How do you pack for a dive trip?

[CrackedConch]

A simple question, but one I thought might be helpful, especially for such a gear intensive sport in the age of heightened security that restricts carry on items, reduces total weight allowed and number of bags allowed.

So, how many bags do you normally take on a dive vacation? What goes in your carry-on and what goes in the cargo hold? How much clothing and other 'stuff' do you take like books, mp3 players, sunscreen, towels, hats, etc.?

I tend to pack my reg/computer, BC, mask, fins and logbook in my carry on. My carry-on is the Oceanic At-Pak4 which has wheels, a large main compartment, and straps on the outside for securing fins. Wetsuit and non-essential gear like lights, knives, snorkel, cheap underwater camera, clothing and everything else goes in my large Akona bag in the cargo hold...

I go very minimal on clothes and toiletry items. Usually a small shaving kit, toothpaste, deodorant, etc. A couple of t-shirts thinking that I'll likely buy one on the trip, a couple of shorts, swimming trunks, sandals and a couple of polo shirts for dinner.

 

[Cacia]

Okay, I think I am pretty good at this!

I put my suitcases out, open in my bedroom the week we will travel. As we think of items, we throw them in. Example, I come across my Suunto...I throw it that direction, etc. Then, the day or two before, we systematically attack our items.

One bag has our two sets (or one) of dive gear, one has clothes, one has my Pelican case with camera items that gets put inside a huge hockey bag for camouflage. We each need to each check two bags which can come in just under 50 pounds. We weight them with the bathroom scale. If something is over, we shift a heavy item to a carry on. The carry on is always a roller bag which needs to contain one spare change of clothes, and a swimsuit, a laptop, a baby size down comforter and my down pillow.

Gear and clothes are used to distribute the weight and pad things like regs and masks. Overflow on the return gets stuffed into the hockey bag around the Pelican box.

Toiletry items get packed in checked bags wherever they fit and put inside ziplock bags so they don't leak on our stuff.

Once we are on the plane, I have my down pillow (rolls up teeny weeny!) and the crib comforter which we share. I put the roll-on carry on in the overhead for take-off and once underway it fits at my feet for a foot rest....I am the Comfort QUEEN!

Going through the airport any extra items get leashed on top of the pull along. Sometimes we have long layovers in someplace like Guam, so if we don't get a room, I have no problem finding an empty gate (lights are usually off) and stretching out with my "bedding" and ear plugs, with my purse under the pillow and the alarm on my Stinger set. I can sleep anywhere with my eyemask and earplugs and 5 mg of Valium.

The only REAL problem with the new travel restrictions with liquids is the no water business. What a PITA. We always travel with big bottles of our own water and now we cannot. I bet more people will get hit with DVT, etc than ever get blown up, but that's the deal now. the flight attendants have been pretty good about serving water throughout the flight.

I try and print the e-mails regarding hotel and rates and throw them in the bag just so I have a dated record of the agreement. That has been handy many times when the final bill gets presented.

I always take Kona coffee grinds in a ziplock for the room.

I ask JB his packing advice and he just said "are you really going to USE that?"

 

[swisstrav]

quite simple. things which you can not afford to loose, go into handcarry. for me: cameras, housing, 2x strob and dive comp. everything else is checked baggage.

on the way home, strobes go sometimes into cargo too (heavy). but never on the way to location and changing planes is even worse i.e. risk for loosing your checked baggage is much higher.

 

[SDAnderson]

Almost everything goes in checked baggage. Long ago I got tired of feeling like a refugee after a day of tromping through airports with an overstuffed bag full of possessions strapped to me and gave it up. I use large pelican cases for luggage and split everything between them, when something goes missing I'm cross for a day until the waylaid bag catches up with me. The pelican boxes are marked "LIFE SUPPORT EQUIPMENT - DO NOT DELAY" and have a packing list attached that includes my contact information. Carry-on is reserved for travel papers, reading material, a fresh shirt and dainties and a small camera.

So far, traveling light has worked out just fine (and it has been years) and my back loves me for it.

 

[Doc]

A simple question, but one I thought might be helpful,

and oft discussed

So, how many bags do you normally take on a dive vacation? What goes in your carry-on and what goes in the cargo hold?

I agree withthe above posters. Leave the dive gear (except a prescription mask and computer) in your checked baggage.

I tend to pack my reg/computer, BC, mask, fins and logbook in my carry on.

Really? Why bother dragging the BC, mask, reg and fins into the cabin? On a long flight, and I have been on any number of 22 hour plane flights to go diving.... I'm packing changes of clothing plus a few t-shirts and my bathing trunks. I don't care if my luggage doesn't show up. With that and a Visa Card- I'm good!

Other carry-on items? Camera Gear, C Card, FRS Radios (for airport seperations) Big fuzzy socks, sunglasses, pills (I like the 5mg of Valium idea but tend to go with Naproxen and Ibuprofin), plus figurative and literal airplane survival gear: Between me and "Herself" we have been through 3 airplane crashes (or very close depending upon how strictly you define the word "crash"). We do not stray far from our lace-up tennis shoes, we wear long sleeve/pant cotton and we both carry Surefire flashlights in our pockets. Smoke hoods? Yes. Okay, so we have issues, but you should carry what will make your flight "survivable", however you may define that. Luxury items have their place too !

I'd rather use my limited dimensions and weights of carry on to best advantage. We used to carry water as Caroline mentioned. Since that is now verbotten, we just freeze it solid. It will pass most all TSA staffers- don't try to figure out why.

My carry-on is the Oceanic At-Pak4 which has wheels, a large main compartment, and straps on the outside for securing fins.

At the selling price of $100 for that Oceanic there are a lot better choices. At $40 there are similar choices. At the Salvation Army- there are all but identical ones.

That model is way under the maximum dimensional airline limit. Go the maximum sized ones allowed, but watch the weight of what you stick into it.

Beware of admitting that you have dive gear (like your hanging of your fins on the outside of your carry on). Some misguided but well-read gate agent might smoke you for the antiquated (but still on the books) SCUBA Gear surcharge. This went back to the days when people would actually drag cylindres and lead weights along on dive trips, but it's still on the books and ready to be misinterpreted by some freak-for-the-rules gate nerd.

Wetsuit and non-essential gear like lights, knives, snorkel, cheap underwater camera, clothing and everything else goes in my large Akona bag in the cargo hold...

Non essential. Well- depends on your deffinition. For funny shaped people going to difficult dive environments- they might want to try and carry the thermal exposure suit aboard. In the odd chance you get seperated from your luggage- if you can rent it... who cares? And btw... what's a "cheap" u/w camera... one of those single use pos? I'd agree, but then again... why bring one? Any "real" camera should be checked. That they might steal.

I go very minimal on clothes and toiletry items. Usually a small shaving kit, toothpaste, deodorant, etc. A couple of t-shirts thinking that I'll likely buy one on the trip, a couple of shorts, swimming trunks, sandals and a couple of polo shirts for dinner.

Sounds about right, but also like you had already decided... everybody carries what they will. I have seen people lug along coffee makers with the necessary additional electrical transformers just to watch the transformers melt into a smoky puddle of plastic.

I even saw one woman haul in two Sam's Club cases of bottled water to Roatan.

Then there's the guys with 30cuft ponies brought to Cayman.

Consider this please- any and all readers... If your "need" to drag your regs along as carry-on is based upon your fear of theft, please do the math...

Theives only steal what they can easily secrete, remove from hightened secure areas and then sell at a reasonable profit.

Have you ever tried to resell SCUBA gear, even unused? Try selling something to Play-it-again Sports... they don't want SCUBA gear period. Why? NO ONE WILL BUY IT.

Theives may steal UW Camer gear, hey- that is marketable. But to haul your hoses and reg into the cabin... really?

This is from 40 years of dragging SCUBA gear on airplanes.

It has become so odious that we leave one full rig at the place we go twice a year in Roatan.

 

[webhead]

Consider this please- any and all readers... If your "need" to drag your regs along as carry-on is based upon your fear of theft, please do the math...

Theives only steal what they can easily secrete, remove from hightened secure areas and then sell at a reasonable profit.

Have you ever tried to resell SCUBA gear, even unused?

How does a thief know he is stealing scuba gear unless you pack your gear in a clear bag or have a banner on it saying - scuba gear inside?

My gear goes into a regular suitcase and since security doesn't check claim tags with luggage tags anymore (remember one airport did that years ago), it's not that difficult for someone to wander off with your bag from baggage claim. I'm guessing it doesn't happen that often since thieves know most people put expensive stuff in carry-ons. With the new rules, I'd expect baggage theft to go up. Just my guess.

And yes I have tried to sell used gear and was successful. Look at the gear exchange forum. Lots of stuff for sale there.

I do agree that preventing theft is not the most important reason to use for packing. The possiblity of lost bags and delayed bags is more important to me. Also weight. I've been know to pack regs in carry on to get my checked bags under 70 lbs and now 50 lbs. In the US, I can't remember the last time I had my carry-on bags weighed.

 

[Damselfish]

We each take one checked, one carryon, one personal item. We fit as much of regs/computers, masks, camera, toiletries, a few clothes in carryon/personal as we can. One whole carryon is actually my husbands camera gear, housed DSLR. Last trip we added a 3rd small checked bag because we checked regs and of course the liquid toiletries and that pushed us over the edge weightwise.

Carryon is not all about avoiding theft. To me it's more about avoiding getting stuff trashed by luggage goons, or lost. Speaking as someone who checked regs for the first time a month ago and had all checked bags all lost for a few days. Fortunately on the way back but could have as easily been on the way there. And when it finally arrived one bag was pretty trashed inside, nothing permanently damaged, but that was just luck. I've also had checked bags lost on the way. Fortunately only for a day, but a Visa card could not have cured everything where we were, and I wouldn't have wanted to use the rental gear there any more than I had to.

 

[Doc]

And yes I have tried to sell used gear and was successful. Look at the gear exchange forum. Lots of stuff for sale there.

You're thinking like an honest person. Theives largely go to pawn shops. Less of a trail and instant gratification for their "needs". SCUBA gear is very difficult to secrete and export from secured areas. They go for the small and light if at all. Luggage violations and theft are way way down since 9-11. Airlines won't gloat about it because they would be admitting there was a problem at all- previously.

I do agree that preventing theft is not the most important reason to use for packing. The possiblity of lost bags and delayed bags is more important to me. Also weight. I've been know to pack regs in carry on to get my checked bags under 70 lbs and now 50 lbs. In the US, I can't remember the last time I had my carry-on bags weighed.

Most of us eventually travel outside the US. International checked bag weights are 75# and yes, they do quite often weigh and size carry-on.

My Visa card has always given me anything I really needed. That and a .45 ACP

 

[Jcsgt]

I have started placing a medium sized, hard-sided cooler in one of my checked bags. Inside this, I place my compass (removed from my computer console since it's liquid-filled), and an array of other items that may be broken or squashed during handling/flight. It's a very inexpensive investment, comes in a variety of sizes, is relatively light and is very hard to break.

Also, the cooler is very handy for safely hauling back "souvenir liquids" at the end of a trip. Just be sure to place all liquids inside plastic zip lock bags, then pack padding, such as clothing you would take with you anyway, in the empty spaces.