DIR Scuba Vacation Gear

[OtherHalf]

My wife recently asked me to write up a scuba post for the gear we take on vacation, and after much consideration I decided to ask for input from the experts. Her blog is a hobby and not profit generating so hopefully posting isn't against forum rules. Any feedback or criticism is appreciated. I had a hard time finding DIR/Hogarthian scuba gear specifically for vacation so hopefully some more experienced diver have some feedback for me.

This is what I came up with:

Travel Scuba Gear: How We Get Down on Vacation | the passage

Mods, if I'm breaking forum rules please let me know and I'll be happy to remove the post.

 

[stuartv]

When I fly to dive in warm water, I pack my carry-on suitcase with my SS BP and wing, 3/2 full wetsuit, mask, computer, and regulators (complete sets for 2 people). And I can actually fit a bit more in that bag and still be compliant with carry-on size requirements. The only dive gear I put in a checked bag are my fins and miscellaneous stuff I don't NEED.

Having the SS BP in my carry-on means I've never had a concern about the weight of it. I have read that there are some airlines that weigh carry-ons, but none of the ones I have ever flown did. As long as the size is okay, they have not cared.

Besides, even with the extra 5 #s of SS (vs AL) in my carry-on bag, the bag itself is small enough that it's still not that heavy. My wetsuit, regs, etc. don't weigh THAT much.

I'm surprised you're concerned about weight and carrying SP Jet fins. I have Hollis F1 fins, which are similarly heavy and negatively buoyant. For warm water diving, I take other fins (Atomic Blades) which are both lighter and neutral buoyancy. Those go in my checked bag, so the weight savings is definitely appreciated there.

 

[dbulmer]

My wife recently asked me to write up a scuba post for the gear we take on vacation, and after much consideration I decided to ask for input from the experts. Her blog is a hobby and not profit generating so hopefully posting isn't against forum rules. Any feedback or criticism is appreciated. I had a hard time finding DIR/Hogarthian scuba gear specifically for vacation so hopefully some more experienced diver have some feedback for me.

This is what I came up with:

Travel Scuba Gear: How We Get Down on Vacation | the passage

Mods, if I'm breaking forum rules please let me know and I'll be happy to remove the post.

Add a spare bc inflator to your spares kit just in case A spare double ender, a little bungie/cave line, toilet paper, sea sickness tablets can come in handy too. I will put a spare double ender on my harness bu the rest go into a drybag.

I don't bother with a can light in holiday resorts either as I can't be bothered to shlep it around with me - I use a few SL4 lights for night dives.

Compass - well abroad most of the dives I have done were guided so again I don't bother personally - anyway I get the giggles when I get lost

I always wear a full wetsuit (depending on water temperature) - One of life's joys is warming the suit with excess fluid - the coolaid has to go somewhere!

I used to leave my Jets at home - now I bring them with me as I have got so used to using them that anything else seems weird.

I use a Vyper at home and bring this with me along with a Suunto bottom timer as a backup.
My DSMB goes into a pocket on my harness (A Diverite pocket modded to fit the harness).

Other than that I'm pretty similar to you.

 

[Centrals]

Divers do get separated from the dive-guide and lost on vacation.
It is never overkill to carry a large smb on vacation or anywhere. Size does matter.
Some would argue that electronic signalling device is a must eg. Nautilus lifeline.

 

[OtherHalf]

Add a spare bc inflator to your spares kit just in case A spare double ender, a little bungie/cave line, toilet paper, sea sickness tablets can come in handy too. I will put a spare double ender on my harness bu the rest go into a drybag.

I don't bother with a can light in holiday resorts either as I can't be bothered to shlep it around with me - I use a few SL4 lights for night dives.

Compass - well abroad most of the dives I have done were guided so again I don't bother personally - anyway I get the giggles when I get lost

I always wear a full wetsuit (depending on water temperature) - One of life's joys is warming the suit with excess fluid - the coolaid has to go somewhere!

I used to leave my Jets at home - now I bring them with me as I have got so used to using them that anything else seems weird.

I use a Vyper at home and bring this with me along with a Suunto bottom timer as a backup.
My DSMB goes into a pocket on my harness (A Diverite pocket modded to fit the harness).

Other than that I'm pretty similar to you.

Couldn't agree more with the sea-sickness medicine. I have a well-stocked first aid kit that we travel with. It covers everything from over-the-counter medicine (to include decongestants and dramamine) to trauma dressings. We use the same first aid kit for everything for vacation travel to backcountry hiking. I'm sure someday I'll do a post on my first aid kit but the net seemed pretty saturated with first-aid kit lists and there was a strange lack of scuba travel gear for tech-minded divers.

Divers do get separated from the dive-guide and lost on vacation.
It is never overkill to carry a large smb on vacation or anywhere. Size does matter.
Some would argue that electronic signalling device is a must eg. Nautilus lifeline.

I hadn't thought of a nautilus lifeline. I'll have to look more into that.

 

[rivers]

Mine looks pretty much the same, but it does depend on what I'm planning on doing for diving. I have taken every bit of dive gear I own sans cylinders and my 300 gram undersuit as I was planning on a mix of single tank and twinset diving. My wife wasn't too pleased when I showed up to her ship with all of my dive kit. It barely fit in her cabin, whoops.
As crazy as this sounds, I take my drysuit with just a light base layer as well. Mainly because my fins are too big unless I'm wearing my drysuit, and I don't do enough single tank warm water diving to warrant buying another set of fins (i think i've done 4x single tank warm water dives in the past 5 years).
Everything besides my drysuit and fins (turtle fins) goes into my hand luggage. This includes 2xdsmbs, steel backplate, twinset wing, single tank wing, wetnotes, 2xmasks, 3xtorches (back-ups and can light), twinset regs, stage regs, suit inflate regs, bottom timer, compass (not that i ever use it), and 2xmasks. The regs normally get a second look.
I take a set of tools with me as well, and some spares. If I'm doing a mix of single and twinset diving, I have to re-arrange my regs.

 

[Nemrod]

Interesting, I can get all of my gear and my wife's in a similar backpack. I like my Aeris Accel fins and her little Mares Avanti, much lighter than Jetfins and just as powerful. We use braided hoses and she has a Zuma BC and I use an Oxy 18 on a vdh aluminum mini-plate, together they hardly weigh as much as a steel plate and her Zuma in particular rolls up not much bigger than a T shirt.

More generally my gear and cloths go in one roller and her's in another and I carry my camera aboard and she carries a laptop and other general items. But, if it were not for the camera we could do full carry on. But the camera uses up one of the carryon allowances.

N

 

[MaxBottomtime]

No one else has mentioned it, but if you are concerned about having DIR compliant gear for travel, why are your wife's gauges in a console?

 

[Tracy]

My "personal item" looks a lot like a bpw.
I wear the whole thing right through security and onto the plane. I am sitting in the airport with it right now.

Sent from my Dive Rite Bridge II

---------- Post added December 20th, 2015 at 03:33 PM ----------

F1s conveniently strap into the cam bands.

Sent from my Dive Rite Bridge II

 

[bradells]

My 'travel' rig is the same as my 'local' rig, with 4 differences ...

1) Different Exposure Protection. I used to bring my older Whites drysuit to the tropics, my newer DUI one, not so much (too bulky to fit everything into my 1 bag**). I generally bring a 3/2 full length, or dive in swim trunks in warm water. Otherwise the drysuit comes out with a base layer and another checked bag. Also X-Shorts if the exposure protection doesn't have pockets.

2) Fins. When diving with a wetsuit/swim trunks, I don't use my Hollis F1's, I have a set of Mares Super Channels that I like (and don't have to constantly skull my feet as the F1's are too negative for me).

3) Snorkel. I sometimes bring one down with me .... really depends where I'm going though.

4) Canister Light. If I'm filming, it doesn't come with me, if I'm just diving, it comes along, and usually LED opposed to the HID. I do cary a small goodman handle for my backup lights if I so choose.


Otherwise, it's the same gear.

SS Backplate*, Singles Wing, backup light(s), video rig, masks, smb, reel, etc.

*I took my AL plate this last trip, dealing with lead was more of a hassle than the few lbs saved in travel weight (I was still under the 50lb weight both ways, even with a still damp wetsuit/wing). If I was dependent on many puddle jumper flights (ie, not big commercial flights) and not having to worry about flying with the extra lead, the AL plate would be brought.

Carry on bag has the camera rig/regs/batteries and clothes for a week. Personal carry on has clothes for another week(if needed)/'fly home' clothes and computer/charging bits. Checked bag has the rest of my gear (**and space for post trip refreshments/souveniers).

It's not really that different for the core of a 'DIR' rig

BRad