seas & oceans
Best dive sites in Belize: our top 8 picks
Pint-sized Belize on the Caribbean Sea has countless dive sites from laid-back shore dives to intense drifts and everything in between. The translucent seas hugging the country's idyllic coast are home to majestic coral gardens, aquamarine lagoons and out-of-this-world atolls. The post Best dive sites in Belize: our top 8 picks appeared first on Atlas & Boots.
Diving Hol Chan Marine Reserve in Belize
The Hol Chan Marine Reserve is one of Belize's most popular snorkelling sites. It offers vibrant coral formations and a diverse array of marine life packed into a small site with shallow waters in an easy-to-reach area of the UNESCO-listed Belize Barrier Reef. The post Diving Hol Chan Marine Reserve in Belize appeared first on Atlas & Boots.
What is the best way to see the Blue Hole of Belize?
The best way to see the Blue Hole of Belize is from above. Here’s our guide on how to make the most of your scenic flight In 1971, Jacques Cousteau famously described Belize’s Great Blue Hole (now the Blue Hole Natural Monument) as one of the world’s top 10 dive sites. Ever since, the giant sinkhole in the middle of the UNESCO-listed Belize Barrier Reef has captivated the public’s attention. Measuring 318m (1,043ft) across and 124m (407ft) deep, the Blue Hole and its surrounding reef system are truly mesmerising. But it’s one of those sites that actually looks better from afar. We believe the best way to see the Blue Hole of Belize is from above. Here’s why. Best seen from the air While Kia and I are both qualified open water divers – and I have the advanced qualification – reports suggest...
How to visit Río Lagartos: a complete guide
Our guide on how to visit Río Lagartos, Mexico’s Biosphere Reserve home to flamingos, crocodiles and a not-so-pink lake When 16th-century Spanish explorers first arrived on the northern shores of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico, they found a mangrove-lined estuary which they named Río de Los Lagartos – the river of the lizards. Now a UNESCO biosphere reserve, the coastal lagoons feature a network of smaller estuaries, mangroves, marshes and savannahs that are home to over 500 species of vertebrates, several of them endangered. Thanks to conservation efforts, species numbers have stabilised recently as harmful agriculture activities using ‘slash and burn’ methods have been reduced. Atlas & Boots The waterfront town of Río Lagartos The wetlands, along with the sleepy fishing town of the...
The travel that changed me: Melanie White
In a new memoir, former yacht chef Melanie White examines the dark side of luxury travel. Here, she explains why her story had to be told At age 22, Melanie White is flying high. Good grades at school? Check. Reliable university degree? Check. Steady graduate job? Check. Her feet are firmly planted on the ground until she finds herself plunged into the superyacht industry – despite having been on a boat only three times in her life. Melanie White As a yacht chef, Melanie must devise, develop and deliver fine dining menus for some of the wealthiest people on the planet, all while learning how to run, sail and race a multi-million-pound yacht on the job. She is forced to adapt to a wholly unnatural life, largely confined to a crammed galley and bunk bed with live-in colleagues. Amid the...
Svalbard packing list: how to prepare for the last stop before the North Pole
A curated Svalbard packing list with links to specific products that have been tried and tested by Atlas & Boots I was feeling if not cocky then certainly complacent. I had been to the Arctic once or twice and had returned from Antarctica just a few months earlier. Svalbard in comparison would be a cinch I was sure. The route map, however, gave me pause. Svalbard is known as ‘the last stop before the North Pole’ and it’s not just a marketing gimmick. It is really bloody north. To put it into context, our trip to Antarctica reached 66°33′ south of the equator. Our trip to Svalbard, however, would travel to 81°17′ north, far further than we’d travelled before. In fact, we would go within 500 miles (800km) of the North Pole – just over half the length of Britain. [embedded con...
Kayaking in Svalbard: ice and isolation in the high Arctic
Kayaking in Svalbard among the icebergs of Hamiltonbukta showed us the true magic and magnitude of nature in the Arctic Sometimes, I hear myself talking about my job and think, “God, I sound ridiculous.” It’s usually when I’m rattling on about where I’ve been and have to check myself, remembering that most people aren’t fortunate enough to visit places like the Galápagos or Easter Island – let alone both in a single trip. Recently, one of these occasions cropped up when I was wriggling into a heavy-duty dry suit in preparation for our kayaking excursion in Svalbard. A fellow passenger asked me if I had done this before and I explained that, unfortunately, I had missed out on a kayaking excursion earlier in the year in Antarctica because of Covid-related restrictions. “You were in Antarctic...
Polar Plunge Q&A: everything you need to know
The Polar Plunge is a fearsome rite of passage for visitors to Antarctica and the Arctic. Here, we share what you need to know so you can leap with ease I still remember the moment I learnt about the Polar Plunge. I was at home in London on a typically gloomy day in the mid 2010s. I was wasting time online when I came across an article about Antarctica. Sadly, I can’t remember the writer’s name, but the photo of her was joyous: midway through the Polar Plunge, her body drawn into a starfish shape, a jubilant smile on her face. It was so pure and fun, and completely unselfconscious in a way that women are taught not to be. I decided that one day I too would take the Plunge. Fast forward seven years and I’ve done it in both Antarctica and the Arctic. To help you decide whether or not t...
In photos: 20 reasons to visit Svalbard
From vast landscapes and giant glaciers to sly foxes and posing seals, we share some of the myriad reasons to visit Svalbard in the Arctic Known as the last stop before the North Pole, Svalbard proved to be the Arctic we had always imagined: midnight sun, gleaming glaciers and snowcapped peaks, a frigid ocean riddled with ice and extraordinary wildlife including walruses, sea birds and polar bears. We visited the remote archipelago on an 8-day Svalbard expedition with Albatros Expeditions aboard the Ocean Atlantic where we sailed in the perpetual sunlight of the Arctic summer. Our route took us from the main town of Longyearbyen around the west coast of Spitsbergen, Svalbard’s largest island, where we dropped anchor in sheltered fjords to make landings and Zodiac excursions. We t...
In videos: 12 surreal man-made dive sites
From lost ancient cities to the world’s largest underwater theme park, these man-made dive sites are sure to intrigue At Atlas & Boots, we’ve dived some astonishing sites, from Steve’s Bommie in the Great Barrier Reef to the Sonesta plane wrecks in Aruba. We’re pretty hopeless at fish identification, so when it comes to diving, unless it’s a truly amazing reef system, we’re generally more interested in diving something new or unique (like an airplane or bommie). Enter the man-made dive site. We’ve scoured the Internet in search of videos of some of the most curious artificial dive sites out there – every one of which has now been added to our diving bucket list. Man-made dive sites From historic cities that have crashed into the ocean to artificial exhibitions installed ...
Under the midnight sun: a surreal trip to Svalbard
In the land of the midnight sun, Kia finds a place of raw nature, rare wildlife and one of her most memorable moments of travel It is said that you can’t die in Svalbard, the remote archipelago that lies midway between Norway and the North Pole. The permafrost here not only preserves corpses, it sometimes pushes them to the surface. The truth is that authorities would prefer you didn’t die on Svalbard. Coffin burials are not allowed due to the permafrost, so critically-ill patients are usually flown to mainland Norway. And just as there are rules in death, there are also rules in life. Heavily pregnant women are flown to the mainland as giving birth in Svalbard is also off limits. In many ways, this is a place occupied by life and death. The capital, Longyearbyen, is home to th...
Where to stay in Cornwall – ranked by activity
An expert guide on where to stay in Cornwall whether you want to surf, sail, hike or cycle, or simply laze on a beach The novelist and poet D. H. Lawrence once wrote that Cornwall is “like being at a window and looking out of England.” In this westerly point of mainland England, you will find a wild north coast of rugged cliffs and golden beaches, a calm south coast of sheltered waters and fishing villages, and dramatic moors in between. But Cornwall is not just a geographic microcosm; it also speaks to England’s politics. Once a thriving industrial hub, Cornwall’s coast is still littered with old engine houses that once powered its tin and copper mines. As the industry declined, Cornwall had to reinvent itself. Today, it’s one of England’s most popular destinations thanks to its sup...
