I’ve been a travel writer, scuba copywriter, and scuba storyteller for over 30 years.
My experience as a PADI-certified diver for nearly 40 years includes more than 110 scuba articles and over 170 newsletters with links to most of them shown below. These include ScubaShow.com, Scuba Diving Industry Magazine, California Diving News, Scuba Times, DAN Alert Diver, inDEPTH Magazine, Sport Diver, Dive Travel, Dive Pacific, Asian Diver, Adventure Journal, Scuba Diver Life, Scuba Radio, Red Sail Sports, Sun Divers Roatan, Undercurrent, The Travelin’ Diver’s Chapbook, No. Cal. Underwater Photographers Society (NCUPS), Marin Scuba Club, Desert Dolphins, Local Getaways, S.F. Chronicle, L.A. Times, and Marin Independent Journal.
I’ve been the monthly newsletter editor (with over 88 posted to date) and webmaster since 2017 for Marin Scuba Club, north of San Francisco.
And I was one of the featured speakers at Scuba Show 2023 in Long Beach on the topic “Blogging About Bubbles”, where I hosted a 13-step workshop that showcased my “greatest hits” and shared my insights into getting published or memorializing your underwater exploits to share with friends, family, and dive buddies. For Scuba Show 2024, I presented a seminar entitled “The 12 Most Common Diving Injuries –– And How To Avoid Them” on Sunday, 6/2 at the L.A. Convention Center.
In addition, I was the Editor-in-Chief of the upscale travel, food, wine, and shopping blog at Vagablond.com, creating about 1,500 articles, including about 50 on scuba.
Scuba Diving Industry Magazine
I’m now writing articles for this B2B magazine that launched its first issue in January 2024. My initial story is on pages 15-16 of the July 2024 publication was emailed to over 16,000 global dive businesses in 165 countries, plus another 888 issues printed and mailed to brick-and-mortar dive retailers in the U.S. The title is “Harnessing The Gray Tsunami for Your Dive Operation” –- also mentioned on the cover and it was the most-read story in this issue.
The lede: “Whether you own a dive shop, liveaboard, or resort, the senior market is a substantial segment of our population worldwide. This ‘Gray Tsunami’ is a demographic shift that continues to grow… Of the approximately 2.5 million divers in the U.S. and 6 million worldwide, divers aged 55 and up account for about 40% of all divers who responded to DEMA’s 2023 global survey (8,274 responses). That translates to an estimated 2.4 million divers globally in this age group.” Read more.
For my July 2024 article, I slapped on my advertising copywriter hat to pen “The Top 10 Ways to Promote Your Scuba Business” on pages 15-16. Read how to achieve critical mass with marketing synergy.
A.I-generated image by www.123rf.com
This September 2024 article –– “To A.I. Or Not A.I.: That Is The Question” on pages 11-14 — compares an A.I.-generated story with my own, explores its role in the diving industry, and emphasizes personal creativity. Read more.
The focus of October 2024’s article is: “Let’s All Jump On The Global ‘Blue Friday’ Bandwagon” to request that dive shops, liveaboards, and resorts embrace diving on what is traditionally Black Friday instead of hosting huge pre-holiday sales. When you click on the link for this story, you can also watch an interview on the Level Up Podcast with Ken Carter and me, between 25:15 – 30.05.
November’s story is titled “My First Time – Make It Memorable and Give Thanks” on pages 11-12. It recounts my first two sets of dives: a resort course on Grand Cayman in perfect conditions with warm water and great viz vs. my PADI Open Water certification dives in a reservoir in central Texas with cold water and “crappy” conditions, plus seven helpful hints for dive shops and boat operators.
inDEPTH Magazine
My October 2024 story is titled: “Diving With a Purpose: To Find Slave Ships and Much More”.
I profiled Kenneth Stewart, who had trained over 500 young black and brown divers. His non-profit organization has been featured in NatGeo, ABC, CNN, NBC, The Smithsonian, and The Washington Post. His team has even helped locate and document the wrecks of 18 slave ships in six countries with DWP volunteers, its government, and university partners. DWP has also created programs to train future maritime archeologists and conservationists. Read more.
Dive Pacific Website & Magazine
I’m proud to be a regular contributor to Dive Pacific in New Zealand and Australia dating all the way back to 2008, but with many more stories recently.
Blue Friday 4.0: “Don’t Shop. Dive” on 29 November, 10/24/24: If you celebrate America’s Thanksgiving, you probably run to the mall on Black Friday. Well, here’s an alternate proposal.
See You At Scuba Show 2024 in LA, CA, USA, 5/11/24: After 37 years in Long Beach, California, Scuba Show will be held in America’s second-largest city for the first time. This expo has drawn approximately 10,000 passionate divers and ocean lovers annually. I’m very excited to be presenting “The 12 Most Common Diving Injuries –– And How To Avoid Them” at 3:00 pm on Sunday, June 2nd.
How to Dive From Cruise Ships: A Primer, 3/12/24: If you dive and your partner doesn’t, it’s not always easy to find a vacation destination that satisfies both of you. Adhering to the “Happy Wife, Happy Life” philosophy, I discovered that it’s quite easy for cruise ship passengers to arrange two-tank dives while visiting various ports of call, and still share quality time on the ship and on shore.
Sunburned: Confessions of a Skin Cancer Survivor, 2/1/24: Kurt Vonnegut once purportedly stated, “Ladies and gentlemen of the Class of ’97: Wear sunscreen.” But even if he didn’t, it represents profound advice for anyone, especially divers who are in or on the water for hours a day. I should know…
Avelo Dive Systems, 1/5/24: A revolutionary technology is making waves out of Maui that lightens the load of the BCD and tank for divers by up to 2/3 –– with no lead weights needed –– extends bottom time by approximately 30%, and much more.
Happy Blue Year: 1/3/24: More than ever, our oceans need our help to survive the daily onslaught of plastics, pollution, global warming, coral bleaching, and much more. But if you think you can’t possibly make a difference, please think again. Here are nine New Year’s Resolutions than you can follow to help the oceans throughout 2024…
Maui: A Whale of a Sun-Splashed Winter Wonderland, 12/21/23: Just like clockwork, humpback whales migrate to the Maui Channel annually by the thousands in Earth’s longest mammal migration. They arrive between late fall and early spring during their 9,600-kilometer (6,000-mile) round-trip from Alaska…
Warm Memories of Hypothermia, 11/6/23: This boat trip took place over 30 years ago, but I can still remember how cold I felt on each of the three successive dives. (11 degrees C is 50 degrees F.) The water in Monterey Bay felt like icicles cutting into my cheeks. and I shivered more as the day went on. So put on a sweater and take the plunge with me… (See photo on the right.)
A Healthy Alternative to Black Friday Shopping Insanity, November 15, 2023: Are you an American or ex-pat living Down Under? If you still celebrate Thanksgiving, do you wait all year to shop the following day on what’s affectionately known as “Black Friday”? This is a Blue Friday story with a NZ/Aussie spin…
Nature’s Playground 2010 Annual from the editors of Dive Pacific Magazine. “Kosrae, Untapped Pacific Gem” by Gil Zeimer, Travel Writer is featured on pages 107, 108 and 109 of the 10th production of this slick, coffee-table quality magazine. It featured articles about sharks, turtles, shipwrecks, cenotes, belugas, mantas, whales, and exotic destinations across the globe. I was honored to be included in this issue.
— Kosrae article, page 107
— Kosrae article, page 108
— Kosrae article, page 109
The February/March 2009 issue featured a story called “The Day I Rode A Manta Ray: An Ecologically Incorrect Thing I’ll Never Do Again.” Read the article (pdf) about how I found myself in exactly the right place at exactly the right time for a once-in-a-life encounter.
The December 2008/January 2009 issue printed an article that’s a bit of a stretch for a diving magazine, but that’s why I’m proud to have placed it there. It’s called “Heavy Breathing on Half Dome —- And Other Ways To Stay In Shape For Diving.” Read the article about a one-day, 18.2-mile hike, 9-hour round-trip hike I took 200 miles east of the Pacific Ocean.
My first article in Dive Pacific was featured in the October/November 2008 issue. It’s called “Your Gear May Be Old, But Is It Safe?”.
Miscellaneous Scuba Writing Stories
Marin Scuba Club
– “Blue Friday 2023: Recap and Reset”, December 5, 2023
California Diving News:
– “Blue Friday: A Healthy Alternative to Black Friday Shopping Insanity”, November 2023
Scuba Radio:
– Live Studio Interview About “Blue Friday”, 11/11/23 (Hour 2 from 3:55 – 9:55)
Local Getaways – California:
– Black Friday Alternatives: What to Do Besides Shopping in The Greater Bay Area (Blue Friday)
– Scuba Diving in Northern California
– Scuba Diving in the Central Coast of California
– Scuba Diving in Southern California
– Snorkeling in Southern California
Local Getaways – Hawaii:
– Scuba Diving on Kauai
– Scuba Diving on Oahu
– Scuba Diving on Maui
– Snorkeling in Maui
– Snorkeling on The Big Island
Scuba Diver Life:
– “The Best Scuba Diving in Kosrae”
– “Five Underwater Photo Tips for Beginners”
– “Diving Bloody Bay Marine Park”
– “The Best Places to Get Married Underwater”
– “Top Five Alternative Diving Bucket List Destinations”
– “3D Printed Terra Cotta Tiles Create Artificial Reefs in The Red Sea”
Undercurrent & Travelin’ Diver’s Chapbook:
– Blue Friday: 10/25/23
– Diver’s Reports for Scuba Club, Cozumel; Reef Divers, Little Cayman; Hawaii Nautical, Oahu; Sleeping Lady Divers, Kosrae;
Nautilus Divers, Kosrae; and Red Sail Sports, Aruba
International Travel Writer’s Association:
– “One Last Thought – Blue Friday, Don’t Shop. Dive!”, November 2023 Bulletin
Sun Divers Roatan:
– Facebook: “This Year We Are Celebrating Blue Friday”, 11/17/23
– Facebook: “From Hawaii to Roatan to California…”, 12/7/23
Marin Independent Journal:
– “Dive With The Marin Scuba Club for its Third Annual Blue Friday”, 11/22/23
Zeimer.com:
– “Maui March Madness – Humpback Whale Tales”
– “Drift Diving Away in Cozumel”
– “Diving With The Oldies”
– “Say Hello to My Little Cayman Friends”
– “5 Reasons I Love Aruba”
– “What Divers Hate Most About ’47 Meters Down’ – A Review by 12 Experienced Divers”
Miscellaneous #ScubaStorytelling Stories:
Diving on Oahu: West Side Story
Right after the 2016 Elections, I did something exceedingly selfish. For about two hours, I was weightless beneath the warm Pacific seas off the quiet west coast of Oahu vs. the hectic, traffic-clogged southeast coast of Waikiki Beach. Read the article.
Red Sail Sports
• Between 2002 to 2009, I wrote 30 quarterly enewsletters and websites Red Sail Sports after booking a few days of diving with them in Aruba. This included their portal website, then separate websites for each of this resort- based diving and watersports operator in Grand Cayman and Aruba. For the that Southern Caribbean island, I had a spectacular visit filled with scuba diving, snorkeling, parasailing, lunch and sunset cruises. Read Watersports Paradise Found.
Kosrae photo in SF Chronicle
SF Chronicle Sunday Travel Section, September 13, 2009, Just Back From Kosrae, Micronesia, by Gil Zeimer
This story by Gil Zeimer and photo by Doug Beitz of Kosrae Nautilus Resort appeared on 9/13/09 in the SF Chronicle’s “Just Back From” column in their printed and online travel sections. Read this article.
LA Times Online, 8/21/09, Kosrae, Micronesia
This story appeared in the L.A. Times featuring my story and Katrina Adam’s photograph. Read this article.
Asian Diver, No. 108, Issue 3/20/10, 3 Paths to Diving Bliss – Kosrae by Gil Zeimer, Travel Writer.
My story is showcased on page 12 of this beautifully designed diving magazine published in Singapore. It features a map to give the reader a quick orientation of where Kosrae and the Federated States of Micronesia are in the Pacific Ocean, relative to the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, the Philippines, and the Equator.
My article provides an overview of how to get to Kosrae by air, the three types of accommodations and their dive centers, weather and water temperatures, currency used, and entry/visa requirements. Download “3 Paths to Diving Bliss – Kosrae” article (PDF).
Read more stories on Kosrae Publicity.
Marin Scuba Club –– Member Spotlight, November 2016
I’m very pleased to have been featured in this interview by the Marin Scuba Club that tells the story behind some of my scuba articles. Read the article.
Dive Travel Magazine
— My Dive Buddy Wears Diapers, Winter 1996, By Gil Zeimer
My dive buddy prefers warm water. So do I. Every evening around 8 p.m., we gather our gear, approach the dive site and take the plunge. Read more.
— Waterlogged Proposals, Summer 1996, By Gil Zeimer
I tried to propose to my wife underwater. She almost drowned.
While planning the moment — the commitment most men fear most — I thought this would be a romantic way to tie the knot. Read more.
— Waiting to Inhale, Spring 1997, By Gil Zeimer
I waited to inhale for 1,286 days. That’s how long it’s been since my last dive. I waited through 3-1/2 years of visiting in-laws and spending weekends in landlocked hotels. I waited. And I planned. Read more.
— The Insider’s Guide to Baja, May/June 1997, By Gil Zeimer
I was one of three contributors to this Destination X story. The following is my dive briefing and live-aboard experience.
Download the PDF version or Read more.
— Family Planning, July/August 1997, By Faith Mulvihill & Gil Zeimer
A guide to setting up your dive vacation and bringing along the whole family.Read more.
Alert Diver Magazine from Divers Alert Network
— The Sun Also Burns, May 2001, by Gil Zeimer
Barbecued ribs. Braised shoulders. Baked legs. These sound like summer grilling choices, but they’re really describing the effects of the hot sun on your skin – if you don’t take precautions with sunscreens and protective clothing. Skin cancer is something that all divers should think about. Read more.
— Low Anxiety, June 2001, by Gil Zeimer
What’s round, midnight blue, 1,000 feet/308 meters wide, and over 400 feet/123 meters deep? The Great Blue Hole of Belize, one of the world’s foremost dive destinations. It’s a spectacular underwater cavern where I got “narked”, ran out of air, and broke my watch 130 feet/40 meters below the warm Caribbean waters. Download page 1 PDF. Download page 2 PDF. Or read more.
— To Dive Or Not To Dive, April 2002, by Gil Zeimer
I hadn’t been underwater in a few years, so I’m always more cautious on my first dive of a trip. This day, the wind off the Florida coast in late February was gusting to 20 mph, the seas were rolling with 3-4 foot waves, and water temp was 74. I jumped in to follow a divemaster and 6 divers to a depth of 85 feet on a drift dive. Read more.
— Equipment Upgrade 2.0, May 2002, by Gil Zeimer
Most of us don’t even think twice about upgrading our computers, our software, our cell phones, our wardrobe, our cars, or perhaps even our homes every two to 10 years. But when did you last consider upgrading your essential dive gear? Our equipment allows us to breathe, stay neutrally buoyant, and explore underwater. Maybe it’s time you seriously considered replacing some or all of it. Read more.
Scuba Times Magazine
— So, You Can’t Make The Reef, November/December 1994, by Gil Zeimer
I became the poster child for Murphy’s Law at the Great Barrier Reef. I assumed the world’s largest living thing would be easy to visit. I assumed wrong. Four of my five planned dive days were canceled. Read more.
Adventure Journal Magazine, Summer 1998, by Gil Zeimer
— Dancing To The Humpbacks’ Song
While on my honeymoon, I fell in love with another man. So did my wife. We’re not even swingers.
He was a big fella – 45 feet long, 30 tons, and had a beautiful voice. Though he was three or four miles away, I heard him singing when I went scuba diving at Ka’anapali Beach at Maui’s southern shore. Later, we both listened to his haunting calls from a mere 200 hundreds yards as we snorkeled on a whale-watching cruise near Lahaina. We actually felt the sound vibrations reverberate through our bodies. It was like getting splashed with a liquid wave of sound. Read more.
No. Cal. Underwater Photographic Society Newsletter, Dec. 1996, By Gil Zeimer
— M-I-C-K-E-Y S-C-U-B-A
I met Walt Disney in 1956 in Anaheim. Forty years later, I never imagined that I’d dive in his aquarium in Orlando, Florida.
My secret entry key was Walt Disney World’s EPCOT Dive Quest Program. Limited to eight certified divers per day, it’s a pleasantly-packaged, behind-the-scenes tour of the Living Seas exhibit, with the bonus of a 40-minute dive into the 6,000,000-gallon tank. The dive operators ask you to bring your mask and certification card. They supply everything else. Read more.
Sport Diver Interactive May 2001, by Gil Zeimer
— One Roll, One Day, Underwater In Monterey
Take 100 rolls of Kodak slide film. Give one each to 100 scuba divers. Add 50-degree water, rugged cameras, thick wetsuits, masks, fins, gloves, weights, and tanks. Ask for it back in a few hours. And award the best shots with over $20,000 in prizes.
That’s what the Northern California Underwater Photographic Society’s annual one-day competition every Spring is all about.
Read more.
Why I Love Being A Scuba Storyteller
I got certified as #ScubaStoryteller as a #PADI Open Water Diver in 1985. The site was a silty-bottomed creek in Granbury, Texas, southeast of Dallas where I was living at the time. Generously, I’d say the visibility was 2-10′, but it was more like 6″ to 1′, the water temp hovered around 60 F., and the crappy fish (yes, that was their name) nibbled on my ears.
Read more.