Divecube, Asia’s only hotel where you can learn to freedive

What’s the idea? Here we have six million litres of filtered water in which to practise scuba or freediving at Asia’s only hotel with indoor facilities dedicated to the sports. At 21 metres, the pool is the deepest of its kind in Asia and sports five tiered depth levels for divers to either brush up their skills or become certified in a safe environment. The pool includes a swimmable “shipwreck” and “coral reef cave” system, backlit by porthole windows that face out either into the hotel or onto views over the Taichung cityscape. There’s even a “treasure chest” tucked away in the ship; playing a game of hide and find the fake emerald is highly recommended.

Taiwan is an island, surely you can do this kind of thing in the sea? Plenty of people, especially children, balk at the prospect of finding their flippers in an ocean environment. The Divecube provides a controlled space in which to train. Those with a few dives under their belt in Asia have likely noticed poor etiquette – standing on coral being an oft observed faux pas – and the hotel aims to train young divers in ocean awareness and maritime conservation before they go kicking their flippers around. Freediving is particularly suited to pool session training as it takes relatively longer to get comfortable with the techniques – which are more meditative than you might think. The hotel has Padi-qualified instructors to put you through your paces.

What about the other facilities? The dive shop, which doubles as Taiwan’s first Aqua Lung service centre, offers a bewildering array of equipment, including full dry suits. It also houses a bench designed to resemble the lifeboat in the film Life of Pi (2012), which was partly shot in Taichung and features the hotel owner’s swimming coach as a Taiwanese sailor. The hotel restaurant offers passable Italian-themed food with friendly if erratic service. Basic conference facilities are available in which to conduct classroom sessions.