Trip Report Palau 02/16-03/03
- Thread starter AlaskaDiver
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save-money-diving
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I worked in Palau last season on a Live-aboard and i would strongly reccomend this option ... you recieve much more attention , don't have the long travel times , and it is a much more enjoyable trip for about the same price of a land based option with hotel , food and drink thrown in ... with much more focus on diving.
www.save-money-diving-palau.com
www.save-money-diving-palau.com
hallboy
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What is the manta season?
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AlaskaDiver
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Its funny that you mentioned the Eclipse from Sam's. We looked at doing that, but it was booked solid for several months into next year.
I did like the people of Koror. we were able to see lands things that a liveaboard passenger would never get a chance to experience to the extent we did. On a liveaboard there jsut isn't enough time for an equal combination of local land experiences and dives. The locals were so refreshingly pleasant and genuine. (What a change from Hawaii). Like I mentioned earlier, the trip to Palau and the experiences on the islands were a 7 or an 8 (of 10). Diving and creatures seen were deligtful.
I did like the people of Koror. we were able to see lands things that a liveaboard passenger would never get a chance to experience to the extent we did. On a liveaboard there jsut isn't enough time for an equal combination of local land experiences and dives. The locals were so refreshingly pleasant and genuine. (What a change from Hawaii). Like I mentioned earlier, the trip to Palau and the experiences on the islands were a 7 or an 8 (of 10). Diving and creatures seen were deligtful.
I'm off to Palau in a few hours. We will be diving land based with Sam's. For us this works best. I don't need to "maxamize my diving" as our trips are not just about diving. We live out here because we love the diving "and" the life style. If we went just for the diving, it would kinda be like going to a neighbors house and saying We're just here to use your pool.
dive_addict
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reading the thread, ive made up my mind and am willing to spend 1000 usd for this trip. anyone interested, my instructor got me a super deal, 1000k inclusive of roundtrip flights to/from manila via Asian Spirit (i think), 3 diving days on a liveaboard via big blue explorer run by Scuba world, dive fees, jelly fish lake included! i think there's one land based diving day...
send me a message in case you're interested and i can give you the contact number of my instructor.
send me a message in case you're interested and i can give you the contact number of my instructor.
I went to palau and yap in 02 and got really sick, if it had not been for the great service with Necco marine I might have died as I had to abort a dive at blue corner. www.duceproductions.com
samples page has some video of my trip
samples page has some video of my trip
So sorry to hear about the dissappointment with Palau. I really have fond memories from it, and I did it with Fish n Fins. I believe the crux of the matter stems from the idea that 'regardless of the destination, it's the people that make the real difference". I've been on many dives that are superb dive spots, but if the people are inexperienced / ignorant / dangerous etc, it can totally ruin the dive experience regardless of venue (I HATE seeing destructive divers tearing up the coral - brings out the spear gun in me). Even if they are fantastic divers, there is such a thing as 'too many divers', and anyone that's done a night dive with too many people never enjoy the experience as much as if there was just a handful (think random flipper kicking off your mask). For the most part, we have no control over whom we dive with at these places, but we do have control over when we dive.
Having not dived in 'Cattle Season' I don't know what it's like. However, having dived in Palau with Fish n Fins in low season I can say that I have never been given as much attention on a dive experience than with any other operator. The reason is that there were just 3 of us and the DM. The DM picked the popular dive spots, assessed our diving skills (no hooks for currents either, thank god!), and then recommended dive spots based on surface conditions. The were very receptive, acknowledge requests and gave a reasonable explaination if dives sites could not be included. I imagine that all this attention could change in the 'cattle market' mentality, in which the majority could win. I just completed a liveaboard where we banded together and convinced the DM to do a super early Dawn dive, when it wasnt scheduled, and he agreed. However that did mean that we sacrificed the night dive was scheduled for later, however the majority of the divers agreed to that.
So what am I saying? Basically, you really had some rotton luck, and it's a shame when operators have to resort to Cattle like mentality. If you go back, give the Ocean Hunter a try.
Having not dived in 'Cattle Season' I don't know what it's like. However, having dived in Palau with Fish n Fins in low season I can say that I have never been given as much attention on a dive experience than with any other operator. The reason is that there were just 3 of us and the DM. The DM picked the popular dive spots, assessed our diving skills (no hooks for currents either, thank god!), and then recommended dive spots based on surface conditions. The were very receptive, acknowledge requests and gave a reasonable explaination if dives sites could not be included. I imagine that all this attention could change in the 'cattle market' mentality, in which the majority could win. I just completed a liveaboard where we banded together and convinced the DM to do a super early Dawn dive, when it wasnt scheduled, and he agreed. However that did mean that we sacrificed the night dive was scheduled for later, however the majority of the divers agreed to that.
So what am I saying? Basically, you really had some rotton luck, and it's a shame when operators have to resort to Cattle like mentality. If you go back, give the Ocean Hunter a try.
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AlaskaDiver
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Scubakai - You have got it exactly right. I really loved the creatures, the amazing history of Palau and the abundant diversity of marine life. As far as service is concerned, nothing beats a liveaboard. Lesson learned with Sam's. Time to change destinations too. My next trip will be a liveaboard in the East Carribbean. Perhaps if I return to Palau I'll have a chance to dive with Ocean Hunter or Big Blue.
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