Wind Dancer in Cocos - Any feedback, please?

[mantajohn]

I'm planning a Cocos trip - which for me will definitely be a once in a lifetime special.

After much research, i had hoped to go on one of the Undersea vessels, but they seem to have a strong preference towards group bookings which is not helpful for singletons or buddy pairs trying to book up a long way in advance.

I've been on Wind Dancer (when it was in Grenada) - excellent trip, so i am thinking of looking at that as an alternative. Obviously everything about the vessel has changed since then owners, skipper, crew, destination, refit.

Does anyone have a recent experience of Wind Dancer in the Cocos.

As its the most recent lob in Cocos, i wondered how the dive guides etc are. Also, i read somewhere that the dive tenders might not be so good in the rougher waters of Cocos.

Many thanks if anyone has useful info.

Cheers

John

 

[Dom@DiveAdvice]

Hi Mantajohn - trust you are well and still exploring the amazing marine life of our planet. Have I personally been on the Wind Dancer at Cocos - no - but have I been on her elsewhere - yes. She is a strong heavy boat and is probably very comfortable for the 312 mile passage to Cocos, which at times during the wet season from June thru November can have inclement weather and lead to an unpredictable ride. I just had clients on her and they gave me good feedback on the boat, and the diving, but I am sure that part of the reason they were happy was they had secured space on a trip at a greatly discounted rate. I have been on all three boats of the Undersea Hunter fleet and never been disappointed - they are a class act and personally I feel they do a better job at Cocos than all the others - but they do cost more ! At the moment I have over 40 trips to Cocos listed for the remainder of the year - some our charters, some that we book for groups or other agents and which have spaces, and others scheduled by the boats. So if they all cost the same rate, and you could get the dates you wanted at the best time to be there, which would you pick ?
We have a 12nt trip on the Undersea Hunter for August 16-28 with 2 spaces on it - and another on the Sea Hunter for Sep 8-20. Both prime time. Send me a note and I am happy to see what we can do for you.
Best Dom
Dom@Diveadvice.com
DIVE ADVICE TRAVEL - Welcome to Dive Advice Travel

 

[mantajohn]

Dom

Thanks for your reply. Your SB posts are always helpful & informative.

I have also been on Wind Dancer elsewhere (Grenada). But it now has a completely different crew, new owners, 2 new cabins etc.

Do you know what sort of Dive tenders they are using now? Ribs or solid vessels? Also, any info on Dive guides. As the newest boat at Cocos, i had assumed they would have the least experienced crew/guides. Dancer website isn't overly helpful, as many of the pix on the Cocos page are actually from when it was in Grenada.

My first pref was Undersea group, but i do not want to be tagging along with a group who are filling the rest of the boat.

We are looking at Sept/Oct 2012, so have the time to hopefully plan & get it right.

Cheers

john

 

[Dom@DiveAdvice]

Hi John - apologies for late response - been travelling and don't get to access Scubaboard while I'm away.

With regard to Wind Dancer and your questions concerning the tenders, they are currently using 2 zodiac-semi-rigid inflatables. The ladder is at the back of the boat, and should be fairly easy to get back on board. But since there are 22 divers plus guides on each boat, there is a slight space issue. Maybe that’s why they organize the “bascule arrière” or back roll on a “who’s ready” basis, instead of getting everyone into the water together.

On the guides, they know the sites very well, and are probably veterans of Okeanos or may even have spent time on the Sea Hunter boats but my most recent client had the feeling that they were maybe more concern about the comfort of the passengers on board the ship than about diving. On a recent trip they didn't go into the blue once, unless at the end of the dives for a few minutes, which is often where one might have some of the more exciting encounters. However on the other hand, as long as you’ve got plenty to see near the rocks, why bother? Overall a good solid vessel but the tenders are not covered and one might not want to spend too long at sea in them !

If you compare that to the heavier fibreglass tenders of the Sea Hunter fleet, which have a lot more space, fewer divers, are covered and have twin engines, then one might hope that in the longterm the Wind Dancer might purchase similar equipment !

I should also remark on your comment about the Undersea Hunter fleet <After much research, i had hoped to go on one of the Undersea vessels, but they seem to have a strong preference towards group bookings which is not helpful for singletons or buddy pairs trying to book up a long way in advance>. The reality is not that most of their trips are taken by groups of people who know one another - in fact most are chartered by agents like ourselves who then offer them to individuals, couples and small groups from their client base, so on most trips it is a diverse group from almost anywhere in the world. As our company has offices in the US and Europe, we tend to fill them with a fairly broad spectrum of English speakers from both sides of the pond and beyond - on one of our charters last month we had pax from six different countries ! If you are planning ahead for September 2012, we have 3 charters - one on the Argo and a 10 and 13 night trip on the Sea Hunter, so let me know if you need more details.
Best Dom dom@diveadvice.com

 

[mantajohn]

Dom

Thanks for your V helpful post. I actually took the plunge about 2 weeks ago & booked Wind Dancer for Sept. 2012. Your explanation of how Undersea group work through 'agent charters' now makes sense of our interactions with their booking office. Instead of accepting a booking from us, they kept suggesting we contact agents (we'd never heard of) from all over & suggesting we book with them. I would have happily booked via yourself if i had understood what the situation was - but not via an agent that i'd never heard of in a country i barely know where it is!

Your comment of comfort over diving gives me a little concern. When on WD in Grenada my only real negative was that dives worked around meal times rather than vice versa.

Having booked Sept 2012, i'm still looking for a lob oct 2011. i'll check out your website & see what you have.

Cheers

John

 

[Dom@DiveAdvice]

Thanks John - I am quite sure that by the time Sep 2012 rolls around that the Wind Dancer will have ironed out any initial staring foibles and will be a finely oiled machine. I do hope that they choose to adopt different tenders but we have learned to live with the large zodiacs for a long time and I am sure they will be fine. For October 2011you should send me your e-mail and I will send you a copy of our 40 page availability update that we send out to agenst and clients and lists dates + availability of virtually every top live-aboard in the world. It really depends on how far you want to go but thoughts for Oct might be Galapagos, Malpelo, Sea of Cortez, Tiger Beach Bahamas, Palau at 25% discount, or perhaps my favorite Komodo Indonesia. Drop me a note if you want me to sedn the list. Best regards, Dom dom@diveadvice.com