Kenting or others

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The one potential problem is that in May, the better diving is usually at the sites which face West, which means those shore dives you don't like so much (Hejie, Ding Baisha, Shan Hai, etc.). But on a busy weekend, with enough customers, the boats will go there. And anytime of year, if the weather is calm, the boat diving sites in the bay are beautiful: Da and Xiao Lao Gu, Dulijiao, Blue Hole, even some of the shallower sites like Jin Shui Lou, etc.

But September often means typhoons, or at least bad viz from the previous week's weather, etc. Go in May.
 
Oops! That was "jin shui kou." Auto-correct did an auto-incorrect. Jin Shui Kou is a shallow dive site near where the electricity plant draws in the water it uses as a coolant. Shallow, but not easy to access from shore, so not often dived. I remember lots of healthy acropora corals; a beautiful, healthy reef.
 
I had read the local culture of Lanyu is disappearing fast so I will save it for my next non-scuba related trip.

Typhoon is the main concern in the summer. However, it never deters me from travelling to Philippines from May to Dec for scuba diving.
School term starts in Sep and finishes in early June. So end of May or early Sep should see me avoid those boisterous teenagers tolling their long suffering parents in diving destination.
 
Is it necessary to reserve a bed/room at Xiao Liu Qiu? What is the chance for the walk in if I can avoid weekend?
Is "A Ya Diving Hostel" still recommended?
 
1. I have sent DNW one English and two Chinese e-mails + through their FB but yet to receive a reply!
2. CT diver insist on deposit!
3. Booked a Homestay in Nan Wan through Agoda and now they want deposit as well!!!!
4. I am dealing with A Ya now but it is a slow process through FB. Well at least he is responding to my request.

I never ever had such an response with any operator in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand.
What I should have done in the first place is: book the flight, paid the room in advance(with free cancellation). Hire a scooter for a day and check each operator on the spot.
 
I never ever had such an response with any operator in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand.

Yup … Well, you have read my private messages about the [typical lack of] professionalism of the local dive business; I'll try to keep my rants private.

But one good thing about Taiwan's dive destinations is that people are generally laid-back, mellow, easy-going folks who are not too concerned about 21st Century mistaken priorities, nor are plugged into their technology 24/7, etc. Unlike Taipei and Hong Kong, but good in some ways.(despite the inconveniences …)

Deposits suck (I'm trying, yet again, to find time to get to the bank to send one of my own to another country for an upcoming dive trip.) But I understand their role in a place without a lot of unanticipated walk-in customers. Trying to run a dive shop in Taiwan is not like doing that in Phuket or Puerto Galera or whatever.

Hope you enjoy Kending. I like it a lot and have done lots of good dives there and nearby.

You might decide that from Hong Kong, Anilao is more sensible for a quick diving getaway, and I would agree that if you've got the.time, and are focused only on diving, Anilao is a better choice.

Non-diving factors can matter a lot, of course.
 
I am flying out to Kaohsiung and will take the bus from the airport to Hengchun. Get off by the Nuclear Power Plant and the home stay is just around the corner if my map reading is accurate.
I will check DNW first and may be others if necessary.
I am still waiting for a "proper " reply from A Ya at XLQ. Just saying OK to all my answers is pathetic. Might just turn up and check the place out or even forget it.
Worst comes to the worst I can proceed to Orchid Island or even back at Green Island.

This is just like the old day when internet was not available. Take one step at a time and be flexible.

I am not at all surprised that RoC is not on overseas divers radar. It is really frustrating to deal with the dive operators and the hoteliers.
 
Hope your trip goes well.
You have been most helpful on the diving scene in Republic of China as well as provided in depth info on Green Island and Kenting.
Really really appreciated.
I am pretty sure as long as I am flexible, everything would be fine.

Cheers.
 
Kenting
Getting there from Kaohsiung Airport:
1. Express Kenting Bus but only stops at very few selected places.
2. #9177 bus is very slow because it stops everywhere along the way. But that was the one that I used because it stopped at Ma On San which is where my prebooked Homestay and DNW(supposed to be) are. Journey took a bit over 2hrs for under NT$300.00.
Checked into the Homestay and gone out to look DNW. However, I could not find the place and according to the landlord the centre had moved to somewhere else!!! The given map in its web page and FB still shown the old address.
There are several dive centres around the area and I settled on the first one that I went, Long Jing Dive Centre. NT$2,500.00 for 2 shore dives. The dive guide was very very helpful in helping me to the tricky approach and exit from the sites. I did 6 dives and the best one by far, 3 times, is the one which the path is right next to the bus stop. There is a remain of a wreck at 34m.

The shore dive is NOT easy to get in and out! Boat dive require 4 divers to participate.

Xiao Liu Qiu
Getting there from Kenting or Kaohsiung Airport:
#9177 stops at Tung Gong bus station and the ferry terminal is about 15mins away. There is probably infrequent bus connection between them. In the summer there are plenty of ferries travelling between Tung Gong and XLQ and takes under 30mins for NT230.00. At Ba Sa Ferry Terminal I took the public bus, #601, to A Ya Hostel. The hostel is in a very old house and I had never ever stayed at anywhere like this before.
Shore dive is NT$2,000.00 for two and they are pretty good. Turtles are more or less guaranteed.

No problem with either operators as well as the homestay in Kenting.

Looking forward to Orchid Island next yr.
 
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