Never Been to Hawaii - Which Island?

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DjDiverDan

Contributor
Messages
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Location
Sunnyvale, TX USA
# of dives
500 - 999
Though I've been a certified diver for 24 years now, I've never managed to make it to Hawaii. I have been to Moorea, and enjoyed diving with the Reef Sharks, the Manta Rays, the Moray Eels, and the other reef life, but because of my location (Dallas) and general inability to get away for more than a week at a time, most of my diving has been in the Carribean - Grand Cayman, U.S. Virgin Islands, Martinique, and my very favorite, Cozumel. But I really want to plan a trip to Hawaii, and I'm wondering, which Island has the best diving for ME? I'm not a big fan of wreck diving - I'll do it, but I'd much rather see vibrant sea life, colorful corals, awe inspiring coral structures, and pelagics - sea turtles, sharks, eagle and manta rays, etc., than crawling through a sunken ship. I love drift diving, as long as the current isn't ripping so fast you need a reef hook, and while I enjoy swim-throughs, I think I'd find swimming through barren lava tubes boring. So, with those things in mind, which Island has the best diving for me? Oahu? Maui? The Big Island? Recommendations on where to stay and Dive Ops would also be appreciated. Thanks.

BTW, I'd also like info on water temps. Most of my tropical diving has been in water temps of 78-82, and my 0.5 mm fleece is just fine for that. Do I need more? Is adding a 2 mm Shorty and Hood enough? Or should I break down and get a full 2mm or 3mm wetsuit?
 
I'm not necessarily going to recommend an island since there are folks who compare them much better than I, however, I will remark about the realities of Hawaii diving.

Hawaii is literally in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and geologically fairly new (brand new in some areas!). As such it is rock and volcanic, and prone to constant currents which aren't conducive to growing large structures under water. Although the corals tend to be healthy, they are small and grow close to their volcanic bases. Sponges are also smaller and don't protrude into the current. The only coral trees you'll see are black coral, which I've only seen in protected alcoves, caves, or overhangs.

Hawaii is VERY different than the Caribbean. I compare Hawaii's underwater topography to the desert...may look barren at first glance, but there is a lot of life to be found if you go slow and know what to look for. This is why I strongly recommend that new Hawaii divers find an excellent dive guide so they don't miss anything.

As far as pelagics go, you just never know. On our last trip we saw two different types of Manta Rays, a Hawaiian sting ray, eagle rays, white tip and Galapagos sharks, and more turtles than you can shake a stick at. On the other hand, we've had trips where white tips and turtles were it for the big stuff.

I find that people either love diving Hawaii or don't care for it at all. I love diving Maui County waters and have well over 250 dives there, and am looking forward to another 1,000!

As far as exposure protection, you'll have to say what time of year you're thinking. In late summer the water is 79-81 degrees, but in the middle of spring it's closer to 71-73 degrees. Hawaii isn't "tropical" diving, it's "sub-tropical" which is colder.
 
As I'm sure others will point out, Hawaii is nothing like the Caribbean, (Coz is also my favorite), however I really enjoy the diving in Hawaii. It can be expensive by boat but there is some very good shore diving that I have personally done on both Maui and the Big Island.

A question that I would want to answer before answering your question is are you looking for a vacation with some diving, or are you going there to mostly dive dive dive?

I thought the diving out of Kona and the shore diving in the Puako area on the big island was some of the best I've done in Hawaii for variety of fish, color of the coral and reefs, and the manta dive. However, I MUCH prefer Maui as a destination for the size (much smaller and different things are way closer together so you don't spend your time driving the car) and as a diver, you can get to other islands (Lanai, Molokai, and Molokini) and find lots of different kinds of diving (drift, wall, cavern, shark) using Maui as a home base. We have used Lahaina divers as well as several of the other ops that make trips out to Molokini and found all of them to be excellent!

Others will chime in as well, and if you have any specific questions, feel free to PM me. We've been going to Maui for 20+ years and although I'm hardly a local, I'd like to be some day!
 
We've been to Oahu, but none of the other islands.
Hawaii is expensive. From Colorado, it cost us about 2.5 times as much as a trip to Mexico.
It's a much longer flight (again, this is obviously dependent on your starting location), with Cozumel or Cancun being less than 4 hours away, vs 8-9 hours to Hawaii.
Oahu is amazing. Hiking in the jungle is something not to be missed. Ditto Pearl Harbor, the Polynesian Cultural Center, etc.
As far as the diving goes... the wrecks are excellent, but there's a limited number available. The reefs were only so-so. Honestly, I'd say the reefs are comparable to the shore diving off Cozumel.
We will probably make another trip to Hawaii, but not to Oahu.
 
tunaman, do you know of a good shore dive on maui between lahaina and napili or not too far from there, and a dive shop nearby to get tanks (and guide?) from? will be there next year to visit family. i know the big island pretty good but not maui. thanks!
 
tunaman, do you know of a good shore dive on maui between lahaina and napili or not too far from there, and a dive shop nearby to get tanks (and guide?) from? will be there next year to visit family. i know the big island pretty good but not maui. thanks!
Pretty much all your options in that area: Lahaina Divers - Maui Beach Diving They also rent, I've gotten tanks from them. Located right downtown in Lahaina if that's convenient to where you're staying. I don't know why they don't list Mala Pier - it's practically walking distance from their shop. Maybe because they boat dive it at night. It is near an active bot channel also. Another list: http://www.shorediving.com/Earth/Hawaii/Maui/index.htm

The other tank rental option nearby is the Maui Dive Shop in Kahana Gateway. It's convenient since it's on the main road north of Kaanapali if you're staying up in that area or towards Napili. Last one on this list: Maui Dive Shop Locations | Dive Shops on Maui | Maui Dive Stores | Surf Stores on Maui. Note that only that location or the Lahana Gateway location rent dive gear - some of the others are snorkel only.

Tiny Bubbles is in in North Kaanapali. All they do is guided shore dives. Scuba Dive Maui Ka'anapali Lahaina Hawaii Snorkel | 808.870.0878 | Tiny Bubbles Scuba Diving Specializing in Private Scuba Dives.Snorkel Tours. and Scuba Diving Instruction on Maui | Let's Get Tanked

So does Kapalua Dive Co. farther north. Kapalua Dive

Arguably the best dive in that area is Mala Pier in Lahaina. Ask at Lahaina Divers about the legal entry though - hint it's the more difficult one.

We dove Kahekili Beach, that's one to do with Tiny Bubbles with the scooters - it's shallow for a long way out. So is Kapalua Bay afaik.

Black Rock is also a good dive in Kaanapali but the access/tank availability at the Sheraton changed recently. IDK all the details but I believe you have to be a guest to rent from the operaton on-site now. Read the first couple posts on the shorediving.com listing for entry options.
 
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While Hawaii diving has it's own unique attractions - endemic critters, different scenery, and often some big stuff - if colorful coral and coral structure is important to you that's not the place to find it.
 
Thanks for the info. To answer Tunaman's question, it would be a combination of dive and vacation. When I go to Coz for a week, I typically dive 5 days out of 7, 2-tank morning dives, with 1, maybe 2 night dives. But Coz diving is so easy - just ride the current, the hardest part of the dive is climbing back on the boat. I used to do the "dive, dive, and then dive some more" trips, but I'm pushing 60 and too old and out of shape to dive 4-5 times a day every day. I'd like to dive at least 3 days, maybe 4, but a 2-tank morning dive trip is plenty for me, and there's a lot of Hawaii that I'd like to see above the water. And if it's not drift diving, where I actually have to work swimming out against the current and swimming back to a fixed mooring boat (like my dives in Moorea), I might cut back on the number of dive days.
 
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