Planning to dive Hawaii in July!

[CyberMarine]

Hello all,

My fiancee and I (basic and advanced) will be in Oahu at the end of July and we're hoping to get in a few dives around Oahu and maybe one or two other islands. We've never dove in Hawaii so I've been looking around for the "top 5 must-dive sites" around the islands and the dive shops that will get us there. Seems like the Big Island has the best diving?

Any help much appreciated!

 

[Dr. Lecter]

Check out Kaimana Divers and Hawaiian Diving Adventures on Oahu. In terms of best sites, most of them are going to be South shore wrecks like the Sea Tiger and YO-257, though Sharks Cove on the North shore and Makaha Caverns on the West side are both interesting reef/lava tube dives.

 

[scottitheduck]

Good advice by the Doc...... We can arrange trips to all shores! Summer is the best time to dive Oahu except no whales (ho hum)

G

 

[scuberd]

Some of my favorite reefs are just off Honolulu and an easy ride to them. Every island is different and unique. PM me or check out the webpage, I have over a dozen different dive sites on the south shore and I'm sure we can find what you are looking for.

 

[diversteve]

On Kona it's the Manta Night Dive. Either Kona Diving Company or Jack's Diving Locker do it - so do most of the other operators. For a shore dive it's probably Place of Refuge. Second might be the sites near Puako. Info on shore dives for every island: Scuba Shore Diving Region: Hawaiian Islands

On Maui it's Molokini Crater, Ed Robinsons, Mike Severns, B&B Scuba, others all do it. In West Maui it's the Cathedrals at Lanai. Lahaina Divers or Extended Horizons go there. Lahaina also does Molokini every other day if you stay in that area. Most of Maui shore diving is shallow. Best is hard to say but the better dives are probably Black Rock, Mala Pier, possibly Kapalua Bay. In South Maui probably Makena Landing or 5Caves/Graves. I personally like Wailea Beach but it won't make most people's top 5.

If you get to Kauai - the signature dive there is Sheraton Caverns. One of the best dives in Hawaii for sheer thrill is Vertical Awareness off Ni'ihau. It's an all day rougher boat ride though - only possible in the summer. I think they want an advanced card also. Or at least a decent # of dives. The best regular shore dive is Tunnels Beach on the north side - get a guide to see the best of. A decent shore dive on the south side is Koloa Landing. Either Fathom Five or Seasport Divers do all these.

Maui has the most diving potential. You've got Molokini 15-45mins. away (depends where you leave from) Lanai about a 30min ride - besides the Catherdrals there's some drift dives off West Lanai - a couple your g/f could stay in protected water nearby, all the decent shore dives plus you could go look for the Hammerheads off Molokai with Lahaina Divers. Might be too advanced for your g/f.

Whether Kona diving is better is subjective. It's the only place my buddy dove with several hundred spinner dolphins. Most of the shore entries on Kona are rougher - mostly lava to the waterline - or longer carries from the parking area.

One of the best dives of my life has to be the West Lanai drift. Our DM estimated that we saw 5000 (thousand) Moorish Idols holding in the current there. An equal # of tangs nearby - Yellows and some surgeonfish. And some black tips to keep it interesting. It was some years ago so IDK if that's changed. For pure fish life it's hard to beat Molokini - the snorkel boat feeding helps that. There's also a Manta cleaning station off Maui so it's possible to see them there. Nowhere near as dramatic and exciting as the Kona night dive though.

 

[Scubagolf]

I referred my nephew to Gabe at Kaimana divers last year and he was very happy with the experience.

 

[xariatay]

Never been to other Hawaiian islands, except the Big Island as we were there specifically to do the manta night dive. If you are renting car, should check out this at vrbo, free shore dive and we saw 2 hammerheads at Milolii... Good luck! Captain Cook Vacation Rental - VRBO 62707 - 1 BR Kona Coast House in HI, Tranquil Hideaway Cottage So Kona Free Scuba & Snorkel Tours
My trip report... http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/hawaii/462751-hawaii-manta-night-dive-2-steps-milolii.html

 

[Steelyeyes]

On Oahu Shark's Cove (Pupukea) and Three Tables are good diving in the summer when the north shore and windward side has little in the way of surf. Hanauma Bay is really cool but more touristy. The Corsair wreck is fun if you feel like finding a boat to take you there.

 

[RickyF]

Your fiancée really should get her AOW before coming if she can. A lot of the good wreck dives are past her certification.

 

[Dr. Lecter]

Your fiancée really should get her AOW before coming if she can. A lot of the good wreck dives are past her certification.

Last I checked, the suggestion is that a newly-minted OW diver not plan a dive below 60', not that AOW is prerequisite to ever diving past 60'. Some operators may insist on trying to sell her an AOW course, but AOW is neither technically necessary for diving wrecks in the 61'-130' range, nor necessarily indicative that she's capable of doing so.

That said, I agree that doing the AOW class first is probably easier because it tends to short-circuit any inquiry into whether you're qualified for a given dive you want to do. It shouldn't be necessary to Put Another Dollar In if you're already experienced in diving to deeper recreational depths, and it shouldn't be automagically sufficient for all bigger rec dives that you're a mighty mighty AOW, but that seems to be the way it is.