Scuba diving is swimming underwater using SCUBA – Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus. Using a cylinder of compressed gas to breathe (usually air, but sometimes other gases), scuba divers can stay underwater much longer than would be possible by just holding their breath - for hours or even days!
With the assistance of equipment such as scuba masks, breathing regulators, buoyancy devices, fins, and gauges scuba divers can explore the underwater world. Modern scuba diving is very safe and easy to learn. All basic skills can be learned in as little as three days.
Whether you want to relax while photographing brightly colored tropical fish, be thrilled by the power and grace of a school of sharks, or make a living working underwater, scuba diving has it all.
You can scuba dive anywhere you can find water. Over two-thirds of the planet is covered by water, so you can dive almost anywhere. Tropical coral reefs tend to be most popular amongst recreational divers but there are also many wonderful things to be found in cold water environments such as lakes, rivers, and quarries.
Divers can be found in all corners of the globe from the tropical reefs of the Caribbean and the Great Barrier Reef, to the world's biggest lake in Siberia - even under the ice of Antarctica.
While most dive shops and resorts operate in warm tropical environments it's also common to find local dive centers and dive clubs in most cities around the world – even inland cities with no water.