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No, it has not hit us because we have been on the market for many years. But the crisis has affected the business in general, because people are faced with financially difficulties and serious problems. On the other hand, there is increased interest from tourists, many of whom come to Greece specifically to dive. These are primarily visitors from Britain, Germany and Russia, who actually triggered diving related tourism in Greece. This is something that none of the responsible institutions has considered seriously so far. That is why I mentioned the statutory protected marine parks that would attract many visitors with their beauty.

Is this an expensive sport?

No, I would not say it is expensive. A diving, which includes our equipment, boat and guide and lasts two hours, costs about 60 euro. The customer must have a diploma and a diving book and signs the necessary documents.

Has there been an accident ever?

No, there has never been an accident. It is not easy anything like this to happen and in all cases it would be the result of pathological causes. I would say that diving is a sport that guarantees a hundred percent safety for the diver.

What is your most memorable diving experience?

It is not just one. I swam with dolphins; I've seen sharks close and some of the largest rays, called manta, shipwrecks. In 1999, we went to Cyprus to dive to one of the most beautiful shipwrecks in the world. Its name is Zinovia and is one of the largest in the Mediterranean. The ship is long 180 m and it sank during its first trip. We dove twice and we did not manage to surround it on all sides. It was carrying cars, from which amber fish go out now and the experience is unique. The depth there starts from 17 and reaches 40 m.

Where exactly did you see the manta rays?

We saw them in the Red Sea, midway between Egypt and Saudi Arabia. There are two large underwater rocks, which are called The Brothers. A little further in the south, we saw different kinds of sharks. These are such beautiful pictures. Diving is a sport which gives you power, and divers are people who fight for environmental protection.

What are the most beautiful dive sites in the world?

One is the Red Sea and 2.5 to 3 million people from around the world visit it annually for this purpose. Other such places are the Maldives, Caribbean, Hawaii, the Galapagos Islands and the largest coral reef in Australia. We are also able to attract divers in Greece if we take the right steps towards this type of tourism. This will create new jobs, young people will not leave their home islands and local communities will be able to develop in a better way. If diving centres are created where hotels are built, we will have tourism of higher quality. Then, people who look at things quite differently will come and they will change the attitude of local communities to the environment.