St. Thomas or St. Maarten???

[VABeach]

I am not a certified diver but have done the SNUBA dives twice in the past. My next cruise offers Discover SCUBA at St. Maarten and Non-Certifeid SCUBA at St. Thomas. (Thought Grand Cayman dive wasn't that great.)

 

Also, What is the difference between "Discover SCUBA and Non-Certified" dives?

 

Could someone please help?

 

We are leaving in less than three weeks and would like to book in advance.

 

Thank you for your help. :)

[bruce-r]

Also, What is the difference between "Discover SCUBA and Non-Certified" dives?

I think they are the same, just as a "resort course" is the same as "discover scuba"

 

 

We are leaving in less than three weeks and would like to book in advance.

I would pick St. Thomas, but I wouldn't use the ship's excursion. I'd use http://www.cokidive.com because I'm just not a fan of the ship's excursions in general.

[Twinflow]

I would use Dive Safaris in St. Marrten! They have a great beginner's dive site with several surprises at the bottom. I dove with them in Oct 2005 and they told me the site (beginner's) now has an old submarine on the bottom.

 

Also, they take you out in their dive boat to a calm cove. You jump right into the water just like the certified guys. They have a training platform you use for a few minutes then take you down a moring line to the bottom about 30 feet.

 

BTW...I did a 2-tank certified dive (Oct 2005) and the guided sites were excellent.

 

Send them an email!

 

http://www.divestmaarten.com/

 

 

Tim

:)

[bruce-r]

I wouldn't dive in St. Maarten unless the ocean was dead flat calm. Even then, I wouldn't expect much.

 

There, now you have two opinions from two very different experiences. My diving there was high on my "bad dives" list. Perhaps if I had a chance to dive there again, I might have a better experience.

[Twinflow]

What dive Operation did you use? My St. Thomas dives were a little weak on that same cruise. It all depends on the Ops.

 

Tim

[VABeach]

Thank you so much for the replys! So far, I have been hearing more about St. Thomas....

 

I think the deepest you can go "Un-Certified" is 20 feet??? I didn't think they could take us out to a 30 foot deep spot, but then again, I have only done the SNUBA.

 

I do really want to get certified in the future. 20 feet is just a tease. :D

[VABeach]

One more dumb question... How cold will the water be in December? :rolleyes: :D

[Hilary]

Last December the water in St. Thomas was 78 degrees according to my log book. We didn't dive in St. Maarten, but I'd venture to guess the water temp would be about the same.

[bruce-r]

What dive Operation did you use? My St. Thomas dives were a little weak on that same cruise. It all depends on the Ops.

I went thru ship and Dive Safaris was the dive OP. There were 6-8 foot swells the day I was there. That might have something to do quality of the diving.

 

The diving in St. Thomas, while it was better than St. Maarten, wasn't the best of the trip. That would have been Curacao.

[CaesarsNcruisin4me]

We were in St. Martin on the 24th of November and the weather was beautiful and the water was warm. We had an excellent dive! We went through Blue Bubble and they were Great! We saw lots of fish and even got great pics of a sea turtle hanging around our group. We had a wonderful time in St.Martin and the diving was worth every penny! I'm happy to share pics with anyone who would like to see them.

Sandie

[steve2001]

I just came back from an eastern Caribbean route. We took the Discover SCUBA dive offered by Dive Safaris. There were 16 of us plus 4 instructors. The water was 82 degrees and calm.

 

They took us out to the site and did about a 30 minute presentation (on the boat) about SCUBA saftey and basic skills we would need. We then dawned our gear and jumped into the water. The top of the sub is about 10' below the surface and this was the first area we used to practice our skills of clearing our mask, breathing, hand signals and so forth. Next they have a learning platfom that is about 4' deep. They taught us how to retrive our regulator and how to clear it of water here. This felt safe since we were not that deep and could stand up if need be.

 

Once we al felt comforable with our new skills we proceded down a guide wire to the bottom next to the sub. Our instructor guided us around and showed us some sea life and a sunken boat. This dive lasted 40 minutes. We were the first group in the water and the last group out. The instructor routinely monitored our gagues to verify air supply.

 

This was my first (of many more) experience with SCUBA diving. I plan to get certified this year so I can do a certified dive in the western Caribbean next year.

[VABeach]

Wow, Thanks for the replys!!

 

I know how you feel, the uncertified dives are just enough to let you know you want to get certified. The only reason I haven't done it yet is because I'm spoiled now and don't want to dive in the local waters here. :rolleyes: I might have to do it in the Caribbean somewhere.