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Sun, sea and safari - overland, and undersea. Hands-on commitment to marine conservation ... That's the essence of Blu International. An innovator in the world of African scuba, it operates a PADI Gold Palm Resort in southern Moçambique and offers a unique diving package linked to whale shark research. Its highly diversified portfolio also includes an array of training options for scuba professionals, and services dedicated to the needs of corporate team-builders.
 Exclusive dive charters to Moçambique
Resort courses
Whale shark research encounters
Dive travel
Equipment sales and rentals
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Snorkelling
Advanced scuba instruction and speciality courses
Catered corporate packages
Tour operators (overland and undersea)
Kids' club
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Blu International Dive Travel based in Bryanston, Gauteng, handles
bookings at some of the world's premier dive destinations
The Comores Mauritius The Red Sea Madagascar The Maldives
Ponta Do Ouro
Blu's PADI Gold Palm Resort
Located 117km south of the Moçambican capital Maputo, and only half an hour's drive north of the South African border, the picturesque village of Ponta Do Ouro offers a sheltered bay perfect for scuba training and the launching of ski-boats.
Water temperatures vary seasonally from 24 to 29 degrees Celcius; the average water visibility is 30m and dive depths on the twenty local reefs range from about 14m to over 40m. Dive highlights include whale shark encounters, Bass City Reef (potato bass, scorpion fish, turtles) and Texas Reef (hard and soft corals and sponges).
The towering dunes are clad in indigenous forest and the local lighthouse offers a magnificent view over the white beaches of a coastline that has seen hardly any development. Guests' accommodation choices include a motel, freshly-painted chalets of various sizes, many private cottages and a large camping area right on the beach. It is here, in amongst dense coastal vegetation, that Blu International has based its idyllic PADI Gold Palm Resort. Constructed of local materials - poles, reeds and thatch - the relaxed dive camp epitomises scuba culture. Divers who opt to camp can either bring their own tent or rent Blu International's.
Parents with small children can leave them in the care of Blu's Kids' Club while out diving.
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| The Ponta Do Ouro coastline Adventure Geographic |
COURSES
A team of Blu instructors are permanently based at Ponta Do Ouro and run the full spectrum of PADI courses:
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Discover Scuba
Refresher Course
Open Water Diver
Advanced Plus Diver
Rescue Diver
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Discover Scuba Diving
Skin Diver
Advanced Diver
Medic First Aid
Dive Master
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| An IDC (Instructor Development Course) will be run from 19 - 28 February 1998. |
Resort Open Water courses and Referral Open Water courses are available. The full Resort Open Water course is run in Ponta Do Ouro over six days. Lectures are given on the beach, practical equipment training takes place in the bay, and qualifying dives are done on the pristine reefs.
| Speciality courses include: | |
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Night Diver
Deep Diver
Distinctive Whale Shark Speciality
Wreck Diver
Enriched Air River/Nitrox Diver
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Drift Diver
Underwater Naturalist Diver
Underwater Navigation Diver
Boat Diver
Peak Performance Buoyancy
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| Guests receive detailed briefings before each dive. Staff are trained paramedics and a qualified doctor is on call. Blu's boats are equipped with the latest in safety equipment. |
Encounter Whale Shark
A snorkeller's delight
Whale Sharks, Rhincodon typus, are commonly encountered basking just beneath the surface of the ocean. Although the largest amongst the sharks, these gentle giants are harmless to humans. They are choice snorkeling companions - and the subject of a tagging and monitoring project involving Blu International.
| Day 1: | In the evening on the day of arrival at Ponta Do Ouro, guests get together in the dive centre with the Blu International team for a whale shark video presentation with comments from a collaborating marine biologist. |
| Day 2/3: | From 11h00 to 13h00pm a spotter plane pinpoints the sharks and directs the dive boat towards it. After tagging, all the passengers slip overboard and, under the supervision of the dive master, join the fish in the water. It typically moves on languidly, allowing its human companions to keep up. Meanwhile the next shark may already have been found, and the boat moves on for the next tagging. At 18h00, the group meets again in the dive centre for a debriefing and more expert talk on whale shark behaviour, biology, breeding, distribution, feeding, harvesting, myths and legends. |
| Day 4: | Last date with a whale shark. |
| 04 - 07 January | 10 - 13 May | 13 - 16 September |
| 12 - 15 February | 18 - 21 June | 15 - 18 October |
| 08 - 11 March | 12 - 15 July | 08 - 11 November |
| 16 - 19 April | 13 - 16 August | 03 - 06 December |
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| Close encounter, Ponta Do Ouro Peter Driessel |
Adventure Holiday
A 10-day Overland and Undersea Safari
Combining the core adrenaline activity of diving among spotted ragged-tooth sharks,
Carcharias taurus, with a mini-safari in "Big Five" country and swimming with whale sharks, this amphibian adventure ranges from renowned Aliwal Shoal south of Durban to Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Park in northern KwaZulu-Natal and Blu International's Gold Palm Resort at Ponta Do Ouro.
Rated one of the world's top dive sites, Aliwal Shoal, off the mouth of the Umkomaas River, is a rocky reef with spectacular coral growth and a myriad tropical fish; Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Park (96 453ha), once a hunting preserve of the Zulu kings and one of Africa's oldest wildlife sanctuaries, is home to probably the highest concentration of rhino in the world.
| Day 1: | Guests are met in Durban and travel along the coastal highway to Umkomaas. |
| Day 2: | Two dives on Aliwal Shoal. |
| Day 3: | After a morning dive on Aliwal Shoal, the safari moves on to Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Park, where guests have the option of an evening game drive in an open vehicle. (Accommodation) |
| Days 4/5: | Game viewing. Besides the "Big Five" - lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino (white - 1 600; black - 350) - there are giraffe, hippo, cheetah, wild dog, an array of antelope species and prolific birdlife (over 300 species) |
| Day 6: | After an early morning game drive, the journey continues across the Moçambique border, from where a 4X4 is used to get over the dunes to Ponta Do Ouro. That evening there is an informal discussion on the whale shark, lead by experts. |
| Days 7/8: | After tagging, guests enter the water for a swim with a whale shark (several such encounters are possible over the three days). OR: An early morning dive, followed by a second after breakfast, enjoying the prolific subtropical marine life on a choice reef. |
| Day 9: | Last swim with a whale shark, or another reef dive. |
| Day 10: | Transfer back to Durban.
The whale shark and reef dive options can be combined. |
Add-On Options (3 nights)
Great white shark cage diving in Cape Town
This eco-friendly great white encounter takes place off the coast of Mossel Bay. Run by a professional and friendly team.
Sun City
Spend a day at the Valley of the Waves and wonder through the Lost City. Take in the extravaganza and try your luck in the casino at night. Non-stop entertainment for the family.
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| Reef spectacle off Ponta Do Ouro Peter Driessel |
Blu International is an Adventure Partner in Adventure Geographic Network (AdgeoNet), through which is linked a wide spectrum of adventure options and operators in sub-Saharan Africa. For updates on the Network's extensive portfolio and other useful adventure travel information, page to the AdgeoNet Newsletter. |
 Discover Africa Safari Travel Reisen |
