I've read lots of negative comments about diving in Jamaica on the board today. I can accept that it's not the greatest the Caribbean has to offer.
I'd like to know if anyone has dived with the Couples Swept Away resort, within the past couple of years, and how they would rate that experience.
MTIA
Ginger
jorgerantera
June 29th, 2003, 01:19 AM
I have heard that Jamaica is a 4 out of 10 for "diving greatness", but considering that all of our dives are covered under the "all-inclusive" policy, I'll take it. As a a matter of fact, I'll be in Jamaica f4rom 7/21 - 7/31 and plan to dive as much as possible...
Ginger
June 29th, 2003, 01:35 AM
jorgerantera, thanks for your post. I'd LOVE to hear how your trip goes and how you find the diving and surface interval time. Our trip is planned for October and frankly, all the negatives I read were making me doubt my decision on Negril as a destination.... but even a bad day diving is better than a good day doing anything else, right????? :D
maxjam98
June 29th, 2003, 02:58 AM
I have been diving in Jamaica on and off since 1995 and the diving is every bit as good as Cayman, Turks, and the other locations. There is the same sea life to be seen in Jamaica: spectacular corals, sponges, spotted eagle rays, sting rays, sea turtles, snapper, colorful fish... the whole shebang.
One piece of advice... Don't do dives right off the coast of Montego Bay or Ocho Rios... erosion caused by rain, hotel & city drains, and general fishing and tourist damaged have ruined the reefs. To see the real Jamaica you need to get out of the cities. Try diving near Falmouth, Runaway Bay, remote sites near Negril, the south coast or Port Antonio. GET OFF THE BEATEN PATH.
Frankly, I wouldn't go diving in a bay off any major city in the US, Australia, etc either! I mean, what would YOU expect to see off the coast of Miami, for example?
Great diving can be had in Jamaica, it isn't touted as a "premier" diving destination, which just means less crowded boats for us and less crowded dives in general, but stay away from the big cities.
chrpai
June 29th, 2003, 07:23 AM
Sorry I've been to Jamaica 4 times. Ocho Rios, Negril and Falmouth. While I agree you can have a fun time diving on less then crowded boats, the diving doesn't come anywhere near comparing to other Carrib islands I've been to.
The best I had was Falmouth. And you will see lots of different kinds of critters.... but its what I call Noahs Ark diving.
2 of this... 2 of that... ( for one dive ) and then on the next dive 2 of this and 2 of that.
But you will see plenty of Saergent Majors and Sea Cucumbers. ;)
Juls64
June 29th, 2003, 08:09 AM
in my opinion, was the great beach in Negril. How many places do you find that have great diving and lovely beaches, but you can't sit out in the sand because of the sand fleas.
While Jamaica may not have the best diving, some of the other perks, such as the ability to sit out in the white sand in a chaise lounge and watch the sun set, or stroll along the waters edge without worrying about biting pests is worth the less than perfect diving.
Juls
Tim Ingersoll
June 29th, 2003, 09:42 AM
I'd say another down side to Jamaica is the crime/drugs/poverty combo. I felt like I was a prisoner on the resort. The walls around us were eight feet high and topped with broken glass, there was an armed guard on the beach after dark, and we were warned not to leave the resort without an escort. I also got pretty tired of every other person I met asking me if I wanted to buy drugs. The diving was mediocre at best. If you like Jamaica - that's great for you - but don't lead people to believe that it in the same league as Turks or Caymans as a diving destination.
DocVikingo
June 29th, 2003, 10:05 AM
(nt)
miked
June 29th, 2003, 10:17 AM
My experience on my one trip to Jamaica includes all of the unpleasant things mentioned by Tim in his post. While the resort was nice, the "sealed in for safety" feeling was not .
The actual diving was "okay", but not at the level of the other destinations mentioned.
Good luck,
Mike
jbm
June 29th, 2003, 04:13 PM
chrpai once bubbled...
The best I had was Falmouth.
I agree.......Falmouth area offers the best diving.
Whatever else is said, good or bad, about Jamaica............there is one undeniable truth....... there is nowhere more "exciting" than Jamaica during a bad election !! Nothing like politics gone bad to get the country rockin!!
jbm
Cudabait
August 6th, 2003, 12:33 PM
Ginger,
My wife and I have been to Couples, Ocho Rios twic within the last 8 years. All inclusive. Don't know what you are looking for but two years ago we met a couple there that had requested Couples transfer then to Ocho Rios fron Negril. They loved it!! It takes a little longer to get to but I can only say good things about the operation. They have a great newton dive boat, glass bottom snorkle boat. Again, I see you are OW cert. They frunish all the equipment. If you want a tune up they'll give it to you in the pool. Diving is good, not the best. My wife and I would go back again. Be prepared, They still fish with large underwater traps, if you've never seen one. PS they have a great nude islan all their own with a swim up bar. (So I was told) All in all the place is very romantic. And fun!! Hope this helps. Regards, Cudabait
augie
August 6th, 2003, 12:42 PM
I stayed at Swept Away for a week, but it was four years ago. We went in June (our anniversary month) which also happened to be Adventure Month at the resort, which meant the night dive was included as well.
The diving was good, not great, but the nice beach, and the friendliness of the staff and others we met was terrific.
We did a one-tank morning dive that left about 9:00AM and a one-tank afternoon dive that left around 1:30 or 2:00. You needed to sign up each day for the following day's dive(s) that you wished to do.
Bring your own gear if you can. I didn't. The gear they had on site worked, but it didn't appear that maintaining it properly was much of a priority.
I wouldn't go back to Swept Away just for the diving.
But I would (and probably will) go back.
Novus
August 8th, 2003, 04:13 PM
Ginger,
This past december my wife and I went to Sandals Negril, which is just a stones throw down the beach from swept away, if I recall correctly. I found the diving to be pretty fun. The coral was pretty and lush with fair fish life. Not a huge variety, but better than being stuck on land. My advice, make sure to take the early dives to avoid the resort course divers. I believe Negril is a little less crime-ridden than other parts of Jamaica, but we still had a few guards on the resort. Anyway, I think you'll find that even if the diving is mediocre, the nice beaches and accomodations will kinda even everything out. :)
VTernovski
September 2nd, 2003, 11:58 PM
the best diving for me in Jamaica was diving the Blue Lagoon in Port Antonio. Read my article at (turn to page 6):
It's nice to see a few positive things about Jamaica, for a change.
I'm considering Jamaica for my vacation in March 2004 (It's never to early to start planning) Either Sandals Dunn's River or maybe do the nudie thing at SuperClubs Hedonism III
Ixtapa is also on the list. But it's been awhile since I've been in the Caribbean, so I'm leaning toward Jamaica.
JRRKAR
September 3rd, 2003, 06:56 AM
I always heard...if you don't have something nice to say about someone (or somewhere), don't say anything at all.
So about Jamaica.......No Comment
Kat
September 5th, 2003, 03:31 AM
I think we get the picture.
FOUNDATIONER
September 6th, 2003, 09:26 AM
Ive been to Jamaica with my sweetie twice. Ocho Rios and MoBay.
Going back in Feb 04 to get married. Regardless of all the negative talk you read about it, Jamaica is a wonderful place.
Yes, it is third world, but most of the planet is! My fiance does not dive so its perfect for us. I dive quarrys and lakes in central US so the warm clear waters are an awsome experience for me! I will admit Ive never been anywhere else in the Carribean yet but Im not such a spoiled brat that I can't find good in most things.
The people overall are pretty cool and you can stop the"higglers"
dead in their tracks politely by using one phrase. "Mi no wannit mon" (spoken like patois). They understand this and will become your friend almost instantly. I've spent quite a bit of time talking to some of these guys just sitting on the beach after they tried to sell me something just learning about the people and the place.
You only get out of something what you put into it, people who complain about places like Jamaica just aren't trying!
I can find places in my own backyard that are far worse.
Go with an open intellect and have fun!
Scuba One
September 12th, 2003, 03:05 PM
To see what the underwater world around Jamaica looks like, take a look at these pictures.
We went to sandals Ocho Rios about two years ago and loved it. The diving was good not great but alot of fun. I would not go there if diving was my main goal. You will enjoy it if you want some diving and alot of relaxing.
AzSnake
September 16th, 2003, 01:26 PM
Kat once bubbled...
It's nice to see a few positive things about Jamaica, for a change.
I'm considering Jamaica for my vacation in March 2004 (It's never to early to start planning) Either Sandals Dunn's River or maybe do the nudie thing at SuperClubs Hedonism III
Ixtapa is also on the list. But it's been awhile since I've been in the Caribbean, so I'm leaning toward Jamaica.
I went and stayed at Sandals Dunns River on my Honeymoon in Nov of 99.
The stay was fantastic.
Staff was good, Entertainment was good and the overall enviroment was about a 8.5 out of 10.
I took my first dive there with the resort class.
Looking back I would give it about a 6-7 out of 10.
Not bad but you can see some of the abuse. I saw a outboard motor that was dumped and sticking out of a very large old colony of coral. I also sow multiple fish traps that were left on the bottom. They keep capturing fish and they die in the traps, their was a pile of fish bones in the bottom of the trap. :(
Since I was with the resort class I was on a shallow dive that was about 500 yards off shore.
We had another couple that were AOW and they said they were took on a very nice wall dive that they saw a large aray of rays, turtles and even some small sharks.
Kat
September 17th, 2003, 02:40 AM
Thanks for your info about Sandals Dunn River. We stayed at Sandals in Nassau & loved it there. I think we'll feel the same way about Dunn River. And it's ultra all-inclusive, so diving is included. A big plus.
I know the diving is generally considered to be poor in Jamaica. But it is still going to be better than anything in Chicago, in March.
Goober2
May 19th, 2006, 11:35 PM
I've read lots of negative comments about diving in Jamaica on the board today. I can accept that it's not the greatest the Caribbean has to offer.
I'd like to know if anyone has dived with the Couples Swept Away resort, within the past couple of years, and how they would rate that experience.
MTIA
Ginger
I dove for the very first time ever with Josh and CSA. They were very nice and professional as well as helpful and patient. Diving wasnt comparable to Roatan but I had a great deal of fun.
besides, CSA is like the best resort on the planet (going back to get hitched later this year)
Jamdiver
May 20th, 2006, 03:36 PM
Diving here is better than most think...
Try diving with someone else besides the hotel dive ops and the sites that they frequent.
EDIT -Just realised that this thread is 3 years old..
