I am going to be traveling to Hawaii June 9th-23rd staying in Oahu, Kauai, and Maui with my 3 sons ages are 12,14,15 (all PADI certified open water). Can anyone suggest good sites and outfitters to dive with? I have heard about "the tunnels" in Kauai and "the cathedral" in Maui but want good spot for their first dive. Thanks for your responses.
Hawaii trip in June, suggestions on where and who to dve with while there??
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Tunnels is a beach dive on Kauai's northshore. It's one of those dives that should really be done with a guide. Arguably the best one is Jeannette at Fathom Five. For a "first" dive assuming you're visiting in the order you posted, I'd suggest contacting Gabe at Kaimana divers on Oahu. I don't know much about Oahu diving so will leave that to others.
One of the best boat dives on Kauai is Sheraton Caverns - lots of big turtles and easy swim thrus.. It's off Poipu on the south side. Fathom Five keeps their boats there as does Seasport Divers. Either is a good choice - I personally like Seasport better. I'd recommend you stay in that area since there's a lot to do there, Poipu Beach is pretty epic and most of the operators are in that area. There's also a dive operator at the Sheraton - they have a RIB last I saw for local dives. Bubbles Below is the other Kauai operator with boats - they're in Port Allen farther west. They'll have better access to dive sites along the Na Pali coast which are slightly different than the south Kauai sites. A good shore dive in south Kauai is Koloa Landing, shallow for a long way out and easy access down the old boat ramp. Lots of fish typically, visibility has been hit/miss when we were there. Once it changed between dives. There's not a lot of other good shore dives on Kauai but most of the boat dives are pretty good. I like Fast Lanes a lot but it might be too much for newer divers. Brennecke's Ledge is another popular dive.
I'd suggest you stay in Poipu and drive up to Tunnels one day. There's not a lot of other diving options on the north shore since it shuts down for about 6months a year. No boat operators and just a couple shore dive guides. Staying around Kapaa/Nawiliwili means dealing with the cruise/airport traffic and Sea Sports is the only dive shop in the area - for boat dives they send you 20mins. south to Poipu anyway.
Onto Maui.
The Cathedrals are one of the signature Maui dives. (there's 2 of them) Access is via boat from Lahaina harbor. Lahaina Divers goes out there daily as does Extended Horizons. LD has two big Newton dive boats - in July they could be crowded like their website picture. But they segment by experience and Hawaii law is 8 divers/DM max. EH only takes a max of 16 - plan to get wet on the ride home. There's also Hawaiian Rafting Adventures (bigger boat that it sounds like) I only know them from seeing them bouncing around at the Cathedrals once. Probably a fun ride over and back though. There's at least one other boat operator in the Lahaina harbor, I can never remember the name. And one who books on both Extended Horizons boat and Maui Diamond II out of Ma'alea - that's at least 1/2 hr. south of Lahaina. Maui Dive Shop(s) also have a large Newton dive boat based in Ma'alea - they feed divers from all their locations to it. They're likely to have a higher percentage of new divers.
The other signature dive on Maui is Molokini Crater. It's everything from decent shallow diving inside the crater (lots of fish since the snorkel boats feed them) to deeper dives off the points to the famous Backwall which is often a live drop and about 300' of blue water. You might see white tips sleeping in the sand inside the crater if you head back towards Maui but the reef is patchy. In some areas it's so thick you can't see the sand. That's where I've found frogfish twice - once a lime green. Closer in to where the boats moor the fish life is better.
Boats leave pretty early on Maui to beat the tradewinds. So it's a good idea to base near where you plan to dive. The drive between the Lahaina/Kaanapali area can be an hour with traffic. The Kihei boats all launch from the ramp so they leave as close to 6AM as possible to get back early. Typically their 2nd dives will be along the Maui coast. In Kihei, I often recommend B&B Scuba, Mike Severns or Ed Robinson's. B&B has about the biggest boat (40'), Severns has naturalist DM's so your kids will learn something and Robinsons is often our go to operator for specialty dives but we're not new divers. Ed himself often guides on Wednesdays and is good at finding stuff.
There's also at least a 1/2 dozen other dive boats working out of the Kihei area. I've no exp. with any of them.
With 3 kids to save money do some shore diving. Both West and South Maui have a lot of good options. Some good dives in West Maui are Kapalua Beach, Old Airport Beach or Black Rock at the Sheraton. The two Maui Dive shops in the area rent tanks/weights/gear as needed - and a dive flag which is required. Another god dive in that area is Mala Pier in Lahaina - it can be done as a more difficult legal entry or via Lahaina Divers boat at night. It's really shallow and there's a lot of stuff living there. Arguably the best dive in that area.
In South Maui you've got all the beach dives. Some of the better dives are Makena Landing, 5 Caves (rougher entry) Wailea, Ulua, Polo beaches and in Kihei there's also the Kamaole beach sites. They tend to be more crowded with beach goers so I'm not sure if that hurts the vis. I really like Wailea Beach, the south point isn't very deep and you see some rare things there - one trigger is found nowhere else and I found a whole family of Cornetfish there once. Also some bigger Puffers - if they're guarding babies they can be a little aggressive.
I suggest you hire a guide for your first shore dives. It's almost the ame price as a boat dive but they'll get you oriented and show you how to find stuff. People who've dove in the Caribbean often say Hawaii is barren by comparison - which is true, there's not a lot of soft fans/corals but Hawaii also has one of the largest endemic fish populations in the world. A guide can show you how to find them. There's a lot of guides on Maui but a couple I'm familiar with are Shaka Doug at Shaka Divers or Maui Dreams Dive Co in south Maui or Tiny Bubbles in West Maui. Scuba Shore Diving Site Listing for: Maui, Hawaiian Islands
hth,
One of the best boat dives on Kauai is Sheraton Caverns - lots of big turtles and easy swim thrus.. It's off Poipu on the south side. Fathom Five keeps their boats there as does Seasport Divers. Either is a good choice - I personally like Seasport better. I'd recommend you stay in that area since there's a lot to do there, Poipu Beach is pretty epic and most of the operators are in that area. There's also a dive operator at the Sheraton - they have a RIB last I saw for local dives. Bubbles Below is the other Kauai operator with boats - they're in Port Allen farther west. They'll have better access to dive sites along the Na Pali coast which are slightly different than the south Kauai sites. A good shore dive in south Kauai is Koloa Landing, shallow for a long way out and easy access down the old boat ramp. Lots of fish typically, visibility has been hit/miss when we were there. Once it changed between dives. There's not a lot of other good shore dives on Kauai but most of the boat dives are pretty good. I like Fast Lanes a lot but it might be too much for newer divers. Brennecke's Ledge is another popular dive.
I'd suggest you stay in Poipu and drive up to Tunnels one day. There's not a lot of other diving options on the north shore since it shuts down for about 6months a year. No boat operators and just a couple shore dive guides. Staying around Kapaa/Nawiliwili means dealing with the cruise/airport traffic and Sea Sports is the only dive shop in the area - for boat dives they send you 20mins. south to Poipu anyway.
Onto Maui.
The Cathedrals are one of the signature Maui dives. (there's 2 of them) Access is via boat from Lahaina harbor. Lahaina Divers goes out there daily as does Extended Horizons. LD has two big Newton dive boats - in July they could be crowded like their website picture. But they segment by experience and Hawaii law is 8 divers/DM max. EH only takes a max of 16 - plan to get wet on the ride home. There's also Hawaiian Rafting Adventures (bigger boat that it sounds like) I only know them from seeing them bouncing around at the Cathedrals once. Probably a fun ride over and back though. There's at least one other boat operator in the Lahaina harbor, I can never remember the name. And one who books on both Extended Horizons boat and Maui Diamond II out of Ma'alea - that's at least 1/2 hr. south of Lahaina. Maui Dive Shop(s) also have a large Newton dive boat based in Ma'alea - they feed divers from all their locations to it. They're likely to have a higher percentage of new divers.
The other signature dive on Maui is Molokini Crater. It's everything from decent shallow diving inside the crater (lots of fish since the snorkel boats feed them) to deeper dives off the points to the famous Backwall which is often a live drop and about 300' of blue water. You might see white tips sleeping in the sand inside the crater if you head back towards Maui but the reef is patchy. In some areas it's so thick you can't see the sand. That's where I've found frogfish twice - once a lime green. Closer in to where the boats moor the fish life is better.
Boats leave pretty early on Maui to beat the tradewinds. So it's a good idea to base near where you plan to dive. The drive between the Lahaina/Kaanapali area can be an hour with traffic. The Kihei boats all launch from the ramp so they leave as close to 6AM as possible to get back early. Typically their 2nd dives will be along the Maui coast. In Kihei, I often recommend B&B Scuba, Mike Severns or Ed Robinson's. B&B has about the biggest boat (40'), Severns has naturalist DM's so your kids will learn something and Robinsons is often our go to operator for specialty dives but we're not new divers. Ed himself often guides on Wednesdays and is good at finding stuff.
There's also at least a 1/2 dozen other dive boats working out of the Kihei area. I've no exp. with any of them.
With 3 kids to save money do some shore diving. Both West and South Maui have a lot of good options. Some good dives in West Maui are Kapalua Beach, Old Airport Beach or Black Rock at the Sheraton. The two Maui Dive shops in the area rent tanks/weights/gear as needed - and a dive flag which is required. Another god dive in that area is Mala Pier in Lahaina - it can be done as a more difficult legal entry or via Lahaina Divers boat at night. It's really shallow and there's a lot of stuff living there. Arguably the best dive in that area.
In South Maui you've got all the beach dives. Some of the better dives are Makena Landing, 5 Caves (rougher entry) Wailea, Ulua, Polo beaches and in Kihei there's also the Kamaole beach sites. They tend to be more crowded with beach goers so I'm not sure if that hurts the vis. I really like Wailea Beach, the south point isn't very deep and you see some rare things there - one trigger is found nowhere else and I found a whole family of Cornetfish there once. Also some bigger Puffers - if they're guarding babies they can be a little aggressive.
I suggest you hire a guide for your first shore dives. It's almost the ame price as a boat dive but they'll get you oriented and show you how to find stuff. People who've dove in the Caribbean often say Hawaii is barren by comparison - which is true, there's not a lot of soft fans/corals but Hawaii also has one of the largest endemic fish populations in the world. A guide can show you how to find them. There's a lot of guides on Maui but a couple I'm familiar with are Shaka Doug at Shaka Divers or Maui Dreams Dive Co in south Maui or Tiny Bubbles in West Maui. Scuba Shore Diving Site Listing for: Maui, Hawaiian Islands
hth,
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My three favorite shore dives on Oahu are Makaha Caverns, Shark's Cove, and Hanauma Bay.
Electric Beach, Magic Island, and Point Panic are the three sites with the least amount of post dive sand.
Still haven't made it to 3 Tables, but that's another popular spot; it has a rock feature also referred to as "the cathedral".
-Duck
Electric Beach, Magic Island, and Point Panic are the three sites with the least amount of post dive sand.
Still haven't made it to 3 Tables, but that's another popular spot; it has a rock feature also referred to as "the cathedral".
-Duck
For sure.....
If you are here on Oahu in June you can't go wrong with 3 Tables, Shark's Cove and even the Haleiwa Trench. Easy shore dives for sure and lots to look at and take photos of. If you are up for a boat dive or two let me know!
G
If you are here on Oahu in June you can't go wrong with 3 Tables, Shark's Cove and even the Haleiwa Trench. Easy shore dives for sure and lots to look at and take photos of. If you are up for a boat dive or two let me know!
G
NWDiverdown
Registered
If you do end up on O'ahu, come check us out at Ocean Legends. We have boat and shore dives going out on a daily basis. If you don't feel like diving with an outfit, we can at least point you in the right direction.
Dr. Lecter
Contributor
For Oahu, I've had very good experiences with Kaimana Divers and Hawaiian Diving Adventures and still go out with them occasionally when I'm not diving off a private boat. Unless Ocean Legends has recently changed management, I would not recommend them.
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