First time traveling to hawaii!!!!!

[mrbeast1414]

Hey guys,

SO this Saturday my family and I are going to Hawaii for the first time! I am super excited because not only do I get to hang out in Hawaii for a few days but also do some diving! My dives are already scheduled. I am doing the Manta Ray Night Dive and the 3 tank advanced (both in Kona, Hawaii).

But this is my first time traveling and carry scuba gear. I would prefer to bring my own gear because that is what I feel the most comfortable in. What gear should I bring? MAsk, reg, BCD? I only have a carry-on to carry gear or else I would bring it all .

Any advice regarding bringing gear and also other tips about traveling and diving? What to look out for once I get there? Tips and tricks?

Thanks everyone!

Nick

P.S. It's with Jack's Diving Locker.

 

[daz88]

Take all the gear you think you will need. It's your gear, you might as well use it. I travel to Hawaii at least once a year and bring everything I need while diving there. (not have to bring the wetsuit, hood & boots) And you save a few bucks normally by having your own gear.
I normally pack my BC, fins, mask (in a hard case), knife, etc. in my dive bag (checked bag), and carry my regs., computer & cameras in a carry-on. Try to minimize what you take on the boat. If you have a mesh bag to carry your stuff on & off the boat that is usually the best. Sometimes it's difficult to store a big dive bag on a smaller boat. (but not a problem, just easier with a mesh bag)
A small "dry box" is nice to have to put cellphone and misc. in it while on the boat. that way you don't have to worry if it get splashed. Just be careful with putting the room key (card style) and the cellphone next to eachother in the box. On my last trip my key didn't work a couple of times after diving. Had to get them to re-program it at the front desk until they hask me if I had it next to the cellphone.
And if you had a good time & good service on the dive boat.....give them a tip. The guys working the boats aren't making big bucks. have fun!

 

[caymaniac]

You'll love the Big Island. There's plenty to see, the volcano is worth seeing but the Mantas are tops.

"Point of Refuge" is worth going to, next door to the park is a great snorkel/dive spot where we spent over an hour with 21 dolphins.

But best of all the Mantas are worth seeing

There's plenty of other fish to see too.

 

[DiveMaven]

Is your dive number correct at 0-24? If so, did you tell the folks at Jack's this before booking the "Advanced" charter? I don't know if they have a screening process or not and require a certain amount of experience, but if they do and you aren't qualified, you might rethink it.

For example, just recently a woman lied to get on a Maui charter and wound up at 173 feet on the backwall of Molokini because she couldn't control her bouyancy. She not only jeopardized her life, but also the life of the DM who had to go down and get her. Another example would be a inexperienced diver on our boat who had extreme difficulty reboarding the boat in rough seas and nearly lost his teeth in a bad fall when he finally made it on board.

IMO people think diving in Hawaii is "tropical easy", which it can be. However, being out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with nothing around, the waters can be extremely challenging and not for the inexperienced diver as well.

Not trying to burst any bubbles, just want you and everyone on your boat to be safe and have a great time.

 

[caymaniac]

Is your dive number correct at 0-24? If so, did you tell the folks at Jack's this before booking the "Advanced" charter? I don't know if they have a screening process or not and require a certain amount of experience, but if they do and you aren't qualified, you might rethink it.

I doubt it will make a difference, last time I dove with Jack's there were a large number of Jappanese on the dive that apparently had never dove previously, and if they had it was impossible to tell. They were crashing into me and other divers, there were standing on the coral, they destroyed several of my photos as they came rushing in to see what I had found...that was fun?
I went with Big Island Divers on my last trip and there were more experienced divers on that trip, there were a few snorkelers though...they stayed at the top. It was an awesome experience, we had 13 Mantas come in to feed.

 

[Teamcasa]

Bring all of the gear you can, besides the only clothes you need are a pair or two of shorts, two shirts and some flip-flops. You will end up buying a few more Hawaiian shirts while you are there anyway.

The manta dive is an amazing experience.

 

[neonistic]

If you are really concerned about gear, bring your mask/snorkel and reg. Jacks is a great shop and I wouldn't worry about the gear that they rent. If you have extra room and weight, bring your BC and fins. The manta dive is easy. The other dive might test your skills. I recommend getting a rescue streamer as well as a SMB. Just in case.

 

[tarponchik]

I guess it is too late, but pick up a dive shop as close to manta ray watch as possible. On a long trip, your family can puke all over the boat.

 

[friscuba]

Puking is generally all about the surface interval, few puke on a boat that's underway. Pretty much all the dive operators launch out of the same harbor for the night dive. There are a couple snorkel boats that do only the Keauhou site, I'm thinking only one of them even dives at this point as both had their buildings damaged in the tsunami and one definitely lost their gear. If seasickness is a severe issue, do a one tank charter, or better yet, take a bonine in the morning and another about two hours before the evening charter.

 

[Jack'sDivingLocker]

Aloha Nick,

We look forward to diving with you! It can be difficult for some divers to decide whether to bring their own gear or use rental gear. Personally, I like to have my own gear because, like you, I just feel more comfortable in my own gear that I am used to. But it can certainly be a pain to travel with. If you decide to use our rental gear, let us know and we can provide whatever you need. I would suggest bringing your own mask at the very least.

Someone mentioned that you might not meet our experience prerequisite. I checked your reservation and you do. The diving in Kona is not difficult. But you should be comfortable with deeper diving, possibly drift diving, have good buoyancy control, etc. The whole point of the advanced trip is to have some flexibility in what we do and where we go.

Another diver mentioned a group of Japanese divers that may not have been certified. That would have been on one of our regular morning dives. We do take beginners and we do not put certified divers in the same group in the water. My guess is that this group of divers (and it does not matter where they are from!) was certified but inexperienced. I am sorry if that particular dive did not meet the expectations of that diver. We do our best and the vast majority of the time our divers walk away having enjoyed a wonderful time. But every dive shop has had divers with less than desired skill. We try to help those divers improve. If our guide did not try to get those divers off the coral, then that is something we would definitely want to know about. I'm glad that diver had a good time with Big Island Divers. They are a good shop.

Nick, if you have any questions, you can contact me directly at angela@jacksdivinglocker.com. See you soon!

Mahalo, Angela