Antigua or St. Lucia? - which has better diving?

[TheOnlyRae]

I have an opportunity to go to either island in May.

I'm not sure which one to choose.

Can anyone provide any insight?

Thank you!

Raelene

 

[drrich2]

Can't compare it directly for you.

I did 2 dives in St. Lucia on a cruise ship stop with Scuba Steves; enjoyed it. (Quick St. Lucia Trip Report). Here's another thread asking about St. Lucia. Also see St. Lucia Vacation in May - Advice Please.

Jon Hall recently posted an Antigua Dive Report.

St. Lucia has gorgeous lush rainforest and mountainous terrain. What else do you want to do besides dive?

Dive Alert Magazine has an online article on St. Lucia diving, called Estale.

Richard.

 

[jonhall]

Thanks Richard for the plug on the Antigua Dive Report. I can't compare them directly either, YET! Maybe some day soon. I did enjoy the diving though as one could probably tell from my report.

I sometimes look to see what other things there are to do on an island if we have the opportunity to choose between places. If you're looking for more than diving, Antigua's sights to see/things to do list isn't extensive, but can give you 3 - 4 days of something to do. Beach, day trips - either around island or to another island, historical sights, and shopping in town (duty free) are probably the main things. We stayed at a nice resort by Jolly Harbour where I had a 5 minute walk to the marina to get on the dive boat. Had a great time.

 

[drrich2]

Since these threads can serve as resources for others considering trips, I dug just a little deeper. Bryan Cunningham wrote up an article in a thread, The lesser known and un-explored diving around Antigua. Of course, that's not the mainstream diving there, and I don't know what you need to do to get to it, but his write-up should be of interest.

Just over a year ago, a thread was posted, Diving in Antigua, discussing the opening of a new operator.

In Sandals resort next June. Going to dive some. Antigua or Grenada? there was some debate about the quality of diving in Antigua. Bryan Cunningham in Post #12 noted:

"To comment on a few of the comments and answer your question. Sandals is a poor choice for divers. I used to run a dive shop in Antigua, moved up to Canada, and am now moving back to Antigua. Diving in Antigua can suk, or be really really good. Depends on who you dive with. Sandals? Diving will be poor. The resort is simply on the wrong side of the island. The best diving is the South West. Anyone who says diving on Antigua suks....Have you done, Sunken Rock? Red Rocks? Rendevoux Bay? If not, you went with the wrong operator. If anyone wants to come to Antigua and get the best of the island, contact me. I spent 6 years here, and of the 32 islands in the Caribbean that I have been to, its in my top 5."

Richard.

P.S.: I realized I'd posted more info. links for St. Lucia, and figured I owed the Antigua scene a little more attention. I have no dog in the St. Lucia vs. Antigua fight. I don't get the sense either is a primary scuba diving destination, but while you're there, there's good diving to be had. Wherever you go, post us a trip report & let us know what you thought.

 

[scubadiver888]

My personal experience was that St. Lucia was better diving than Antigua. I went diving in May and the weather wasn't great (rainy). The rain brought nutrients from the land into the water. Viz was reduced but I'm used to 10 feet. So 50 to 60 foot viz was great. The stuff in the water actually got a lot of marine life activity in St. Lucia.