Diving in India - advice needed

[devikaraman]

I'm a BSAC diver (DL) who has just moved back to India and I would like to continue diving. After doing a bit of research there seem to be just 3 or 4 places in India where I could dive - Goa (west coast), Pondicherry (east coast), Lakshadweep / Lacadives (islands off the West coast) and the Andamans (islands off the East Coast)


Currently can't do Andamans or Lacadives due to lack of time but still want to go diving in April.

I've never dived in India and don't know anyone here who does. I'm in touch with Barracuda diving in Goa and Temple Adventures in Pondicherry. Has anyone ever dived with these organizations before and if anyone has, I'd really appreciate an honest opinion of what they were like as I'd really like some background before I go diving.


I would also appreciate it if anyone could let me know about good dive centres here and whether there is anyone I should watch out for. From my understanding, the dive operator Lacadives - based in Havelock, Andamans is the oldest and best dive operator in India but any feedback from experiences there from any member?

I would be really grateful for any sort of information as I've not been diving in the country before and as I know no one here who dives, I really don't want to go in blind.

Cheers,
Devika

 

[Diver0001]

There must be good diving around Trivandrum. Have you looked there? There wasn't much infrastructure when we were there 15 years ago but it struck me as a perfect place to start a dive shop. We went snorkeling there and although the coral was badly damaged there was a lot of life in the water. Even saw a nautilus in shallow water there.

R..

 

[eternaljonah]

Hi Devika
i have dived alot here in Pondicherry as i live next door in Auroville. the diving in Pondicherry is deep(30m) and good, as for the dive center temple Adventures(check them out on Facebook) they have well maintained equipment and a good crew. they even do Nitrox. As for the andamans i found that Dive India was Great.

Where are you located in India... if you have any more questions about diving in india let me know.

 

[onejubb]

Barefoot scuba in havelock, andamans is a great dive centre. Totally recommend them. And the diving is pretty awesome. Esp. The deeper sites like dixons pinnacle and johhnys gorge. They also do trips to barren island, which is supposed to be pretty awesome.

 

[Lacadives]

Hi Devika,

We are not based in Havelock like the rest of the dive centers in the Andamans. We instead have 2 dive centers on the mainland, one at Wandoor and the other at Chidiya Tapu, both are just 45 minutes from Port Blair!

Our Wandoor dive center is based at a research and conservation center called ANET. It is located very close to the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park!

Our dive center in Chidiya Tapu has access to some of the best dive sites in the Andamans! Cinque, Rutland etc are a mere 45 minutes boat ride via our custom dive boat - The Explorer.

Contact us on info@lacadives.com if you require any info. or need any further help planning your trip.

Regards,
Lacadives Team.

 

[Edward3c]

I'm a BSAC diver (DL) who has just moved back to India and I would like to continue diving. After doing a bit of research there seem to be just 3 or 4 places in India where I could dive - Goa (west coast), Pondicherry (east coast), Lakshadweep / Lacadives (islands off the West coast) and the Andamans (islands off the East Coast)
…
Cheers,
Devika

Hi Devika,

It might help other readers if you gave a bit more information about your experience, for example has all your diving been in the UK? What type of diving are you interested in?

I know as a BSAC Dive Leader you can:

• Deploy a Delayed Surface Marker Buoy in mid-water
• Deploy and recover a shot
• Administer O2
• Plan and manage a dive site (once known, i.e. you’ve dived it before)
• Rescue a buddy from 15m and land them.
• Manage a rescue situation
• Safely lead those less qualified on a dive

All assessed as part of your qualification

• Dive to 50m (providing you’ve done the progression dives)

Post qualification

Plus all the other bits you learned at Ocean Diver and Sports Diver.

Of course you have Thailand within easy reach, worth looking at BSAC Thailand.

Kind regards

 

[scubajunky17]

How does andaman diving compare to the rest of Asia, is it good for big stuff ?

 

[vkalia]

How does andaman diving compare to the rest of Asia, is it good for big stuff ?

I've been diving in the Andamans since 2000, so I can give a reasonably good perspective.

If you go for any single aspect of diving, there are better places in Asia. Want macro? Sulawesi is better. Want big stuff? Perhaps Yap, or Layang Layang for hammers/whatever. However, there are very few places that have a mix of everything: we get exotics such as as ambon scorpionfish, mimic octopus and the recently-discovered blue-ringed octos (all found by our team); we do get big stuff (mantas, sharks... although manta sightings have been down for the past 2 years, for some reason). But what we get that very few other places is the immense fish density: huge schools of trevally, jacks, fusiliers, barracudas; plentiful groupers and napoleons, etc. One benefit of there being only line-fishing in these parts, so far.

It isnt the sort of diving where you dive for 50 min and see one exotic animal for a minute. It is the sort of diving where you dive for 50 min and have stuff to see the entire time. And you can keep going back to the same sites over and over again, without getting bored - especially if you are an experienced diver and have gotten over the getting excited phase.

In the interest of full disclosure, I run Diveindia - we are the oldest dive center in the Andamans, with bases in Havelock [the center of diving in the Andamans] and Neil. If I may toot our horn a little, no one in the Andamans has more dives in these waters than us. Pretty much all the top sites of the region, like Johnny's Gorge, Dixon's Pinnacle, etc. were found by us and named after our local staff.

That being said, Barefoot mentioned above is a very good & professional dive center, as are our friends @ Lacadives. Both are very highly recommended as well.

In Pondicherry, Rob & gang @ Temple Adventures are an excellent crew to dive with. People who are passionate about diving first and foremost, and a very solid group of professionals.

In Goa, Venkat @ Barracuda has been around for a very long time and also runs a very tight and professional outfit.