Giulietta
Guest
Aloha everyone!
I am new to this site here. This is going to be my very first review.
My husband and I went to Maui last month. Although it was our 2nd time in Maui , it was our first time as scuba divers. Because there is so much to do and see in Maui (in so little time), it wasnt strictly a dive vacation. Yet, we still managed to do 3 days of diving with Shaka Divers. This was definitely the highlight of our trip.
First, about the actual dives we did in Maui. We dove twice each at 5 Graves, Ulua Beach, and White Rock and all were shore dives (Doug, the owner of Shaka diver, does only shore dives). Of these three sites, White Rock was my favorite. Corals at White Rock were just gorgeous. Doug found a bright yellow baby frog fish there. I was mesmerized when I saw that little thing open his mouth and show those tiny teeth. Ulua Beach was nice, too. I think it was the easiest place to dive. 5 Graves had lots of turtles. We saw one turtle lying on coral there and I think it was the first time we have ever seen it like that. We usually see turtles sitting on sandy bottom or hiding in a cave or under a big rock if not swimming. We also saw a turtle that sitting with his front flippers tucked in under his chest, like my cat does when she sleeps. Turtles were everywhere that it made me real happy. I love green sea turtles of Hawaii. They are the cutest looking turtles in the world. I never get tired of watching them.
While many were familiar to us, such as Humuhumu (my favorite fish), moray eels, frog fish, colorful nudibranchs, big and small puffer fish, and pretty tropical fish and corals, there were quite a few things that were new to us. My husband was very excited about holding an octopus. We heard whales a couple of times. That was exciting. We saw a small fish that was sitting on the sandy bottom then suddenly disappeared into the sand! There was a big, maybe 1 foot long, shell, and it had beautiful pattern when it was flipped. Round sea urchins that have shells and rocks stuck on them like a magnet (I forgot to ask how that happens). And a sponge living on top of a crab. They find each other and live together. That remined me of Sponge Bob's Bikini Bottom. There is the whole another world down there.
Second point Id like to make is on shore dive.
Before this trip, we had logged 38, 39 dives each and all the dives, except one, were boat dives. Only shore dive we had done was when we were getting certified in Oahu and it was horrendous experience (to me). It was at Electric beach. Surf was high and surge was strong. I was tossed around all over when coming out and I thought I was going to die, really. Besides, walking to/from the beach from the parking felt like eternity carrying all that gear. After that I thought I was done with shore dive forever. This shore dives we did in Maui , however, changed my mind completely.
The best thing about shore dive to me is that I get to spend a lot more time under the water than boat dive because its a shallow dive. Every dive we did in Maui was 50 plus minutes average and there was no safety stop to make. More bottom time means more time to explore and see stuff. I have plenty of time to observe things in detail or hang out with turtles. Although I still like boat dive, it is over too quickly. A wreck dive like YO-256 in Oahu is one of my favorites, but it is quite deep that bottom time is only 20~30 minutes depending on air consumption.
Other nice things about shore dive I never thougth of are: no need to get up in 4:30,
5 o'clock in the morning to get ready, no worry about getting sea sick, and more flexible in schedule wise. My husband said that he felt less stressful about air consumption because if you run out of air, you just go up the surface and swim to the shore. Maybe.
Conditions of those sites we dove in Maui were not like Electric Beach on that particular day, but it wasnt perfect either (to me). There was surf every day. Surge was sometimes strong that I got nauseous and dizzy. Walking to beaches with carrying (more like dragging, in my case) gear still seemed long. Yet, after 6 shore dives, these not-so perfect conditions didnt bother me too much any more because I was having such a great time. Never knew that shore dive could be this fun.
Lastly, now I must talk about Shaka Diver and its owner, Doug.
I did some research on dive shops in Kihei prior to the vacation, but couldnt make a decision. So when we got to Maui, we checked around dive shops. They all seemed pretty nice, but we werent sure. Then, when we were driving up Kihei Road , we saw Scuba Bus parked on the side of the road. Oh, the famous Scuba Bus. We stopped our car and went to see the bus. There was something about the bus that was so intriguing and welcoming that we decided to call him up. Well, werent we glad we did!
Diving with Doug was the most enjoyable diving experience ever for us. A combination of a very experienced, competent dive master and an all-around nice guy is a good thing. We didn't feel any anxiety or stress. He works very hard to make sure that you have a great dive. I don't think we've ever seen so many things in single dive before. He is attentive, accessible, friendly, playful, and very down-to-earth. He was our guide, but to us it was more like going to dive with a best friend. Besides, he truly loves diving. Like that MLB (or might have been NBA) commercial, he lives for this.
You want to go diving with someone who is as excited as you are about diving, you know.
I understand that a great dive is not always guaranteed. Still, as a customer, I appreciate the effort a dive master/operation makes for us to have a good diving experience. In this sense, Doug really spoiled us. Every dive was a pleasant surprise and it was unbelievably fun. Between dives was no way boring, either. He takes pictures in every dive and makes it into a CD. We purchased a couple of them. They are good souvenir as well as good memories. They take us right back to where we were.
O.K. that's all. I won't tell you any more. You should go dive with him and find it out for yourself. You will know what I mean.
Have a great dive!
I am new to this site here. This is going to be my very first review.
My husband and I went to Maui last month. Although it was our 2nd time in Maui , it was our first time as scuba divers. Because there is so much to do and see in Maui (in so little time), it wasnt strictly a dive vacation. Yet, we still managed to do 3 days of diving with Shaka Divers. This was definitely the highlight of our trip.
First, about the actual dives we did in Maui. We dove twice each at 5 Graves, Ulua Beach, and White Rock and all were shore dives (Doug, the owner of Shaka diver, does only shore dives). Of these three sites, White Rock was my favorite. Corals at White Rock were just gorgeous. Doug found a bright yellow baby frog fish there. I was mesmerized when I saw that little thing open his mouth and show those tiny teeth. Ulua Beach was nice, too. I think it was the easiest place to dive. 5 Graves had lots of turtles. We saw one turtle lying on coral there and I think it was the first time we have ever seen it like that. We usually see turtles sitting on sandy bottom or hiding in a cave or under a big rock if not swimming. We also saw a turtle that sitting with his front flippers tucked in under his chest, like my cat does when she sleeps. Turtles were everywhere that it made me real happy. I love green sea turtles of Hawaii. They are the cutest looking turtles in the world. I never get tired of watching them.
While many were familiar to us, such as Humuhumu (my favorite fish), moray eels, frog fish, colorful nudibranchs, big and small puffer fish, and pretty tropical fish and corals, there were quite a few things that were new to us. My husband was very excited about holding an octopus. We heard whales a couple of times. That was exciting. We saw a small fish that was sitting on the sandy bottom then suddenly disappeared into the sand! There was a big, maybe 1 foot long, shell, and it had beautiful pattern when it was flipped. Round sea urchins that have shells and rocks stuck on them like a magnet (I forgot to ask how that happens). And a sponge living on top of a crab. They find each other and live together. That remined me of Sponge Bob's Bikini Bottom. There is the whole another world down there.
Second point Id like to make is on shore dive.
Before this trip, we had logged 38, 39 dives each and all the dives, except one, were boat dives. Only shore dive we had done was when we were getting certified in Oahu and it was horrendous experience (to me). It was at Electric beach. Surf was high and surge was strong. I was tossed around all over when coming out and I thought I was going to die, really. Besides, walking to/from the beach from the parking felt like eternity carrying all that gear. After that I thought I was done with shore dive forever. This shore dives we did in Maui , however, changed my mind completely.
The best thing about shore dive to me is that I get to spend a lot more time under the water than boat dive because its a shallow dive. Every dive we did in Maui was 50 plus minutes average and there was no safety stop to make. More bottom time means more time to explore and see stuff. I have plenty of time to observe things in detail or hang out with turtles. Although I still like boat dive, it is over too quickly. A wreck dive like YO-256 in Oahu is one of my favorites, but it is quite deep that bottom time is only 20~30 minutes depending on air consumption.
Other nice things about shore dive I never thougth of are: no need to get up in 4:30,
5 o'clock in the morning to get ready, no worry about getting sea sick, and more flexible in schedule wise. My husband said that he felt less stressful about air consumption because if you run out of air, you just go up the surface and swim to the shore. Maybe.
Conditions of those sites we dove in Maui were not like Electric Beach on that particular day, but it wasnt perfect either (to me). There was surf every day. Surge was sometimes strong that I got nauseous and dizzy. Walking to beaches with carrying (more like dragging, in my case) gear still seemed long. Yet, after 6 shore dives, these not-so perfect conditions didnt bother me too much any more because I was having such a great time. Never knew that shore dive could be this fun.
Lastly, now I must talk about Shaka Diver and its owner, Doug.
I did some research on dive shops in Kihei prior to the vacation, but couldnt make a decision. So when we got to Maui, we checked around dive shops. They all seemed pretty nice, but we werent sure. Then, when we were driving up Kihei Road , we saw Scuba Bus parked on the side of the road. Oh, the famous Scuba Bus. We stopped our car and went to see the bus. There was something about the bus that was so intriguing and welcoming that we decided to call him up. Well, werent we glad we did!
Diving with Doug was the most enjoyable diving experience ever for us. A combination of a very experienced, competent dive master and an all-around nice guy is a good thing. We didn't feel any anxiety or stress. He works very hard to make sure that you have a great dive. I don't think we've ever seen so many things in single dive before. He is attentive, accessible, friendly, playful, and very down-to-earth. He was our guide, but to us it was more like going to dive with a best friend. Besides, he truly loves diving. Like that MLB (or might have been NBA) commercial, he lives for this.
You want to go diving with someone who is as excited as you are about diving, you know.
I understand that a great dive is not always guaranteed. Still, as a customer, I appreciate the effort a dive master/operation makes for us to have a good diving experience. In this sense, Doug really spoiled us. Every dive was a pleasant surprise and it was unbelievably fun. Between dives was no way boring, either. He takes pictures in every dive and makes it into a CD. We purchased a couple of them. They are good souvenir as well as good memories. They take us right back to where we were.
O.K. that's all. I won't tell you any more. You should go dive with him and find it out for yourself. You will know what I mean.
Have a great dive!
