Cruise Divers

St. Lucia

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 23:43:00 +0000

Our previous St. Lucia report is updated! Click here!

New Pictures

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 22:19:00 +0000

Just a few pictures to tease you with until we can get our most recent trip reports written.

Cruisin' & Divin' Shoes

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Fri, 16 May 2008 13:32:00 +0000

I can't leave home without my flip flops. I don't like things between my toes, so there are tons of flip flops that I won't wear. I found these Tevas about four years ago and was hooked. They are lightweight, sturdy, and easy on all parts of my 48 year old feet. When we aren't cruising we live and work at the lake, so the fact that a pair of flip flops has held up for four years says alot. Mine are black on black for versatility.

Airline Baggage Restrictions

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sun, 04 May 2008 14:29:00 +0000

We are not happy about the new charges American is imposing on checked luggage. Now only the first checked bag per person is free, extras are $25. We'll be okay on short cruises, but for most of our 7-14 day cruises that amounts to an extra $100 per round trip. We usually check two suitcases that are maxed out on dimension and weight, plus a hanging bag, and one smaller suitcase.

I haven't actually packed yet, but here are the things we are going to try:
1. Take less clothing for onboard. We spend most of our time diving anyway, so a few less changes of clothing should help. Gary will leave his sport coat behind and I am opting for dressy black slacks and tops for dinner.

2. Take fewer pairs of shoes. It always seems that we take three or more pairs each-- sneakers for walking, dress shoes, and flip flops. Plus dive booties! Gary thinks he can do without the dress shoes. Without the sport coat, who need them right? I can make it on one pair of dress shoes.

2. Since AA still allows one carry on piece of luggage and one "personal" item like a tote bag or purse we're thinking that we might utilize our mesh dive bags as our "personal" items. We should be able to carry lightweight stuff in those to relieve some of the bulk in the checked bags.

3. Use Ziplock bags to compress our clothes more. We do this already with socks and undies, but I think we could do it with shirts and shorts with good results. I am wondering about using those giant ones for the wetsuits as well.

4. Shop for lighter weight clothing. I already have two of those cotton/spandex blend shirts and love them! They breath, they stretch, they don't wrinkle, and they dry fast. I got them at Academy. If I find another source I'll post it here.

If anybody out there has great packing tips for gear or clothing we'd love to hear from you. Feel free to comment!

Curacao Sites

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 16:46:00 +0000

Scuba Diving magazine did a nice write up on Curacao in their March issue, including a complete list of the best dive sites. Here's their list:
Boat Dives:
Superior Producer
Mushroom Forest
Klein Curacao
Harry's Hole
Saba Wreck & Reef
Shore Dives:
Alice in Wonderland
Nos Cas
Cas Abao
Playa Lagun
Playa Jeremi

They also mentioned The Dive Bus. This operator gets great reviews on the message boards. Find out more at www.the-dive-bus.com

Grand Cayman, Celebrity, NCL, Royal Caribbean

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 20:49:00 +0000

Date dove: Various, last time 2005
Booked through ship? Once, but mostly not
Operator: Unsure of the ship's operator, on our own we use Eden Rock Dive Center
Air Temp: usually in the 80's
Water Temp: usually in the low 80's
Vis: always excellent, 60 ft or better
Depth: varies
Return factor? We like to dive GC, but can't see going there on a vacation because of the prices. The diving is good but not quite good enough to warrant the expense of staying on the island. We know there are those who disagree, but we tend to prefer quieter islands and for way less money that GC we can go to Roatan or the Abacos and enjoy better diving AND a less touristy island.
Information about the island: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Cayman

We haven't been to GC in quite a while, but enjoyed our dives there in the past. We have done the Stingray City snorkel thing and recommend it for everyone at least once. No reason to do it again. We can't find the logs for the dives we did with RCCL's excursion, but recall that they were good dives with only a few other divers on board. All of our other dives here have been with Eden Rock-- both boat dives and shore dives. We like their service and proximity to the cruise tender pier. It's one of the few ports where it's been easy to get in three tanks during the stop. We took ER's two tank morning boat, returned to the shop, stowed our gear in their lockers, had a great (but expensive) hamburger next door, rested on the shore a bit, then did a 57 minute shore dive from the shop out to Devil's Grotto. We walked back to the tender pier and still had time to shower and wash gear before dinner.

We have been to this port and not been able to dive on a December trip. Wind and sea were simply too high. Tender boats were barely making it to shore. It's a huge disappointment, but it can happen. One more reason to always have a plan b. We don't ever recommend leaving home without dive info for every port-- even those where you don't think you will actually dive.

Of course, we never leave home without planning to dive every possible port :), but we do encounter people who only choose to dive one or two. If you end up in a weather situation at the ONE port you plan to dive, wouldn't it be nice to have the info ready for the next stop?

Curacao, Royal Caribbean

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 23:08:00 +0000

Date dove: 12/07
Booked through ship? no
Operator: Hook's Diving http://www.hooksdiving.com/
Air Temp: 85° F
Water Temp: 80° F
Vis: 50-60 ft
Depth: 46 ft
Return factor? For the quality of diving, we'd go here again anyway we could. This was our first time on Curacao, but we felt right at home. It seemed laid back and slow paced, but clean and modern. We saw several resorts and hotels that we would like to try for a land based vacation. Prices for those on the Internet don't look too outrageous and a quick search of airfares from DFW turned up some reasonable prices. We will look for cruise itineraries that include Curacao.
Information about the island: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cura%C3%A7ao

We had originally booked the ship's package, but that was cancelled by the operator due to Norovirus on board the ship. Luckily other divers on board had information about operators to choose from and we got on the ship's phone as we arrived in port to make arrangements for the eleven divers on board that wanted to dive. Two lessons here: always take printouts of your research with you that has operator's phone numbers and locations, AND don't hesitate to ask Guest Relations to use the phone to make your arrangements.

Hooks offered us shore dives, but after we completed that their morning boat had returned and took us out for a one tank dive. We took taxis to the shop, but the Hook's staff offered us a ride back to the port in their van. We thought they ran a fine operation and would not have a problem recommending them.

The first dive was a shore dive at what they called Hook's Hut Reef. It did require a bit of a surface swim, and the directions to the reef were a little vague. When we did drop down to find the reef vis was only around 15 feet and we started to wonder what we'd done wrong. It took a few minutes and a resurface, but we finally found the right spot and the vis improved to around 50 feet. The reef was badly damaged, but fish populations were extremely healthy. We stayed fairly shallow to extend the dive, but the wall dropped away to an unknown depth.

The second dive was on Hook's small boat. They took us down the shore to Blue Bay Resort, where we dove Blue Bay Wall. It was probably the best dive of our 11 night cruise. The water was clear and blue, only a slight current. The wall is an underwater extension of a cliff that forms the resort's cove. Because of a slight wind towards the cliff, the boat dropped us about 40 feet away from the wall. We dropped down and made the easy swim to the wall. Coral here was in pristine condition and fish populations were phenomenal. If you like wall flying, this spot is perfect for that. The topography changes occasionally causing the edge of the wall to disappear from beneath you at numerous points so that you find yourself soaring above the blue water beside the reef. It's an awesome feeling. Again we stayed shallow to maximize bottom time, but deeper diving is definitely possible here if that's your thing. We liked that Hook's guide allowed us to dive on our own or with him. And this was one of the few dives on our trip that we didn't come up with half a tank of air wasted.

The guide told us afterward that he thinks diving in Curacao is second only to Bonaire in the Southern Caribbean. I think we'd agree.

Third Party Shore Excursions

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 20:08:00 +0000

We've always been a little leary of using third party tour planners, but I picked up a tip on Cruisecritic.com today about www.shoretrips.com . I checked out their website and liked what I saw. We may give them a try on our next trip. Anybody out there used their services for a dive?

Also, if you don't normally visit Cruise Critic when you plan your cruise and your cruise dives, you should give it a try next time. The scuba and snorkeling board if filled with up to date info about cruise diving.

Favorite Non-Cruise Diving Location

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 23:39:00 +0000

Though we get asked often about our favorite diving ports, we have to confess and tell people about some really good diving we've done while not a cruise. We want to post it and explain our reasons for enjoying it so much in the hopes that somewhere out there we eventually find a cruise dive that offers similar opportunities. Drum roll please: our favorite non-cruise diving is in the Abaco Islands of the Bahamas.

Reason #1) We had our own boat. By that I mean that we rented a boat. We could go wherever we chose. How did we know where to dive?
Reason #2) We got advice and maps from the dive shop where we rented our tanks. Advice and air was all we got from them. No flack, no safety talks, no delays.

Freedom for the day meant Grandma could go along for the boat ride. She read while we dove.Reason #3) The dive sites were safely situated and easy to find and access with a short boat ride. Reason #4) The coral was lush with giant swim thrus, and the fish populations were healthy.
Reason #5) There were sharks.
Reason #6) We made our own schedule. If we wanted to dive three times in one day we did, if we wanted to have lunch on a nearby beach we did.
Reason #7) No follow me dives.
Reason #8) It was AFFORDABLE. The boat rental was only $100 per day plus fuel; air was $6 per tank.
Reason #9) There were no snorkelers.
Reason #10) There were sharks.

Here's our daughter telling Grandma about the sharks.

We can't afford private charter prices in most cruise ports, but if dive operators offered a more private, more flexible dive plan it would often be snapped up by cruise divers. Everybody on board up for a third dive? Why not? What's the cost to the operator? In most ports, the boat is going to sit empty all afternoon anyway. Want to see where the locals dive instead of where the tourists dive? Want lunch on the beach? No problem mon. We have to pat Stuart Cove's on the back again here in respect to offering choices. Before each dive we've been on with them, they ask everybody on board if there's any particular dive site they want to see. We've only had that on RARE occasions with other operators.

If you make it to the Abacos, tell the sharks we miss them.

ed. note: Where are the pictures of the sharks you ask? This trip was pre-digital camera. We were still using our old Sea & Sea with film. We had the pics developed on the island, showed them to our friends who picked us up at DFW airport, then promptly left them behind in the hotel where we overnighted before the return trip. It was that experience more than any other that convinced us to explore underwater digital options.

Roatan, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 16:10:00 +0000

Date dove: 12/02, 12/03
Booked through ship? Yes on RCCL, No on Celebrity
Operator: Anthony's Key http://www.anthonyskey.com/and Las Rocas Resort http://www.lasrocasresort.com/cruise_ship.html
Air Temp: 90° F
Water Temp: 82° F
Vis: 50 ft.
Return factor? Anytime, anyhow! We've always thought maybe we'd retire on Roatan.
Information about the island: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roat%C3%A1n

It isn't always easy to find itineraries that include Roatan. We've been told because of the port facilities. All of that should change soon with Carnival's announcement of their plans to build a complete new facility. You can read about it here: http://cruisecafe.blogspot.com/2007/03/carnival-plans-to-build-terminal-in.html

Our first trip here was 2002 with RCCL. We booked through the ship, which used Anthony's Key. We were immediately enchanted with the island, the people, and the diving. Anthony's Key Resort looks like a great place to take a vacation, and their dive operation was top notch.

We dove a wall they called Green Outhouse on the first dive and Peter's Place #20 on the second dive. Corals were pristine and marine life abundant. We saw more turtles here than anywhere we've ever dove.

Our second stop at Roatan was with Celebrity in 2003. We opted to book our own dive, which turned out fortuitous since Anthony's Key cancelled the excursion due to lack of participation. The other two divers hooked up with us through the concierge on board and their dive day was salvaged.

We chose Las Rocas for several reasons-- 1) they picked us up at the pier, 2) they allowed non-divers in our group to come along for a beach day for a small charge, 3) since we are in the resort biz ourselves we wanted to see the resort. One of owners, Pasqual, picked us up in a van and provided a colorful tour on our way to the resort. He also told us the story of he and his partners from Italy spending their life savings to move to Honduras to buy the land for the resort.

The diving was as good as before, with only slightly lower vis due to storms the previous week. We dove Hole in the Wall and Black Rock.

Cozumel, Royal Caribbean

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 15:55:00 +0000

Date dove: 2/07
Booked through ship? No
Operator: BlueXTSea http://www.bluextseadiving.com/
Air Temp: 85° F
Water Temp: 77° F
Vis: 75 ft.
Depth: 87 ft. first dive, 54' second dive
Return factor? We like Cozumel enough to go for a land based long weekend, but it isn't our idea of extended vacation territory. As a cruise port it is fantastic. The stops here are usually long enough to dive, return to the ship for a relaxing lunch and still get in some shopping.
Information about the island: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cozumel

We cannot say enough about this dive operator. We don't have complaints about other Cozumel operators; they are almost all efficient, safely operated, and service oriented. But BlueXTSea showed us that they are a cut above the rest. On this particular trip we tendered to the ferry dock. (Main cruise piers still out of commission due to hurricane.) It was an easy walk to the next dock where the dive boat was moored. We had been delayed getting off the ship, but the boat waited the extra 10 minutes for us and one other diver. We made one stop to pick up another diver at a resort, then headed south. The first dive was Columbia and it was awesome! Clear water, multiple swim thrus, and nice coral. Between dives we went to a nearby beach. The dive master had fresh fruit and muffins for us. The second dive was shallower with less vis, but was still a nice dive. We saw turtles, sting rays, and a fabulously lost Green Moray. He swam in open water for 4-5 minutes. We could do nothing but follow along in awe. At one point he approached a pair of queen angels and politely presented himself for a little fin scratching. We got a short clip of him, but it was too impressive a display to be fussing with the camera. Gary did good to capture what he did.

St. Maarten, Royal Caribbean

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 16:20:00 +0000

Date dove: 12/07
Booked through ship? yes
Operator: Scuba Fun, Chris McCandlish http://www.scubafun.com/
Air Temp: 83° F
Water Temp: 83° F
Vis: 40 ft
Depth: 59 ft both dives
Return factor? Would dive here again on a ship, but did not spend enugh time on shore to make a determination about a return stay.
Information about the island: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Martin

Scuba Fun was organized and fun, just like the name says. Everyone we came in contact with was pleasant and smiling. That goes a long way toward the impression we have when the day is done. When a lousy crew takes you to a great dive site, everything you see is colored by how you have been treated onshore and on the boat. We have been taken to less that great dive sites by boat crews that made the trip fun and we left with the impression that we still had a great day diving.

Vis wasn't what we'd call perfect here, but there was plenty to see, including the octopus shown above. This seahorse was from the second dive.
Unfortunatley the current was pretty strong, so our only still picture of him was from a bad angle. The picture above was captured from video. The whole video is on our YouTube page. Dive leader Chris even wrangled up a turtle for us, spotted one of the biggest nurse sharks we've ever seen under a ledge, and helped Gary get this video of a nice-sized sting ray.

When We're Not Diving

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 15:07:00 +0000

What do we do when we aren't diving? We run a lakeside resort in Texas. People dive in our lake, but the vis is pretty bad. Mostly our place is ideal for just getting away from the world. Check it out and come by for a visit if you're ever in the neighborhood. http://www.arrowheadatlakewhitney.com/

Aruba, Royal Caribbean

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 00:42:00 +0000

Date dove: 12/07
Booked through ship? Yes
Operator: Red Sail Sports
Air Temp: 84° F
Water Temp: 78° F
Vis: 30-35 ft.
Depth: 47 ft. first dive, 24 ft. second dive
Return factor? Not any reason to visit here on a land based vacation, but we would not be opposed to a return trip via cruise. We simply would book a dive on our own.
Information about the island:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aruba

We don't often get as much honesty from dive masters about cruise ship divers as we did on this stop. They told us without hesitation that the dives they took us on were because we were cruise ship divers, who most often are not well trained enough for them to want us on their reefs. Other divers on the ship booked their own dives and were taken to the same two locations, so if you book on your own, ask where their trip goes and request the reefs at the south end of the island.
The first dive we did was the Antilla, of course. It was a worthwhile dive, the were good about telling us the history of the wreck and it did not disappoint in terms of twisted metal or marine life. Since navigation was not an issue on such a large and intact wreck, we were allowed to separate from the groups being led by the dive masters, which improved the quality of our dive dramatically. We saw some of the largest parrot fish we had ever seen and there were numerous small eels hiding among the wreckage. We got a full 51 minutes of bottom time here and wished we would have just done the Antilla on both dives. The second dive was on the remains of the Pedernales. Again, the history lesson we got pre-dive was interesting, but this time the story was better than the dive. Few fish, bad vis, ship pieces widely scattered and small. Where's the reef?

Our expreience here puts the ABC Islands in the following dive priority: Bonaire, Curacao, then Aruba.

St. Thomas, Royal Caribbean

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 20:32:00 +0000

Date dove: 12/06
Booked through ship? Yes
Operator: Unknown, this is one of the few times we were so rushed that we did not get complete info from the operator, but the shop was walking distance from the pier.
Air Temp: 80° F
Water Temp: 78° F
Vis: 35-40 ft.
Depth: 42 ft. first dive, 57 ft. second dive
Return factor? We have heard of people who have had good dive experiences diving here, but our dives and dealings with the operator weren't great. We saw nothing to make us want to return to the island to stay, but would consider cruise itineraries with a stop here.
Information about the island: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Thomas%2C_U.S._Virgin_Islands

We were there on Voyager last December, but only for a short day. If your ship visits a non-US port before stopping here, everyone must clear US Customs on board before they start letting passengers off. That further shortened our stop. If we had a longer stay we would have tried an individual booking. As it was, we were boarding the ship as the all aboard horn sounded.

We have serious complaints about the operator. They were unorganized, took snorkelers along, which delayed the gear outfitting in the shop, as well as both dives. The boat was the worst kind of cattle boat. We rented BC's, and in their attempt to appear organized, they had set up gear on the tanks before we got on the boat, but they simply had them sorted by size. As we boarded the boat they said, "Small BC's are here, mediums here, large here." When we attempted to move a tank with a small BC near a larger on so that we could sit together, the crew jumped on us and said "Sit where your size is." When I complained, I was pretty much told to sit down and shut up. Can you say cattle boat?

All of that might have been forgiven if the diving had been worthwhile. The first dive was on a construction rubble pile with practically no marine life. The dive master swam at full speed the entire dive, I guess so that we wouldn't have time to notice the lack of fish and coral. The second dive was done without moving the boat, we just exited the opposite side and dove a wreck. It was at least better than the first dive. There were actually fish, but the dive was short. We were the last ones back aboard but had plenty of air left.

Nassau

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 17:20:00 +0000

Date dove: 12/06
Booked through ship? Not this time. If you book online you will be asked which ship you are arriving on. They cannot book you direct if you are sailing on some ships, due to their agreements with the cruiselines.
Operator: Stuart Cove's
http://www.stuartcove.com/
Air Temp: 80° F
Water Temp: 77° F
Vis: 40-50 ft.
Return factor? Definitely. We have made this stop many times over the years on ships and have talked at length about booking a condo to stay for a week. Stuart Cove's picks up at various locations, so transportation would be easy, and of course, flights to and from the island are relatively cheap.
Information about the island:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nassau%2C_Bahamas

Stuart Cove's knows how to run a dive operation. Their facility is clean, well stocked with quality rental gear, diver supplies, food and beverage, and souvenirs. The staff is always friendly and helpful. They have enough boats to handle divers from three to four ships at the same time with ease. And most important, it is obvious that safety is an important part of the operation. You can print out your paperwork in advance on their website, which also saves time.

But how's the diving you ask? Great! On this trip we dove the Sea Viking and the Will Laurie on the first dive and the Treasure on the second dive. The sharks were with us on the second dive, but both dives offered plenty to see in terms of marine life. Because they feed the sharks, I think there are several locations at which you might be visited by a few, but if you want to really get up close and personal with them opt for the Shark Adventure, which you can book yourself online, rather than booking through your ship.

On this particular trip we too this photo of a Red Lion fish which doesn't belong in the Caribbean. The research we did indicated that populations of them are increasing.

Note: These pics were NOT taken with our new Canon SD600.

Though Nassau doesn't rank highly on most people's WOW diving destinations, we like it because cruises to the Bahamas are cheap and scheduled so that we can squeeze one into our schedule without it being a full blown dive vacation. We also have really enjoyed our dives with Stuart Cove's. Without that operation factored in, we might not be as thrilled with the diving here.

Comments

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 17:32:00 +0000

Feel free to comment on any post on the site, but if you have questions on topics or ports that you don't see anywhere else on the page, post a comment here and we'll try to answer promptly.

Book Recommendations

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 23:45:00 +0000

To help with identification of the things we've seen on our dives we really love two books by Paul Humann and Ned Deloach: Reef Fish Identification Florida Caribbean Bahamas and Reef Creature Identification. The only drawback we can find is that even the paperback volumes are so packed with information that they weigh too much for us to fly with them. We discovered though, that there is an interractive DVD version, which we have on order. Since we always travel with our laptop, that should work perfectly for us. We'll keep you posted, but feel confident that the quality of the books will carry over to the DVD.

We don't own the books on corals or the Pacific, but maybe they'll be on next year's Christmas list. Here's the link to the DVD/CD-ROM.

The Return Factor

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 16:35:00 +0000

You will notice in our reviews that we comment on "the return factor." At every location we dive we ask ourselves, "Would we come here again?" We look at whether we would return either on a cruise or, more importantly, for an extended stay. Non-diving factors like accommodations, availability of food, the culture of the island, expense, and transportation all weigh into the extended stay question. As much as we like to cruise, we have found several locations worth returning to for extended stays. Those are the real jewels of our treasure hunt for perfect dive sites and we are happy to share them with you here.

Shore Excursion or Do It Yourself?

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 02:03:00 +0000

There is really not a quick answer to that question. Several factors must go into making the decision for each port in which you plan to dive. The number one concern is schedule. If you book a boat dive on your own, it is crucial to coordinate the timing of the dive with both the arrival and departure of the ship. This can be a daunting task in some ports, but not too difficult in others.

The second most important thing to consider is transportation to the dive location. Will the dive operator pick you up at the pier? Is it walking distance? Can you get a taxi BOTH ways? We recently had fellow divers on a ship tell us that they had opted to book their own dive in Barbados, but the dive operator never arrived to pick them up, and the taxi cabs would not take them to the dive shop. Having seen the chaos on the pier while we made our way to the ship's shore excursion transportation, it was easy for us to understand how their plan went awry.
We rarely opt to book our own dive in unfamiliar ports. It helps to have been there, seen the pier facilities, and gotten the lay of the land.

We have seen a lot of negative stuff on message boards about the quality of dives when booked through the ship. Here's what we've discovered: crowded dive boats are usually only a problem in crowded ports. Crowded ports, and thus crowded dive boats, happen when multiple ships will be in port together, when you are sailing on a mega ship, or when your particular cruise is popular with a young crowd.

Ports that are always crowded:
Cozumel, Key West, Grand Cayman, Nassau

That doesn't mean that we've always had bad dives when booking through the ship in these ports, but you should know that the possibility exists.

Cruises not popular with a young crowd:
cruises that are 10 days or longer, cruises on small ships, cruises out of unusual ports, cruises during the school year.
Young crowds increase the potential number of divers on your ship, thus making it more likely that you will all end up on a cattle boat for your dive. Sail on a ship full of old geezers and the number of divers drops dramatically. Add a young passenger list to a popular port and you are almost guaranteed a sub-standard dive experience.

We've also encountered what we call "cruise divers are bad divers syndrome." We were actually told by a dive master in Aruba that they don't take the cruise ship divers to their good reefs. We've been on bad diver excursions in St. Thomas, Cozumel, and Barbados, all places where we know there is better diving to be found.

All of this boils down to one thing: research, research, research. Talk to your local dive shops, email dive shops in the ports you will visit, and read message boards.

What Gear Do We Take?

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 15:52:00 +0000

Flight restrictions on weight and dimensions of luggage have forced many cruise divers to choose between traveling with scuba gear or traveling with extra clothing. We choose gear. Here's what we cruise with for diving:
Regs
Fins
Masks
Booties
Wet suits
Defogger
Spare mask & fin straps
Snorkels
Two 4D flash lights
Orange inflatable safety buoy
Two nylon & mesh gear back packs
Camera & housing
Two swim suits each
Flip flops
Two fleece lined wind breakers
Sun screen
Sun glasses
Travel hair brush

You can see that most of the list is comfort oriented. We see no reason to endure discomfort when we dive, thus the wetsuits, fins with booties, and wind breakers. If temperatures require, I also take a fleece lined dive skin to add on the second dive. We travel with our own regs partly for comfort and partly for safety. We have custom fitted mouth pieces for comfort and every time we dive with an unknown operator we are already putting our lives in their hands on so many levels, so using our own regs adds one layer of safety to the dive.

We rent BC's, weights, belts, and tanks.

It seems like quite a lot to travel with, but as an example, we just completed a 14 day cruise using only two large rolling suitcases, two hanging bags, and a carry-on item each- all within the weight restrictions. And I actually commented during the trip that I had packed too much--I took shoes that I did not need, one dress that never left the hanger, and too many pairs of shorts.

If all of that is more than you want to take, you could pair it down to the mask, snorkel, & fins. The advantage to that is having the ability to find your own beach and snorkel spot in non-diving ports, without having to pay rental fees. We recently enjoyed a wonderful afternoon of snorkeling on St. Kitts for only the price of a cab ride and rental of a pair of beach chairs.

St. Lucia, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 18:08:00 +0000

Date dove: 12/08, 12/07
Booked through ship? once with ship, once independant
Operators used: Scuba St. Lucia at Anse Chastanet Resort, Frogs Diving
http://www.scubastlucia.com/default.html
http://www.ansechastanet.com/default2.html
Other operators with good reviews: http://www.divefairhelen.com/
Air Temp: 84° F
Water Temp: 80° F
Vis: 30-60 ft.
Return factor? Not likely except on another cruise. Travel to St. Lucia is pricey, as is this resort. Having said that, this island will be at the top of our list of desired ports when we shop for itineraries on future cruises in the southern Craibbean.
Information about the island: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Lucia
2008: We booked our dives through Frogs Diving http://www.frogsdiving.com/ this year. The service provided was good. They picked us up at the ship in their 12 person boat slightly later than expected, then headed out of the port. Seas were rough so the trip was not only interesting, but shorter than expected. Conditions prevented us from getting all the way to the Pitons. We dove a wreck and a reef. Visability was limited slightly and there was a fairly strong current on both dives. Neither dive was up to the experience we had in 2007, but based on our research the less than perfect dives were the exception to the norm. We would still include St. Lucia in any cruise diving plan of the Southern Caribbean.

2007: Our first impression when the ship docked in Castries was that of just another jumbled, dirty town spoiling a lush Caribbean island. We sometimes have to remind ourselves that ships often put in at converted freight facilities, but the trash littering the shores of this harbor was a real disappointment.

Our dive boat picked us up a little way from the cruise pier and we set out on a 30 minute boat ride. We passed incredible scenery, and our impression of the island slowly evolved. The mountains here are volcanic (as I am sure all of these islands are). Sheer 200 ft. cliffs of black, red, and grey basalt stand at the water’s edge, sometimes covered in lush vegetation, sometimes not. In the occasional gaps between cliffs there are black sand beaches, tiny resorts, and ragged fishing villages. The mountains are sometimes littered with stilted houses, sometimes completely covered with rainforest. It rained off an on here all day, just light passing showers for the most part where we were, but up high in the mountains it looked heavy.

Our dive guide for the day was named Keith (we think), but he said we could call him Bond, James Bond. He says he’s the black one. The first dive was from the beach at the Anse Chastanet resort and was pleasant, but too short. It seemed that too much time was devoted to gearing up and making sure everyone was comfortable. James Bond even had the entire group clear masks and retrieve regs underwater before we headed out. Following the shore dive, we got back on the boat for a 10 minute ride to the base of two peaks jutting 2,300 and 2,600 feet straight up from the water. The color of the sea was rich blue and clear. We saw HUGE turtles, an octopus, and coral so abundant and colorful that it created sensory overload. I had a shark cleaning fish try to attach himself to my fins.

Following the second dive we had lunch at the resort's restaurant, where the food was adequate, but not spectacular. Others in our group had done this cruise dive before and said that their lunch was done for them on a secluded beach away from the main resort. We asked about that and were told that they do that when the group consists of twelve or more.

Overall we would rate this dive as one of the best cruise dives we've ever done, primarily because of the pristine condition of the reef habitat and the overall experience of the boat ride and the resort setting.

Photos and Video On the Site

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 17:13:00 +0000

Unless stated otherwise, the photos on this website are taken by Gary with a Cannon SD600 in an underwater housing. The photos may not be copied or used without permission. Please feel free to share the photos by sharing the site.

Let's talk about the camera. We shopped extensively for a digital camera for our diving before we bought the Canon. We've had it for just about one year and have been very pleased with all aspects of the camera and its housing. The quality of the photos and the ease of use underwater are phenominal. Battery life is more than enough for two dives, plus accompanying scenic shots before and after the dives. We use a 2GB SD card, which thus far has also been adequate for a day's worth of exploring. The camera comes with a battery charger, USB connector for quick downloads to the computer, and an RCA cable for viewing your pics on TV.

We've used the camera on dry land for business and personal pictures almost daily and can't find any flaws with it. We've owned digital cameras from Kodak and Casio and find the Cannon far superior to either.

Cannon has several newer models in the SD line, most have matching housings.

Welcome

noreply@blogger.com (Melinda Crow) — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 16:33:00 +0000

Welcome to Cruise Divers. If you found this page, we hope it's because you share a love of the sea with us. Maybe you love to cruise and just dive occasionally, or maybe you love to dive and cruising is your preferred way to get to some of the world's premier dive locations. Either way, we hope that you will find useful and entertaining information here. We'd also love to have you leave behind your comments about places you've been, photos you've taken, ships you've sailed. The idea behind this blog is to work toward a better diving experience while cruising. Welcome aboard; we're glad you're here!