solomons_tours

Solomon Islands Photo Pro Tours for 2003


	*Nitrox Offered on Bilikiki* for 2003!!!**

We started our first Solomon Islands dive tours on the Bilikiki in 1989 and they were an instant success. This program exceeded our highest expectations and the reaction from the guests ranged from enthusiastic to effusive. The Bilikiki was by nearly unanimous acclaim one of the finest, most "livable" dive boats any of us have been on. The diving was superb, the best of which equaled or surpassed most of the world's top spots.


	Scores of wonderful creatures


	© 1998 by Chris Newbert


	The exploration of new dive areas continues: the fall of 1990 saw the Russell Islands added to our itinerary


	in 1993 the Florida Island group became a permanent feature of our program. The addition of the Russells and the Floridas has catapulted this destination to the very pinnacle of the international elite.

	We have dived with Orcas, seen tiger sharks, had a 50 ft. sperm whale come at us with its mouth wide open, photographed numerous fish that can't be found in the books, been surrounded by thousands of barracuda swirling around us, been swarmed by enormous schools of jacks, had numerous dives with 15 - 20 or more sharks from grays to hammerheads to silvertips, and seen endless acres of reef that are among the most untouched and pristine coral gardens on earth.


	We've had manta rays, eagle rays, squadrons of huge marauding dogtooth tuna, and a dizzying array of reef fish that leaves




		© 1998 by Chris Newbert


	one in awe. Guests aboard the Bilikiki have reported sighting a 10 ft. crocodile with a 4 ft. shark in its mouth, and they got it on video! Where else can such an accumulation of incredible sights be seen? Are the Solomon Islands the best coral reef diving in the world? After our first year I would have said "among the best". Now I am convinced. There is nowhere else quite like it.


	5 star rating!


	Undercurrent has given the Bilikiki and the Solomon Islands its highest 5 Star rating in every category (except as a destination for beginners.) We couldn't agree more. If there were 10 stars, we'd give it 10, across the board.


	As a result of the success of our past programs, we have rebooked the Bilikiki for a total of 6 weeks during the prime diving season for 2003. That's 3 consecutive two-week departures each year. Many guests -- the very clever ones -- sign up for back-to-back trips. All of our tours will be personally hosted by Chris Newbert and Birgitte Wilms and are operated as `` Photo Pro Tours" programs.


	One week is not long enough!


	We are the only company offering regularly scheduled two week Solomon Island programs. Simply stated, the diving in the Solomons is so good that a 13 day trip is the very minimum which allows a reasonable sampling of the tremendous variety of reefs and marine wildlife to be found here.




		© 1998 by Chris Newbert


	These longer trips permit us extended freedom in dive site selection and offers an exceptional opportunity for the serious diver and


	Stay for a month! Our schedule allows back-to-back tours!


	photographer. With the exciting new additions to our itinerary, which increase with every passing season, the two week program is the only way to do the Solomons justice. After flying half way around the world, doesn't it make sense to stay awhile? See our Solomon Islands 2003 schedule for date and price information. Got time and money to burn? Then back-to-back trips are the way to go!


	At Last!!

New for 2003! The Bilikiki will be offering full service nitrox beginning in 2003 for nitrox certified divers. This is a major upgrade for the boat, and will add immeasurably to the overall quality of our trips. For divers wishing to add a significant safety margin to their diving over the course of two weeks of multi-dive days, using Nitrox and the Nitrox maximum depth limit for your mix, combined with air bottom time limits can dramatically reduce the potential of decompression sickness. Yet for those wishing to extend their bottom times beyond those allowable with air, Nitrox can provide more generous limits, particularly in the mid-depth ranges. However, Nitrox does noticeably reduce the maximum allowable depth as compared with air, so there is a compromise. That being said, in a destination like the Solomons, with so much magnificent diving and photographic opportunities within the top 100 feet, Nitrox provides a huge benefit. We've been begging for this for years. Now it's here!


	No extra charge!

All Rainbowed Sea Tours programs with Chris and Birgitte for the 2003 season will feature the Chris Newbert and Birgitte Wilms Underwater Photography Consulation and Instructional Slide Show Series. That's right! Let Chris and Birgitte review you slides, answer your questions, or help you with equipment problems on a one on one basis. Periodic slide shows will provide guests with the technical and compositional details of Chris and Birgitte's finest work.

Remember, since 1989 almost all our Solomons programs have been sold out far in advance. We will take a maximum of just 13 divers on our tours.

Round trip airfare quotes from your home city to the Solomon Islands are available at the time of booking only, due to the high degree of price fluctuation in the airline market.

For further information on Rainbowed Sea Tours, Inc. 2003 Solomon Islands expeditions, contact us.

Rainbowed Sea Tours, Inc. offers complete services for the traveling diver. Please call us direct on our toll free number to sign up for any of our trips and to coordinate and book all your air and ground arrangements.

Solomon Islands Tours 2003 Schedule and Prices

Galapagos Islands 2003 Tour Schedule and Prices
Galapagos Islands 2003 Tour Description

click here to read articles about the Solomon Islands from our past newsletters

master calendar

Rainbowed Sea Tours, Inc.
74-5590 Luhia Street
Kailua-Kona, HI 96740

Toll Free: (800) 762-6827
FAX: (808) 329-2608
In Hawaii: 326-7752

www.rstours.com