Choosing our perfect diving destination

[Chris Ra]

@chillyinCanada We did Sri Lanka (2 1/2 weeks) + Maldives (1 week, Ari atolls) two years ago and it was really fantastic. We'd love a similar experience somewhere else in the world . You are right on the money with your recommendation. We were hoping that Yucatan + Cozumel could be similar in this regard (as @Trailboss123 also suggested).

How would Grenada, Belize or Grand Cayman compare to Cozumel / Yucatan?

 

[Wingy]

Not at all trying to sway you anywhere just re other areas not fitting your criteria - if you take Vanuatu for example you have the worlds most easily accessible continually erupting volcano to hike to and stay in a treehouse to watch the eruptions all through the night, blue holes, caves to explore, the Ni Van culture which is incredibly interesting and Port Vila has a little nightlife and casino. Diving the Coolidge wreck is awesome but I would not put Vanuatu diving as world class...mid level.

Another part of the world you can access quite easily via France or Milan is Madagascars islands - Nosy Be diving again midrange but above Caribbean and Reunion Island nearby also has reasonable diving. If you can't find interesting ..no amazing...things to do in Madagascar National Geographic has it wrong.

I do wish you the best time where ever you decide on - happy bubbles

 

[Chris Ra]

@Wingy Thank you for your reply. I've added Madagascar and Réunion Islands to our list. Vanuatu looks gorgeous, but something tells me that is very expensive to get and stay there . This is just a hunch.

Why do you rate Madagascar above the Caribbean? What are the differences?

 

[chillyinCanada]

@chillyinCanada We did Sri Lanka (2 1/2 weeks) + Maldives (1 week, Ari atolls) two years ago and it was really fantastic. We'd love a similar experience somewhere else in the world . You are right on the money with your recommendation. We were hoping that Yucatan + Cozumel could be similar in this regard (as @Trailboss123 also suggested).

How would Grenada, Belize or Grand Cayman compare to Cozumel / Yucatan?

Belize would be similar to the Cozumel/Yucatan suggestion.

Fly into Belize City airport, which isn't actually in Belize City (which is OK cuz not really anything to see there). Take a car/van to San Ignacio, inland. Hike Actun Tunichil Muknal cave, also referred to as ATM cave. ATM is an absolute must. Cave canoe trips and/or cave tubing, bird watching nature hikes, inland blue hole drops, a number of Mayan ruins, the most amazing of which is just across the border in Guatemala, so an overnight in Flores, Guatemala to be up early for Tikal ruins. (In my opinion, don't let anyone talk you into the 7 sisters waterfalls or the other high one, name escapes me) Then make your way back to Belize City to the municipal airport to take the puddle jumper flight to San Pedro (or Caye Caulker) and do local diving with easy access to beach bars, restaurants and a Caribbean atmosphere. You could also take a 3 tank day trip and dive the Great Blue Hole, followed by 2 of the prettiest dives found in the Caribbean. I don't know your budget but there are different ways to do Belize at a number of different price points depending on your personal standards/requirements.

I can't speak to Grand Cayman as I've not been.

If Cozumel, Yucatan, of course, you must see Chichen Itza ruins!

 

[Wingy]

@Wingy Thank you for your reply. I've added Madagascar and Réunion Islands to our list. Vanuatu looks gorgeous, but something tells me that is very expensive to get and stay there . This is just a hunch.

Why do you rate Madagascar above the Caribbean? What are the differences?

I haven't dived the Caribbean at all but my friend has - we met on LOBs in raja Ampat and Banda Sea so we have a similar "gauge" I guess - her yardstick.

A trip to Vanuatu is about the same price as a trip to Australia....unless you make friends with mostly naked chiefs who give you wonderous gifts. I can deal with the diving in Van being mid range because of all the culture and their sense of humour - Ni Vans are considered to be the happiest people in the world...they're hilarious. Arse boarding is a perfectly acceptable way to spend a few hours with your picaninnies laughing your head off ... It's sliding down the volcano flanks on your ass/arse. Who needs wifi

 

[KathyV]

Hello,

my girlfriend (25) and I (34; both SSI Advanced Adventurers with around 20 dives) are looking for a diving destination in 2020, however this is more challenging than we thought.

We have the following criteria regarding our trip:

- duration: around 3 weeks with around 7-10 diving days
- no liveaboard
- we want to see spectacular, healthy Reef, a lot of fish, maybe bigger fish. We are not really into muck diving yet.
- ideally, the accomodation should be beachfront or near a sandy beach (fine sand) with little to no rocks, so that you can swim or snorkel
- it would be nice to have interesting things to do and see besides diving during daytrips (waterfalls, ancient buildings etc.)
- we would want to stay the whole time at one place, two tops
- it would be nice to have some nightlife and cocktail bars around, but it shouldn't be a classical party destination

At first we were thinking of combining Cozumel and the Mayan Riviera, but we are also open to other options which fit our criteria.

We are not set on the time when to travel, but we think it's going to be in fall 2020.

Thank you for your help!

I agree that from Germany the Red Sea would be easy and excellent and there are many options for topside activities as well as diving. Sharm El Sheik is a resort area with nearby diving, and there are loads of historical sites to visit in Egypt.

Some European divers also like to go to the Canary Islands, I have never been there but you can do some searches on this forum to find posts by others that have taken dive trips there to see if it would appeal to you.

If you are thinking of the Caribbean then the Caymans are a great choice IMO. We usually go to Grand Cayman for a week and enjoy the topside activities and also do some diving on GC, including shore dives - and then we hop over to one of the sister islands of Cayman Brac or Little Cayman for a week of boat diving. I think that Little Cayman has some of the best diving in the Caribbean.

 

[peterak]

Bali is probably not a good representation of the “best coral” or density of fish that Indonesia has to offer.

Here are some latest photos from my most recent trip to Raja Ampat as an example: Amazon Photos

Very nice photos. Leaning toward mild underexposure works well.

 

[Chris Ra]

We've been browsing through the book "Best dives of the Carribean" by Joyce Huber and asked ourselves if it's a good idea to spend a week on Guadeloupe and then fly to Yucatan for the remainder of the vacation. Isn't the diving better in Guadeloupe than Cozumel? Any opinions on this?

 

[outofofficebrb]

We've been browsing through the book "Best dives of the Carribean" by Joyce Huber and asked ourselves if it's a good idea to spend a week on Guadeloupe and then fly to Yucatan for the remainder of the vacation. Isn't the diving better in Guadeloupe than Cozumel? Any opinions on this?

Guadalupe for great white sharks is all in cages. Socorro will offer more species outside of a cage..dolphins, whales, mantas, whale sharks, sharks..

 

[Trailboss123]

Guadalupe for great white sharks is all in cages. Socorro will offer more species outside of a cage..dolphins, whales, mantas, whale sharks, sharks..

I think he means this island of Guadeloupe: Diving in The Guadeloupe Islands | PADI Travel