Where to dive in Eastern Caribbean?

[MoneyGuy]

I'll be there in March '06 and am a beginner certified diver. Don't know if I'll book through the ship or direct. These are the islands I'll be visiting. Which do you recommend for me?

 

Tottola, Antigua, Dominica, Martinque, Barbados, Grenada, Isla Margarita (sounds like an exotic mixed drink), Aruba and Grand Cayman.

 

I want to be safe and well supervised. Comments?

[Twinflow]

I did a 2-tank dive from the Carnival Liberty with Dive Tortola. We dove the famous RMS Rhone Ship Wreck. Make sure you buddy with someone before entering the water. Most dives are guided but a guide is not a buddy.

[scubamargie]

We have not been diving in Martinique or Isla Margarita, but of the others stops mentioned here's my list from the top down. I think a newly certified diver would be fine in any of these places, but you might want a guide for the shore dives if you don't feel comfortable doing it on your own.

 

1. Dominica -- excellent pinacle diving in the protected Soufriere bay. Arrange with Nature Island Divers (http://www.natureislanddive.com). They never take out more than 7 divers, will pick you up at the pier, and the diving is 5 minutes from their shop. This is a favorite dive destination for us. Wiffie will take good care of you.

 

2. Tortolla - excellent reef and wreck diving. We spent 5 days there diving a few years back. The operation we used (Baskin' in the Sun) is gone but I'm sure the boards will list other good dive operations there. The wreck of the Rhone is a great dive, but it is a more advanced dive so if this stop is early in the cruise you might request a reef dive instead.

 

3. Grand Cayman - excellent diving. You can shore dive just a short walk from the cruise terminal at either Eden Rock or Sunset House (preferred - see the mermaid statue and dodge the Atlantis sub as it passes by). If you have time you could arrange diving with Dive Tech up by the turtle farm. Their shore diving is also excellent, but the taxi ride up to their shop is prohibitive. Sting Ray city is a kick if you haven't done this -- a very shallow dive usually with snorkelers too.

 

4. Grenada -- also great diving. We arranged diving with EcoDive but were unimpressed. The boat was overloaded, and one couple with us had set up a reservation via email (with confirmation) but were not on the reservation list. Even without the extra two the boat was still crowded. I'd try a different dive operation.

 

5. Barbados - We love diving here because it's easy, but the diving isn't as good as the other places mentioned above. High Tide Divers will pick you up at the cruise pier. The beach in front of their shop is lovely if you have non-divers who want to spend the day at the beach right next to Folkestone park (encourage them to tour the old church there -- it's free). Snorkeling is pretty good here too. Last time we dove here they were working with marine biologists on sea turtle research so we had the good fortune of watching them tag, weigh and measure a few sea turtles. The dive masters are great with newbies and safety is a priority with them.

 

6. Aruba - Good diving, but unpredictable dive operators. Don't use Aruba Fly N Dive -- they missed the dive site when we went with them and we ended up swimming quite a ways to the reef. Then the dive master moved so quickly he and the rest of the dive party missed the nurse shark we found (we tend to take our time diving -- what's the hurry anyway?). If you find a good operator this island might move up on the list.

 

Antigua - don't bother trying to dive here. The diving is great but far from shore so a long boat ride. We've tried several dive operators here and they are all sub-standard (insufficient safety equipment, very used rental gear, broken down boats, etc.). Not something a new diver would want to contend with. Instead find a nice beach and snorkel. The water is crystal clear and there are 365 beaches to choose from. We liked Half Moon Bay, but it may be surrounded by hotels now. This is also a nice island to rent a car and beach hop while circling the island.

 

Have a fun trip!

[MoneyGuy]

Thanks, Margie, for the very good summary. I'll print it and put it with my other research materials. Tim, I was considering diving the Rhone. Book I have says it's one of the best wreck dives in the world.

[cal2632]

We have not been diving in Martinique or Isla Margarita, but of the others stops mentioned here's my list from the top down. I think a newly certified diver would be fine in any of these places, but you might want a guide for the shore dives if you don't feel comfortable doing it on your own.

 

Found 2 dive operators on Isla Margarita, but there is no diving on the actual island. They take you to another island to dive. Didn't like the looks of the operations or the amount of time it would take. Also, heard from a friend that the water is very rough for diving much of the time.

 

4. Grenada -- also great diving. We arranged diving with EcoDive but were unimpressed. The boat was overloaded, and one couple with us had set up a reservation via email (with confirmation) but were not on the reservation list. Even without the extra two the boat was still crowded. I'd try a different dive operation.

 

We are using Dive Grenada. They are a short taxi ride from the pier and if you confirm your dive they will hold the boat for you in case it takes longer than expected to disembark.

 

 

6. Aruba - Good diving, but unpredictable dive operators. Don't use Aruba Fly N Dive -- they missed the dive site when we went with them and we ended up swimming quite a ways to the reef. Then the dive master moved so quickly he and the rest of the dive party missed the nurse shark we found (we tend to take our time diving -- what's the hurry anyway?). If you find a good operator this island might move up on the list.

 

Dive with Clive! Clive is the owner/operator of Dive Aruba. This will be our second time with him. He will pick you up just outside the gates to the pier.

 

 

Have a fun trip!

See my interjected comments above.

 

Mona

[bruce-r]

http://www.divearuba.com I've also gone out with Clive. He has a six pack boat and a set weekly schedule. He did pick me up at the cruise dock, so was very convenient.

[MoneyGuy]

Two priorities for me:

 

-Being new I need a bit more attention and supervision. I don't want to be the subject of the next thread on a diving accident: "MoneyGuy dies in Caribbean in diving accident." :eek: :eek:

-I need to know that they'll get me back to the ship in time. I wasn't planning on being a permanent resident of some island. :eek:

 

Wayne

[Hilary]

Thanks, Margie, for the very good summary. I'll print it and put it with my other research materials. Tim, I was considering diving the Rhone. Book I have says it's one of the best wreck dives in the world.

 

The Rhone really is a fabulous wreck dive, with the bow and the propeller being two of the highlights. However, the bow is at 80' of water, so if you're a beginner diver that's quite a bit deeper than most agencies recommend you go (60' being the max normally). Of course there are no scuba police so it's your decision as to what your experience and training levels translate to in a practical sense.

[bruce-r]

Two priorities for me:

 

-Being new I need a bit more attention and supervision. I don't want to be the subject of the next thread on a diving accident: "MoneyGuy dies in Caribbean in diving accident." :eek: :eek:

Then, if you want the most personal attention in Grand Cayman, I'd say go with a guided shore dive with http://www.divetech.com Their turtle farm site is good, and with a private guide, you can't go wrong.

 

For a boat dive, http://www.neptunesdivers.com will take care of you. Casey and Keith are nice people and lead guided dives.

 

divearuba does pickup and return to the ship, and with only six divers, I think you'd be well looked after.

 

The important point here is to give the dive operator an honest assessment of your experience level.

 

-I need to know that they'll get me back to the ship in time. I wasn't planning on being a permanent resident of some island. :eek:

 

Wayne

I wouldn't recommend someone if I thought you'd miss the ship by using them. The situation is that dive trips are almost always a morning thing that end with plenty of time to get back to the ship. It definitely shouldn't be a problem as long as your ship doesn't have a late arrival or a really early departure.

[MaraGirl]

Antigua - don't bother trying to dive here. The diving is great but far from shore so a long boat ride. We've tried several dive operators here and they are all sub-standard (insufficient safety equipment, very used rental gear, broken down boats, etc.). Not something a new diver would want to contend with. Instead find a nice beach and snorkel. The water is crystal clear and there are 365 beaches to choose from. We liked Half Moon Bay, but it may be surrounded by hotels now. This is also a nice island to rent a car and beach hop while circling the island.

 

Have a fun trip!

 

Hmm - sounds like you were diving the north or west side of the island.

If you dive with an op in English Harbour, the boat ride is usually 5 - 10 minutes as most of the sites on that side of the island (south-east) are very close to shore. We had no issues with AntiguaScuba (the dive op that we chose in English Harbour - good boat, good gear and safety equipment ).

Half Moon Bay is still hotel free !

[scubamargie]

Hmm - sounds like you were diving the north or west side of the island.

If you dive with an op in English Harbour, the boat ride is usually 5 - 10 minutes as most of the sites on that side of the island (south-east) are very close to shore. We had no issues with AntiguaScuba (the dive op that we chose in English Harbour - good boat, good gear and safety equipment ).

Half Moon Bay is still hotel free !

 

 

We haven't tried the dive shop in English Harbor because it's so far from the cruise pier. I think the cost of the taxi was prohibitive, but it may have been that the time the ship arrived was too late to catch their morning dive trips. If it ever works out we will definitely try to dive with AntiguaScuba. Thanks for the tip. Glad to hear that Half Moon Bay is still accessible and probably still mostly empty. What a lovely stretch of sand :)