Thinking about Saba

[Bogdan]

We'd like to spend about a week in Saba after hearing how great the diving can be. What are the ideal times of the year to dive Saba? Are there particular dive shops that stand out?
Any advice or thoughts are greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[KeithG]

Well you can rule out shore diving. And dozing on the beach.

But the landscape is awesome. We have only been there via live aboard but have done several "island tours". Would also like to stay on island some time.

I would make sure that your lodgings are close to the dive op which will likely be close to THE dock. If not then you may be spending too much time travelling THE road. It is a small, quaint but spread out island.

 

[Bogdan]

Looking forward to it already giffenk. What time of the year did you go there?

 

[KeithG]

Either over Xmas or during early spring.

 

[vicky-g.]

actually, weatherwise its awesome in september, but of course it is hurricane season-so it can be total opposite. christams/new years is normally very busy, many people.... how about october? sea&learn programm is happening, just google and check it out.
there is no lodging directly on the dock. everything is about a 10-15 minute drive away. every dive op will organize a taxi shuttle for the costumers, so no worries about that. that is the daily routine.
the island is not spread out, stay in windwardside and everything is super closed by.
for further info check out www.seasaba.com !

 

[ontdiver]

I went to Saba with a group a couple of years ago in February. We stayed at Scout's Place and dove with their in-house dive op Saba Divers (Saba Divers - Caribbean Diving and Scout's Place Hotel on Saba island : Your all-in-one resort on Saba in the Dutch Caribbean - Saba cottage rental! - Saba Divers und Scout's Place Hotel - Dive Saba, Saba Scuba Diving centre - tauchen und wohnen in d). We had a great time overall. There are no real beaches to speak of on Saba, but the hiking trails are quite enjoyable.

 

[Darnold9999]

Was just there in November. Diving was very good for the Caribbean. Lots of fish in the water, sharks in the blue, turtles and macro life.

As others have said there are no beaches - none. Essentially the entire island is cliffs to the water, where it isn't it is steep piles of rocks to the water. Accommodation and food is expensive, but good. In a week you will pretty much exhaust the "eating out" options on the island - not quite but close. I used Saba Deep and was impressed with the operation. They listened to what I wanted and did their best to provide it. I heard good things about the other operation on the island - essentially I don't think you can go wrong with either the dive operation or the hotel. Every place we looked at when we were there looked good.

I don't think it matters too much what time of year you go. Wind is the deciding factor in where you dive, but as I understand it there is always a lee side of the island to dive in.

Something to be aware of is that many(not all) of the dive sites are quite deep which limits the amount of bottom time you will get.

If you stay close to the dock then you will not be near or in Windwardside which is the main town. Yes the trip to the dock will be longer, but then you will need to take a taxi to go out for dinner and then another one to return - unless you always eat at your resort. This can add significantly to the cost of each meal. We made that choice and in retrospect would have been much better to stay within walking distance of Windwardside.

 

[LarryHinDC]

I've been there most parts of the year and found that there is no really bad or good time. You often get the "Christmas winds" in December, which can limit the sites you can visit, but generally don't stop the diving. As Vicky-g mentioned, October is when the Sea & Learn program (seaandlearn.org) happens and is a great time to go. The program runs all month, is completely free (unless you do a diving field trip; then you pay regular price for the dive), and is very interesting. We always dive with Sea Saba. Lynn there is on top of everything on the island, and they can take care of all your needs, including making your dinner reservations while you are diving. Let me know if you have any other questions.

Larry

 

[yakivet]

At the end of this month we will be making our third trip to Saba. Our first trip was in August, with Hurricane Isac making short work of it. The other two trips are in the Last week of March-first week of April time frame. Water was about 5-7 degrees warmer in August but then again you also had the storms to contend with.
Diving on our 2 previous trips has been with SeaSaba. It will be with them on our 3rd trip as well. As said earlier in this post, Lynn of SeaSaba will help you as much or as little as you like. She runs a fantastic dive shop that is well organized and well kept. Her divemasters appear very happy and most have been with her for a long time. Boats are in good shape and the diving is surely some of the best that I've seen in the caribbean. She'll book your rooms, call your Taxi's, tell you where to go eat, and then make your all your reservations. All three trips we have utilized Julianna's for lodging.

The island is certainly the "unspoiled jewel of the caribbean". Settled by the Dutch long ago, it still remains a quiet little place. Lodging is within Windwardside, or down in "The Bottom", Both require a taxi ride to the Harbor and dive boats. A handfull of restaurants will keep you occupied for dinners. Just be sure to make your reservations ahead of time. And figure out early which restaurants are closed on which given nights. Our favorite is the Brigadoon, with Trish and her Pear Martini's. And their cheesecake is to die for.

No beaches, but a simply wonderful place to visit if you're looking for some wonderful diving, some fantastic hiking, and a great little village to wander around in. You can be at the harbor in sun and 85 degree heat, then head up the hill and run into clouds and a 75 degree fog bank. Blink and it can be gone in 5 minutes. :42:

 

[mike_bayer]

I had a good time at Scouts Place / Saba Divers in 2007. Diving Nitrox is a good idea since most of the pinnacles are 110-130ft. Hiking to the top of the rainforest is a must do if you are up for it (90 min one way) The flight in and out are a blast on one of the shortest commercial runways in the world. Driving around the island is also quite a trip. Have fun!

? Shortest runway in the world! HD 1080p ? - YouTube

The Original Saba Rollercoaster - YouTube