"Mozambique was everything we could have hoped for and the teams at Barra and Pomene were terrific. The diving was excellent, the vis was a bit down but it did mean that we saw a huge variety of marine life coming in to feed on the bountiful plankton including a sailfish whilst doing a safety stop at the end of a dive at Pomene! Our flights, etc all worked perfectly unlike another couple we met there (they had booked through another agent!) who's internal tickets had not materialised so they had to pay again for their flights - needless to say we were singing your praises! ... Many thanks for your hard work..." Suzie and Dennis Wenham, February 2007

Left alone during the civil war which ended in 1992, the reefs are pristine. Diving is a relatively new sport in Mozambique and the marine life seems to have none of the fear of the diver shown in other areas where diving is more developed.

Inhambane district (Barra Bay, Tofo Beach, Guinjata Bay): these reefs are not the same as the more lavishly coloured tropical areas further north, having a volcanic rock basis with smaller, more delicate corals but they are pristine and just as colourful. Their big draws are the resident Mantas, Devil rays and Whale sharks. Great shoals of Big-eyes, fusiliers and Moorish idols (Coachmen) cover the reefs like a shower of confetti; gobies, morays and shrimps peer out from every hole; look out for rare Harlequin Shrimps and Porcelain crabs, boxing Mantis shrimps, Durban dancing shrimps and varieties of nudribranchs in the nooks and crannies. Don't forget to look up and around you: something big may be passing overhead...

Cleaning stations abound around the reefs, attracting mantas who swoop down and hover over the stations while tiny cleaner wrasse work their way over these leviathans. Sometimes formations appear as several mantas line up to take their turn.

From November to May Whale sharks congregate in greater numbers around the bays off Inhambane and they are often spotted on the way to or from dive sites. The opportunity to snorkel with these massive creatures is simply too good to miss.

Pomene: is a remote area approximately 5 hours' drive north from Inhambane. The reefs here are stunning and the first signs of true tropical reefs are found: hard corals. As with Inhambane, the marine life is abundant with many species of reef fish as well as turtles, White tips, huge bass (grouper), Eagle rays and game fish. Dolphins frolic at the surface and Whale sharks may be spotted to and from the dive sites.

Vilanculos area: with healthy coral cover and the gamut of Indian Ocean reef fish, turtles and dolphins are also frequent visitors. Of particular note is the rare dugong; find it if you can.

Water temperature averages 24^oC, peaking at around 28^oC in summer (December to March).

Quirimbas Archipelago: these reefs are found in the far north of Mozambique and due to their remoteness are largely untouched. The Quirimbas Archipelago is made up of a number of coral atolls, similar to the Maldives only less-developed.

The Quirimbas National Park was the first reserve to be created in Mozambique since independence and encompasses approximately 7,500km²; 6,000km on the mainland and 1,500km made up of ocean, inter-tidal and island habitats. The marine habitat boasts an abundance of larger marine species such as turtles, dugongs, Humpback whales whilst the land reserve is home to elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard, hyena, wild dog and a number of antelope species.

Gavin Parsons: African photographic tour

See Gavin Parsons' article on diving Mozambique and South African safari which appeared in Diver magazine November 2007

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