SCUBA Lessons

[derwoodff64]

Has anyone taken SCUBA lessons from Royal and are they good?

[mygrace777]

does rccl do this? i didnt think they offer this because i was once looking to do this. If the do Id love to find out too. Thats one thing i have been wanting to do but never saw that offered.

 

If someone knows if they do please let us know.

[derwoodff64]

I know you can at least on freedom class ships because we were going to do it last time but due to health reasons my wife couldn't. I was just wondering if anyone has done it and would they do it again or go through someone else? The price seems right about $20 more than a local guy I know but I can do it all in one week. And the certification dives are in Grand Caymon and Cozumel!!

[elvnga]

I think you can do this on the Oasis. I did a dive and found the dive shop on board a bit of a pain to deal with. On other cruises you do you paperwork directly with the tour operator. No one told me and I had to ask to find out you have to go by the dive shop and fill out paperwork there. This cost me an hour of much needed sleep that day. I also found the guy there to be the only employee on board I was not impressed with. That being said, if you have an opportunity to get certified, take it. The SCUBA community is very friendly in general and a lot of fun and the experience of diving is marvelous. The actual dives in Cozumel were great.

[dond3131]

You would be doing yourself a big favor to get certified at home before you leave.I have been cert. 20+ years and have many friends that are dive masters and instructors.Everyone learns at their own pace and comfort level and you don't want to be spending expensive time on a cruise trying to learn how to dive.Your in a very unnatural environment basically on life support,some people pick it up quickly others don't.Not trying to say anything bad about the program on RC,its probably great but its a lot of work to get certified and comfortable in the water enough to enjoy yourself but once you do your going to love it.Trust me its so much more fun to just walk of the ship with the confidence of having sometime under water,than to try and find time on your vacation to fit it in.

[Cruzin-K]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1359828

 

Post #4 shows my report/review of getting the Scuba Diver cert on board. This was a short cruise, with only one port of call so I could only squeeze in two open water dives. I finished up the full open water certification when I got home. Diving in Cozumel sure beats the heck out of a cold Texas river :p

 

Oh, I for the record, I don't feel like I "missed out" on anything on the cruise at all by spending time learning to dive. The diving lessons were actually the highlight of this cruise for me.

[hibiscusgirl05]

We (my dad, brother, and I) got certified on Adventure in March 2007. It was awesome. We had done some Discover SCUBA classes in the past so it was already familiar to us. There were 2 days at sea where we did most of our classroom work and pool exercises. It was pretty awesome to get to do your check out dives in the warm waters of the Caribbean (compared to the chilly Long Island Sound/Atlantic Ocean up by us). I didn't feel like I was missing out on anything on the ship or port days. If you had class on a port day it was only in the morning, so your afternoon was free to go exploring. Also, we did the full open water certification which had 4 dives, whereas some people opted for just the 2 dive certification. Why have to do your other 2 dives back home when you can do them in the Caribbean?

[derwoodff64]

Thanks all just what I wanted....both sides of the fence!! Makes me feel better about it, but also great points about being on a cruise and missing out. We are on this cruise for the second time in about 3 months so not reaaly missing out done it before and thought this would be a great way to add some new flair. Now for the second question I know as with any class land or sea mask and snorkel are yours. But after the certification would even think about bringing your own gear or would you just rent it??

[hibiscusgirl05]

When we took the class we had our own mask and snorkel and everything else was supplied. Once we were certified we gradually bought all of the gear ourselves and now I wouldn't even think of going diving somewhere without my own stuff. We are going on a cruise on Saturday and have all our own gear packed (except tanks and weights since most places will provide those).

 

Buying gear is certainly a big investment (and means that between the two of us we have 3 suitcases for our cruise). But there are many advantages to owning your own gear. Some gear that is rented is not as new or nice as stuff you could buy. Integrated weights in your BCD make a HUGE comfort difference and some places won't rent that stuff out, meaning you need a separate weight belt (which is a pain and annoying and can be uncomfortable). As a woman, there are women-specific items that make diving more fun: a wetsuit designed for a woman's body, and a BCD also designed for a woman's body. Since some places only have men/"unisex" wetsuits and BCDs, getting those two things in a female-friendly option was important to me.

 

If you don't think you'll be going diving a lot you can always rent, but once you have the gear you'll never want to rent again :D My recommendations of things to get, in order:

Pre-class: mask, snorkel (and anything else they require you to get)

Post-class (so you don't spend all the money and realize mid-class that you don't like diving): fins and booties, wetsuit, regulator, BCD, tanks/weights (not a necessity since renting a tank only costs like $10)

 

Hope this helps!

[dond3131]

Always take my mask(prescription lens),regs and Dive Rite Wings BC.The BC takes up very little room and I don't trust a rented reg from anyone.I know my gear and how its maintained.The rest of the gear is not that important to me for diving in warm water,I do most of my diving of the coast of NY and NJ where you always have current and cold water to contend with so right gear is more important to being able to complete your dive.

[derwoodff64]

Thanks thats what I figured theres nothing like having your own.......anything!!!