Lin and Roger are Cruise Directors aboard MV Sea Queen. Lin started diving in 1996 with BSAC in Weymouth and Dorset, and Roger got hooked in 2008. They are both PADI Instructors and have travelled and dived extensively around the world in exotic locations such as Sri Lanka, the Similan Islands, Fiji, US Virgin Islands, Cape Verde and the Great Barrier Reef. They have also dived in some dark, cold quarries in the UK!
About
Here at Scuba Tours, our reputation has been built on the first hand knowledge gained from more than 21 years as tour operators. The number of our repeat customers is testimony to the excellent level of service we deliver to our clients.
When you book a holiday with us, you can be sure that we have visited the destination ourselves and can offer you informed advice. Our sales staff, who of course are also divers, will listen to your expectations and use their personal knowledge and experience to help you plan your trip.
Why choose us - Our Four Cornerstones
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Knowledge and Experience
For over 21 years we have been putting together tailor made holidays to worldwide dive destinations. Our sales staff are divers and can give you the benefit of their first hand knowledge and experience.
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Our destinations
We are pioneers in dive tourism and are constantly seeking out new and exciting dive experiences for our clients. Our destinations are carefully chosen for the discerning diver.
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Maldives Specialist
For 21 years we have been operating our own liveaboards in the Maldives. We know the dive sites so well, we know where to go and which resorts to recommend.We were one of the first liveaboards in the Maldives and continue with a programme of exploration and marine research. We are Maldives experts and it is for good reason that organisations like the BBC come to us for local knowledge.
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Personal Attention
We listen carefully to your requirements and offer you advice to ensure you achieve all you expect from the holiday of your dreams.
Meet the team
Sea Queen Directors
Roger Holmes and Lin Burden
Travel Sales Executive
Chris Bell
Admin Executive
Karen Baines
Founder
Rob Bryning
Operations Manager
Rainer Schaetz
Cruise Directors
David and Lisa Allison
Sea Spirit Directors
Matt Kitchen and Anne-Marie Kitchen Wheeler
Senior Travel Sales Executive
Graham Tyte
Travel Sales Executive
Kimberley Bonham
Travel Sales Executive
Leonie Barber
Accounts
Susan Hodges
Sales Manager
Holly Gibson
Office Manager
Carol Basham
Meet the team
Roger Holmes and Lin Burden
Position: Sea Queen Directors
Chris Bell
Position: Travel Sales Executive
Chris has worked in the travel industry for over 8 years since graduating from University.
He has travelled to many worldwide destinations incl China, Argentina, Chile, Japan, USA, South Africa, Austraila and New Zealand. Having lived and worked in Australia and NZ he loves both countries and has travelled extensively around each.
Sport and travel are Chris’ two passions and he hopes to experience all that scuba diving has to offer in the near future.
Karen Baines
Position: Admin Executive
Karen has worked within the travel industry for almost 20 years and is our Administration Queen. Originally from South Africa, she returns often to visit family, and has also been lucky enough to visit Hawaii - taking in the sights of Pearl Harbour and “JurassicPark”, the island of Kiribati, Dominican Republic, Abu-Dhabi and Egypt.
After working in Darmstadt, Germany & London for a short while, Karen is now married to a soldier, and with 2 lovely young sons, her travel options have been a little more limited to family holidays in Europe and days out at Harry Potter World!
Rob Bryning
Position: Founder
Rob Bryning is a founder member of Maldives Scuba Tours and Scuba Tours Worldwide. When he set up the company with his partner, Sam Harwood, they both lived in the Maldives running their first liveaboard, MV Keema. Since then, they have become experts on diving in the Maldives and are authors and contributors to a number of books and guides on the Maldives.
When they returned to the UK, Rob and Sam expanded the business launching Scuba Tours Worldwide which represents some of the world's best liveaboards and dive resorts.
Rob has extensive knowledge of many diving destinations and a real in depth understanding of what makes a good liveaboard.
Rainer Schaetz
Position: Operations Manager
Rainer is our hard working Operations Manager, he lives in Male and is married to a Maldivian. Rainer gave up his stressful life in Germany over 25 years ago, seduced by the beauty of the Maldives, to live on a remote island in the North of the island chain. Rainer Supports the Boat crews and makes sure the operation of the boats runs smoothly.
David and Lisa Allison
Position: Cruise Directors
David and Lisa managed the MV Sea Queen for over eight years. They spent a number of years operating a Jersey Dive Centre in the summer and a Sri Lankan Dive Centre in the winter. Both are PADI Instructors with considerable dive experience and qualifications.Lisa is a Martial arts and Fitness Instructor and has completed the Three Peaks 24 hour challenge. David is also a fitness Instructor and he plays a mean guitar. They now lead special exclusive charters for us, sharing their passion and immense knowledge of the underwater world.
Matt Kitchen and Anne-Marie Kitchen Wheeler
Position: Sea Spirit Directors
Matt and Anne Marie managed the MV Sea Queen from 2001 to 2005 and they are now back with us running MV Sea Spirit. Both are extremely well qualified PADI Instructors with a broad experience of liveaboards around the world. Anne-Marie, who is a qualified Pharmacist (and practices whilst in the UK) is a very keen Freediver and has been four times British Ladies Champion. She also has a PhD on 'Manta Behaviour and Ecology in the Maldives'.
Graham Tyte
Position: Senior Travel Sales Executive
Graham has dived extensively around the world, including Truk Lagoon, Palau, Yap, Cocos Island, Sipadan, Mabul & Kapalai in Malaysia, Dumaguete, Puerto Galera, Coron & Malapscua in the Philippines, Bali, Komodo, Flores, Alors, South Sulawesi, Lembeh Strait & Bunaken Islands in Indonesia, the Maldives, the Cayman Islands, the Red Sea and Mauritius, and can offer first hand information about a great number of dive destinations.
Graham was a PADI Instructor and underwater videographer during the 1990's, living and working in the Seychelles. He produced an excellent film on the whalesharks of the Seychelles, which was screened on Channel 5 and a number of TV channels around the world.
Kimberley Bonham
Position: Travel Sales Executive
Kim is an experienced scuba diver and Divemaster and has travelled to many of the world's greatest diving destinations - her favourites so far are Ningaloo Reef in Australia, the SS President Coolidge in Vanuatu and Sha'ab Rumi in the Sudan.
Having spent a lot of her time backpacking and 2 years as crew on a yacht sailing around the world, she has been lucky enough to dive in Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, Vanuatu, Burma, Malaysia, the Galapagos, Bora Bora, Tahiti, Moorea, the Maldives, Tuamotu Islands, Fiji, Tonga, the Cook Islands, Niue, the Marquesas, Sudan, Egypt, Bonaire, Curacao, Grenada, Gibraltar and Djibouti.
Leonie Barber
Position: Travel Sales Executive
Leonie has over ten years travel industry experience and has fantastic knowledge of the top dive destinations around the world. Having visited the Maldives on many occasions she can offer first-hand information about our boats and the resorts that we offer as well as the amazing tours in Sri Lanka.
Her travels have taken her to Thailand, Tasmania, Sri Lanka, West Africa, the Indian Ocean and around the entire coastline of Australia. She has made a number of scuba dives and has enjoyed snorkelling in places such as Ningaloo Reef, the Great Barrier Reef, the Whitsunday Islands, Mauritius and the Maldives!
Susan Hodges
Position: Accounts
Susan joined the company in 2002 and looks after all things financial! She prefers to keep her head above water but, like the rest of the team, has the "travel bug" and has been on board MV Sea Queen in the Maldives and has toured around Sri Lanka.
Holly Gibson
Position: Sales Manager
Holly manages the sales team and is responsible for product development. Having worked in the travel industry for 19 years, her travels have taken her all over the world and her in-depth knowledge of all the top dive destinations ensures that the most demanding and detailed itineraries can be created effortlessly.
An avid scuba diver, she has been lucky enough to dive in many exotic destinations, including the Maldives, Rainbow Reef, Astrolabe Reef and Bligh Waters in Fiji, the Caribbean, Red Sea, Sudan and South Africa with the sharks!
Carol Basham
Position: Office Manager
Carol has been with the company since 1998 and keeps things running smoothly in the office. She gained her PADI Advanced qualification on board our very own MV Sea Queen in the Maldives. A frequent visitor to the Caribbean and the Mediterranean, Carol has also enjoyed trips to Thailand, Malaysia, China, Russia, America and India.
