Need recommendations for spring dive location - nitrox a must

[cheryll1]

My husband and I, along with some friends from the UK are looking for a dive location for a spring trip. Every few years we're doing a large trip to somewhere other than the carribean. Our first trip was to Filitheyo Island Resort in Maldives. The resort was wonderful, the food outstanding, and the dive operator top notch. For our 2010 trip we were thinking about Fiji, but found out that Nitrox is pretty much unavailable and for health reasons for one of our group, Nitrox is a requirement. We need a beautiful location with a wonderful resort that is on a par with Filitheyo Island Resort, with great diving and readily available Nitrox. Somewhere South Pacific would be great, but we're open to other suggestions.

Any suggestions?

 

[RJP]

...for health reasons for one of our group, Nitrox is a requirement.

Don't mean to pry, but I'm curious as to what "health reason" would possibly "require" Nitrox?

 

[cheryll1]

I have a PFO which gives me a tendancy to get skin bends. My dive doc recommended diving only every other day, limiting my depth, and diving with Nitrox. I had to dive with air for a week last spring and had a bit of the skin discoloration following my last dive of the trip, even with the other precautions. I have no problems when diving nitrox.

 

[idocsteve]

Probably just a coincidence.

I never heard of a situation where a person will inevitably get a case of the bends, no matter how slight, when diving air, but not with Nitrox, while staying within the tables.

 

[RJP]

I have a PFO which gives me a tendancy to get skin bends. My dive doc recommended diving only every other day, limiting my depth, and diving with Nitrox. I had to dive with air for a week last spring and had a bit of the skin discoloration following my last dive of the trip, even with the other precautions. I have no problems when diving nitrox.

Did he also advise that you dive EANx with an Air profile? (ie use air tables and/or set your computer to 21%) Practically speaking, diving 32% on a 32% profile is no more conservative than diving 21% on a 21% profile.

 

[Manuel Sam]

Depending on what you might consider "great" diving, Lembeh Straits and Raja Ampat are two destinations in Indonesia that offer what many consider great diving, as well as nitrox.

Not having yet been to Maldives, nor the resort that you mentioned, I can't tell whether the resorts at these Indonesia locations will be up to par, but I might suggest that you look at the websites of Kasawari Resort, Lembeh Resort and Kungkungan Bay Resort (KBR) in Lembeh, and Sorido Bay Resort in Raja Ampat and see if they might fit the bill.

 

[lpshanet]

My husband and I, along with some friends from the UK are looking for a dive location for a spring trip. Every few years we're doing a large trip to somewhere other than the carribean. Our first trip was to Filitheyo Island Resort in Maldives. The resort was wonderful, the food outstanding, and the dive operator top notch. For our 2010 trip we were thinking about Fiji, but found out that Nitrox is pretty much unavailable and for health reasons for one of our group, Nitrox is a requirement. We need a beautiful location with a wonderful resort that is on a par with Filitheyo Island Resort, with great diving and readily available Nitrox. Somewhere South Pacific would be great, but we're open to other suggestions.

Any suggestions?

In a previous thread, I believe Fiji Dive Guy and others summarized which places in Fiji have Nitrox. I just returned from Qamea, and they definitely offer Nitrox 32, but many resorts in Fiji do not. For example, Beqa Lagoon resort did not offer it at all even though they are a dive-intensive operation.

 

[Fiji Dive Guy]

While not pervasive in Fiji, there are a number of resorts as well as most liveaboards that do offer Nitrox, and it continues to gain popularity. I would suggest checking directly with the resorts you might be interested in to see if they currently offer it or intend to in the near future. Fiji has some beautiful resorts and great diving. As lpshanet mentioned, Qamea offers Nitrox and I think it would compare favorably with Filitheyo Island Resort (although I’ve never been there, I’ve seen their website). Another resort to look at is Paradise Taveuni, who also offer Nitrox.

 

[lpshanet]

While not pervasive in Fiji, there are a number of resorts as well as most liveaboards that do offer Nitrox, and it continues to gain popularity. I would suggest checking directly with the resorts you might be interested in to see if they currently offer it or intend to in the near future. Fiji has some beautiful resorts and great diving. As lpshanet mentioned, Qamea offers Nitrox and I think it would compare favorably with Filitheyo Island Resort (although I’ve never been there, I’ve seen their website). Another resort to look at is Paradise Taveuni, who also offer Nitrox.

Another thing you might want to check, if you're going right now, is which places offer air conditioning. Although most of the year it doesn't matter, as the winds are cooling and the temps pleasant, there is the chance of some hotter/more humid weather right now since it's summer there, and even some very high end places are not air conditioned. You may not mind it, but thought I'd mention it in case you're sensitive to that. Qamea is air conditioned, by the way, but I think Paradise Taveuni isn't.

 

[retfed]

Dive Florida. Warm water, great visibility, fantastic wrecks and all of the nitrox you could want. There are even some liveaboards that leave Key West, and travel to all of the wrecks up and down the Florida Keys. The exchange rate to the U.S. dollar will leave you smiling as well.