florida

[KathyV]

1800$ for 3 days//// in maldives its 900$ for 7 days

saritis1122, you will be visiting San Diego and Fort Lauderdale, those are beautiful but expensive places in the US. You are NOT going to the Maldives. It is like you expect London or Paris or New York to be as cheap as the Maldives, they are NOT cheap places. They are beautiful and very nice but they are expensive and Fort Lauderdale and San Diego are expensive too.

But you will have a house in Fort Lauderdale, and a car, and there is very good diving in South Florida. You DO NOT need a liveaboard and you DO NOT have to go wreck diving. You can easily drive to find good reef diving on day boats.

Attention Scuba Forum Divers: the OP has limited English and a max budget of $1000 each for 2 divers ($2000 total for food, lodging, and diving) but she will be living in Fort Lauderdale for 3 weeks this summer and will have a car and wants to do some diving during that time. She has about 40 dives so far. She will be traveling with a 13 year old daughter who likes to snorkel.

The OP does NOT like wrecks, she likes reefs and lots of animal life. Could someone please give her suggestions and links to dive operators/sites? I refuse to believe that someone with a house and a car and living in Fort Lauderdale during the summer will not be able to find good diving opportunities just because of a language barrier and lack of familiarity with the area! Thank you!

 

[drrich2]

When I dove with Rainbow Reef in 2013, a 10 trip, 20 dive package was $600. $640 something with tax. Add tips. At a bit over $30/dive average, 4 dives/day so you don't have to pay to stay down there long, that's about as cheap as boat diving gets. People can do 2 reef trips instead of a deep wreck + a reef trip, from what I understand.

Blue Heron Bridge offers shore diving, and has a strong reputation for creatures that can be hard to find elsewhere. Lauderdale by the Sea entails a substantial swim out, from what I've read, and you may need to load the parking meter up but I would suspect that would be a low cost option.

Otherwise, I'm thinking price boat diving out of Pompano Beach perhaps?

Richard.

 

[sportxlh]

I guess I stand corrected on my comment rearding prices of live-aboards. $660 is cheap! But I still really like MV Spree's Dry Tortuga trips

Regarding Kathy's question, there is very good diving in south Florida including close to Ft Lauderdale. South Florida Dive Headquarters in Pompano does a lot of shallow reef dives. Might be a good option for new divers. Pompano is minutes from Ft Lauderdale.

If the OP is really on a budget, there is shore diving in Lauderdale by the Sea. If a guide is desired, one can probably be hired through Force-E scuba or Gold Coast scuba. These two shops can also book trips on many of the local dive boats too.

As drrich2 pointed out, Rainbow Reef in the Keys does a lot of shallow dives in the Keys, and includes guides. Key Largo is a 2-2.5 hour drive from Ft Lauderdale.

 

[Jordan23]

Shearwater looks to be $660 for 3 days...which works out to a better deal than a decent hotel plus rental car, and with a day boat...Shearwater is actually a way better deal...But, you do have to like to dive

i like a lot to dive but im.mot so expirience ...need guidence near me most of the time. does it goes to all places like liveboard?

 

[gcarter]

i like a lot to dive but im.mot so expirience ...need guidence near me most of the time. does it goes to all places like liveboard?

I will second Rainbow Reef as a good option for you then. Their prices include a guide if you choose, and they are an excellent operation.

 

[Wookie]

Shearwater looks to be $660 for 3 days...which works out to a better deal than a decent hotel plus rental car, and with a day boat...Shearwater is actually a way better deal...But, you do have to like to dive

I guess I stand corrected on my comment rearding prices of live-aboards. $660 is cheap! But I still really like MV Spree's Dry Tortuga trips.

I'm not sure where Dan's $660 figure comes from, Shear Waters website shows $295 per day of diving, just about what Spree, Ultimate Getaway, Playmate, and Kate charge. Yes, I have nothing but tech and tech lite in July, completely inappropriate for the OP, otherwise I'd have invited her to the Tortugas for a long weekend.

What the OP doesn't get is that she can go to the Maldives for a week for a thousand bucks, but the crew is paid far less than an American crew, because they are warm bodies, not trained professionals answerable to a higher power in the event of an accident, some of the less expensive Maldives safari boats aren't maintained, don't have safe breathing air, engines aren't reliable, etc. Yes, Maldives Aggressor, carpe vita explorer, and Orion and others are safe and staffed by professionals, but they cost far more than a thousand a week.

 

[kwinter]

Attention Scuba Forum Divers: the OP has limited English and a max budget of $1000 each for 2 divers ($2000 total for food, lodging, and diving) but she will be living in Fort Lauderdale for 3 weeks this summer and will have a car and wants to do some diving during that time. She has about 40 dives so far. She will be traveling with a 13 year old daughter who likes to snorkel.

The OP does NOT like wrecks, she likes reefs and lots of animal life. Could someone please give her suggestions and links to dive operators/sites? I refuse to believe that someone with a house and a car and living in Fort Lauderdale during the summer will not be able to find good diving opportunities just because of a language barrier and lack of familiarity with the area! Thank you!

I am also frustrated by people that post inappropriate answers to a question. She's not going to dive Key Largo unless you include the cost of lodging. But in this case, the question itself does not make sense. If she is already paying for an apartment and a car, looking for a live aboard option doesn't really make sense. She could probably ferry over to the Bahamas and do a Blackbeard cruise within her budget, but day boats, shore dives and BHB make a lot more sense to me. Lantana, Pompano, even down to Miami all have options for reef diving.


iPhone. iTypo. iApologize.

 

[uncfnp]

I am also frustrated by people that post inappropriate answers to a question. She's not going to dive Key Largo unless you include the cost of lodging. But in this case, the question itself does not make sense. If she is already paying for an apartment and a car, looking for a live aboard option doesn't really make sense. She could probably ferry over to the Bahamas and do a Blackbeard cruise within her budget, but day boats, shore dives and BHB make a lot more sense to me. Lantana, Pompano, even down to Miami all have options for reef diving.


iPhone. iTypo. iApologize.

Prehaps she is requesting live aboard options because that is what she has experience with and doesn't realize that there are other options to dive Florida?

 

[sportxlh]

Now kwinter, you're being a bit disingenuous. First of all, the OP asked about live-aboards, so folks gave answers regarding Florida operators. Second, Key Largo is good choice from Fort Lauderdale since the OP has a car. I've done day trips to Key Largo from Jupiter and that is an hour further away. When I first got back into diving in 2008, I did that day trip several times since the diving is so easy. Given her lack of experience plus the fact her child wants to snorkel, the Key Largo suggestions such as Rainbow Reef are reasonable and appropriate. All these posters were just trying to help given the somewhat unique set of circumstances and oddly phrased questions posed by the OP.

Shallow reefs in Pompano might still be the best choice. South Florida Dive HQ has pretty good descriptions of dive sites on their website. But the OP will need to be comfortable dragging a dive flag or will need to hire a guide.

 

[Jordan23]

I am also frustrated by people that post inappropriate answers to a question. She's not going to dive Key Largo unless you include the cost of lodging. But in this case, the question itself does not make sense. If she is already paying for an apartment and a car, looking for a live aboard option doesn't really make sense. She could probably ferry over to the Bahamas and do a Blackbeard cruise within her budget, but day boats, shore dives and BHB make a lot more sense to me. Lantana, Pompano, even down to Miami all have options for reef diving.


iPhone. iTypo. iApologize.

thanks u a lot i read and learn from all of you. actually im not paying for an apartment and a car, couse we are exchanging our home in tel aviv for a home and a car there..for one month

i wrote to rainbow as well
now their price are 210$ for 6 dives so for 600$ you get 18 dives,, and diveguidense for free for me.. is great...