As World Cup fever grips the nation, Chris Willson looks east to Japan where the finals are taking place, to see if the diving scores highly too…

A strong hull and powerful engines are important for any liveaboard, but if your journey involves the often-punishing journey from the Costa Rica mainland to Cocos Island, you have to have a serious vessel.

It was a vision of a prehistoric world, the sinister lava plain leading from the distant volcano to the edge of the cobalt-blue water.

We reached Palau towards the end of our six-week trip to film Pacific Abyss for the BBC. We were working down to 130m, with Biomarine 15.5 rebreathers, Cis Lunar rebreathers, and Inspirations.

Some would say the evocative indigenous culture alone makes the Pacific island of Yap worth a visit, but does the underwater action match up to the topside attractions? Jane Morgan finds out if the manta rays and mandarinfish are worth the long journey

The Prinz Eugen survived the Second World War and two atomic bombs before capsizing in the clear blue water of Kwajalein Atoll in the Western Pacific. Michael Aw explores the ship’s past and present

Shark Reef in Fiji has become the focus of an ambitious project to provide sharks with a commercial value – a value that doesn’t result in the sharks being destroyed. Words and photographs by Doug Perrine

Sitting on the western edge of Micronesia, Palau is comprised of six clusters of islands, which seem set adrift in the outermost corner of the Pacific.

It is the archetypal paradise. The high-energy atolls have made this place a blue-chip dive destination, but costs can be astronomical. So, can French Polynesia justify its high prices?

Are the Galápagos Islands really ‘in crisis’, as Ecuador’s president claims?

A decade ago, the reefs of Papua New Guinea (connoisseurs call it PNG) were being touted as ‘the world’s best diving’.

Although only half an hour flight away from Guam, Yap is a different world. Ancient culture, social values and traditions prevail. Yapese men wear the traditional bright loin cloths, and the women grass skirts.

Protected by one of the longest barrier reefs in the world (225km-long), Chuuk remains the most unexplored member of the Federated States of Micronesia - the only tourists are wreck divers.

The remote dive sites of Papua New Guinea represent tropical diving at its most diverse. And Kavieng has something to offer beyond the sharks that made it famous, as Simon Rogerson discovers ...

Schools of hammerheads, millions of fish, frisky seals, marine iguanas, even penguins – our readers give their verdicts on some unique, adrenalin diving...

For British divers, Fiji represents the ultimate escape: it lies some 2,000 miles northeast of Australia and 12 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time.

It all started with the announcement that my company was going to open a branch in Korea and it was soon apparent that I’d be making the trip to help with my part of the project.

If ever a destination deserved ‘holiday of a lifetime’ status, it’s the Galápagos. The diving is extraordinary in itself, but what makes the experience truly special is the unique wildlife you will encounter on land.

If you could pick anywhere in the world to go on a diving expedition you’d want it to be absurdly remote, in a exotic location and with a cracking story to go with it. Over a few pints back in 1999 it didn’t take us long to settle on ...

Few planes survived crash-landing in the Second World War. Simon Williams reports on some of the rare complete wrecks that divers have found in recent years in the South Pacific. Photographs by Michael Pitts…

With its vast range of marine life, Fiji’s unofficial title of ‘soft coral capital of the world’ is well justified. Douglas David Seifert takes a trip to Bligh Water in the Fiji Islands to uncover the fascinating world of the soft coral

There have been mixed reports about tourism in areas affected by the tsunami.

Cocos Island and Malpelo are two of the wildest and most isolated dive sites in the world. Simon Rogerson joined a trip that aimed to explore both islands on a single, ambitious charter ...

The Solomon Islands are fast becoming known as one of the best wreck-diving locations in the world. Neil Vincent, who first dived there 20 years ago, returns to visit two of his favourite wrecks

Above the water, they are the functional structures of industry; below the surface, they support spectacular ecosystems. Scott Gietler explores the offshore oil rigs of California

Lying in the west of the Pacific Ocean, Micronesia has something for everyone – reefs in Palau, wrecks in Chuuk and mantas in Yap.

The continental shelf of the California coast is relatively narrow, a short five-to-ten mile boat ride can put you into waters more than 300m deep. Words and photographs by Richard Herrmann

The legendary diving of southern Japan is opening to western groups for the first time.

Divers from all over the world go to marvel at the underwater ‘museums’ around Chuuk, Palau and Yap...

Strong currents, stacks of large marine life and sharks, sharks, and more sharks. The diving in the Eastern Pacific is some of the most exciting in the world. DIVE readers tell of their experiences.

The war wrecks of the Coral Seas are among the most beautifully preserved in the world – but not for long. Crispin Long went to see them while they are still in their prime. Photographs by Michael Pitts…

Whales, sharks and dolphins combined with fast currents and exquisite sandy islands all await those prepared to make the long trip to French Polynesia. Charles Hood goes in search of an adrenalin rush...

So what is Panama really best known for: the hat or the canal? Panama hats were, in fact, first made in Ecuador, but the canal is resolutely, undeniably Panamanian.

Revered as a sacred place by Maori people, the Poor Knights islands offer sub-tropical diving at its richest. Words and photographs by Alex Misiewicz ...

There’s more to Australian diving than the obvious. Nigel Motyer heads south for a bit of change …

It’s the biggest reef in the world, but is it the best? DIVE visits Australia’s Great Barrier Reef on the Cod Hole itinerary to see if the Reef matches up to its reputation. Photographs by Simon Rogerson…

Cocos Island off Costa Rica is known for big-fish encounters. Simon Rogerson and Charles Hood experienced Cocos as an open-circuit diver, a closed-circuit rebreather diver and from a submarine