Tanzania Diving - an insider view (thoughts?)

[Rhone Man]

I am very fond of Tanzania (my brother and father were both born there) and East African diving generally. But the main reason it is not more popular is not hard to discern - it is hard to get to. From North America it is the far end of the earth. From Europe you have to go past the Red Sea first, which is pretty good, and even if you don't stop there, you then have Sudan which is also excellent. And from Asia? Well, lots of world class diving nearer to home.

Sucks for you, but I am not unhappy that Zanzibar hasn't become a mass tourism destination yet.

 

[xyrandomyx]

Having read Spillover, there is no way you would ever get me into a bat-occupied cave in Africa!

I would guess the reason nobody knows about diving in East Africa is that the diving infrastructure there is not extensive, and doesn't do the advertising and publicity work that the Egyptians and Indonesians do. I go to Dive Expos and there are tons of people from the Red Sea, Indonesia, and the Philippines; I have never seen anyone there from Africa. I have also never seen any articles in dive magazines, print or online, about East African diving. Sounds like there are some opportunities for marketing there!

I went to Zanzibar for a week at the beginning of this year. While the diving infrastructure there isn't as extensive as the Red Sea (from what I've heard, never having been to the Red Sea), it's far from non-existent. There were a couple of ops with several branches all over the islands and a fair number of smaller ops and specialist ops for charters to less-dived/ deeper sites. It did seem to me that most of the other visitors I ran into were from Europe (lots of Italians, some Finns, Swedes, Norwegians and others) or South Africa. I wonder if perhaps they put what marketing budget they have into those areas, where they already have a foot in the door, rather than the US and elsewhere?

On a side-note, I went into a bat-occupied cave while there. We didn't realise there'd be bats. My girlfriend was seriously unimpressed. I thought they were awesome.

---------- Post added October 1st, 2013 at 02:03 PM ----------

I am very fond of Tanzania (my brother and father were both born there) and East African diving generally. But the main reason it is not more popular is not hard to discern - it is hard to get to. From North America it is the far end of the earth. From Europe you have to go past the Red Sea first, which is pretty good, and even if you don't stop there, you then have Sudan which is also excellent. And from Asia? Well, lots of world class diving nearer to home.

Sucks for you, but I am not unhappy that Zanzibar hasn't become a mass tourism destination yet.

Oh, yeah. That's the other very likely explanation: travel time and cost of flights. It's a pretty good option if you're from South Africa. It's not that bad if you're from Europe. It's a really long way from the USA. And that may also deter the local industry from marketing to the US (since it's going to be a harder sell, given the distance).

 

[TSandM]

I don't know that distance is THAT big a factor. People from the US go to Africa to go on safari . . . but EVERYBODY has heard of Ngorongoro Crater, and Kruger National Park. Everybody knows that Africa is where you go to see elephants and lions. I really don't think very many of us have any idea there is good diving there.

A friend of mine is putting together a dive and safari trip to South Africa next year, which sounds absolutely marvelous. Those dive operators in Tanzania should talk to their safari-running colleagues and see about doing some joint marketing.

 

[chillyinCanada]

TS&M! Can you get me your friend's particulars? Such a trip ha long been on my radar but I worried about going on my own. Thanks.

 

[TSandM]

I'm sorry; it's a club dive for local club members, and not generally open to the public

 

[tracydr]

The bats are an attraction in themselves for me...guess it shows how we all enjoy different things. Ive really only heard of diving Africa through word of mouth, I cant say ive ever noticed a lot of Africa advertising. A tv doco on discovery gave me my first glimpse of Zanzibar underwater years ago and its been on the list ever since.

You'll like the flying foxes of Pemba. I believe they are the world's largest bats.

---------- Post added October 1st, 2013 at 10:43 AM ----------

When I went, we did a week long Livaboard around Pemba Island, and then a 10 day safari in Tanzania. My passport had so many stamps going back and forth between Kenya and Tanzania because Pemba straddles the two. Somedays we crossed twice and we started and ended in Kenya.
Oh, the slave cave has bats so just a warning not to go there if you don't like them. It was a fascinating little tour,though.
the safari was great,too. We easily saw all the big animals, plus many fascinating, lesser known animals. And, the big animals were truly up close encounters. I have photos with my cheap camera of a leopard who decided to sleep under the other land cruiser in our pair and a lioness who dragged/ate a wildebeest on the road, then nursed her kittens right in front of us! I loved the Ngongoro Crater park. We saw so many animals there and the cabins were up on the rim where it was very chilly.

 

[chillyinCanada]

TSM, how do I join your club? Jk

 

[TSandM]

Well, first you have to move to Seattle . . .

 

[chillyinCanada]

Ha! That's easy (not likely but easy). I feared it would be completely exclusionary, like beinga Mod or something. I joke. I joke.

 

[xyrandomyx]

Ha! That's easy (not likely but easy). I feared it would be completely exclusionary, like beinga Mod or something. I joke. I joke.

Africa's not that scary. I'm pretty sure you'll survive if you come over here on your own. It seems safer to me than cold Puget Sound water and those giant octopuses.