Scuba Diving from Cruise Ship

[DiverBizz]

I dove from LDS that the cruise line arranged (only cruise passengers on dive). The DM was great and when there was a problem, ray vs. wrist of diver (how many ways can they tell you stay off the bottom rays are all over the place on that dive), we knew that the time it took to go to another dock to meet the ambulance, we would not be left by the cruise line because it was a cruise supported excursion. I was diver with the least number of dives at that time (45). This summer I am going on NCL and will be stopping in Newport, RI. I plan to dive there but according to the information I have found on google about Newport, you can arrange to have a DM meet you at the beach. DM's will work for tips without being paid by a LDS, although the LDS posted the information. Interesting, I plan on checking this out more closely.

 

[DiverDean59]

Which ports are you stopping at? If we knew that, maybe some of us could give you recommendations on dive ops for those ports.

The Ports would be Labadee, Haiti; Ocho Rios, Jamaica; George Town, Grand Cayman; Cozumel, Mexico.

 

[shellim123]

I love Labadee! Never dove there though

 

[Natasha]

The Ports would be Labadee, Haiti; Ocho Rios, Jamaica; George Town, Grand Cayman; Cozumel, Mexico.

I haven't been to Haiti, but my guess would be if the ship offers diving there use them for that port.

In Cayman I like to use Neptune's Divers, Cayman's Original 8 Divers Max Keith and Casey will take good care of you.

In Cozumel I have been using Dive Paradise, Cozumel MX for 10 years. The owner is Apple. They have been in business for 30 years and have 100 employees and 12 dive boats. She is really easy going, and has always been able to fit my needs as far as wanting a big boat with a head, or a small fast boat. Shoot her an email and tell her I sent you.

Have fun!

I just got off the Voyager of the Seas yesterday. I will be posting my dive from Roatan shortly. Hope that helps!

 

[all4scuba05]

If you're easily entertained then cruise ship booking will do. If you're like me, book with a local shop that is close to port and may even pick you up. I always book locally and they make sure I get back atleast an hour early

 

[scubadiver888]

Since this thread is pretty general so far, I'll post some of my observations about booking cruise ship excursions. The biggest thing to keep in mind is that the contracts the operators sign with the ships are very, very specific about what exactly will be offered, time limits, site locations, etc. There is no ability to deviate from the plan without the ships getting a little cranky.

What this means is that no matter the sea state or the experience level of the divers on the boat, there is no latitude to make adjustments to give the divers the best possible experience for the day. Since we are not affiliated with the ships and people book on their own it gives us a broader range of sites if the divers are up for it and it allows us to bypass sites that might be tricky given the seas.

Since the operators have to provide what they contractually obligated to provide every single day, twice a day, for a range of experience levels including uncertified divers, the sites they promise (at least here) are available all the time and are shallow. Not that they are bad sites, we go there as well but if it means that the ship's operator can't always provide the best sites for the day and the group because of their inflexibility with site selection.

It is true that the ship will only wait for people that are on excursions booked through the ShoreX but I have never had a guest miss the boat from our shop, we're all pretty aware of when people need to be where and can adjust the schedules accordingly.

I hope that's useful information to somebody!

Rachel

Rachel is speaking from her knowledge of St. Thomas but as someone who has been to over a dozen ports on a cruise ship I can tell you that it is pretty much true for every place. The cruise ship contracts to a local dive shop and they cater to the weakest diver. When I first started out I was the weakest diver and it seemed fine to me. Last time it was the pits. I really felt it could have been a lot better. A few of the guys booked their own in St. Kitts and said it was 10 times better than any other dive with the ship.

On the other hand, occasionally, the best dive operator is the cruise ship operator and they will look at the group and deviate because they know everyone can handle it and will be happy. This actually happened to me in St. Thomas in 2006. Most the time though it is just a good dive and not a great dive.

 

[Web Monkey]

On the other hand, occasionally, the best dive operator is the cruise ship operator and they will look at the group and deviate because they know everyone can handle it and will be happy. This actually happened to me in St. Thomas in 2006. Most the time though it is just a good dive and not a great dive.

That's pretty much it. You'll get wet, probably won't die, and should make it back to the boat on time.

Anything beyond that is gravy.

Note that the general skill level ranges from "Got certified in 1970 and has 20 dives" to "4 dives, counting this one". There are experienced divers on the ships, but because a huge majority of the divers are vacation-only, the dive ops are pretty limited where they will take you.

The only exception I've seen was Belize, where Hugh Parkey has a really big boat, and will take out divers in different groups according to skill level.

Terry

 

[Zsuzsika]

I am leading a group of divers on a scuba cruise this November, and would like to share my experience in making arrangements to dive in each port of call. I coordinate one scuba cruise every winter and have done so for the past five years. This time, we are going to the Southern Caribbean on the Emerald Princess.

Every year, I contact independent dive operators in the ports of call with our group requirements and look for bids on two tank dives close to a year in advance of the cruise. I require transportation to be included in the cost, and assurance that we will have the dive boat to ourselves, I also have to have a cancellation policy that will refund the cost of the dives if the ship can't make it into the port. Let me tell you, I have one heck of a time finding a dive operator that is willing to refund the cost of the dives (we are willing to pre-pay) in the event the ship can't make it into port - something that happens more often than you might think. So I have begun using a company who has been willing to coordinate the dives for our group and still provide the group with all that I require. I put the hyperlink to their website here, as I don't know if I am allowed to post information about them on this thread.

Suffice it to say, they have been putting together my dive packages for a couple of years. They subcontract smaller, well established dive operations that do not operate cattle boats. I like the fact that my group and I have the dive boat to ourselves in each port of call. It's true, that when you dive with a different dive operation in every port, the dives you do tend to be more conservative than if you had a chance to dive with the same DM all week. But this would be the case regardless of the dive operation.

I have found that the quality of the dives offered through the shore excursion department on cruises really depends on the port of call - ships going to dive destinations during peak times will see a lot of divers and that means crowded boats. If you go to a port that will have several ships docked the day you arrive, you can also expect a lot of divers. On the other hand, if you cruise in the off season and go to ports where you are the only ship, booking your dives through the cruise line, through a third party or on your own will result in similar quality. Some dive operators who contract with the cruise line really do limit the number of divers they will take, while others will fill up a dive boat with more than 20 divers - especially in Cozumel and Grand Cayman! A cruise line will always charge you more than the company I mentioned, but you'll always pay the least if you make arrangements to dive on your own.

We are going to Aruba, Bonaire, Dominica, Grenada, St. Thomas and the cruise line's private island, Princess Cay on a seasonal cruise - meaning it does this route out of Fort Lauderdale only in the winter. We are also going in what's considered the off season, to smaller, less visited ports of call (with the exception of St. Thomas). The cost to dive two tanks in all our ports of call comes well under $500pp - and that includes St. Thomas, the port charging the most to do two tanks.

Good luck!



Hope this helps.

 

[50nhoverin]

Howdy Y'all, The wife and I are cruiseing with CCL in a couple weeks and stopping in GC for one Day. I have been diving since the early 70's but very infrequently in the last 10 yrs. 30 yrs ago the Caymans were just hitting the top dive lists and it has always been one of the items on my "bucket list" to dive there. My wife got her Ccard in 99 but has not dived since that summer and is taking a refresher course before we go. Her biggest concern is a crowded boat and easy access in and out of the water. Do youy remember who the LDS that handled the excursion for you? I could contact them or there website. Any details and suggestions would be appreciated. We have been on cruises before and sometimes you are better off taking your excursion but for her comfort level I'm trying to get as much info as possible.

Thanks!

 

[cindivan]

Hi, I was wondering if you could help me. I am a certified adult diver. My son is a certified junior diver, 10 years old, and limited to 40 ft. The cruise line says the Freeport dive is open to 10+ years, but cannot provide me any information as to what the first dive entails. (I am quite certain it would be too deep, but at that point what are his options? Stay on the boat? Snorkel? Dive to 30-40 ft? If he dives, is there anything worth seeing at that point?

The cruise line keeps telling me I just have to wait to get on board to get my questions answered, but at that point its a little late in the game.

I have spoke with Dive Bahamas and they said we can go and "there is still plenty for my son to see on the first dive" but we are diving with the sharks, so I am not sure what they plan on him doing (I am waiting for their reply).

Carnival said "Dive Paradise" is the dive shop, but I cannot find anything on a dive shop named this in Freeport.

Thanks for your time. Cindi VanWingerden