Calling all Saipan Divers

[riverserf]

I'm getting ready to move to Saipan and I'd like to gather as much information as possible on diving there, dive shops, etc.

I had recently contacted a member of ScubaBoard that lived on Saipan...but due to the Scuba Board crash, I lost those private messages.

"Speedy Turtle" told me tank fills were $5 but I was told there is a Korean dive shop that will fill tanks for $2.50. I'm curious if there are any other fees that will go along with diving. Alex from Speedy Turtle told me locals only pay for the tank fill and just go....which sounded great to me! But I remember at some of the parking lots there was an official attendant there and I'm wondering if there is any kind of parking fee, access fee, etc.?

Also, will the shops have any difficulty filling DIN tanks? I just got set up with a DIN first stage, though I bought the yoke adapter. I'm planning on buying a tank as soon as I arrive and want to know if a DIN valve would cause a problem.

I'm literally going stir crazy waiting for the move....bought all my gear just a few weeks ago from Scuba Toys and cannot wait to get to Saipan so I can start using the stuff.

If anyone can list an websites of dive shops that would be great too. I had a good experience with Alex from Speedy Turtle, but my wife is Korean so she might like to take her Open Water course from the Korean shop. I just don't know where it's at.

Any info would be appreciated!

 

[CARHILL]

What are you going to be doing in Saipan??? Tank rentals at Speedy Turtle are 5$ fills are more like 2 bucks. ST dive shop does have a DIN fill adapter you will be the only one on island with a DIN reg. I have three DIN tanks.
The diving is great here warm water year around. I noticed the gear you bought I don't think there is anyone that can service those regs here on island.

Dale
Still on the little rock in the Pacific and off the leash

 

[riverserf]

Dale,
That's great to hear about the tank fills from Speedy Tertle...I liked Alex when I was there. He was super nice and patient with my wife and I. I wrote a pretty long review of the trip but it was lost when scuba board crashed. I'll have to do that again.

As for the regs...I was afraid I'd have to send them off island to get them serviced. But, hopefully that won't be a problem. Where do you work? Speedy Tertle?

How long have you lived there? What else do you do?

Brad

 

[riverserf]

Okay,
gonna put a few links on here to other Saipan threads and to Scuba Board member's that live in Saipan or go there often. Why? When I type in Saipan into the search I get a lot of crazy results...so I've tried sifting through them and finding the ones that are useful.

Saipan info
Baby Sitting on Saipan
Diving in Saipan
Guam/Saipan
RikRaeder's comments on March/April conditions
RikRaeder's detailed trip report

A list of Scuba Board members living on Saipan or traveling there often:
Carhill
BuoyantC
dasaint
RikRaeder
debcov
Saipanman
Underexposed

 

[riverserf]

It won't let me edit my last post to include some new information so I guess I have to make a new posting.

Here are some blogs from Saipan divers:
Harry's World
Harry's awesome photo/video collection is here.
Mike Tripp's Saipan Scuba Blog...again great pics and vids.
Mike Tripp's Underwater World of Saipan -- a great video of the major Saipan dive sites. A feature I really love about it is the fish i.d. subtitles you can turn on or off. Great way to learn the names, scientific or common, while enjoying the dive scenery.


Here are some Dive shops:
Speedy Tertle - yes, it's spelled that way. Russian owned. Alex, or Sasha, the owner was really nice and patient with my wife and I when we dove with him this last spring.

AquaJet - Japanese/English - no idea what they are like.

All-American Divers (soon to be renamed "Dive Saipan" I think.) Korean/English
Here is a Korean website named DiveSaipan.com so I think it's the same people. I've heard good things about them from a local diver. Their English seems to be okay.


If anyone has any more, please list them.

 

[riverserf]

Just an update for anyone heading to Saipan: I've been living in Saipan now for about 3 months and diving a lot. I can now verify that the owner/staff at Dive Saipan do speak English. The owner is Jun-ho Lee and his English is great. His wife is Filipino so there's never any problem with that.

If you're interested in seeing some photos and scuba diving videos of Saipan then you should check out my blog: www.ahobbitsholiday.blogspot.com

There are a couple good videos to show you some of the sights at these dive sites:
The Grotto - Long and Short videos
Lau Lau Bay - where you can usually find a turtle or two
Obyan - Another shore dive.

Send me an email if you're coming to Saipan: Brad -> derksenbrad@yahoo.com

 

[riverserf]

Just wanted to update this message to include new websites and blogs.

I've been living in Saipan for about a year and half now and I'm loving it. The diving is incredible.

I'm now a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor. So, if you're coming to Saipan to dive (and who wouldn't dive while here?) send me an email.

derksenbrad@yahoo.com or scubablues@gmail.com
my SCUBA BLOG -
Scubablues.blopspot.com
My website (a work in progress) is -
SapainScuba.com

Contact me and I might be able to save you some money on hotels.