Dive advice for 16yo newly certified diver

[plevi23]

My 16 year old son earned his open water certification this summer and he already has plans to get his advance open water certification later this summer. We are considering booking a cruise on the Carnival Glory next summer and he would like to be able to dive on the trip. He is the only family member that dives. I am concerned about trying to book him on private dive excursions, even though I am sure they are superior to the ship's excursions, since our time in port seems short to me. My question is do those of you that have taken the ship's dive trips feel it would be a safe and enjoyable experience for him if this is the only way we can set it upfor him to be able to dive? How many people are usually on the ship's excursion? Thanks in advance for your help.

[bruce-r]

well, the number of divers on the cruise excursions can vary widely depending on lots of factors, but in general, expect larger boats with around 12 divers who are divided into 2 groups with separate DM's.

 

If one of the stops on your cruise is Cozumel, then I still think he should go with a private, small boat operator. He'll have a much better dive experience.

 

In Grand Cayman, I suggest a guided shore dive at the Turtle farm dive site with the nearby dive operator http://www.divetech.com Non-divers can go along and visit the turtle farm for a turtle burger or go snorkeling while your son does his dive. A personally guided dive would be quite a bit better than the ship's excursion. If you don't want to take a taxi Divetech, then a second shore dive site that you can walk to in Georgetown is Eden Rock. There are 2 dive shops that service this site; http://abanksdivers.com.ky/ and http://www.edenrockdive.com. Non-divers can also snorkel there for free.

 

A final word about diving and times in port. For the most part (at least in Cozumel), dive trips that leave around 8:00 am return to the dock around 1:00 pm so there should be plenty of time for him to make it back to the ship before departure. That allows for a 1 1/2 hour surface interval between dives at one of the beach clubs.

[Scubachick84]

Hello, I thought I might offer some input on this. I was certified with my adv. open water at 15 and was and still am the only diver in my family, I'm now 22. When I was younger my parents always felt better about booking me with the cruise and I never had a bad experience this way.

 

Now that I'm older they don't mind me hooking up with other divers on the cruise and going with another operator with them. The difference is, as Bruce mentioned, smaller groups. Also these operators will be more likely to take you to different sites that aren't typically overrun with divers.

 

I've done both, I really don't mind the cruise tours myself. I've always been treated really well, a lot of complaints and they could lose their contract with the cruise line. Other operators will be generally always be aware of the time limits imposed on cruise passengers so it shouldn't be a major worry.

 

I feel like the deciding factor should be your (and his) comfort level going off on his own. Good luck and have a good cruise!