With so much of the world discovered, it seems we’ve seen everything there is to see. Glorious mountains, ancient hillside ruins, caves deep within the jungle… Humanity has uncovered incredible places and even created some of our own. We now keep our fingers crossed for the exploits of tech moguls like Elon Musk to take us into space, having seen all the wonders of Earth. Or have we?
Often we forget that an entire world exists beneath the waves, teeming with life as we speak. Limited by our lack of gills, 71% of the Earth remains inhospitable to us, under oceans, seas and lakes.
But as these places show, many fantasise about living like mermaids, and are creating ways to fulfil them. Until we discover a way to live in this watery realm, these underwater experiences will be just as amazing, letting you unleash your Atlantean imaginations.
Dine in an Underwater Restaurant
An all-glass underwater restaurant in Hurawalhi, Maldives. © Hurawalhi
As the world of gastronomy ventures out into exotic tastes and locales, some are now exploring the possibilities of dining underwater. As you look out into the abyss or a marine landscape, it’s probably as close as eating on the moon as we’re going to get for now. Dining underwater is a spectacular experience all its own, stimulating the senses as much as your tastebuds.
© IVAR KVAAL, SNØHETTA
Southern Norway features a new, prominent member of the underwater culinary scene. One of the world’s largest underwater restaurants, its modern, jutting architecture thrusts down into the frigid waters, opening into a cavernous dining hall with an alien, Blade Runner aesthetic. Designed to integrate into the marine environment over time, Under Restaurant serves delicious courses while you gaze out at the sweeping undercurrents through a massive glass window.
Embark on a Submarine Safari
Glass bottom boat tours are a fantastic and easy way to catch a glimpse of underwater landscapes, flora and fauna. But what about going even deeper? There are now submarine tours that bring you right into the midst of these worlds, going as deep as 120 feet below the waves.
COURTESY OF ATLANTIS SUBMARINES
An ultimate immersive experience, the colours, vistas and marine life during your voyage is otherworldly and brilliantly exotic. You’ll realise the magnitude of the aquatic realm, even as its sheer expanse humbles you. Tours can be found from Hawaii to Aruba, with distinctive landscapes but always bewildering.
Relax In An Underwater Spa
© Huvafenfushi Maldives
Already the pinnacle of luxury, Huvafen Fushi, a private resort island in the Maldives, has facilities and accommodation that juxtapose opulence and calm. But being surrounded by the ocean isn’t enough, and so they’ve designed a spa with aquatic panoramas, located 8 metres underwater.
© Huvafenfushi Maldives
As you gaze out into the water and the animals that swim by, you’ll encounter a sensory entrancement that soothes while you enjoy a spa package with your partner. Go even deeper into the sensations with meditation and yoga classes to help you connect with this surreal experience.
Swim Through Underwater Museums
Because of its depth and vastness, the ocean is home to many sunken relics from all across history. Lost remnants are locked in time, settling on the ocean bed for eternity. This amassment makes the seabeds an incredible time capsule of past glories, civilisations and periods, with stories waiting to be discovered.
Ⓒ MUSA | UNDERWATER MUSEUM OF ART 2019
Museums on dry land are pretty impressive. But in an underwater museum, you’ll view these treasures from a unique perspective. There’s no gravity, after all. All the while, you’ll be accompanied by aquatic wildlife.
The Cancun Underwater Museum is particularly unique, having blended history with contemporary art in its underwater gallery, sometimes resembling an eerie, frozen world. But, whether you’re a history buff, art lover, or love the ocean, there are many underwater exhibitions worth checking out.
Stay In Underwater Hotels
© Conrad Hotels & Resorts
With all the noise and frenzy that happens on the land, you might want to escape from it all. Stay in an underwater hotel, and you can do just that. Be transported from one world into another, as you reside in spaces hidden under the waves.
Manta Reef Resort’s underwater rooms. © Swahiliholidays.com
There are now a host of options around the globe that offer this experience, ranging from luxurious to quaint. At the Muraka’s opulent suite in the Maldives, you can live like Poseidon, with a price tag to match.
The Manta Resort’s Underwater Room in Tanzania offers cabins with underwater rooms, allowing you to enjoy starry wonder and marine resplendence whenever you like. At Resorts World in Singapore, the view from your window is that of their aquarium’s fantastic array of sea life.
Spend enough time here, and you might feel like an Atlantean.
Underwater Music Festival
© Specialist Stock/Barcroft Medi
If you love the sea and music, why not combine the two and make a celebration out of it? This idea was crazy enough to work and has become an annual event in the waters of Looe Key, Florida, as part of a larger effort to conserve and protect the living coral reefs. While music plays from speakers suspended below boats, divers and coral fans enjoy the company, the water and the sights, decked out in wacky festival costumes. As you paddle in rhythm to the tunes, you’ll soon find everyone freestyling to the underwater grooves.
Underwater escapades are starting to become a reality and less the stuff of movies and dreams. As companies come up with even more creative ways to enjoy the depths, let’s not forget to support sustainable activities. Ensuring we do not tarnish this vast, mysterious world, the surprises that await will never cease to amaze.
Featured image © Hufaven Fushi Maldives
