Koh Tao and I Thought I Couldn't Be Surprised...

AL HORNSBY heads for the island of Koh Tao and is pleasantly surprised by the rich diversity of diving experiences, as well as the comprehensive pro training on offer.

There are a number of reasons why the small island of Koh Tao, off Thailand’s eastern coast, is considered one of the most popular Thai resort destinations. Like many other islands in the country, it has a reputation for fun and partying - it’s one of the monthly ‘Full Moon Party’ islands, after all - but it has different offerings as well. Its crowd, largely European, is a mix of both young and somewhat older people than seen on most of the other islands, with a lot of repeat travellers who visited when they were university-age, now coming back with their families. And, while there is no shortage of great bars, restaurants and late-night clubs, it has a clean, laid-back atmosphere that coincides with the beauty of its natural, tropical-island environment.

And, while Koh Tao’s granite-boulder geology and steep mountainsides create an incredible landscape for hikers and climbers, its biggest recreational draw is its diving and snorkelling. Its name in Thai means ‘Turtle Island’, as it is a nursery area for green and hawksbill turtles, which are frequently seen, and its beaches and near-shore waters offer surprisingly vibrant dive sites of various descriptions. It is especially unique in that despite its small size - only 21 sq metres, and much of that sparsely-populated mountainsides - it has become one of the top dive training locations in the entire world, with thousands of people each year having PADI Discover Scuba Diving experiences, gaining their Open Water Diver certifications, and moving on up through Advanced Open Water and other continuing education levels. To top it off, it has become one of diving’s most-prolific professional-level training centres, and claims to have more Divemasters and instructors trained each year than any other island on the planet.