Avoiding the worst of "cattle boat" diving

[decidedlyodd]

My partner and I just got back from a 2 week trip to Thailand. We were mainly there to spend time with non-diving family, but had planned to do about 3 or 4 days of diving in Ko Lanta too. I only ended up doing one day (and he only did 2) because of a combination of bad weather and me coming down with a nasty head cold. The diving we did do was pretty disappointing, partially because of poor conditions/sites but for me mostly because of what many refer to as being on a "cattle boat".

Because the conditions were poor, something like 5 boats ended up at the same site (Ko Haa lagoon) at the same time. There were people everywhere, running into each other, kicking every which way, people blowing through the site at full speed. On the plus side, the operator was well organized, had good food, employed knowledgeable dive masters. I felt they did an excellent job of managing that many people under those circumstances. That said, I just didn't enjoy the massive amounts of people or the whole pack of 4 people following the dive master around. He'd find a neat creature and everybody would crowd around to take a snapshot. I found it difficult to take photos the way I wanted to.

We mostly shore dive at home in Puget Sound. I'm comfortable planning our own dives at the more benign sites and doing more advanced sites with more experienced divers in a team. We get a lot of enjoyment out of just puttering around taking photos at our own pace.

We have taken a few short trips elsewhere. Right out of my open water, we went to Cancun for a wedding and did a day of drift diving on some shallow, lovely reefs near Puerto Morelos. There were just 4 divers with a captain and dive master on a 6-pack boat. A couple months later, we were in Puerto Vallarta for a vacation with non-diving friends. It's not really a big diving destination (cold, green water in the wintertime), but we had a great time diving due to excellent staff, a low key vibe and even got to see a giant manta! Again, we were on a small boat with 4 other divers, a captain and two excellent dive masters. Our most enjoyable dive trip to date was going to Catalina Island in southern California where we just shore dove without a dive master for two days at the Casino Park.

Looking forward, I'm trying to figure out how I can find the kind of diving I enjoy on vacation. I researched operators in Thailand by looking at their websites, asking around a little here on ScubaBoard and sending emails with some questions, but clearly I didn't ask the right questions.

Any tips others can offer for what to ask or look out for in the future?

What about other destinations that might lend themselves better to the style of diving we prefer?

I'm already considering a trip to Bonaire next winter since what I've read seems to fit what I'm looking for well. Are there other recommended destinations? Because of family reasons, we'll find ourselves in southeast Asia again, so I'm particularly interested in hearing about options there.

[herbdb]

Definitely Bonaire, you and your buddy can spend a whole dive on one photo subject. I don't think you will find thst kind of freedom anywhere else.

[OuterReefAdventure]

If you had the resources to go to Thailand this time, next trip perhaps you should check out the Philippines, There are many many spots which will allow you to enjoy the feeling that you are the only ones on the reef. Do some research on this board in the Asia Forum, I have dived in many locations in the Philippines and would be happy to assist you next time via email or PM..

Cheers,
Roger

[RoatanMan]

Find locations that offer dive operators which offer multiple boat departures that are segregated by specific levels of divers and their desires (photo/video/hunter or not).

We had a pretty good discussion in regards to what makes a cattle boat , and the general thought is that it really doesn't matter how high the diver count becomes... it is much different than that.

Roger mentioned the Philippines above. This is one place in the more pristine environments that is developed enough to split a group of 30 divers into 5 or 6 separate groups, depending upon skill and desires. Bonaire? Not so much- you're going to have to concentrate on shore diving there~ it aint what it used to be, but then again, what is?

In general, avoid boarding a boat with just one in-water DM and any number of noobs fretting over their rental gear.