Florida trip & lodging recommendations?

Greetings!

I was looking at vacation options and a bit frustrated at how expensive air fares have become...

I did find one affordable flight destination: Fort Lauderdale.

I wonder if you all could offer some recommendations to help us plan a trip?

My wife is a new diver & I haven't been in the water since Feb 2010.
We are looking at traveling some time in late May - early June. Wife prefers:
Beach, swim, relax. Myself: Dive, dive, dive. As we could use some easy dives to start with, I was thinking about 4-5 days in the Keys and then 2-3 days beachside somewhere not too far from FLL (<2hrs?).

I have found plenty of good dive op recommendations here but I could use a hand with a CHEAP rental car and decent/nice accomodations on a budget.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Thanks.

Steve

mohave_steve:

Greetings!

I was looking at vacation options and a bit frustrated at how expensive air fares have become...

I did find one affordable flight destination: Fort Lauderdale.

I wonder if you all could offer some recommendations to help us plan a trip?

My wife is a new diver & I haven't been in the water since Feb 2010.
We are looking at traveling some time in late May - early June. Wife prefers:
Beach, swim, relax. Myself: Dive, dive, dive. As we could use some easy dives to start with, I was thinking about 4-5 days in the Keys and then 2-3 days beachside somewhere not too far from FLL (<2hrs?).

I have found plenty of good dive op recommendations here but I could use a hand with a CHEAP rental car and decent/nice accomodations on a budget.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Thanks.

Steve

Click to expand...

Best diving for you will be Palm Beach. Stay at the Hilton on Singer Island for $120 per night ( South florida Dive Journal rate you can ask for) and you WILL NOT NEED A RENTAL CAR. Hotel has shuttle to take you to dive boats or anywhere on Island for free.
See www.sfdj.com to see what Palm Beach diving looks like. Far better diving than the keys or Lauderdale, and there will be more for your wife to do than she will have time for

danvolker:

Best diving for you will be Palm Beach. Stay at the Hilton on Singer Island for $120 per night ( South florida Dive Journal rate you can ask for) and you WILL NOT NEED A RENTAL CAR. Hotel has shuttle to take you to dive boats or anywhere on Island for free.
See www.sfdj.com to see what Palm Beach diving looks like. Far better diving than the keys or Lauderdale, and there will be more for your wife to do than she will have time for

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Palm Beach County is the way to go.

Steve

You might want to check out: BeachsideGardens.US Florida Vacation Rentals Located in Deerfield Beach FL. it's a 1/2 block from the beach and numerous restaurants and bars. It's a small Condo complex with off street parking and a pool. It's not a 5 Star resort but the price is right and you can cook some of your own meals to save those $$$'s for diving.

My wife and I have stayed there several times and always enjoy ourselves. There are several dive boats within 15-30 minutes drive from the Condos. While there, we get tanks and anything else we need from the Force-E shop in Boca Raton which is about 20 minutes from the Condo.
Boca Raton Scuba Diving Center - Dive store in central Boca Raton

One suggestion for flying into the Ft Lauderdale airport. After you get your luggage, one person should stay with the luggage at the airport and the other should take the shuttle bus to the rental car center. You then pick up your rental car and drive back to pick up your dive buddy and luggage. Otherwise, you have to drag tons of luggage onto the bus - NO FUN on a hot summer day!

Diving SE FL is fantastic! Enjoy your trip no matter where you stay.

Harry

Well with the beach option, you could go to Pompano Beach. I think the diving is better there than West Palm. You have better soft corals at Pompano Beach. However, you often get pretty fierce currents out there and some chop depending on when you go. Things tend to be flatter in the summer. Closer in to shore should be easier. There is something like 3 bands of reefs there.

You could go down to Key Largo. There is plenty of diving down there that is 30' or less. You have hard corals and lots of things to gawk at. Also, in the shallow dives, you should not get much current. It is "easy" diving and very good for new divers. It is a bit of a trip because it is off shore. In my opinion, the diving in Key Largo is easily the best in the state.

Key Largo is a bit challenged as far as beaches go. It is mangroves close in. I am sure that some of the hotels will have fake beaches which might be good enough. Key Large also has that strange and quirky Key atmosphere. I like it.

Key Largo has kayaking, bird watching, numerous bars and restaurants and some local attractions.

PatW:

Well with the beach option, you could go to Pompano Beach. I think the diving is better there than West Palm. You have better soft corals at Pompano Beach. However, you often get pretty fierce currents out there and some chop depending on when you go. Things tend to be flatter in the summer. Closer in to shore should be easier. There is something like 3 bands of reefs there.

You could go down to Key Largo. There is plenty of diving down there that is 30' or less. You have hard corals and lots of things to gawk at. Also, in the shallow dives, you should not get much current. It is "easy" diving and very good for new divers. It is a bit of a trip because it is off shore. In my opinion, the diving in Key Largo is easily the best in the state.

Key Largo is a bit challenged as far as beaches go. It is mangroves close in. I am sure that some of the hotels will have fake beaches which might be good enough. Key Large also has that strange and quirky Key atmosphere. I like it.

Key Largo has kayaking, bird watching, numerous bars and restaurants and some local attractions.

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Wow Pat..
Clearly you have not seen much of Palm Beach diving....there is no comparison. Niether Key Largo or Pompano compares. Not only does Palm Beach have much healthier reefs, it has much more biomass....more of all fish, large and small.
It is EASY to PROVE. I'd be happy to.

Steve: the diving in SE Florida is fantastic. I have not dove Miami, but I've dove most of the other locations from Jupiter to Key West and they all are great in their own way.

Key Largo will be nice since you can do some very very shallow reefs followed by some deeper ones in Islamorada or the wrecks once you get comfortable. If you decide to dive on the mainland then Jupiter to Miami have much to offer. If you look at the following thread, I've posted (as have others) a few ideas for someone else asking a similar question a couple of weeks ago, you'll need to scroll down a bit for my response: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/fl...ve-sites-variety-wrecks-reefs-sharks-etc.html

I've stayed at this place on Islamorada and was happy with it: Key Largo Hotels & Resorts | Ocean Pointe Suites | Florida Keys Oceanfront Resorts

I've also stayed here: its a bit cheaper, not quite as nice but still pretty good value by Keys standards
Key Largo Hotels, Hotel in key largo, Bayside Inn Key Largo

Great Info!!!

Thank you for your replies!! Florida SB'ers Rock!

I have dove Jupiter (Feb '09) and Boynton (Feb '10) and loved the diving. Many thanks to JupiterMermaid & Joycestershell for being my host/guide on those trips.

This trip I want to start with easier dives as I have not been in the water nearly enough over the last two years. If I stick with Palm Beach County area for the whole trip instead of splitting between Key Largo & Palm Beach are there some good shallow/easy dives to start with? How about nearby shore dives?

As to Accomodations: Ocean Point Key Largo looks wonderful but $200 a night "special" may be a bit rough on the budget. Singer Island looks promising. I will research the other properties suggested as well.

Hmmm.... Palm Beach for 8 days or split it between Key Largo & PB???

mohave_steve:

Great Info!!!

Thank you for your replies!! Florida SB'ers Rock!

I have dove Jupiter (Feb '09) and Boynton (Feb '10) and loved the diving. Many thanks to JupiterMermaid & Joycestershell for being my host/guide on those trips.

This trip I want to start with easier dives as I have not been in the water nearly enough over the last two years. If I stick with Palm Beach County area for the whole trip instead of splitting between Key Largo & Palm Beach are there some good shallow/easy dives to start with? How about nearby shore dives?

As to Accomodations: Ocean Point Key Largo looks wonderful but $200 a night "special" may be a bit rough on the budget. Singer Island looks promising. I will research the other properties suggested as well.

Hmmm.... Palm Beach for 8 days or split it between Key Largo & PB???

Click to expand...

Steve, one of the best shore dives in the area is Blue Heron Bridge (deepest is about 20' during slack high tide). Lauderdale by the Sea also has great shore dives which are fairly shallow. Diving in West Palm Beach is shallower than Jupiter dives and does not have such a strong current. Those would be good dives to build up to the Jupiter dives. In the Palm Beach area, we have fantastic beaches and malls to keep the wife busy and happy. And "Jupitermermaid's Diver's Inn" is only $50 a night, much cheaper than any hotel anywhere, with usage of the kitchen to cook your meals if your budget doesn't allow eating out all the time . (Click on the link below my sig line for details).

Key West Inn in Key Largo is a condo style hotel near the marina. There's an online coupon at roomsaver.com that will get you a room at $69.95, although they did charge me $20/night for a 2nd person. Still a less expensive option than most of the hotels.

We dive with rainbow reef, which puts a guide in the water with you at no charge. That may be helpful if you haven't been in the water in a while.