Capntavis
New
I'm wanting to dive the Keys in October. I'm hoping to find an all inclusive with diving or a great dive operation that can help me out. Can I please get some help from locals or past visitors?
Diving in the Florida Keys recommendations
- Thread starter Capntavis
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drrich2
Contributor
I'm not familiar with an all-inclusive. The Florida Keys is a long stretch of islands, and you probably don't be doing the whole Keys, but rather a piece of it. From what I hear from different people, the 'upper Keys' (Key Largo & Islamorada) are said to have the better diving.
I've dove with Rainbow Reef Dive Center while staying at the adjacent Courtyard Marriott - my trip report. Big boats, carry quite a few people, but ride well & they have free guide service included. I was really happy with them.
Another op. you'll see spoken well of on the forum if Quiescence; if you like a smaller boat with few divers but no free guides.
Key Largo is not a dense urban area with scary traffic. For supper, get out & drive up & down the highway till you see a restaurant you like. For a quick lunch you can snatch out of the mini-fridge between boat trips, get some groceries and Publix.
Richard.
I've dove with Rainbow Reef Dive Center while staying at the adjacent Courtyard Marriott - my trip report. Big boats, carry quite a few people, but ride well & they have free guide service included. I was really happy with them.
Another op. you'll see spoken well of on the forum if Quiescence; if you like a smaller boat with few divers but no free guides.
Key Largo is not a dense urban area with scary traffic. For supper, get out & drive up & down the highway till you see a restaurant you like. For a quick lunch you can snatch out of the mini-fridge between boat trips, get some groceries and Publix.
Richard.
webcubus
Registered
+1 for Quiescence. We stayed right next door to them. Did a Spiegel Grove/Benwood trip with them and it was awesome. I would have liked 2 more days on the Spiegel - that thing is massive and covered with sponges and creatures.
Dove with Captain's Corner in Key West - pretty so-so. Their boat isn't great for a big group (which they had) and they didn't tell us to limit our bottom time on the Vandenberg, so we lost our second dive the first day. They begrudgingly comped us a second trip to the Vandenberg, but I would have rather had the extra dive. Southpoint had a nice, big boat so we were happier with them.
Dove with Captain's Corner in Key West - pretty so-so. Their boat isn't great for a big group (which they had) and they didn't tell us to limit our bottom time on the Vandenberg, so we lost our second dive the first day. They begrudgingly comped us a second trip to the Vandenberg, but I would have rather had the extra dive. Southpoint had a nice, big boat so we were happier with them.
sportxlh
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Capntavis: there aren't many all inclusive resorts in the Keys; however, many dive shops have deals with nearby hotels. The only true dive/hotel resort I can think of is Amy Slate's Amoray Dive Resort. I've never stayed there and know nothing about it. Additionally, the Key Largo Marriott has a dive shop on site. Also, in Marathon, the Hawk's Kay resort has an on-site dive shop called Dive Duck Key. I've used that shop and they are decent, but I don't really like the diving in Marathon all that much.
My favorite shop in the upper Keys is Conch Republic: I just got back from a long weekend in which we did 14 dives over three days (one day had a twilight and night dive: so 6 dives total). The shop happened to be focused on deep dives that weekend, which attracted me and why I made the trip, so 9 of the 14 dives were on the deep wrecks and deeper reefs that aren't dove very often. Had a chance to dive the Bibb for the first time and Dante's Reef for the first time. Like many shops, they keep an on-line schedule, so you can see if they are doing the sort of dives that interest you. I really like the staff at CDR, they've had very little turnover since I started diving with them in 2008.
I've also used Rainbow Reef and Quiescence. Both are good operations, but I don't need or want a guide, which RR supplies, so they aren't quite as attractive to me. The young interns in their training program are a really nice bunch. If you have a group of 4 or 6, Quiescence is great because you can book the whole six pack. It's not such a good choice for a solo diver, in my mind, since the boats are small and if you have to hook up with another group and just one of those divers happens to be an arrogant moron diver, the trip will be miserable (I've experienced this..... no fun!).
I agree that with drrich: it is easy to get around the upper Keys. I stayed 14 miles from Conch's Republics boat and it took me all of 15 minutes to get to the shop each morning. I've even stayed in Marathon and dove in Key Largo and it really doesn't take all that long to drive.
My favorite shop in the upper Keys is Conch Republic: I just got back from a long weekend in which we did 14 dives over three days (one day had a twilight and night dive: so 6 dives total). The shop happened to be focused on deep dives that weekend, which attracted me and why I made the trip, so 9 of the 14 dives were on the deep wrecks and deeper reefs that aren't dove very often. Had a chance to dive the Bibb for the first time and Dante's Reef for the first time. Like many shops, they keep an on-line schedule, so you can see if they are doing the sort of dives that interest you. I really like the staff at CDR, they've had very little turnover since I started diving with them in 2008.
I've also used Rainbow Reef and Quiescence. Both are good operations, but I don't need or want a guide, which RR supplies, so they aren't quite as attractive to me. The young interns in their training program are a really nice bunch. If you have a group of 4 or 6, Quiescence is great because you can book the whole six pack. It's not such a good choice for a solo diver, in my mind, since the boats are small and if you have to hook up with another group and just one of those divers happens to be an arrogant moron diver, the trip will be miserable (I've experienced this..... no fun!).
I agree that with drrich: it is easy to get around the upper Keys. I stayed 14 miles from Conch's Republics boat and it took me all of 15 minutes to get to the shop each morning. I've even stayed in Marathon and dove in Key Largo and it really doesn't take all that long to drive.
Key west is known for its night life..there in 2 weeks
Hello from Key Largo ,
Sharkeys & the Pilot house offer music at night , they also serve food . We are currently running a
dive special with the Holiday Inn - stay for 3 nights get the 4th free . Our boat is right along side of
the Holiday Inn Sea Dwellers Dive Center of Key Largo - Florida Keys Diving . Have a great trip in Key Largo !
Sharkeys & the Pilot house offer music at night , they also serve food . We are currently running a
dive special with the Holiday Inn - stay for 3 nights get the 4th free . Our boat is right along side of
the Holiday Inn Sea Dwellers Dive Center of Key Largo - Florida Keys Diving . Have a great trip in Key Largo !
divinginn
Contributor
I just stayed at Amy Slates,They had very nice rooms,nothing fancy but clean and comfortable,nice pool on-site and the dive boats about 50 feet from my room,this was on Key Largo.
sportxlh
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Key West is known for its night life in that it is an area where lots of non-diving tourists visit. There are crazy bars, laid back restaurants and outdoor venues. Its enjoyable to watch the sunset on Mallory Square and watch all the crazy people and street performers.
I like Key Largo's night life just fine as well, if not more, because I get sick of the crowds, noise and drunks in KW pretty quickly: Key Largo is much more laid back in my experience. There are a lot of restaurants on the water and I like to watch the sunset over the bay at one of them at least once on each trip.
I think the diving is better in the upper Keys, but the Vandy is a nice wreck dive in KW. You might want to take one day/night during your vacation to enjoy a double dip on the Vandy, visit some KW sites (Mel Fisher museum, Truman little white house, shopping/restaurants on Duval street, Ernest Hemingway's house, etc. etc.) during the afternoon and then enjoy the nightlife. The next morning, get back to KL for better diving.
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