Diving in Japan as a Large Gaijin

[sbw2131]

My boyfriend is larger than your average Japanese diver: 187cm, 104kg. We're planning to do some diving in Atami this spring, but he wants to ensure that dive shops will have equipment that comfortably fits him.

Would you recommend that he bring his own wetsuit, or is this a non-issue? We're trying to avoid packing a full wetsuit since we're only going to get to dive for a couple days of our trip, but definitely don't want him to have issues finding suitable equipment. Appreciate any advice you have.

Cheers!

 

[grantmac]

I was able to get something which fit for 180cm/95kg.

I'd recommend doing just one day at Atami then going to Mikomoto, it's a much better dive. Or at least was in the late summer/fall.

 

[sbw2131]

I was able to get something which fit for 180cm/95kg.

I'd recommend doing just one day at Atami then going to Mikomoto, it's a much better dive. Or at least was in the late summer/fall.

Thanks for your advice! We've talked to a couple dive shops now who've assured us that this won't be an issue--hoping for the best.

Mikomoto looks awesome; did you see hammerheads while you were there? We probably won't make it down that far unfortunately with the time we have.

At the very least, I'm hoping to see nudibranchs. They're my favorite, and they seem to be abundant around the Izu Peninsula.

 

[grantmac]

I didn't get the big schools but we did see two hammerheads in the distance.
The topography alone was really special with significantly more visibility than Atami. I will plan multiple days in Mikomoto if the opportunity comes my way in the future.