Guam/Saipan

[jiveturkey]

Has anyone dived Guam or Saipan? I can get cheap flights out of korea but I'm just concerned that the cost of accomodations and diving will outweight the cheapness of the flights. I can't remember for sure but $100 for 2 tanks seems to ring a bell. I hear the vis is great but how is the diving?

 

[chickdiver]

I lived on Guam for 2 years. While it is not *the best* diving that the westpac has to offer- it is phenomenal by most standards. Vis is average 100' (we used to consider 80' vis a "bad day"), and the water is a constant 85 degrees year round. There are only a handful of sites that you need a boat to get to, as most are easily accessible shore dives. I am not sure about pricing, as it was 10 years ago that I was there, but I would suggest trying to contact either MDA (Micronesian Divers Association) or Guam Tropical Dive Center- these are 2 good operations that I know for certain are still doing a whopping business out there.

Good luck and enjoy it!

 

[chickdiver]

Oh- I meant to add, in addition to the great vis- there are fabulous reefs and some really cool wrecks, inlcuding Japanese seaplanes, a Zero, the Tokia Maru/ Cormoran wreck (a WWI German vessel and a WWII Japanese vessel which actually lay partially on top of each other), the Kitsugawa Maru (another Japanese vessel vintage WWII), the "Seabee Junkyard" which is a treasure trove of WWII "stuff". Apra Harbor is full of 1940's (and older) glass bottles (mostly Coke and Pepsi) and other stuff like that. Gab Gab Beach has the best reefs, and the old Japanese Fuel Piers are also a good place to hunt for "artifacts". There is also an old seaplane ramp that was once a stop ont he China Clipper run that has some good stuff too.

 

[chris_b]

jiveturkey once bubbled...
...I'm just concerned that the cost of accomodations and diving will outweight the cheapness of the flights...

Guam can be pretty cheap to stay. We stayed in a triple room a couple of years ago for a week for $250 total. It was the "local rate" but not difficult to get. The hotel was not one of the fancy ones, but not a dive either. I think it was called the I.T.C. hotel; it occupied a few floors in an office building near the Tamuning post office.

Car rental was really cheap, too, also nothing luxurious. I think on the order of $140/week. I had yet to start diving at the time, but I did a lot of snorkeling off of one of the beaches in the northwest corner. Mostly what I remember was really great vis.

We're thinking of going again for a week this summer as a side trip from Japan (also has cheap tix to Guam) so I've been looking for Guam dive ops. It looks like the best value is MDA; they have a "club" you can join for $60 that includes some free dives and gets you discounted charters It looks like two tank trips are usually $35 or so, their schedule, with prices, is here.

What sort of prices are you seeing for Korea to Guam? We're thinking of flying to Japan via Korea to visit some friends in Seoul, if Guam is cheaper that way, we might just go from there.

Chris

 

[jiveturkey]

chickdiver once bubbled...
Oh- I meant to add, in addition to the great vis- there are fabulous reefs and some really cool wrecks, inlcuding Japanese seaplanes, a Zero, the Tokia Maru/ Cormoran wreck (a WWI German vessel and a WWII Japanese vessel which actually lay partially on top of each other), the Kitsugawa Maru (another Japanese vessel vintage WWII), the "Seabee Junkyard" which is a treasure trove of WWII "stuff". Apra Harbor is full of 1940's (and older) glass bottles (mostly Coke and Pepsi) and other stuff like that. Gab Gab Beach has the best reefs, and the old Japanese Fuel Piers are also a good place to hunt for "artifacts". There is also an old seaplane ramp that was once a stop ont he China Clipper run that has some good stuff too.

How deep are these wrecks? I won't do any training for decompression diving until later this year.

 

[jiveturkey]

chris_b once bubbled...
Guam can be pretty cheap to stay. We stayed in a triple room a couple of years ago for a week for $250 total.

mmm...i can understand how you see this as a deal but I'm used to backpacking. In most parts of Asia, I could pretty much live for a month on $250. lol

The cheapest I've seen tickets to Guam/Saipan was last November when they were going for $100US. Usually they are more than double that price but it's still cheap. High season the price is much more. Then again, for just over $200, you can also fly to Manila from here. That price is pretty regular except for the high season in the winter. I paid about $225 for flight and hotel for 3 nights in Anilao last June.

 

[chickdiver]

The deepest of those wrecks is the Tokia Maru/Cormoran. The two touch at 130'. The others are all less than 100', so they are easily within the recreational range!

 

[AliKat]

I lived on Guam 10 years ago, and still get the e-mails from MDA. MDA has great rates if you live there and belong to their diving club. However, I think you can still get decent rates with MDA or GTDS if you drive in and make your reservations face to face. In other words, if you have one of the hotels make them for you, you will be paying the "tourist" rate of $100+ per two tank dive. I did a dive with GTDS a couple of years ago and paid $35. Now, this did not include any gear, tanks, or food, and I set up my own gear.

There may be some tech/decompression dives to be done on Guam, but the wrecks are all pretty much above 130. The deepest one I know of is at 120.

 

[chris_b]

jiveturkey once bubbled...


mmm...i can understand how you see this as a deal but I'm used to backpacking. In most parts of Asia, I could pretty much live for a month on $250. lol

hehe, yeah it won't beat out SE Asia, but while I was living in Japan, it was a real treat, like visiting a little slice of the USA. I would never have thought I would be excited to see a K-mart or go back to driving on the right side of the road

The cheapest I've seen tickets to Guam/Saipan was last November when they were going for $100US. Usually they are more than double that price but it's still cheap. High season the price is much more.

Wow, that is cheap. About the cheapest we can get from SW Japan is ~$400 roundtrip. Maybe I oughta check out some Korean travel agents... thanks for the info!