Sting rays, turtles & a Whale Shark for your viewing pleasure. So if you are Scottish we'll see you next weekend then (chortle chortle guffaw guffaw!)

BSAC’s stand at this year’s DIVE 2011 will be plastic bag free as part of its pledge to minimise its impact on the environment. BSAC, who has just announced a new partnership with Marine Environment charity Plastic Oceans, is currently driving forward its own ‘green pledge’ to reduce its reliance on plastic across the organisation. Visitors to the BSAC stand, in particular the BSAC Shop, are now being encouraged to bring their own reusable bags or rucksacks and show their support for the initiative. Thank you.