LCBR referral dives

[Qnape]

Anyone have any experience with referral OW certification dives at LCBR? With my daughter (and regular dive buddy) heading to college in the fall, my wife has decided to "give this underwater stuff a try". She booked herself an OW course in late November and told me to find her a place to do her certification dives in February. We've been to LCBR twice, and even as a non-diver she loved the place, and the style of diving (boat, light if any currents) appeals to her. I couldn't think of a nicer place to bring her. Do I need to ensure in advance that they have an instructor available to do her referral dives upon arrival? I don't recall seeing them conducting certification dives while I was there, but that doesn't mean they don't do it regularly. I sent the dive staff an email, but have not heard back yet. They may figure "that's way out in February" but I'm reluctant to pull the trigger on the high airfares these days without having all my ducks in a row.

I'd welcome any comments on LCBR as a place for your first dives. Obviously I want to take her somewhere where her first dives will make her want more!

 

[zf2nt]

In my earlier days as an instructor I worked at LCBR and did many OW referral certifications there. It is an expensive way to get certified, since all of the training is done one-on-one. But I would expect the training to be thorough. There is a culture among the DM's at LCBR to adhere to PADI standards quite rigorously. Even though the staff has turned over almost completely since I worked there, I would expect that culture has survived and you would find that the staff today are very thorough. However, this is boat diving in clear tropical water. Here in Monterey, CA, we do our training from shore, with rough surf entries, frequently in low visibility, and with all of the equipment required for cold water diving. Which situation would you expect leads to a more competently trained diver?

BTW, you WILL need to ensure there is an instructor available to do the training prior to your arrival on LC. If you just show up and expect an instructor to be waiting in the wings for you, you probably will be disappointed.

 

[jdcpa]

Yes, they do that.

You need to have the OW referral scheduled in advance. Just showing up could result in disappointment.

Right now the resort is very busy and the dive staff is down a few people, so email responses will likely be slow for the next few weeks. The normal shop staff are out on the boats right now.

Please be patient, they will do it, you just need to schedule it. It just may take a little time to get squared away.

 

[Qnape]

Thank you both for your comments. I was correct in suspecting that referral dives must be firmed up before we book, and I have contacted Reef Divers to work on this. As suggested, they are busy and will get back to me as soon as they can. We will hold off on airfare etc.. until they do. I certainly will not merely assume they can handle it and set us up for disappointment.

Of course tougher conditions during certification will always result in a more competently trained diver, able to deal with a wider range of conditions. My training in NJ in colder water and poor visibility taught me that, and makes diving in cooler waters and poorer visibility (such as I saw in Puerto Vallarta in February) no problem and diving at a place like Little Cayman a breeze. At the same time, based upon my experiences there I was hopeful that their training, while in benign conditions, would be thorough. My wife intends to dive only in clearer, warmer waters and will leave caverns, colder water and poor vis diving to me, which is fine with me - but I still wanted to find her a place that would ensure she is checked out properly. Looks like we are making a good choice for her needs and desires.

 

[ronski101]

There is big money in certifying people especially one on one. Even if you show up without scheduling, I bet they will provide an instructor even if they have to borrow one from one of the other resorts. They all know each other on that small isle. You got over a month tho to give them a heads up.

 

[Qnape]

Quite possibly you are correct, and I am sure they would do everything they could to arrange it. At the same time, given the time to set it up it is probably wiser to do so. My main concern is the air - prices are ridiculous, and if it takes too long to get set up I could get shut out if the cheaper seats all go. It's a tough week to fly - winter break school holidays in much of the US. Still plenty of time, I hope. Heads up is done, waiting to hear back.

 

[Qnape]

The folks at Reef Divers did come through and set up the referral dives for my wife. Just in time; the air had gone up nearly $250 while we waited - this is for President's week in Feb - a very popular travel time. No matter, my wife's safe and fun introduction to diving takes precedence for this trip, and I know we've made a great choice with LCBR. She can't wait, and now we can concentrate on our upcoming return to Cozumel in July/August where I can get in some great diving and my wife can get more snorkeling time in advance of her course!

I'll post her impressions of the referral dive experience at LCBR when the time come in Feb.