......We love diving and had a blast on the Big Island last February....we did all of our dives there with Jack's Dive Locker (LOVED JACKS!!!) I wish that I would have gotten my AOW then, as I certainly could have with the dives we did.
Bummer that Feb will be crowded.....but it will be a great month to be AWAY from the Minnesota weather.
Do you recommend that we drive up west and dive from there one day??? And what do you mostly recommend for must see sites???
I was (am) pretty cheap and back in '03 or '04 when I did 2 November weekends of Kona diving, I went with Big Island Divers due to lower price / better kama'aina discount. I was not unhappy with my trip with them.
The next trip I booked with them was a Sunday Advanced Long Range 3-Tank charter, and I was not informed that the trip did not have enough booked customers to run until I arrived at the shop at check in time for the trip. They had enough for a normal 2-tank and kind of expected me to go on that.
I was pretty peeved because Jack's more expensive 3-tank
did go. I called Jack's and got on the imminent 2-tank. I immediately felt at home with Jack's. Also did that night's Manta Dive, which I had also originally booked with BID. I have seriously considered moving to Kona and trying to work for Jack's!
Only time's I've seen Humpback's under water have been Feb/Mar. Statistics I hear claim more Manta's in the Winter. Land and water Temps are ~10 degrees cooler so winds are "typically" calmer than in Summer (There are occasional storms that can not be predicted more than 2-ish weeks out).
For boat diving, these 5 "dives/trips" are always Hawaii's top 5. This list is my ranking; similar to my above operator comments, different divers will almost rank them in every other possible way.
1. Ni'ihau / Lehua Rock (drift - Hawaiian monk seals?)
2. Mokuho’oniki Rock (drift - schooling hammerheads?)
3. Kona Night Manta (moored & planted)
4. Lanai's Cathedrals (Moored)
5. Molokini; Reef's End (drift is usually best), Shark Condo's (drift), Backside (drift)
Even if we make the category just Hawaii diving (shore/boat/aquarium), #6, 7 & 8/9 could also easily be Maui Dives (and just as easily, 6, 7, 8/9 could be Kona dives).
6. Black Rock Night Dive (shore, often a drift)
7. Maui Ocean Center Tiger Shark Dive (aquarium)
8/9. 5-Caves/5-Graves/Makena Landing/Turtle Town (shore & boat / day & night)
I think you should seriously consider at least one day of Lanai diving. I am biased. I really think most visiting "divers" should make at least 2 trips to Lanai (hopefully a different Cathedral each trip) at least 2 trips to Molokini (hopefully with 5-Caves as one second dive) and the Black Rock night dive.
There are very few Maui trips where the operator will lock down a specific site as 100% guaranteed. I have had incredible, fantastic dives at nearly every Maui / Lanai dive site. You chose the best operator you can and then pretty much trust them to show you the best dives they can that day. You book both trips to Molokini with the same operator and then they are pretty beholden to not do the same sites both trips. Same for Lanai. All of us who work here know we will have a better chance at a big tip if we put on a great trip.