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May 27, 2005
Save up to £35pp on flights & hotels with Excel
Here's a unique offer from Excel Airways! Excel has regular flights to Sharm, Hurghada and Marsa Alam but these discounts are available for all their destinations at any time of the year from both Gatwick and Manchester. And as well as saving you money, divers also gain an extra 10kg weight allowance!
The discounts are available to everyone, from single travellers to groups, and Excel has been as flexible as possible with their conditions.
The highlights are:
£20pp discount on flights (including £5 web discount)
£35pp discount on flight and accommodation (including £5 web discount) when booking at same time
Low deposits and late name notification
Free name change up to 7 days before departure
Assistance in selling unused seats
Extra 10kg weight allowance
You can book seats for up to 9 people by going straight to the xl.com promotion page here
Group bookings - 10 or more passengers
How to book:
xl.com website can not accommodate online bookings for groups of 10 or more. Please contact the Excel Call Centre on 0870 169 0169 to check availability and to book. Opening hours are 0900-2100 Monday-Sunday and 0900-1800 on Bank Holidays.
A deposit of £40pp will be required to confirm the booking (Visa/MasterCard/Amex/Switch).
The full balance will be due 8 weeks prior to departure.
* Please quote the promotion code DIVERS to receive a discount of £15pp for a flight only and £30pp for a flight and accommodation booking.
* If Excel has more than 50 seats available on your flight, and the departure date is more than 4 weeks away, then they will hold an option for 24 hours for your group.
* You will have to provide Excel with names 28 days prior to departure by email.
* Name changes can be made up to 7 days before departure free of charge. (Normally £50pp)
* Name changes from 0-7 days can be made at £25pp. (Normally £50pp)
Excel can arrange to pre-book seating for £5pp return. (Normally £10pp)
* Tickets will be issued 14-21 days prior to departure.
* All Ticket on Departure’s will be free of charge. (Normally £7pp)
* Other amendments can be made (date/destination changes etc) with a £20 charge per booking, (normally £20pp), plus any fare difference.
* If you need assistance selling any confirmed seats that you have not been able to fill, then Excel will put them back onto their system and see if they can re-sell them on your behalf. They will refund any net revenue they get to you.
Diving Equipment
Passengers taking diving equipment on all flights are allowed 10kg excess baggage free of charge in addition to their normal 20kg luggage allowance. Please be advised that all excess baggage is subject to space and availability on the day of departure. If tanks are carried please ensure that these are emptied and the cylinder valve is loose. Large groups of divers must inform the pre-flight department at least one week prior to departure.
Flying after Diving
All passengers must leave a minimum surface interval of at least 12 hours prior to flying after diving. This recommendation is based after a single non-stop dive. If passengers plan to make daily, multiple dives for several days or make a dive requiring an emergency decompression stop, special precautions must be taken. It is recommended that passengers extend their surface interval beyond 24 hours prior to flying after diving.
Full Booking Conditions can be found at www.xl.com, after a flight is selected.
The above applies to all destinations served by Excel Airways.
Bookings of 9 or fewer passengers
To receive your discount, click here to make your booking.
A discount of £20pp will be applied for a flight only and £35pp for a flight and accommodation booking. (These include the £5pp web discount.)
Please note that, apart from the discounts, the special arrangements listed above do not apply to bookings of 9 or fewer passengers made via the web. Normal Excel Booking conditions apply.
Spring has sprung in Soma Bay
Denise Fletcher, Emperor's Soma Bay manager, has been having a busy time of it recently with lots of marine life sightings...
A 3m dugong was seen passing the house reef, but didn't hang around for long, but long enough for a student on an Open Water dive to get a welcome look!

Then two mantas called in for a visit, an adult and a baby, measuring less than 1m across, but a perfect copy of its mum.
Two turtles have taken up residency on the house reef and have buddied up with reef divers, whilst the already resident morays look set to produce babies if recent activities prove fruitful!
Panorama continues to charm Soma Bay guests with the Napolean Wrasse family out in force. Mum is now well over 1.5m and swims around with daughter and grand-daughter in tow.
But the highlight has been the sighting of two black tip reef sharks in the lagoon, especially on still, calm afternoons when the tide is high! So make for Soma Bay and enjoy the view!
Join Elite - and enjoy a special 'opening' price
The luxurious Emperor Elite is set to sail to St Johns & Beyond!
24 November - 1 December, 2005
And to celebrate her first public outing, Emperor is offering this superb liveaboard cruise for the special price of 900 Euros pp - a saving of 120 Euros! Elite has the following spec as well as two large RIBs, equipment for Tech diving + NITROX and the space to take up to 20 guests in total comfort.

- 38m length
- Cabins: 9 x 2 berth, air-con, ensuite / 1 x master suite, air-con, ensuite
- 2 x salons
- 1 x dining room
- Air-con throughout
- 2 x sundecks
- 1 x shaded sundeck
- 1x dive deck with platform
Email Safari Liveaboards here
Bookings are now being taken, so move quickly ando dive into luxury!
May 09, 2005
Dive more reefs in Marsa Alam - One-day Special Trip on Pegasus!
It's a first for day-divers in Marsa Alam.
Dive the Fury Shoal area on the famous liveaboard, Pegasus.
Enjoy your shore diving AND dive the Fury Shoal areas of Shaab Claude, Sataya or Shaab Maksur and the wreck of Abu Galawa, all in one day! This trip on the ever-popular liveaboard, Pegasus, includes a third dive and transfers to and from Hamata and starts mid-July 2005.

Pegasus
May 04, 2005
Tekstreme makes IT three!
Paul Vinten and David Peart, Tekstreme managers for Emperor Divers Hurghada and Dahab respectively, successfully completed a recent Instructor Training Course in Hurghada.
Under the teaching of the largest technical diving agency in the world, Technical Diving International (TDI) and it sister recreational diving arm, Scuba Diving International (SDI), Paul and David completed the IT course and are now qualified to conduct Technical Diving Instructor courses at various levels including Nitrox Diver, Extended Range Diving, Advanced Gas Blending and Advanced Trimix.
Along with Aaron Bruce, manager of Tekstreme Sharm El Sheikh, this brings the total number of full-time, in-house Tekstreme Instructor Trainers to three!
Tekstreme Sharm El Sheikh was also given an Achievement Award by TDI for their growth and expansion over the past 12 months. Hurghada and Dahab hope to follow this auspicious award shortly!
Paul Vinten accepts the Achievement Award from Paul Montgomery, TDI HQ, on behalf of Aaron Bruce

