new diver to Hawaii

[pgrimes43]

Hello!

I am new to diving and will be finishing up my SSI certification in the next week or so. I am anxious to try my new hobby on my vacation to Maui this August. I did dive last year with thescubashack after being "pool" trained, and while it was fun I hope to try something different this year. My hope is to find a smaller, more individualized opportunity where I can continue my education while diving in Hawaii, and perhaps see something different from last year. Any suggestions?
Thanx in advance.
Peter G

 

[Scottri]

What Island are you going to? I go to Maui once a year and have had good experiences with Maui Dreams in Kehei. Drop me a line if you need some information. I know some good instructors over there.

 

[loweryjj]

When will you be in Maui? We are going on a 11 day trip starting August 10. We will be in Maui the last 4 days.

3 years ago we went to Maui and I was a newbie at scuba diving. My brother who is a dive master suggested Trilogy Sail. (http://www.sailtrilogy.com).

The wives snorkeled on top while we did scuba. We went to about 40 feet and had a great time. I told the dive master from Trilogy that this was only my 4th open water dive since certification and he took me under his wing. Stayed close to me, made me feel relax and it actually was the first dive that I was not too anxious, did not gulp too much air and actually was under water over an hour.

I can highly recommend them for newbies.

 

[DiveMaven]

If you want a personalized, smaller experience, try B&B Scuba. They run small boats and have very personalized service. Two other ops to consider (out of Kikei) are Mike Severns and Ed Robinsons. All three of these ops are excellent and you wouldn't go wrong with any of them.

 

[cdaniels]

Peter,

Im happy to hear that you are looking forward to diving in Maui. I think if you want a more individualized experience you may just want to let the instructor know and many times they will cater to your needs. I live on the Big Island of Hawaii and dive in Kona weekly, but I know that Maui has tons of dive shops/instructors so just call around and your bound to find what you are looking for. I moved here from washington state last year and when I arrived I was terrified by the water. I decided to get over my fear and just do it and I was blessed with a great diving instructor and have been diving ever since. I hope you have a great vacation. C D