Hundreds Turn Out to Make Pattaya Dive Festival Huge Success

Slideshow, Report Below Highlight Day of Treasure Hunting, Reef Cleaning, Partying

Nearly 300 scuba enthusiasts from Bangkok and Pattaya enjoyed a full day of diving, treasure hunting, environmental conservation and a bit of partying as Aquanauts and six other dive centers celebrated the first-ever Pattaya Dive Festival.

While often overshadowed by Koh Tao and the Similan Islands, Pattaya grabbed the spotlight of Thailand’s scuba diving world – at least for a weekend – as 282 divers plunged into the waters of Koh Larn for the event sponsored by Aquanauts, Mermaids Dive Center and Adventure Divers in Pattaya and four Bangkok shops.

Organized by the Pattaya Dive Club and Wahoo Dive Center, Dive Indeed, Dive Innovation and Dive Now in Bangkok, the event was aimed at reminding Bangkok-based diver they don’t need to travel to southern Thailand for a great scuba experience. As Thailand’s “shipwreck-diving capital,” Pattaya offers unique adventures for experienced divers and well-explored training grounds perfect for beginners, organizers said.

“These three sunken wrecks under the sea near Pattaya have drawn attentions from divers around the world and we believe will make Pattaya a must stop on the tour programs of international travel agents,” Pattaya Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome said.

The festival drew a wide range of participants, from entire families of young and old divers to Japanese couples to an Australian trying diving on the Aquanauts boat for the first time. While the festival fell short of the hoped-for 500 participants, the festival still proved a great success, both for organizers and for divers themselves, who collected 120 prizes and got to see first-hand the impact trash flushed into the canals of Bangkok have on the reefs of Pattaya.

The day started early, with registration and breakfast starting at Bali Hai Pier at 7 a.m. Itthiphol officially kicked off the festival with opening remarks in both English and Thai, followed by Tourism Authority of Thailand Pattaya Director Niti Kunplome and sponsors.

“Today the seven best dive centers in Pattaya and Bangkok are showing that Pattaya offers a rich underwater environment and is a world-class diving destination,” Itthiphol said.

From there, divers the seven boats needed for the day, including the Aquanauts flagship. Organizers originally envisioned as many as 500 divers descending on Pattaya for the festival. But non-participating dive shops in Bangkok, they claimed, went on a smear campaign against the festival and participating centers, perpetrating rumors about crowds, safety and the weather.

As it turned out, the weather was perfect for the day, with flat seas and no current. Even the sun made an appearance, after starting hiding behind thick clouds in the early morning.

The first dive of the day was the popular undersea treasure hunt. Divers searched the reef off Koh Larn Vak for steel pots, each containing small pink animals. Find a figurine, win a prize. Some did, with one lucky diver on the Aquanauts Dive Centre boat scooping up 16 of the little dolls. Unfortunately, another young woman diving a few minutes behind her found only empty pots!

Divers counted their treasure over lunch, a sumptuous multi-course meal of Thai and western food and fruit. Then it was back into the water after noon for the reef cleanup.

Each armed with gloves, scissors and bags, the 282 divers scoured the bay, removing bottles, cans, plastic bags and other assorted trash thrown carelessly into the sea or washed into the bay by rainwater. The amount of trash pulled up shocked many of the Bangkok residents, who didn’t realize much of the garbage that pollutes Pattaya’s waters comes, in fact, from the capital.

Treasure and trash collected, the diving armada set sail back to Pattaya. After a shower and some rest, the divers reassembled around the pool at the Captain’s Corner restaurant for a huge buffet and party. Free cold beer went down well after a day in the sun and models dressed as sharks and clownfish made for interesting entertainment.

The festival continued for a select group of sponsors and public officials Sunday as they assembled on Koh Larn for a coral-planting exercise.

While disappointed by the suppressed turnout, organizers were still pleased with the Festival’s results, saying success is measured by the enjoyment of those who participated, not by the number of people who didn’t.

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 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,

Already having garnered new support from the Tourism and Sports Ministry, organizers are already planning next year’s festival, promising an even bigger event that will be marketed overseas, not just to Bangkok divers.