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Scuba Dive At The Aquarium Of The Pacific In Long Beach

Scuba Dive At The Aquarium Of The Pacific In Long Beach

Written by Nevin
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Published on October 16, 2010

There is something intriguing about being able to Scuba Dive at Aquariums. It’s such a completely different experience from regular Scuba Diving, as there is for starters such a great concentration of marine life and often a wide variety of fish and other sea creatures in a smaller space; something you perhaps would get to experience easily in the open water. Knowing that you are being watched by hundreds of the aquariums visitors as you dive the tank, is often a great experience in itself or an awkward one for some. Either way it’s something completely different from regular open water diving and should be experienced at least once.

Most recently in July 2010, for the first-time ever, general certified divers are now invited to dive into the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, California.

The Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach California, is truly a spectacular display that covers every corner of the mighty Pacific Ocean with galleries and exhibits from the waters of sunny Southern California and Baja, the frigid waters of the North Pacific, and the colorful reefs of the Tropical Pacific. One of the key highlights of the Aquarium is the Shark Lagoon where visitors can come face-to-face with, and even touch, the Pacific Ocean’s ultimate predators.

The recently introduced Dive Immersion program takes place in the Tropical Reef Habitat section of the Aquarium which allows divers to explore the warm 350,000-gallon Tropical Reef Tank and meet more than 1000 tropical fish up close and personal. This gallery is designed to simulate the warm, 80-degree waters of Micronesia considered by many to be among the most beautiful in the world. Palau’s waters contain an incredible diversity of coral, fish, and other colorful marine life. The 16 exhibits in the Aquarium’s Tropical Pacific Gallery represent the beautiful marine life you would find off the coast of Palau.

Divers can witness up-close, a thousand colorful fish and beautiful coral, including sea turtles, zebra and black tip reef sharks, porcupine puffers, and a large blue Napoleon or humphead wrasse. The whole dive immersion program consists of a two and a half hour experience with a full personal behind-the-scenes tour of the dive program, a dive in their largest exhibit, a certificate of completion, a souvenir towel, use of the Aquariums underwater camera, and a memory card of your photos to take home. All scuba diving equipment is provided by the Aquarium itself, and people wishing to avail of the program need to carry a C-Card with A minimum of an Open Water certification from a nationally recognized scuba certifying agency and a picture I.D.

The cost of this experience at the Aquarium of the Pacific is $299 per person or $279 for members, and reservations need to be made at least 24 hours in advance. Dives take place daily for a maximum of four participants between 3:00-5:30 p.m.