Shark Point is part of a Marine Reserve and is rightly one of the most popular local dive around Phuket Island. It is located about 16 Miles (26 Km) from Chalong. The journey by boat takes one and a half hours.

The official Thai name is actually Hin Musang or ‘Shark Rock’. Along with sharks, the marine life is really great with all the reef life of the Andaman Sea.
It is a well-known spot famous for the chance of spotting many Leopard Sharks swimming or resting on the sandy bottom. Divers who are not accustomed to seeing sharks are genuinely surprised at how big and approachable they are.

Shark Point appears as a tiny outcrop with a small lighthouse used for navigation by boats, but this hides the wonderful marine environment below the surface. The limestone pinnacles are covered in soft corals and huge gorgonian sea fans, this encourages the vast amount of fish and invertebrates that surround the area.

One of the main attractions for this dive sites is the good chance to spot sharks and large schools of tropical fish is the huge limestone pinnacle decorated with a multitude of corals and colorful sea fans.

The reef can be divided into three major parts, so most divers can spend several dives here to explore the different facets of this site particularly interesting. Currents can be present, but they tend to be parallel to the different sections of the reef and thus provide an excellent opportunity to drift dive when you return to the boat.

Shark Point

Furthermore, to protect the fragile ecosystem and preserve the great variety of marine life occupying the reef, the site has been declared a marine reserve in 1992 by the Thai government. Since this date, any form of commercial fishing, collection or any other form of harmful activity to the development of fauna and flora are prohibited. In this sense, mooring buoys have been installed so that the anchors do not damage the site.

You can dive Shark point, all year long. With Scuba Cat MV Scuba Fun our daytrip boat visits this site every Wednesday and Saturday. See the map of Phuket Shark point below for the exact location. We also include this site in our South Andaman liveaboards on MV Scuba Adventure.

Shark Point dive site is suitable for open water certified divers or the last dive of the open water course.

After 20 years of being based only in Patong, Scuba Cat has decided to open a shop in a new area, NaiHarn.

Naiharn Shop

Two years ago was a big change for Scuba Cat with the closing on the beach road shop and the premises moving to the Kee Plaza and Soi Wattana shops.

During this time we noticed that many of our return customers just came into the Soi Wattana shop to see us again, and so we decided to close the Kee Plaza shop and move out to a new area of Phuket to offer a better service covering a larger area.

So for the first time we are now out of Patong……..

Naiharn at the south of Phuket Island is an quieter area with a what most people think is the best beach on the island.

The bay is surrounded with Palm tree’s and there is the famous sunset viewpoint of Prom Thep Cape close by. There is also the lagoon area behind the beach which is great for children to swim and paddle in all year around.In the green season it is sometimes possible to surf in the area too.

Prom Thep Cape

The area has many good restaurants and cafe’s all along the main area and there are hotels and guest houses to suit all budget and taste, but it is not a big party area, more a chill out place. There are some good bars if you want but people tend to visit just 1 or 2 in a evening rather than many as is the case in Patong.

Rawai is very close to NaiHarn, and although there is no beach there, this area also has good restaurants on the shore area. The Sea Gypsy’s have been resident in Rawai for many years and have small market area where trinkets and fresh sea food are for sale.

Rawai

Along the shore line there are many local long tail boats which offer trips to the close coral island for the morning or afternoon.

The whole area is not really know for the shopping or markets, but these can be easily visited in Phuket Town or Patong with a short taxi ride.

Our new shop is located on Sai Yuan Road opposite the popular Da Vinchi Italian restaurant.

The shop is newly built and has a retail area, fully equipped classroom and office. We will be conducting all courses from both Naiharn and our Patong shops, so you can choose either depending on the location of your hotel.

Classroom

One more improvement we want to offer is free transfers to and from the boat that will now include the Naiharn and Rawai area’s and the hotels along Visit Rd to the pier at Chalong.

In Phuket, the weather doesn’t have the same four seasons as other parts of the world like in Europe. Don’t be afraid of the weather in low season. In July, you can wear polo shirts and shorts every day. The temperature doesn’t drop below 28°C.

There are a lot of reasons why people choose to take a vacation in Phuket.
Mostly people come to Phuket for the sea and the beaches, but there are so many more reasons, such as scuba diving, culture, great and cheap food or for the nightlife.

During the high season can be when you get the best weather, this is approximately between November and May. It is also the time when the west facing beaches in Phuket are sheltered and calm. That’s why this is the period when most of tourists come.

So, why choose the low season, here are the main reasons:

Low season is the period from June to October. Actually, it is in July we entered in the South West Monsoon season. But low season is a great time to visit Phuket. You will get sun most of the time, so many days are hot and if it does start to rain you just have to go as shelter for as long as the rain lasts. The rain that does fall mostly comes at night and often passes quickly.

Monsoon, makes people forget about beachfront vacations. But, In June,July and August for example there are not so many days of rain. During the monsoon season Phuket turns lush and green; it can be the coolest period in the year, quieter and most relaxing of all as there are few tourist in the resorts and service is at a high standard.

You can do anything in low season that you can in high season, but there are advantages to this time of year.
Hotel rates are slashed and you can generally get lower prices from tour operators, vehicle rentals, boat trips …. The months June, July and August are still a popular time to visit as people take advantage of the low season prices.
Big resorts drop prices dramatically, and you can found cheap guesthouse rooms with all necessary comfort for a handful of bhat.

Furthermore, this period is called the “green season” because with the rain there are so many tropical plants that cover Phuket. And with the fewer tourists in this season you have more space to move and to enjoy beaches and islands. Indeed, you will find more room next to the sea, less divers in the water and more space in the shops and restaurants.

Don’t hesitate to come in low season, you will find the same charm and the same beauty that Phuket and surrounding area has, but for a lower price and few people.

During the Green season we are still offering a full range of daytrips on board MV Scuba Fun, and also offer overnight trips to Phi Phi on our liveaboard MV Scuba Adventure. It is still possible to learn to dive or take continuing education programs with us throughout the year.

Book now for high season 2013/2014 pay in full and receive 10% discount, this includes courses, Scuba Adventure Liveaboard and Scuba Fun daytrips.

Daytrip dive packages now start from just 2 days on MV Scuba Fun

5% for 2 daytrips

10% for 3 daytrips

15% for 4 daytrips

20% for 5 daytrips

ALSO

Do 2 or more days fun diving and get 10% discount on any retail dive equipment.

Dive Computers

Buy any dive mask and get a scuba cat mask strap free or half price flex pulse snorkel

Buy mask and fins and get free flex pulse snorkel

Buy any BCD and Reg set and get an aqualung sports dive bag free

Spend 10,000thb on retail get 10% discount

Why wait, contact us now on info@scubacat.com.

The Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation based in the north of Phuket had it’s 4th annual release of 100 turtles on the 29th of March this year. Scuba Cat decided to support this by sponsoring a release of a turtle back into the Andaman Sea. The important annual event is organized to raise funds for and awareness of the plight of Phuket’s critically endangered sea turtles and is supported by the Phuket Marine Biological Center and the Royal Thai Navy, the event sees the release of rehabilitated green turtles back into the Andaman Sea.

Sarah Kench, the GM and Course Director, Kath Ridley the tour leader of Scuba Adventure and Debbie Woods The Customer Service manager all went along to support the event held on the beach at Mai Khao, along with Jade, Debbie’s 1 year old daughter.

There were activities such as batik painting and turtle awareness going on throughout the afternoon along with light refreshments and a monks blessing for the new to be released green turtles.

After waiting to queuing in a busy registration Scuba Cat were allocated number 73 for release, this was a 10 month old green turtle, Sarah was the one elected to release it.

After some training we were called to beach in groups of 5, this allowed the turtles enough space to comfortably be released without big crowds around them which could cause stress. They were taken from holding tanks to the water edge and set free, the waves then helped them out to sea.

Phuket’s sea turtles face multiple threats and their numbers have severely depleted in recent years. Commercial fishing kills thousands of them every year. Many more die from eating or becoming trapped in plastic debris littering the ocean, not to mention entanglement in fishing nets and being hit by speedboats.

Every 2,500 baht raised pays for the rehabilitation of one turtle and its release back into the Andaman Sea. The work done by the Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation (founded by JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa), the Injured Turtle Rehabilitation Program (under the Phuket Marine Biological Center) and the Turtle Hatchery Program (under the Royal Thai Navy) is possible thanks to ongoing financial support from the Phuket community.

Phuket’s sea turtles are facing multiple threats and their numbers have severely depleted in recent years. Commercial fishing kills thousands of them every year. Many more die from eating or becoming trapped in plastic debris littering the ocean.

Mai Khao beach and the northern end of the adjacent Nai Yang beach are the only beaches where turtles lay their eggs in Phuket . These two locations have a long natural deserted beach stretching more than 17km. They form part of the Sirinath National Park, which is a protected marine and coastal area.

This is a nesting area of the giant Leatherback Turtle, one of the world’s most ancient species. These turtles on average weigh 450 kg. However, the Leatherback population is fast diminishing and its status is very critical. It is the only turtle without a true protective shell, though its outer protection is leathery scale-less skin – hence its name.

The breeding season of the turtles is November to March. The females come ashore just after dusk and return to the ocean as dawn breaks. The nesting site is selected and they dig a small pit using the rear flippers where they lay between 40 and 180 eggs, they try to conceal the nest once they finished by covering it with sand. The whole process takes about 1 hour. If left to nature the hatchlings will emerge after about 60 days digging their way out of the pit , usually at night so it is cooler and run towards the sea. House lights and hotel developments along the beach can disoriented the young turtles causing them to actually crawl the wrong way going away from the sea. Some large Phuket resorts have focused their attention on ensuring that turtles stand a chance of survival in the Phuket region by making the beach area environmentally friendly to the nesting turtles.

At nesting time environment groups and the local villagers of Mai Khao work very hard to protect the eggs. They take the eggs to their hatchery, where the baby turtles are protected from the vagaries of nature as well as human exploitation. During the breeding season, the local villagers patrol the beaches at night and keep records of the eggs that have been laid.

The Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation was launched in 2002 and raises funds and awareness for the plight of the critically endangered giant leatherback turtles that nest in the area. It also co-ordinates with the Phuket Marine Biological Centre (PMBC).