Hi, Florida recommendations please?

Hi from a long time lurker but new poster.....

I'm thinking of coming pond next year for my holiday.

I really like the sound of Florida.

I was thinking about using the Jacksonville area as a base.

There will be 4 of us coming.

We would ideally like to spend 3 days diving springs, and then 3 days diving the coast.

What do think? And is there any one dive operator who could sort this out for us, or if not a good one for each.

Any ideas for cheap accommodation too? Or maybe the dive centre could sort out the accommodation?

Do we even need a dive centre for the springs? Could we just hire tanks + weights and go off with a map and guide book right?

We are all very experienced uk divers, but none of us have ever been to Florida so any advice at all is highly appreciated.

2nd week would be to take a slow road trip down south to key west, stopping for day or 2 at the space centre and other tourist stuff.

Thanks.

I think moving base camp from High Springs for the springs to Palm Beach County for the ocean diving makes more sense than Jacksonville.

You'll gets lots of suggestions for ocean operators in Jupiter, Riviera Beach, and Palm Beach. None of them suck, it just comes down to personal preference. However, there is only ONE Dive Master of the Year, and that's Kevin Metz UWExplorers, who I would strongly suggest doing at least one trip with.

What month or months do you have in mind?

Florida's economy is heavily dependent on tourism. During the tourist "season" (November through April) hotel and car rental rates are at their peak. During the off season there are more deals available.

Oh, hurricane season runs from June 1st through November 30th. For more info on hurricane frequency look here.

I would go to Ginnie Springs if in Jacksonville.

http://www.ginniespringsoutdoors.com/

gav6280:

Hi from a long time lurker but new poster.....

I'm thinking of coming pond next year for my holiday.

Click to expand...

What does coming pond mean?

I've heard of "coming home soon" and "coming to town" and "coming around the mountain" but not "coming pond" and I am always looking for new ways to say things.

If airfare isn't much more, I'd suggest flying into Orlando. This puts you about a 2 hour drive from the springs and closer to south Florida for the return trip. Here's a sample itinerary that should get you what you want:

Day 1 - arrive in Orlando, pick up car, drive north to Gainesville.

Day 2, 3, and 4 - visit local springs. At the OW level, my recommendation would be to visit Alexander Spring, Troy Spring, and Rainbow River. These 3 springs are all mainly open water sites with very little overhead. You could hire a couple of tanks a piece and just drive to each one each day. Each location is good for a dive or 2 and are located on state park property that would make for nice relaxing surface intervals with picnic lunches. If you head over here between October and March, you will also want to add Crystal River to your itinerary. This could be done the same day you dive Rainbow River. You won't be diving Crystal River, but you will be snorkeling with manatees. You could either base yourself out of Gainesville and drive to the dive sites each day or change hotels each night. I could give you recommendations on hotels if you like once you decide which way you would like to go. If you really want to experience the springs you may even want to consider taking a cavern course. It would take 2 days and open up your options of where to dive quite a bit.

Day 5 - Drive south to Ft. Lauderdale

Day 6, 7, and 8 - Dive south Florida sites. You could spend a day or 2 just diving the various reefs off Ft. Lauderdale without ever stepping on a boat. The reefs are close to shore and dive entry points are all marked by dive flag signs on the street. There are also several dive operators that head out daily to reefs and wrecks. American Dream II used to go out with a minimum of 2 divers. The easiest thing to do there is just get a hotel in Ft. Lauderdale for those nights.

At this point you are about 5 hours from Key West. Use the rest of your days to head down to Key West and relax. Stop by the space station either on your way to south Florida after the spring diving or on your way back up to Orlando after the Keys.

Feel free to PM or e-mail me at chipoladivers@gmail.com if you would like any further information.

Hi Gav6280 - Diving here is JAX is VERY limited! Great in summer for hunting fish, but that is about it. I recommend S.Fl and the springs in N.FL. Go to www.floridascubanews.com for a complete listing of shops, charters and recommendations for Florida.

idocsteve:

What does coming pond mean?

I've heard of "coming home soon" and "coming to town" and "coming around the mountain" but not "coming pond" and I am always looking for new ways to say things.

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Probably meant, coming OVER the pond e.g. crossing the atlantic to get from the UK to the US

There are charter operators in St Marys,Jax,Daytona that offer charters.
Diver’s Den Georgia|Full-Service Dive Shop, PADI Certification, Local Charters
Atlantic Pro Divers. | Your Jacksonville, Florida Offshore Dive Charter Headquarters
Sea Dogs Dive Center

Jax is central to to these three.2 hours from NASA,2 hours from springs and manatee dives.
Vis was 40-80' offshore last week,20-30'inshore and temps were hi 60s to lo 70s offshore and hi 50s to lo 60s inshore.

So far this year we have
had a right whale breach next to the boat
seen tiger,sand tiger,nurse,sandbar sharks
seen rays 8' wide
had schools of cobia,amberjack,grouper,snapper around us
taken lobster to #8
uncounted tropicals and lionfish

sportxlh:

Probably meant, coming OVER the pond e.g. crossing the atlantic to get from the UK to the US

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Thanks for clarifying.

I was thinking the guy had an over active prostate and made an inappropriate forum post.