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djmccarthy
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Keep the info coming. The more the better! discdogs thanks for the invite. I'll keep it in mind.
Diving Maui February 2010 - Need Recommendations.
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I just got back from Maui - did a Sunday charter to Lanai with Lahaina Divers. It sucked. The AL72's were a surprise, but not a big deal. the crossing was pretty bad, I'm used to rough waters in SD and our local charters would have canceled the trip if they had similar conditions. Both dives were 35 minutes with a Max depth of 60fsw. with a 45 min surface interval. This was mandatory and severely disappointing. i was back on the boat both times with LOTS of air left, and my computer barely registered the dives since we were only at 60' for a short time, most of the dive was well above 60' - which was good since they rushed us back into the water after 45min. Following the DM was also mandatory since they "choreograph" the dives with several groups (for the record i was in the "advanced" group) led by multiple DM's. The DM's rushed us at every turn, even at the surface trying to get us to descend faster. Because of the "choreography" there was very little time to stop and smell the roses. After the first dive, I asked the DM if we could stop chasing her around the reef and she said yes, but the second dive turned out to be cathedrals 2, so in order to see the formations we HAD to follow.
The do have AL100's, but if you want one, you will pay $15 extra per tank on top of your trip cost. A nitrox tank is $15 as well.
As Divemaven said, if you are in ANY way independent, do not use LD. I had read conflicting reports about their controlling the dives and LD was convenient for me. I wish I gone with a different op. Their style really ruined the dives for me.
while i'm ranting, anyone know what "GET + Fees" is? added nearly $30 to the cost of the trip (for 2 divers).
spencer
The do have AL100's, but if you want one, you will pay $15 extra per tank on top of your trip cost. A nitrox tank is $15 as well.
As Divemaven said, if you are in ANY way independent, do not use LD. I had read conflicting reports about their controlling the dives and LD was convenient for me. I wish I gone with a different op. Their style really ruined the dives for me.
while i'm ranting, anyone know what "GET + Fees" is? added nearly $30 to the cost of the trip (for 2 divers).
spencer
I don't know what "fees" they're adding, though there may be a per-person harbour usage fee. And if you didn't book directly with them, they may have added a "booking agent fee".
GET is Hawaii's General Excise Tax, approximately 4% (there's some decimal points after it, I just don't remember what they are).
Were the fees for nitrox, or the 100's? It would be very surprising if any Lanai operator let a non O'hana (extended family) dive off the leash. Guided diving is the norm in the State of Hawaii; dive charters that unknown tourists (even instructors) could do a non-guided dive with are unknown to me. There are even guides for a dive where all you do is hold on to the 30' deep bottom for a half hour!
DiveMaven
Contributor
Wow, what disappointing profiles! It isn't unusual for them to have to take the group back to the boat after 35 minutes due to air hogs, but normally they let those good on air hang out under the boat snooping around on your own. We really haven't had a dive shorter than 50 minutes to Lanai with them in the past 3 years (before that we were more limited by our air).
We have 2 charters to Lanai scheduled with them later this month, and I can frankly say if we have an experience even CLOSE to what you've described on our first charter, we'll be canceling the second and telling the owner exactly why.
I would encourage you to e-mail the owners and tell them of your disappointing experience. Perhaps they'll try to make things right.
We have 2 charters to Lanai scheduled with them later this month, and I can frankly say if we have an experience even CLOSE to what you've described on our first charter, we'll be canceling the second and telling the owner exactly why.
I would encourage you to e-mail the owners and tell them of your disappointing experience. Perhaps they'll try to make things right.
Easy girl, part of the story may have been the near gale force trade winds and small craft warning. Conditions have been pretty sketchy for channel crossings lately. You might have wanted to come back sooner than they did!
Sorry, but I've dove w/ LD many times and this is standard proceedure for Catherdrals 1 & 2. Sorry to hear your dive was short tho. Like the others said, they don't let, non-familiar people off the leash and they usually let you "hang" under the boat at the end of the dive. The reason they want you in and down quickly is so that you don't waste time and air on the decent and that you all get to and thru the caves as a group. Personally, I don't like the Catherdral cattle drives. If you see something cool there's not enough time to watch it or take more than 1 pic of it. But they always do at least 1 of the cattle drives on the trip to Lanai (usually).
Not defending, just restating why you experienced what you did and also so others can expect the same. Of course, the pushing or pulling of the group to keep up is always an issue on guided dives.
GET is general excise tax, we don't have sales tax here and everything gets GET. Fees could be a fuel surcharge...lots of companies (even most mainland lawn services) now charge a fuel surchage. You'd have to call and ask them what specifically the fees were. Taxes alone wouldn't have been more than 5%.
There are good and bad in all dive companies and also good and bad days.
Anyone want to go to Lanai on either Monday or Tuesday this coming week....ha ha ha!!! No way...w/ the 20-30+ sized waves coming in! Wonder what the whales will think of all that?
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djmccarthy
Guest
That helps to confirm my decision to use Ed Robinson's for Molokini and Extended Horizons for Lanai. Hope those waves disdogs mentioned calm down by February! I would hate to feel like I'm diving New England waters down there. 
Nitrox and AL100's were separate fees. $15 to use an AL100. $15 for a nitrox fill. Not sure what an AL100 of Nitrox would cost
The chanel crossing was indeed sketchy, and they warned us before we left. as I said, IMO, the dives should have been canceled. Just because the boat is scheduled doesn't mean it should go. Especially if it means that my diving will be negatively impacted because of their rush to get back to the dock. I would rather have had the boat canceled and done a few more shore dives than to do this charter.
The GET being approx 4% means that they added an additional 5ish percent with "fees", the entire "GET + fees" was about 9%. I just wish it had been mentioned before I got the bill (if it was I don't recall). oh well.
I also wish that it was advertised that the dives will be led with such a short leash. It was the surprises that chapped my ass most of all. If we had known going into it i don't think it would have been nearly so disappointing and/or we could have changed our plan.
again, oh well
Maui is off the list for future vacation planning for a variety of reasons anyway, so I won't have to deal with it again.spencer
Spencer
Same experience for us with LD. If you are newbie and like very tightly guided (rushed)dives with limited bottom time then LD is your op. Don't even think of stopping to see that turtle- must keep up with group or DM will come herd you back in line.
Same experience for us with LD. If you are newbie and like very tightly guided (rushed)dives with limited bottom time then LD is your op. Don't even think of stopping to see that turtle- must keep up with group or DM will come herd you back in line.
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