http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/ Welcome to Been there. Your tips on the places you know - that you love, live in or have just visited - are what make this guide. http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34741 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34741 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34658 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34658 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34585 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34585 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34563 The Poor Knights Islands and the waters around them are protected by 900m no fishing zone so the size of fish shoals can be quite staggering. Equally the diversity of soft corals growing on the walls and pinnacles, not to mention the animals that inhabit them, make diving there a unique experience. Larger predators, including Manta rays, Hammerhead sharks and even Killer Whales have been spotted there on occasion.
Watching the sun set over the islands with a sky full of returning seabirds finished off a fabulous day's diving.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34563 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34512 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34512 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34508 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34508 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34507 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34507 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34492 Head out here first thing and when the sun gets too much, enjoy lunch at one of the rustic beach bars which serve up cold beers to wash down noodles, fried rice and basic seafood (don't expect lobster and scallops). While a day trip is entirely possible, for a real getaway, you can rent camping equipment for a very a reasonable price from one of the beach bars which means that you can camp right on the sand. There’s nothing nicer than ending a day of sunbathing and swimming with a few Tsing Taos around the campfire under a starry sky and then waking up the next day with the waves lapping a stone’s throw from your tent.
How to get there: the lazy route is via speedboat from Saikung – if you head to Saikung harbour you can hire a speedboat taxi which, depending on how choppy the water is, should be able to take you directly to the beach in around 30 minutes. If the water’s too rough, the boats won’t go (and having been on a moderately rough journey, I really wouldn’t recommend it). The more energetic route is to take a taxi to Saikung Country Park and hike in. The hike takes around an hour and a half and is hilly. The beach awaiting you at the end is well worth the effort though and the views on the way in are very pretty too. For the high rollers, there are helipads on the beaches and there are always a couple of Sunseekers moored just off the beach.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34492 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34487 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34487 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34485 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34485 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34204 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34204 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34015 Behind you – and you nearly miss it, the view ahead is so beguiling – is the perfect lunch spot.
On a whole coastline of best beaches, Playa de Torimbia is the best of all (El Pais even puts it among the finest in all Spain). It’s a half-mile curve of gold held by sheer cliffs; skinny-dipping normal but not compulsory; good Atlantic surf. The only building is a ramshackle bar with paella, raciones, beer and a view of this whole sequestered Eden.
The bar makes the beach, the beach makes the bar; there’s nothing else to intervene. That’s a winning combination.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/34015 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33879 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33879 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33601
Ilha Grande lies just an hour off Brazil’s Costa Verde, that lush strip of Atlantic coastline stretching from north of Rio all the way down to Santos. It its time, this huge unspoiled tropical paradise, with more than 100 miles of jungle trails, has been a pirates’ lair – and as recently as the early 1990s housed a penal colony on one of its countless remote and isolated coves. Nowadays it still takes prisoners but only those who track down its isolation, sample empty beaches, coral reefs and laid-back Brazilian hospitality. It’s difficult to escape.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33601 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33600 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33600 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33593 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33593 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33580 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33580 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33578 From the magnificent beaches you can reach some of the best coral reefs in the world that provide a habitat for an abundance of marine life. Feeding and nesting grounds for the population of sea turtles, dugong, dolphins, sharks and whales can be found here.
It is the undiscovered nature of this island’s beaches that make it so special. Snorkel the island’s shores, kayak the mangroves or relax in a hammock beneath the giant baobabs on the island beaches. Quilalea is a tiny untouched paradise. Difficult to reach, this is the ultimate African beach retreat for an offbeat getaway.
There are few places to stay on the island - the newly refurbished lodges at ‘Azura’, a luxury ‘eco’ boutique retreat which has all the facilities you need, while being a perfect beach hideaway, is worth a visit.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33578 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33567 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33567 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33546 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33546