Just a couple who are enjoying our hobbies and interests, travelling when we can in the UK and abroad. We’re not bloggers, vloggers or travel loggers - we just share the things we see and do :-)
Photos on Instagram… @kirkandbear
All video and photographic content is (unless otherwise stated) captured, edited and copyrighted by the channel owners.
Thank you…so glad that you enjoyed it. Sorry some of the footage was a bit wobbly - Zodiacs are hard work! I have to say that it is a Kirk & Bear recommended experience. Go if you get the chance 👋😀👍
Hi 👋 It was filmed near the jetty of the Makadi Grand. Some turning left from the jetty heading towards Sunwing, and some turning right. There is lots to see all the way along the reef and it can be different every day.
Excellent. You might find a local boat operator could take you there to snorkel, and there are also other super places for snorkelling in the area. I hope you have a lovely time! 👋
Fantastic video ! We are going to Havodda in May 2024 , and we can't wait to be there . It will be our 3rd trip in Maldives , we have already done Baa atoll at Reethi Faru and South Ari atoll at Centara grand . We also love snorkeling a lot and the reef seems to be magic and so colorful . We hope to see as much things as you Thanks again for the sharing
Hi, I think if you use their handle (@) they will be notified that you’ve asked. As I’ve not been to Reethi Faru I am not if much help to you! Which ever one you go to, I suggest checking tides and currents with the staff or dive centre as they can be quite strong sometimes. I hope that helps, K&B.
Enjoy! The strongest currents are at the tip of the island at the dive centre end (the staff there will advise you). We had the most sightings between the dive jetty swimming along past the main restaurant towards the over water villas. Currents vary in strength during the day and can be strong at their highest levels so just be aware of what’s happening and change your direction accordingly. Mostly absolutely fine though. I hope that helps and thanks for watching! Have a great trip 👋
Wow great videos! You seem pretty close to the Barracuda. Love the octopus too. 💙 Hope to see them in Makadi bay soon. Was that on the jetty to beach swim? Or left of jetty?
Hi…thanks for watching. All the videos from that trip, including this one, were captured between the jetty and beach. Turning left from the jetty was off limits last year. No idea if that has changed this year - I hope it has. The barracuda was right at the beach entry, so I had no choice but to be quite close. Looked mean though, and I was wary so didn’t hang around for long! I hope you have a good trip to Makadi Bay - it is excellent snorkelling and you never know what you will see. And thank you for the compliment. Any questions then feel free to ask. 👋
Hi, and thank you. We’re glad you enjoyed it 👍. The video was filmed with my trusty GoPro 10 in a dive housing, mounted on an El Grande pole. If you have any other questions please let me know 👋 Enjoy your trip. Which island / resort are you going to?
Thanks - I’m pleased you like the video quality. Lily Beach looks lovely! I have been very happy with my GoPro 10 - much more reliable than my old 7 - so have not felt the need to upgrade it yet. If something really good happens with the GoPro 13 or 14 I may do. With the GoPro 10 I found getting the settings right really helps with video quality. Let me know if you want more information about that. In terms of price, you could consider second hand (used) cameras - there are many available (here in the UK anyway), so that might help. Also, the GoPro 12 was priced lower than the 11 when it was introduced. I saw it on offer in the UK for £299 GBP (reduced by £100 GBP) in December. I have not yet tried other, similar cameras though. I notice that DJI has competing products and many people love theirs. I also wonder about the Insta360 Ace Pro as well. Not saying they are cheaper, but I’m sure there are lots of RU-vid videos comparing them for image quality and other factors. I guess it will come down to budget, but my GoPro continues to be a good choice for me. I would also say that good light, good water clarity, and good technique can really help make the best of your footage as well. I hope this helps, and if you have any other questions please do let me know.
Hi, and thank you…we’re glad you enjoyed it. Yes - it was a Reef Manta (Manta Alfredi), which is a bit smaller than the Giant Mantas (Manta Birostris), and our first ever Manta encounter 👌 There will be a Galapagos video in April if you’re interested.
It’s a difficult choice. The people we met who changed room said that the outside space of over-water villas are either in shade or full sun, and they didn’t like the walk from the villa to the restaurant / bar. While we didn’t stay in one we were completely satisfied with the sunrise villa we had and would choose it over an over-water villa again - plenty of space, with a good deck that is under cover and sun loungers you can move onto the beach, which is at the bottom of your small “garden”. They even put large water vessels by both doors so you can wash the sand of your feet before entering. The room we had was in excellent condition- not brand new, but nothing stays brand new for ever. There was no dirt or broken fixtures, so I would say “nearly new”. It was clean, spacious and the covered outdoor bathroom was a delight. Aircon was superb. Food is good - I don’t know what you like to eat, but there is plenty of choice for all meals, it is all fresh, and the staff are very accommodating if you need something. I think there are some free activities. There is one free guided snorkel, and one free “try scuba” session. Also daily yoga (I think, but didn’t try) Their website also lists other stuff. We are fairly independent, and spent hours in the sea snorkeling twice a day but we did pay to do a guided night UV snorkel and it was super, but may be off-putting to anyone who doesn’t like not being able to see in all directions. Most of the paid activities are quite pricey, but because there are relatively few people I suppose that makes sense. Here is the website, although you may have already found it: world.nh-hotels.com/en/nh-collection-maldives-havodda I hope this is of some use. Just ask if you have any other questions and I’ll do my best to answer.
PS There is also free loan of mask, snorkel & fins for your entire stay with a small refundable deposit. Looked like decent gear, but we always take our own so didn’t need it.
No way! Hope you had a good time 👍 The Mobular was definitely a high point but the close encounter with the eagle ray was our favourite encounter because it was just so close. Thanks for the comment too 👋
@@kirkandbear sure will. It’s in the edit at the moment 👌🏻. My GoPro 10 killed itself on the first snorkel but fortunately some friends were flying out and brought me a new 12 to play with 😂
Ouch, but nice to get the 12 so quickly! Looking forward to seeing your vid 👍 Hope you had special encounters. We had an amazing leopard encounter last year on safari and it still gives me goosebumps.
Great video <3 One question: how exhausting is it to swim there? We are searching for a great house reef and I'm a good swimmer, but my friend is not that good. Did you all videos snorkeling? I'm not able to dive. How hars is it to swim there? :) Do you have a recommendation for the best located over water villa?
Hi, and thanks for watching. Yes - it was all filmed when snorkeling - no diving. It is very easy to get into the water, and it is also very easy to swim in the lagoon, with lots to see. It is also easy to swim outside the reef, however outside the reef there are currents in some areas on some days. We snorkelled twice a day for 1-2 hours each time and only on one day did we have to work against a very strong current and, in the end, we turned round and let the current take us back to our original entry. We did not find it excessively tiring at all. The Dive Centre team and good at talking you through where is safest and there is a red flag / green flag system to help you. Red flag = advice not to swimming outside the reef. If there is a current then there are some places you can get in at one entrance, swim with the current, and get out at the next entrance. In particular, between the dive jetty and the arrival jetty. It’s all shown on the reef map and the most dangerous area is clearly shown. The house reef here is recognised as one of the best, so I do recommend this resort. We have spent a lot of time in the Red Sea and at this Maldives resort we saw many more rays and sharks, which we enjoyed enormously. We stayed in a sunrise villa on the island, and not an over water villa. There is more shade and it is easier to access the sea in our opinion. By all means choose over-water, however we met a couple while there who asked to change to an island villa as they couldn’t escape the sunshine when in their over-water villa. I hope that helps, but if you have any more questions please feel free to ask.
PS In case it is useful to know…The resort includes free mask, snorkel and fins loan (small refundable deposit required) for your stay, although we take our own. It also includes one free guided reef snorkel during your stay, which may help to familiarise you with the reef and conditions in the sea.
Thanks Manaaf 👋 Wish I had a better camera for night filming! It was very good though. Check out our day time snorkel video if you get a chance…loads of Rays and Remoras 👍
Hello, and thank you for the amazing compliment! Most of the time I hand hold for photos and video so I can compose my shots quickly, but not always. When using a large and heavy lens I favour a monopod. All of this video was shot handheld. With photographs at long focal lengths I always try to get my shutter speed reasonably high, generally at least one over focal length (for example 1/500th at 500mm) and stop down the lens a little. I also used a camcorder for some of this video and it has a zoom equivalent to 600mm but the image stabilisation is quite good. I always try to use good posture and technique to help stabilise photos and video. Does that help? Greetings from the UK and thank you for watching the video 👋
@@kirkandbear wow, it looks rather stable regarding to a handheld vedio. thank you for your selfishless sharing experience in shutter speed setting of long focal lengths. you must be an expert in recording. I always get my video looked flurred due to handshake. I have lived in UK for 3 years and have visited hunstanton and scarborough SEA LIFE to see seals (mostly habour seals). hoping to have chances to see seals in norfolk someday.
I find if I relax my hands I can make the camera more stable. Give it a try…once I start recording I always have to consciously make myself relax my hands. I didn’t realise I did that until I started shooting video! I hope my tip helps you and that you are enjoying the UK 👍
Dear <Kirk & Bear>, I am writing to inquire about your permission to use short clip of your video. This is <Talkpawon 25hrs>, the Korean TV show which is broadcasted on JTBC (Korean TV channel). With your permission, I'd like to use your video to introduce Caminito del Rey. It will be broadcasted at 9PM on 22 January 2024. Thank you for your kind attention and look forward to hearing from you.
Hi Mate, love the videos, ust a question, how did you get from the airport to the hotel? was it just a taxi trip away? looking to have my first trip to egypt and cant wait, thanks
Hi, and thanks for watching - glad you enjoyed them. It is an awesome place for snorkelling so enjoy your trip. Our booking included transfers and it takes 30-40 minutes to the Makadi Bay area. There are taxis at the airport, but I can’t say what it costs unfortunately. If you have any other questions then let me know👍
@marcusby2054 Hi…👋 we tend to use Red Sea Holidays. Sometimes there are even some super deals. Our favourite time is May because of the young fish and the sea is warming up, but we have been in September (nice because of the warm sea) and June (really hot…a bit too hot for us). November to Feb tends to be a bit too windy and the sea is cooler so never been then. Let me know of there is anything else you would like to ask.
@marcusby2054 Hi. Happy to help! You can definitely swim to the right all the time, and it is very good. There are some really super areas of coral almost immediately which we have seen plenty of coral and fish. Then, if you keep going round the coast towards the Makadi Waterworld there are some other really nice areas (keep going past where to gets really deep) and you can see lots of these areas in our videos from this year. I put a map on vid part 1. Often we would get in at one end and out at the other then walk back along the pathway. The light tends to be better for video in the mornings, but we would often swim twice a day. You used to be able to swim to the left from the Jetty but this year it was not allowed. I think this may be because a lot of the dive boats moor near there, or because there was a fatal shark attack up the cost in 2022. Not sure. If you are allowed to go that way (some years you can, some you cannot) it is excellent all the way along and we would often turn back at an area of large plate corals, which are beyond some really lovely shallow areas. Last year’s vid (4k Red Sea Hurghada Snoreklling in Makadi Bay (+ shark)) mostly filmed turning left from the jetty with some going right (the shark and the turtles were to the right). This year’s vids were all filmed between the jetty and Makadi Waterworld beach (Makadi Bay Hurghada Pt 1 to 6). Any more questions about this or other aspects of Egypt then let me know. Also, we will have a Maldives snorkelling vid in early 2024 if you’re interested. 👋 Merry Christmas and have a great trip.
Which hotel did you stay? I will stay in Prima Life Makadi. Will I see the same view? Hmmm there have been a few shark attacks last two years in hughada, and around 4 people dead. I would afraid if I see the shark
Hi…we stayed at the Makadi Palace and have stayed at the Makadi Grand, but many of the hotels nearby have access to the same stretch of reef so you can get the same view either by walking to the jetty or swimming round. Check Maps - you will be near the hotels we have stayed at, so should be fine. The only thing that changed recently was they closed access going left (away from the hotels around the bay to the North) from the Makadi Jetty. This may be because of the shark attacks. Our most recent snorkelling videos from this year were all taken with this restriction in place, so maybe check those out. After 9-10:00am, once boats have started operating, then I think any sharks are deterred, but one never knows for sure. We have not seen any dangerous ones, however had a fright as you saw in the video. I hope you enjoy your trip! The reef is beautiful and we saw lots of amazing marine life.
Hello, and thank you for watching. It is ok to swim, and you are asked to use reef-safe sun screen to help avoid pollution. Touching or standing on the coral or touching the fish is very harmful though. Most people are very considerate about it, although I understand your concern - it is a delicate and valuable ecosystem.
Coral reef are not like glass that they are fragile. They can regenerate and tolerate stress. Actually intermediate stress is good for the ecosystem because it will encourage resilience and increase the biodiversity.
Hi, and thanks for watching. I use a GoPro 10 in a super suit mounted onto an El Grande pole. Seems to work well for me :-) Filmed in 4k at 25fps with bitrate set to high for maximum image quality. Does that help?
Hi. If you’re coming just to visit Skomer then stay anywhere west of Marloes, which is the last town on the way to the boat departure at Martin’s Haven. We decided to stay as close to the embarkation point as possible because the roads are very narrow and get quite busy. There are quite a few Bed & Breakfast places and campsites very near here. If you’re planning to camp in a tent or camper van then these are well catered for but fill up quickly as it is a popular destination. Bed & Breakfasts book up quickly too, as do the boat crossings to Skomer. You can find dates etc on www.pembrokeshire-islands.co.uk and last year (2022) crossing dates and slots were made available from March or April so we were checking the website frequently to make sure we got a place. Weather can affect the service and we had a cancelled crossing but managed to rebook for a few days later so I suggest being in the area for a few days or a week and planning other activities which you can re-organise if necessary.Does that help?
Hi, and thanks for getting in touch. I’m not sure to be honest - the website suggests that they run a vintage bus service on to Epping, but we didn’t use it on the day that we visited. It would be nice if it went a bit further thought - the end of the line was at a bridge but without a station once we passed through North Weald. All the best, K&B 👋
Magnificent catches of the trains coming by and pass at the station, i like it 5 stars, keep up the great work, my friend, like 50, you earned a new subscriber, Greetings from Portugal to the UK.
Hi, and thanks for subscribing and the super feedback! There will be more heritage railways, I promise. There is a playlist of the ones we have visited so far if you’re interested. There will also be other travel videos as well should that be of interest as well. Best wishes from the UK, Kirk & Bear.
