The Island has been the named the top wreck diving destination in the region by a prestige magazine.

Scuba Diving singled out Bermuda as the best place for wrecks in the Caribbean and Atlantic.

And the wreck of the luxury liner Cristobal Colon, which sank in 1936, was picked as best wreck diving spot in the magazine’s Top 100 Gold List.

Blue Water Divers and Watersports owner Chris Gauntlett said: “We’re definitely happy to be recognised.

“But I’m not surprised — Bermuda has been recognised before for the shipwreck aspect.”

He added the international industry body the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) had picked the waters off Bermuda to film its wreck diving course video.

Bermuda Tourism Authority CEO Bill Hanbury said: “We’d like to thank the readers of Scuba Diving for this tremendous recognition.

“We know that divers are always searching for locations that provide them with the opportunity to discover something special.

“We offer them an incredible variety of opportunities to explore our famous reefs and marvel at the beauty and history on display.”

Mr Hanbury added that the Island offered more than 300 wreck dive sites, which are also home to spectacular displays of marine life and fish — many unique to Bermuda waters — and diving was a potential growth area for tourism.

He said: “With more than 400 years of underwater maritime history, the huge variety of our wrecks, that range from famous Spanish galleons to freighters and warships from the late 1900s and with most of these dive sites within a short boat ride of the shore, sometimes as close as five minutes away from the docks of popular resorts and diving excursion starting points, we offer quite unique opportunities.”

Mr Gauntlett, whose Somerset Bridge-based diving operation is the oldest on the Island, added: “Blue Water Divers and the Bermuda Dive Association are working actively with the Tourism Authority to increase the awareness of Bermuda diving and our market share.

“We are delighted that more promotion of what we have to offer is happening now.”

Scuba Diving, established in 1992, is regarded as the premier diving magazine, covering diving gear, training underwater photography and dive travel reviews.