Travleing Alone

[Benefice]

Hello all,
I'm a new diver who's done about a dozen local, cold water, dives, and now I'm looking to branch out to some warm water. Unfortunately I don't have a dive buddy to travel with. What's the best way to handle this?

Do "dive resorts" usually have a way for you to meet up with a buddy?

Do people usually just stay at a normal hotel and find a dive shop that can pair you up?

How do tourist destinations generally accommodate for this sort of thing (obviously I can't go far of the beaten path and still expect to find a buddy of comparable skill level).

Thanks for any input or experiences,
Benefice

 

[juls]

Try liveaboards - IMHO, it's the best if you travel alone. I've done two so far and am addicted to it. Besides meeting new people, you will get lots of diving.
Other options - travel with people from this or other message boards; travel with your LDS; join a local dive club.
As a new diver who is addicted to scuba, I've done all of them.


Have fun!

 

[Benefice]

Originally posted by juls
Try liveaboards - IMHO, it's the best if you travel alone.

Interesting,
I had assumed the costs would be prohibative for a single diver because of the limited space on boats.

 

[Spectre]

Other options are hooking up with groups. For example, check the Group Trips section for trips run by members here. You could also hook up with a dive club in your area that probably organizes a number of trips [I know I've been to North Carolina, and I'll be going to New York in a few weeks with my dive club].

Likewise check your local dive shop for group trips that they may be organizing.

If your looking for specific destinations that you want to go to, there just might be more research to do. If it's boat diving, there not going to go out with just you, so you'll end up with people on the boat you could buddy with, if it's shore diving, you'll just have to find a dive shop that does guided diving.

Another option if you become active in a club is to organize your own as a trip within the club. Actually, you could probably do it here!

G'Luck, and welcome to the board!

 

[MSilvia]

The liveaboard I have experience with didn't really do the private cabin thing. There were six or eight bunks per berth, and it was first come, first served. Accomodation wise, they could care less if you came with a friend or not.

It's always nice to know you have a buddy you can be comfortable with though. If you want to meet some local divers, check out the group trips post for "A day on Cape Ann #2". A bunch of us will be meeting for a dive on saturday the 27th, and you're certainly welcome to join us!

In any case, I've done a bit of travelling on my own, and haven't ever had trouble finding a buddy to pair up with on a boat dive.

 

[g2]

Hi Benefice,

I think I can help.

Originally posted by Benefice
Do "dive resorts" usually have a way for you to meet up with a buddy?
... How do tourist destinations generally accommodate for this sort of thing (obviously I can't go far of the beaten path and still expect to find a buddy of comparable skill level).

Traveling with a group, like a trip sponsored by your local dive shop (LDS), is always good -- you will have lots of buddies!

If you go it alone, maybe my experience can help (100's of dives while traveling alone):

Pick destinations where the resort takes you to the dive site by boat. There will always be other divers on the boat, and almost invariably there is someone else who needs a buddy. Even if there isn't, you can go with the divemaster. Avoid destinations where you need to drive to the dive site, because then it's up to you to find a buddy.

Example good solo traveler destinations:

Cozumel
Ambergris
Any live-aboard boat
Great Barrier Reef (even better: Coral Sea)
Fiji

Not-so-good solo traveler destinations:

Bonaire
Hawaii
Florida

Have fun!

g2

 

[Drew Sailbum]

At our dive shop we almost always have single divers onboard who need to pair up with a buddy for the day. It's never really a problem. As g2 wrote, you can always buddy up with the dive guide if all else fails.

A good operation will help you select a buddy with comparable skill level and goals so that you both enjoy the dive.

 

[Benefice]

Thanks Everyone!

This is all really good info. This next trip I'm pretty constrained in terms of the timing, so I doubt I'll be able to find a dive shop or club going some where on those specific dates, but those are good suggestions for future trips. For some reason I distrusted the trips planned by dive shops. I always figured I could do better planning it myself, but I'll take a second look to see what's out there.

MSilva - Unfortunately I'll be out of town on the 27th, but I'll keep my eve on the board to see if anything else comes up. I will be out on Cape Ann tomorrow though, diving with Cape Ann Divers.

Thanks for all the input. The detail about destinations and liveaboards is particularly helpful. And I'll have to give a closer look to the boards and LDS trips as well.

 

[MSilvia]

I'll be there tomorrow too, doing the Great Annual Fish Count with Spectre.

 

[Red Rover]

Hi Benefice,


I, for one, love to travel alone. Especially if its a trip dedicated to nothing but diving. Several reasons for this is that I like to be able to dive when I want without pressure of making or missing dives. Or eat when I want, sleep when I feel like it, or even turn in early if I feel tired without the pressure of ruining someone elses expectations of what they want to see and do. I love travelling alone.

Never once have I ever found a shortage of dive buddies or new friends to hang out with. Even shore diving in remote locations, a single diver was never far away or the local DiveMaster decided to come along.

If you want to dive, then by all means, go it alone! You may travel alone, but you will not be lonely. Thats my advice!


RedRover