Bermuda wins top awards from leading dive magazine

The Bermuda Department of Tourism is delighted to announce that Bermuda has won first place for Wreck Diving and third place for both Snorkeling and Diving for Beginners in Scuba Diving magazine’s 2010 Reader’s Choice Awards.

Premier and Minister of Tourism and Transport Dr. the Hon. Ewart Brown said, “We consider it an honour for Bermuda to be recognized by the readers of Scuba Diving magazine. This is also reminder to all Bermudians that we must respect and preserve our beautiful reefs and wrecks for all to enjoy.”

The survey was conducted in 2009 with over 5,000 Scuba Diving readers from all over the globe submitted their rankings.

Bermuda has over 400 historic wrecks, with some dating back to the 15th century. Popular sites include:

• The Constellation – 4-masted wooden schooner built in 1918. She sank in 1943 while en route from New York to Venezuela with a cargo that included cement, whisky, and drug ampoules. She was the inspiration for the Goliath in Peter Benchley’s novel The Deep.
• L’Herminie – French 3-masted wooden warship that sank in 1838 while sailing from France to Cuba.
• Hermes – US Navy freighter built in WWII and scuttled by the government in 1985 for use as a dive site.

Two of the best places for snorkelling in Bermuda are Church Bay in Southampton Parish and Tobacco Bay in St George’s Parish.

Tobacco Bay is shown in the video below:

Tags: Bermuda Department Of Tourism, Church Bay, Constellation, Diving, Ewart Brown, Hermes, L'Herminie, Peter Benchley, Premier, Shipwrecks, Snorkelling, Southampton Parish, St Georges Parish, Tobacco Bay