Maui Dive Ops

[scubadiva729]

Hello All,
Taking a trip very first week of April. Looking at a few different dive shops, but wondering if anyone has any advice. We are looking at Maui Dive Shop and Lahaina divers. There is good chance we might actually use both since we do want to get out to Lanai and Maui Dive Shop doesnt go out there. Has anyone used Maui Dive Shop?

TIA!

 

[mcohen1021]

I dove w Lahaina Divers 1 day to hit Molokai to dive with the hammerheads. They are the only shop that guarantees you will make it there. They travel up the coast and cross over at the shortest path to Molokai. You'll do a live negative drop because the currents and winds can be ripping. They were a great op, but I do prefer smaller boats and smaller crews. But to see the hammerheads, it was worth it.

I dove the rest of my dives on both trips to Maui with Ed Robinsons (take off from Kihei boat ramp)... Byrd is a great captian and the DMs Francisco and Dave were great.

If you do not have any hotel reservations yet, I highly recommend getting a private condo in Kihei. It's affordable (I paid $1400 for 11d/10n i think), better than a hotel and you can get out to awesome restaurants or cook in.

 

[scubadiva729]

Thanks for the advice for the hammerhead. We were debating on doing it or not. I heard that they are very hit or miss and more than likely not there during this time of the year. We have already booked our accommodations up at Royal Lahaina Resort. Have you done or heard anyone do the "Manta Dive" which I know is hit or miss with the cleaning station?

 

[Fishyhead]

A coworker and his wife recommended Ed Robinson but he was booked the week I was there in December 2019 so I ended up diving with Lahaina Divers. We went to Molokini one day and did a three tank trip on another day. The boat was pretty crowded but it had plenty of room - especially above the center deck for towels and other personal items which was nice. The DM/Guide "Mark" is a photographer too so he moved at the appropriate pace for me to take my own pictures and not feel rushed.

Off topic but if you like sushi, Miso Phat in Kihei near Maui Brewing Co. was great. Definitely busy when we were there so who knows what COVID's done to them.

 

[mcohen1021]

So with the hammerheads, the I am pretty sure its more hit than miss. But What I will say is that the visibility is very blue water, lots of particulate so you might strain your eyes wishing to get closer. Overall a very cool experience. Luckily for us, we only had nine on the boat that day but I could see it becoming a cluster…

Here’s a video I took, sorry its not great quality, but it is what it is


I thought the HI manta dive was on another island, but idk...?

 

[DancinDiver]

We have already booked our accommodations up at Royal Lahaina Resort. Have you done or heard anyone do the "Manta Dive" which I know is hit or miss with the cleaning station?

At the Royal Lahaina, you have very pleasant shore diving a couple hundred yards north and south of your door. There’s an easy reef just offshore at Kahekili Beach Park (Old Airport Beach) north of you. Black Rock just south of you is a simple morning or night dive. Mala Wharf at the north end of Lahaina itself is perhaps the best shore dive on Maui. We rent tanks from Maui Diving on Lower Honoapiilani Hwy very near Mala.

We’ve used Extended Horizons for Lanai, although their prices are quite high now in COVID times. It’s a tough time to be a dive op now. For Molokini and south Maui we really like Mike Severns. Fantastic people. They’re naturalists, and the dive briefing is focused on understanding the environment you’ll see.

The manta dive is on the Big Island, not within driving distance.

 

[mcohen1021]

BTW, as dumb as this sounds, there have been alot of shark attacks in Maui over the last 10 years. Not on divers, but those acting like bait - swimmers, snorkelers, etc. I avoided swimming in the ocean in South Maui.

 

[living4experiences]

Pre-COVID I went diving with both Maui Dive Shop (MDS) and Lahaina Divers (LD). LD is a cattle boat but could be operating at reduced capacity right now. The diving went fine, but there was a high diver-to-guide ratio, 1 to 6 or 1 to 8, which I did not like. There is a manta cleaning station in Maui called Olowalu Reef, but it's not really a "manta dive", just a known site for seeing mantas on occasion. When LD took us there, not one manta showed up. When I asked the guide if this was typical, he said it's a hit-or-miss to see any mantas.

I have dived more often with MDS, and I prefer their operation. Smaller crowds, better guide-to-diver ratio, and nice food amenities and hot coffee before the a.m. departure. Some of my favorite sites are Anthony's Wreck, Molokini Crater, Turtle Town. You'll be there at the tail end of humpback whale season and they will stop the boat to watch the whales. Lots of fun!

 

[bobmaggi]

We dive Maui every couple of years and have used B&B Scuba out of Kihei. Small family owned business that is usually first to arrive at dive sites but they do leave early and will leave if you are late! They are great people and my wife and I have enjoyed the times we have spent with them over the years.

 

[DiveMaven]

Please note that Ed Robinsons went out of business for boat diving a couple of years ago. The boat was sold to Pro Diver and after giving them a try a few times, I can’t recommend them. All boats are going out with reduced capacity right now, so even the bigger operators like LD are running very uncrowded boats. We’ve been diving with Maui Diamond II the past few trips and have been very impressed with the long dive times and crew. Don is the owner/captain and the crew take excellent care of their divers. We had great whale watching in December!