toddlich
Guest
My wife and I are thinking about diving with Dive St. Vincent this December. Does anyone know the weather conditions at that time of year? I know from past experience that the Caribbean can be very blowy in the winter.
St. Vincent weather question
- Thread starter toddlich
- Start date
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Sully3
Contributor
idk about the weather in December.
We have been there in march and august and the
weather was fine.
ANd if you do go to SV you will LOVE it.
Bill Tewes and DSV is GREAT!!!!
We have been there five times
matt
We have been there in march and august and the
weather was fine.
ANd if you do go to SV you will LOVE it.
Bill Tewes and DSV is GREAT!!!!
We have been there five times
matt
Damselfish
Contributor
I've been there Jan, Feb, April, May. Sure, it can be blowy in the winter just like anyplace else in the Caribbean. I remember some exciting boat rides in Jan-Feb off the southwest coast, but the dive sites themselves tend to be pretty sheltered. Always had nice weather though, sun and no significant rrain, could be a matter of luck. I think it's a little more sheltered when you get further up the coast but they don't always dive up there.
As someone who lives on the main land of St. Vincent, and is out on the water most days I would advise visiting March - September.
There are some caveats:
Hurricane season is officially June thru October, but St. Vincent and the Grenadines are south of the lines traditionally associated as 'hurricane' alley. Weather prediction is very good now, and should anything be heading our way we usually have at least 4 - 5 day window to be prepared. The end of the season is the time we are more likely to have action - late September early October.
The most 'windy months are December / January - great for the sailors!
The majority of our diving is undertaken on the leeward side of the island, and with the wide variety of bays there is always somewhere secluded to dive in St. Vincent.
My favorite months? May, June and July into August
If you enjoy macro diving then anytime is a good time to visit, as the critters prefer murkier water, which makes them less likely to be consumed by predators I guess!
There are some caveats:
Hurricane season is officially June thru October, but St. Vincent and the Grenadines are south of the lines traditionally associated as 'hurricane' alley. Weather prediction is very good now, and should anything be heading our way we usually have at least 4 - 5 day window to be prepared. The end of the season is the time we are more likely to have action - late September early October.
The most 'windy months are December / January - great for the sailors!
The majority of our diving is undertaken on the leeward side of the island, and with the wide variety of bays there is always somewhere secluded to dive in St. Vincent.
My favorite months? May, June and July into August
If you enjoy macro diving then anytime is a good time to visit, as the critters prefer murkier water, which makes them less likely to be consumed by predators I guess!
How would the first week of November be? I am also concerned about the wind, but have this time to vacation this year. Haven't been to SV. How painful is it to get to this lovely paradise? If I have a week, would you spend it all at Young Island or dive a few days in Bequia? Thanks.
Damselfish
Contributor
With only a week, I would spend it all at Young Island. I would want at least 10 nights to split it between the islands. (I've done that, and Bequia is a pretty neat place to visit.)
It's a slight pain to get there, as the runway is too small for jets so it's only on smaller planes with the associated luggage issues, and through a connection elsewhere in the Caribbean. Your main choice is LIAT, also known as Luggage In Another Terminal. (We've had luggage temporarily lost twice on dive trips and that was one of them.) American used to fly there on their turbo-props and that was much better. Also used to be Caribbean Star/Sun flying there but they're long gone.
It's a slight pain to get there, as the runway is too small for jets so it's only on smaller planes with the associated luggage issues, and through a connection elsewhere in the Caribbean. Your main choice is LIAT, also known as Luggage In Another Terminal. (We've had luggage temporarily lost twice on dive trips and that was one of them.) American used to fly there on their turbo-props and that was much better. Also used to be Caribbean Star/Sun flying there but they're long gone.
I noticed that many have mentioned Young Island, but when doing research I found that people were really upset with the noise coming from across the water (late night disco). Can you get away from the noise if you stay at a different section of Young Island or have AC in your room?
Damselfish
Contributor
They don't have A/C. We never had a problem with noise. I don't recall if the disco wasn't open (maybe once) or it just didn't bother us.
Every room is unique between orientation, elevation, and how much jungle surrounds it so it's hard to point to a "section" that would be best to avoid disco noise. I would guess the higher rooms or those not quite on the channel side would get less noise if it was a problem. Like 6-10, 28-30 (though I've never wanted to stay up on the hill.) I do believe 6-10 tend to get booked early. I'd guess that 1-5 would be better than 18-22, but not sure. (though a couple of the lowest numbered rooms are very close to dining and busier areas so I'd tend to avoid them if possible, especially #1.) All the rooms sort of in the middle, I wouldn't hazard a guess.
Every room is unique between orientation, elevation, and how much jungle surrounds it so it's hard to point to a "section" that would be best to avoid disco noise. I would guess the higher rooms or those not quite on the channel side would get less noise if it was a problem. Like 6-10, 28-30 (though I've never wanted to stay up on the hill.) I do believe 6-10 tend to get booked early. I'd guess that 1-5 would be better than 18-22, but not sure. (though a couple of the lowest numbered rooms are very close to dining and busier areas so I'd tend to avoid them if possible, especially #1.) All the rooms sort of in the middle, I wouldn't hazard a guess.
With regards to the weather, the local 'Christmas Winds' can be very blustery between mid- December thru January, although as toddlich correctly mentions there are plenty of places to dive, no matter the conditions, especially if you are a macro / critter person. (Although my personal favourite time to dive is April / May / June / July).
Getting to St. Vincent is a little tricky, but thats one of the reasons that the diving here is so good... there are direct flights from Puerto Rico (sometimes that flights will stop at St. Lucia or Canouan, but you and your stuff stay on the plane for the 15 minutes it takes to add / remove additional passengers). You can also get here via Barbados. On the way home there is an early flight from Grenada to Miami, the LIAT flight from St. Vincent leaves at 06.30a, to get to Grenada to meet the onward Miami flight which means that you can link with other flights and get home in one day if you live further afield in the US.
Accomodation... Young Island is nice, but it is quite costly, and yes the noise from the nightclubs is a pain, especially at the weekends. I have had guests staying at Young Island and this was an issue for them. A 3 dive day and couple of extra rum punches help
Mariners offers comfortable, a/c rooms with internet and flat screen TVs, or take a look at Beachcombers, this hotel has a selection of rooms from very basic to very plush pent house suites with full kitchen, top floor giant balconies with lovely views over Young Island Cut.
Picasa Web Albums - Kay - Beachcombers
Just to give you a flavor of what you can expect to see underwater here are a selection of some of my favorite shots that I have taken in St. Vincent since Christmas. Underwater photos
With regards to diving in Bequia, if you can schedule a day its very easy to get there by ferry, the Bequia Dive Adventures folks will pick you up from the ferry dock if they know that you plan to dive with them, alternatively why not look at doing a few days in St. Vincent followed by a couple of days in Bequia? Very do-able if you don't mind changing hotel after a few days.
Getting to St. Vincent is a little tricky, but thats one of the reasons that the diving here is so good... there are direct flights from Puerto Rico (sometimes that flights will stop at St. Lucia or Canouan, but you and your stuff stay on the plane for the 15 minutes it takes to add / remove additional passengers). You can also get here via Barbados. On the way home there is an early flight from Grenada to Miami, the LIAT flight from St. Vincent leaves at 06.30a, to get to Grenada to meet the onward Miami flight which means that you can link with other flights and get home in one day if you live further afield in the US.
Accomodation... Young Island is nice, but it is quite costly, and yes the noise from the nightclubs is a pain, especially at the weekends. I have had guests staying at Young Island and this was an issue for them. A 3 dive day and couple of extra rum punches help
Mariners offers comfortable, a/c rooms with internet and flat screen TVs, or take a look at Beachcombers, this hotel has a selection of rooms from very basic to very plush pent house suites with full kitchen, top floor giant balconies with lovely views over Young Island Cut.
Picasa Web Albums - Kay - Beachcombers
Just to give you a flavor of what you can expect to see underwater here are a selection of some of my favorite shots that I have taken in St. Vincent since Christmas. Underwater photos
With regards to diving in Bequia, if you can schedule a day its very easy to get there by ferry, the Bequia Dive Adventures folks will pick you up from the ferry dock if they know that you plan to dive with them, alternatively why not look at doing a few days in St. Vincent followed by a couple of days in Bequia? Very do-able if you don't mind changing hotel after a few days.
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