How do you choose your dive centre while travelling?

[Jpalcg]

I want to know if they will let me dive Solo.

Jim, but even having a self-reliant training and wishing to dive solo, how do you go and know that the operation will be there for you if you need it? I became a self-reliant diver to ensure I had the proper training if the s*** hit the fan. But if I'm diving solo I'm even more "picky" with the centre

---------- Post added April 4th, 2014 at 05:23 PM ----------

Hi Mike and Giffenk,

My point about the website exclude many dive centres that are probably great in what they do but have a poor web presence. And there are also many dive ops that have a great site but do not match in safety/quality (like TSandM states)

Although personally I believe that nowadays there's no excuse for not having a website, still I am aware that having one does not go together with being great in the ops. What I tried to express was that if a dive operation puts on a website, and in that website they go beyond just pure marketing and try to relay solid information, then there is a high probability they are in the business for the long run and they are managing their ops professionally.

But this should be matched by a professional reply to my email. As Damselfish very well states "I have a pretty low tolerance for lack of good responses"

Cheers
Joao

 

[Mikko Ilari Laakkonen]

I usually ask if they have DIN-tanks and do they service regs. The ones that do usually have good gear, no rust in tanks and good quality gas.

- Mikko Laakkonen -

I love diving and teaching others to dive.

 

[Jpalcg]

1) Longevity of the operator - a dive shop that has been in constant operation under the same ownership for 20 or 30 years has to have survived for a good reason.

Great to see we have similar processes. Longevity can indeed be a great sign of success and solid ops if the other criteria are matched. Unfortunately I have a recent experience that did not go so great with a long-established centre: but to be honest, and as I refer in a review I made of the centre, I had also ignored the fact that all other criteria were missed...

---------- Post added April 4th, 2014 at 05:37 PM ----------

guess who got three divers for five days and all the money that we spend on diving.

Happened so many times with me It's incredible how many operations ignore simple things that could bring them so much business...

 

[Wingy]

I will add one thing that makes me run a mile mentally is walking along areas like phuket and now ao nang and kuta with people standing outside touting for customers.....I see that and I keep walking. I do not even want to engage in conversation, I have no time for that sort of op.

Jpalcg - I also had a similar experience with a founding dive op in Bangka. I just happened to be there on a very quiet time and got a young guide...have I written off that op? no, others experience posted here and from word of mouth has shown that other people are still happy with that op and are repeat customers.

Your point about dive operators with owners who still dive is important too -Sky at South Sea Divers is an example - another SB diver who had booked with another op and paid for dives chose to do some dives with Sky because of his personality and obvious enjoyment of the underwater world still after all these years.