US Aquarium launches new scuba diving program for certified visitors – watch video

An Aquarium in New Orleans in the US has launched a new program that gives divers the opportunity to swim with the fishes. The new Maya Dive Adventure at Audubon Aquarium of the Americas offers guests a 45-minute taste of the Caribbean without leaving New Orleans.

Divers swim in the 132,000-gallon Great Maya Reef exhibit filled with thousands of  yellow-tailed snapper, cownose sting rays, Caribbean spiny lobsters, angel fish and thousands of other colourful reef fish.

Guest dive programs have become a popular offering at aquariums around the world over the past few years, giving visitors a one-to-one nature experience while raising additional money for the facilities.

The New Orleans aquarium, which opened in 1990, has had, since its inception, a staff of volunteer scuba divers who help clean the exhibits and feed the fish. But the new Maya Dive Adventure is the first time its underwater habitats have been open to the public.

The dives are only available to certified scuba divers. For those without a C-card, the aquarium lets snorkelers get wet by slipping into the 78-degree water and swimming face-to-face with aquatic life while hovering over a 30-foot-long glass tunnel where they can be observed by other visitors.

Here’s a video about the experience:

Source: blog.nola.com