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"SORRENTO AND DIVING? We didn't have a clue until we fell across the dive centre," commented Alexander and Alexandra from London.
Like most of the other divers I met in this romantic Italian idyll, the two Alexes hadn't visited Sorrento for the diving, and hadn't realised that the Sorrento Diving Centre was well placed for the Punta Campanella Marine Reserve and the dive sites it protects.
Steve is the permanent English-speaking Aussie connection at the Sorrento Diving Centre.
He explained to me why he thought Sorrento was not better-known for its diving: "No matter how hard I try, I can't seem to get the hotels interested in telling visitors about the dive centre.
"Perhaps it's because people don't come to Sorrento for its water sports."
Steve had a point. The guidebooks don't mention the marine reserve or water sports in the area, as if Sorrento had fallen into a clichéd niche of its own making: food, romance and scenery.
But Steve at least believes that the underwater scenery is noteworthy, especially when you get into the sub-30m zone.
On the way out to our first dive at Banco Di Santa Croce, he told me about the site and the divers who visited the centre: "Banco was rated by an Italian diving magazine as the best site in the country, but our typical divers have about 10 dives under their belt, so we can't take them to places like this - it's too deep and too adventurous for them. The less experienced divers are important to us, but I'd also like to attract more experienced divers, as there is a lot to see once you get a bit deeper."
Steve was right, this wasn't the "dead Med" I had seen elsewhere. The bases of the pillars of rock extending down to 40m were covered in red, purple and yellow gorgonians, while their summits were inhabited by large shoals of sardines and anchovies, as well as a healthy number of octopuses.
Steve became excited about three groupers we saw. "We don't see many because they get speared outside the reserve," he said. I became fascinated by Steve's ability to charm octopuses out of their holes.
At the surface, the Coastguard came alongside to check Steve's permission to dive in the reserve. He explained that the reserve authorities allowed him to dive some sites only a handful of times
a year, and that in some areas all boat traffic was regulated to minimise environmental impact.
Our first dive was exclusively for experienced divers, but I was interested to see how the centre would manage the needs of beginners and more qualified divers on one boat.
The next morning we were greeted by a very excited Australian. Steve was waving a document around, shouting: "We can't even take a boat through this place normally, but today we've got permission to dive!"
Scoglio Di Vervece, a small island just off the headland, is where a shrine for sailors in the shape of a statue of the Virgin Mary has been positioned on the seabed. As well as being an underwater attraction it's the starting point for those who need to stay above 18m and for those up for a 50m dive.
Steve split us into two groups, and I watched in awe some of those who allegedly had the PADI Open Water qualification. Perhaps they are why Steve wants to attract more experienced divers: one diver couldn't find her "socks"; another placed her hood over her sunglasses and wondered why her mask wouldn't go on properly, while her buddy couldn't figure out which way round his first stage went.
In true laid-back Aussie style, Steve managed all these issues without undermining anyone's confidence.
My small group left the rest of the party and we dropped down the boulder-strewn slopes. From about 30m the brown algae and weed, a familiar feature of Mediterranean diving, cleared. The thermoclines through which we dropped marked the start of much colder water, where the large boulders and mini walls were decorated with massive upright red gorgonians.
There were few fish at this depth, but the gorgonians were spectacular.
Back in shallower waters the gorgonians disappeared and the world got browner. Despite this, we found moray eels and lobsters hiding in small cracks in the rock, while above us
a shoal of barracuda passed in and out of view through the cloudy water closer to the surface. We finished the dive hovering around the statue of Mary, always a favourite for underwater photographers.
Steve briefed us on our second dive just outside the protected area at Punta Del Capo, a small wall with a maximum depth of about 18m.
The vis was awful, however, and there was little to see but plaques celebrating the 12 Stations of the Cross fixed along the top of the wall. Steve did all he could to make the dive interesting, finding James and Jacqueline from the States an octopus to play with. Back at the surface, Jacqueline couldn't stop raving about the "incredible" dive.
The two Alexes also seemed to be enjoying themselves, but they had been intrigued by our stories of cold, clear water and giant red gorgonians. So the next day they tagged along as we descended the slopes of another island, Scoglio Penna, into the gorgonian forest. They did a good job of sticking to their dive plan but also sneaked a quick look below their depth limits to see what this deeper diving was all about.
"We followed you by mistake - it looked really good where you were!" Alexandra cheekily admitted at the surface. Paul from Ireland was equally impressed with this site compared with other Mediterranean locations. "Last year I was in Sardinia where our divemaster, after swearing us to secrecy, showed us a small cluster of red gorgonians in a cave. The rest had been taken for jewellery. This was excellent, it's very well protected."
For our second dive, we left the depths for the Grotto Di Isca, a cave at the end of some shallow and quite interesting tunnels. The stalagmites and stalactites inspired Alexandra's vivid imagination - it was "Spielberg-like, I expected to see aliens!"
By now we were gorgonianed out, so Steve arranged a site where we hoped instead to see shoaling tuna. At Punta Campanella, a vertical drop at the end of a headland, we could have dropped again to 50m, but instead joined the Open Water divers, for some of whom it would be their first time on a wall.
The dive reminded me of a Caribbean wall dive without the big sponges and corals. There were plenty of invertebrates, including some sensitive and rather beautiful tubeworms. "Watch out for the smaller fish darting for the security of the wall," we had been told, but sadly, on this dive, the hunting tuna failed to show.
The diving had succeeded in holding our interest for the five-day trip, but it was the combination of morning dives followed by afternoon excursions that really made the visit worthwhile.
Realistically, you wouldn't consider Sorrento for a pure diving holiday but it is ideal for diving and sightseeing, with places such as Pompeii, Herculaneum, the island of Capri, Positano and the side-streets of Sorrento itself all within reach.
As for the diving, the last word goes to the two Alexes, who we met again on our last excursion to the island of Capri. "We've done a lot of dives in the Med, but the cave was the best we've ever done.
"The deep diving also looked really good - we don't think our week would have been anywhere near as interesting if we hadn't discovered the diving."
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Entering the cave at Grotto di Isca.
Red gorgonians at 50m
A scene from Positano
GETTING THERE: Fly via Naples, served from the UK by several airlines, including low-cost carriers. Avoid the taxis and use buses around town, but buy a number of tickets in advance.
DIVING: Diving Centre is a PADI and CMAS centre, www.sorrentodivingcenter.it. Experienced divers should contact it in advance if you want more challenging dives to be arranged.
ACCOMMODATION: Diving Centre can advise on suitable hotels. Hotel Faro is next to the centre.
RECOMMENDED: Try Zi'ntonia on Via Luigi de Maio; La Favorita 'O Parrucchiano on Corso Italia; Zi'ntonio Mare at the Marina Grande and the Hotel Faro by the diving centre, great for lunchtime pizza.
MONEY: Euro
RECOMMENDED: Try Zi'ntonia on Via Luigi de Maio; La Favorita 'O Parrucchiano on Corso Italia; Zi'ntonio Mare at the Marina Grande and the Hotel Faro by the diving centre, great for lunchtime pizza.
PRICES: Budget flights cost from around £90 return. Week-long flight and hotel packages are available from £400 depending on season. A 10-dive package with Sorrento Diving Centre costs 297 euros (just over £200).
FURTHER INFORMATION: 020 7408 1254, www.enit.it, www.diveitaly.com, www.puntacampanella.org
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