Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute (B.U.E.I.), Hamilton

Very fancinating. We could have stayed for hours. It was worth the walk from hamilton!!!!

The Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute (known as the B.U.E.I. or the "buie" (pronounced 'buoy') is an amazing place to visit while in the beautiful island of bermuda. It is informative, but most importantly it is very fun. A trip to bermuda is nothing if you do not visit this amazing place. You learn sooo much about bermuda and in a really fun way. Plus, it is a good place to go to when it is raining or you have got a really bad sun burn from not wearing suncream! It is definately worth every second and every penny, plus, there is a wonderful gift shop where they sell some really neat things, as well as a shark oil barometre (my personal fave because it tells the weather with just shark liver oil!). Anyway, in conclusion, this place rocks and is a must do when in Bermuda!

When we first walked into the lobby we were like 'Wow!'. There is a giant squid hanging from the ceiling, a huge map of Bermuda on the floor, floor to ceiling photo-glass by Bermuda's Scott Stallard with a big port hole to walk through to the beginning of the exhibits. This institute was not only informative but fun. There are no live fish or animals but they certainly make up for that in other areas. There was a field trip with school kids and they all seemed to be really enjoying it. They hardly made any noise because they were so interested in all the videos, interactive touch displays and listening to a very informative tour guide. We were really lucky to meet Jack Lightbourn who donated over 1,000 shells to the shell room. He told us all about the shells - some are a new species that he discovered and had named after him. Perhaps the most exciting part was the simulated dive down 12,000 feet and the shark cage with the great white shark!!! I would recommend Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute to any visitor. For the business traveler they have excellent state of the art function rooms with the latest a/v technology. I have even arranged for my company to use the Cable and Wireless room in two months time.

As a museum professional, I was very impressed. Lots of good information presented in a fun, positive manner. Something of interest to nearly everyone. In this museum, which is not true in many museums, the interactives were very well done and effective for all ages. And most of them worked! I really liked the simulated "deep sea dive" which takes visitors from one floor to the next and the "scary" shark cage. This interpretive center was one of the highlights of my trip to Bermuda.