Help Me Choose: Turks & Caicos or Exumas?

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We did the Exumas in 2006 and T&C in 2007

I would go on both again, but if I had to chose TC would win out for diving and boat comfort.

There we some minor issues with the crew in 2006 and we were given the option of re-taking that trip for free or TC at half price. I had a great time in 2006 and was really surprised at the offer. The company is top notch and you won't go wrong with either trip.
 
Hello,

I was on the T&C Explorer last November... it was good but I wouldn't rush right back. Let me start with the positives, the boat is very large and comfortable, the gear deck is spacious and the availability of nitrox is more than just nice given the reef usually starts in 60-70 feet of water. My wife and I were approaching or in deco on almost every dive after a few days (by the way we were on the boat for two weeks). I also enjoyed the sea life... far more sharks than I have seen else where in the Caribbean and they were curious enough to come around us. On the down side we were shocked at the fuel surcharge an extra $800 if I recall. Not that we were bother by this but you might like to know ahead of time the boat is large and usually has a long mooring line which means the boat swings like a pendulum so where you drop in isn't necessarily where you will find the boat. Most of the time you just hang out in 20 feet of water and wait about five minutes and you will see the boat swing into sight... then grab one of the two weighted lines and pull yourself up to the back of the boat while it sweeps over the reef. My only other comment... after hurricane Kyle blew through the area there was silt on everything... and significant damage to the reef.

In 2007 I was on the Cat Ppalu out of Nassau diving the Exumas a couple of times once for two weeks another time for just a week. I know the Cat Ppalu is not comparable to the T&C Explorer... but I want to tell you we had a great time! If you really want a big boat then there is always the Aqua Cat. The things I liked about the Exumas were... The rush of drift diving the washing machine which is unlike anything else I have experienced. The sea life in the Exumas Land and Sea Park is just what you would expect, big and friendly. We were greeted by several sharks at Amberjack Reef. Unfortunately this is the only site were I saw sharks. Oh yeah... there is a blue hole just south of Nassua if that's of interest to you. We also enjoyed getting off the boat a bit; we toured around the Exumas Land and Sea Park for a couple hours... up to Boo Boo Hill. Just a nice break. I know they will modify the itinerary for the group... I'm pretty sure they still offer bon fires on the beach if the weather conditions permit.

If I had to sum up my experiences into a simple comparision... every dive site on West Caicos and French Cay are pretty much the same while the dive sites throughout the Exumas are different enough that I'm always eager for the next dive site and sorry to leave the last.

I'm sure no matter which you choose, you will have a good time.


Safe diving,
Lou
 
One more note now that I have reread ChainDiver's post... I wasn't going to say anything about the crew. I know some of the other guests on the TCEII were happy with Stan (the cook) but I found him to be unprofessional with the guests and far to opinionated for someone in the service industry. During our first hour on the boat we were told that the boat doesn't observe day light savings time (Seems Stan and the owner are the only two people who agree with this) anyway one of the guests asked about departure times and ws concerned about missing her flight. I don't think Stan should have answered the question... and he definately shouldn't have said in a very condescending tone... "Baby don't worry about it". That got us off to a bad start. All week Stan stumbled around grumbling about "these people drink too much tea" and "she doesn't need anything more to eat". He also complained about the other crew... "Everytime it's the same bull*****... blah blah blah". Stan is the only person of the crew I saw drinking. Abeit he tried to make like it wasn't his drink... but it was. He is also the only member of the crew who likes to sleep in the guest lounge. I'm an early riser and several mornings I would find Stan sleeping on the sofa.

I don't expect people to be happy 7x24... but on the other hand... I also don't expect them to be miserable 7x24 either. Stan's negativity just tainted my experience.

We gave appropriate feedback to the company and were contacted to discuss our concerns. Basically we were told Stan is typically well received and "loved by all the guests". I guess he just had a really bad two weeks while we were on board.

Other than Stan the rest of the crew were good. My wife and I were disappointed once by a dive master who was in a Zodiac but didn't want to pick up a guest because as he said "she could swim to the back of the boat". In this case the poor woman was very tired and needed the assistance. Earlier in the week on a night dive she had gone diving with a dive master and another quest... that same dive master let her find her own way back to the boat in the dark (remember I said the boat swings on a 60 degree arc from the mooring point) when she finally got back on board she was in tears. My wife and I felt the crew really let her down on both these occasions. And it's not that she was a new diver... I beleive she is a capable diver. Being tired from a strong current can happen to anyone and I personally I don't think anyone should be left alone on a night dive.

As for the rest of the crew... they were great!
 
Interesting post.

- $800? Is that a typo? I was on the T&C Explorer March 14, 2009 for a week and the fuel surcharge was $95. I know it was $150 pp in 2008, but they do tell you about the fee on their webpage before you sign up. BTW, ALL of the liveaboards charge a fuel surcharge.
- Daylight saving time. They do this to accommodate the diving. This makes it get dark earlier for having night dives at a decent time. If they observed DST you would be getting out of the water at 10:30 at night.
- I've been on T&C Explorer twice and loved it both times. Class operation. And yes, I got along fine with Stan, sorry you had problems.
- The divemasters were great both times, did anything we asked.
- The boat does swing a wide arc on the mooring. It wasn't a problem for anyone on the boat both times we did it. Actually quite fun to hang on to the line and go for a ride. You say the woman in question is an accomplished diver, but she didn't use the mooring and bow line for navigation to the boat? That's kind of standard navigation stuff. Forgive me for saying, but it sounds like she put her total trust into the divemaster to do all the navigation and they were actually a threesome and not a legitimate buddy team. I find it hard to believe he left her alone on purpose, are you sure it wasn't just a legitimate separation underwater? Usually if a divemaster is leading, it's the followers job to keep them within sight, especially on a night dive.
- Every dive site in West Caicos and French Cay is the same? You must have dove in a different ocean than I did. I have dove Exuma too and in my opinion T&C is better diving and just as diverse
- in the first of the week dive briefing, the captain tells everyone if you are tired and need to be picked up, you surface and extend you hand above you in a fist and they pick you up with the tender. If this didn't happen the captain should have been notified.

Sorry you had problems and you'll probably not like my opinion, but I think several of the things you are complaining about are just as much your issue as theirs.
 
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Hi John,

I hear what you are saying... I think your opinion is as valid as mine. If we all like the exact same things we wouldn't need a word like unique.

I would like to mention that the captian missed high tide by an hour and we were caught outside the harbour for hours because the marine forecasts, and other information were observing DST. Having the boat observe a different time can have it's problem... but I agree... there is something psychologically wrong with eatting dinner at 5 PM rather than 6 PM. and doing a night dive at 7 PM rather than 8 PM.

Thanks for sharing your opinion, I'm sure UWBB will consider of all our comments... that is if the decision isn't already made.

Safe diving,
Lou
 
"there is something psychologically wrong with eatting dinner at 5 PM rather than 6 PM. and doing a night dive at 7 PM rather than 8 PM".

Had to laugh out loud at that one Lou :D You are a class act and you are right, everyone's opinion matters.

I had forgotten about that harbor. The T&C Explorer has a fairly deep draft and the entrance to the harbor keeps filling up with silt so the only time you can get that boat in there is a small window each day. We waited outside the harbor for awhile for the water to go up.

When we finally got in the harbor, captain Jean Francois showed me something pretty impressive. There were two sailboats moored at the dock getting fuel and the police boat was on the other side of the dock. The Explorer is 120' long I believe. So, JF pulled the boat straight in to the dock hitting reverse very precisely at "just exactly" the right moment so the boat drifted to the right and popped right in against the pier with about 5-10 feet front and back between the other boats. I can't even park my car that well!

take care,
JP
 
Thanks for the comments, we have actually made a decision and booked the boat today. We are going on the Exumas trip, it's cheaper and we just need to get away. The airfare has been a struggle though, almost impossible not to spend a night somewhere both directions from Denver. We are still trying to figure out what/where we want to pit stop.

I wasn't even aware some of the diving was drift. Anyone know if they offer shore excursions from the boat? What else can we expect to see during the dives? We've done to time change thing on the other liveaboard we did a couple years ago, I didn't really mind it. That's the ONLY time you'll ever see me get up at 5-6am 5 days in a row!
 
Hi UWBB,

Which boat are you on? Cat Ppalu, Aqua Cat or something else? My experience on the Cat Ppalu was that the crew asked the guests what they wanted. If the group wanted shore excursions the crew did their best to accomodate that. If everyone wanted to dive non stop... well that's what we did. As I said I have spent three weeks on the Cat Ppalu and each week there was a different group and so my wife an I had an opportunity to spend a week diving non stop, another week spending some time on shore and we were able to get the kayaks out. On some of the longer transitions outside of the park we did some fishing. Inside the park we stopped at the park head office did a little souvenir shopping and walked up to Boo Boo hill to be blown away bt the blow hole.

Oh yeah we also went to a small cay to feed some iguanas... if you are into making people jump... throw some grapes by the other guests feet. It's hillarious to watch the other guests jump as the iguanas racing to get the grapes. I will say I only did that to people I knew.

The drift dives at Wax Cay Cut and the Washing machine are a ton of fun. I shot video every time I went through. In the video all you see is feet, hands, surface, bottom and it repeats about five or six times before I was pushed out the other side.

I hope you have a great time on your vacation and do visit T&C sometime. It is good diving and the Explorer is first class. I wouldn't hold my opinions of a couple people against the entire company.

Safe diving,
Lou
 
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