Ideas for dive sites for new OW divers

[lora9753]

My Husband and I just got certified for out trip to Costa rica last week. We got to Costa Rica and they cancelled all diving due to a huge storm. Obviously we were super bummed.

Now we are looking for a new trip to go on. We are thinking Cozumel or Belize. However I have gotten my self all worried now reading about the currents in cozumel, and then reading about diving accidents for inexperienced divers. Are there better safer places to start our diving adventures. We did our check out dives in puget sound. We would prefer to go somewhere warm now!

Any thoughts or advice?

 

[Max Speed]

Key Largo reefs

 

[ScubaSteve1962]

+1 for Key Largo Reefs

 

[diversteve]

Cozumel is often deeper drift diving. And you typically either stay with the DM or risk surfacing in boat traffic. Neither is great for new divers with possible air/buoyancy issues. Unless you want to hire your own DM. There's also a little intimidation because some operators surface the group when the 1st people run low on air - more experienced divers sometimes can be a little harsh when that's you. Not right IMO but it is what it is - they also paid for their dive.

The BVI's might be an option also. One of our group had 10 dives and she did everything we did. DiveBVI's website:

New divers can take comfort from the sandy sea floor surrounding our islands which limits the vast majority of our dive sites to a maximum depth of 80 feet.

IMO that's optimistic - check the depths/requirements here: Dive Sites | Dive BVI

It's nice diving, lots of fans, soft corals, low current. I don't remember any current in a week of dives except once. Many of the dive sites are sheltered by small nearby islands also. Even the Rhone wreck would be within your skill set later in the week - it's a pretty open wreck at 70' at the the bow - the rest of it is shallower. bviscuba.org lists all the operators in the area. We stayed on Virgin Gorda so used DiveBVI.

Parts of the BVI's can be a little pricey. Tortola is about the most reasonable. Virgin Gorda is more luxe resorts and vilas mostly. Although there are some reasonable small villa options on sites like vrbo.com. Leverick Bay resort was fairly reasonable but it's a little remote. If money is no object Little Dix Bay is stunning.

You could also do some dives of St. Thomas/St. John first also. Most people fly in there anyway - most movement within the VI's is by fast ferry - it's an hour or less from St. Thomas to Tortola. There's really shallow diving off the East End - one of the signature dives - Cow/Calf Rocks - can't be 40' deep anywhere. We did dives off Grass Cay that weren't much deeper. There's also wreck dives south off Charlotte Amalie - some as shallow as 30-40'. Blue Island Divers has an interactive map with details. And St. John is 1/2 hr. away - there's some good dives from there also. Even a car ferry so you can "drive" over.

Maybe consider Curacao also - it's all low current diving. We did a week of diving and only exceeded 80' twice to see something specific. Otherwise our dives were 40-60' along the reef. Since it parallels the shore navigation is pretty simple. The water is also amazingly clear - at some sites we saw the rope for the mooring ball a long way away. There's quite a few dive operators that cater to newer divers since they see a lot of cruise traffic also in town.

I consider it second only to Bonaire as the best shore diving in the Caribbean. At certain locations it's better. The advantage Curacao has is most dive sites are accessed off the beach. On Bonaire most are dive docks over the ironshore or more likely crawling over it. Compare them here: http://www.shorediving.com/Earth/ABC/index.htm

There's dive operators and food options at most Curacao dive sites - something Bonaire lacks once you leave town. Bonaire is worth the effort - just maybe not as new divers. Curacao is easier to get to - many Bonaire flights stop there first. In addition there's dive guides available for your initial shore dives - Bas Harts Diving, Relaxed Guided Dives or the Dive Bus are options among others.
Curacao Travel- Caribbean, Curacao, Dutch Caribbean lists it all.

From Portland have you considered Hawaii? There's easy diving off Maui. Molokini crater is the signature dive and usually calm - and shallow. Lots of fish and a chance to see smaller sharks also. Warm now also - I dive in a t-shirt there all summer til late fall.

And there's some easy shore dives also. Those can also be guided dives with operators like Shaka Divers or Maui Dreams Dive Co. Shore sites like Black Rock or Old Airport Beach near Lahaina don't exceed more than about 50'. Kapalua Bay/Beach to the north is one of the best beaches on Maui and the dive there is 40' or less. In south Maui there must be 1/2 dozen easy entry shore dives. Several good boat dive operators in either South or West Maui also. In West Maui, Lahaina Divers has the bigger boats and more of a mix of divers - 8 divers/DM is the rule there. In south Maui look at B&B Scuba or Mike Severns. The Severns crew are naturalists so it's more of an interesting ride.

 

[Painiac]

Congratulations to you and your husband on getting certified, and sorry that your first experience didn't go as planned! For what it's worth, I did my checkout dives in Cozumel years ago. Over time it has become one of my favorite places for dive vacations, but my choice to dive there with more experienced buddies for my first outing is something I seriously regret in hindsight for all of the reasons that you and Diversteve have already stated - deep sites with strong currents are not what you want when you should be getting more comfortable with fundamentals and enjoying yourself!

I won't repeat everything Diversteve said (all of which I agree with), but I would second a recommendation for Curacao. The diving primarily consists of easy to navigate walls that run parallel to shore. It's relatively easy to get to, it's warm, and there are enough interesting restaurants and bars downtown to make your time above water fun, too. A few of them are even hipster enough for people from Portland (e.g., places like Cafe Mundo Bizarro in the Pietermaaai area!) In my opinion, the diving is uniquely excellent and easy, plus the general "feel" and attitude on the island is very positive.

 

[Alvida]

When do you intend to take the trip? This time of year weather will be dicey in much of the Gulf, Caribbean and Mexico. Curacao and Bonaire are generally exceptions as they're out of the hurricane belt. As a new diver I also liked the Keys. Keep in mind though, many operators in the Keys don't put a divemaster or guide in the water with you unless you hire one. That may suit your wishes. Rainbow Reef in Key Largo does provide guided dives.

 

[ScubaSteve1962]

Rainbow Reef would be great for new divers because they give you options on the dives. They have 2 boats that go out every morning, one shallow, and one deep. You can opt out on the guide if you like. Their prices are reasonable, the same as the other ops. It's all about what your comfort level is at this time. Unless there is a TS or Hurricane in the area, weather is about the same as anywhere else this time of year. I've been when weather looked really good, but seas were choppy and had a strong surge, and other times where, it seem like a TS came through that night, but had calm seas the next morning.

 

[diver 85]

Little Cayman or Brac, if you're looking to keep it in the Caribbean...............BUT, since you're on the left coast, the Philippines might be worth looking into?/--maybe??........

 

[DivemasterDennis]

I also recommend Florida upper Keys, particularly Key Largo and the Pennekamp Park dive sites. Grand Cayman also has some good diving for new divers. But Beware: you are in the midst of hurricane season. All of these destinations may face weather issues, so include long range and short term forecast reviews in all your planning. The chance of encountering a tropical storm or hurricane will be greater each week from now though about the first of October, and then declines through October. Hurricanes in the Caribbean are rare after November 1, but do occur. Good luck planning your trip.
DivemasterDennis

 

[PatW]

Inexperienced divers do best with 1) warm water, 2) no currents, 3) shallow water and 4) good visibility. Key Largo would be good for all of those but it is a long flight for you. Little Cayman and Cayman Brac would also be good. Grand Turk is another possibility. You could also think of Roatan or Utila. Another possibility are the BVI's. Cozumel tends to feature deep dives with fast currents. People often ascend in pairs as their air gets low. New divers often have difficulty holding a safety stop. Also you surface and need to wait for your boat to find you.