Diving in Florida in Jan

[sbl212]

Hi!
I will be visiting a friend early January and wanted to use that as an excuse to get some diving in.
He's located in St. Cloud, near Orlando. I searched around a bit and it seems that the best diving anywhere near is around Jupiter which is 2hrs from St. Cloud. I want to get a couple days of dives in but I don't think I can drive there multiple days (but I'll definitely go there at least for a day). I know I can just stay there for part of my trip but I'm on a limited budget so that might not work. Is there any place close to the Orlando area to dive?

Also, what's the diving condition around there? Would a 3mil with a hood be enough or should I bring my 7mil?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Dive Right In Scuba 2]

Take a closer look at the springs. They are about 2 hours from you also and have multiple sites so you can take a day and hit a few of them. Crystal clear, fresh water, 72ish degrees year round.

 

[Steve_C]

Rainbow river is an easy pleasant dive.

 

[keller34]

Rainbow is nice but I had to dodge the crazies in the boats. Ginnie is ok, closer to Orlando is Blue springs in Orange county, then Jupiter for salt. You can also hit Manatee Springs if you want. You can do a search in google for Spring dive Florida and it brings up a wealth of info.

Florida Springs: Scuba Diving and Snorkeling in Florida Springs

Weeki Wachee is doable but you need to get with an instructor group and the one I went with was $40 but that also included the Park fee so after your dive you can enjoy the park.

 

[sheeper]

Jupiter has got some awesome diving. Highly recommended. a couple of great Jupiter dive ops are Capt Sl8r (www.jupiterscubadiving.com) and Jupiter Dive Center (www.jupiterdivecenter.com). you won't go wrong.

I'm not one for the springs. Personally, I NEED my sealife to call it diving.

also visit the Vero Beach Scuba Club on facebook or www.verobeachscubaclub.org a lot of our members dive too much
carpooling or meeting halfway to rideshare is always an option. Just post when you want to dive!

 

[sbl212]

Thanks everyone for your replys! I will look into those places.

 

[sportxlh]

Jupiter is a good saltwater choice, but make sure you watch the marine conditions since the winter can have terrible wave action. You'd hate to make the drive and have the trip cancelled.

Wetsuit choice is a personal tolerance type of thing...... I dive with a 7MM in Juipter during the winter but see anything from 3MM shorties to dry suits on other divers. Temps are likely to be in the low 70's.

Another option is the Epcot aquarium dive at Disney. Not cheap, but fun to do once or twice so you can cross it off your bucket list plus it is close to where you're staying. You don't have to be visiting the Disney park to participate but you need to make reservations well in advance of the date you'd dive.

 

[DeepSeaExplorer]

If you're not cavern/cave certified, I would head toward the ocean where there's a lot more diving to be had. Caverns can be your fallback plan in case of rough seas.

January can be a tricky month though. Seas could be rough or flat calm. It could be 50 degrees or 80. The water temperature will be more consistent than anything else, but I would bring the 7mm just to be safe.

 

[Steve_C]

Personally, I would rather go dive in the ocean and I prefer reefs at that.

Florida City is about a half hour from Key Largo. You can stay there for less than $100 a night including taxes.

Orlando to Key Largo is 4.5 hours. You could drive down in the AM. Catch the afternoon boats at 1. Spend the night in Florida City. Dive again the next day in the am and pm if you want. Then drive back and be home by 9 pm.