Advice needed for 3 days of diving around Miami please?

[helgo]

Hi, hanging out in Miami in EARLY MAY 2019, have 3 full days to dive before doing Tiger Beach.
Experienced divers.
Please help, can you recommend a dive shop? and sites?
looking for wrecks / wall dives / groupers? / manatees?

thanks!

 

[seeker242]

As for dive ops that are actually in Miami, Deco Divers at Miami Beach Marina was quite good. That's the only miami shop that I've been out with, but I would not hesitate to use again.

 

[scubadada]

Hi @helgo

Where exactly will you be staying? I assume you will have a car? How far are you willing to drive? You are within striking distance of very good diving from Jupiter down to the Upper Keys. I dive mostly in Boynton Beach, West Palm and Jupiter. Blue Heron Bridge is in West Palm. I can give you recommendations if you want. May is often a good time.

 

[helgo]

Thks, we are willing to go down to the Keys, I see there are some good wrecks there etc

 

[helgo]

Scubadada, we will rent a car, willing to drive an hour or 2 away. Planning to stay in Miami but that's flexible too, willing to stay in West Palm Beach or the Keys somewhere. I'm all about the diving!
Yes, I'd appreciate the recommendations to design the trip!

 

[scubadada]

If you're looking for wrecks, you'd like the Spiegel Grove, Duane and Bibb in Key Largo and the Eagle in Islamorada. There are often double dives on the wrecks available. The shallow Benwood often has a lot of fish and it is a short swim to a deeper wall. There are many good operators, I have used Horizon Divers, Silent World, and Rainbow Reef.

 

[scubadada]

Scubadada, we will rent a car, willing to drive an hour or 2 away. Planning to stay in Miami but that's flexible too, willing to stay in West Palm Beach or the Keys somewhere. I'm all about the diving!
Yes, I'd appreciate the recommendations to design the trip!

I sent you a PM

 

[Divin'Papaw]

Definitely be sure and get in some Palm Beach County diving while you're in the area. Jupiter, Palm Beach, Boynton Beach, Blue Heron Bridge. They are all awesome locations.

Pompano Beach and Key Largo are excellent as well.

 

[Barnaby'sDad]

I just went out with South Florida in Pompano Beach yesterday. I had a good time. We hit the Captain Dan. It was 113’ down to the sand. Saw a Goliath Grouper. A group at that location a couple days ago saw a Whale Shark.

Captain Dan - South Florida Diving Headquarters

For tank fills a few days earlier (and to purchase an extra tank), I hit Undersea Sports in Fort Lauderdale.

https://www.underseasports.com/

I’ll be using Rainbow Reef the next couple days (Key Largo). A couple shallow reef dives tomorrow and then a couple deep ones on Saturday. Schedules for the Spiegel Grove...hopefully that pans out.

Great Dive Gear | Rainbow Reef Dive Center | Key Largo, Florida Keys

For shore diving...check out Lauderdale By The Sea. I had a great time diving there and will definitely go back.

 

[sportxlh]

A few thoughts:

If you decide to go to Jupiter, I'd recommend Jupiter Dive Center: I have many dives with them from when I was a Florida resident and now from a vacation diver as a travel back to Florida. Lots of changes to see goliath grouper, turtles, reef sharks, big green morays, etc. Not like Tiger Beach, but still cool. The diving is drifting and is quite fun.

Boynton is also nice and lovely mid-depth reefs: its also drifting. Scubadada can probably give you the most up-to-date list of operators that are doing a nice job, but I've had good experiences with Splashdown and with Underwater Explorers

In Pompano, I've done the most dives with South Florida Dive HQ and have had really good experiences. Pompano has some really nice shallow reef sites (I'm not as keen on the mid-depth reefs) and some moderate to deep wrecks. I've also had good dives with Pompano Dive Center and Scubatyme.

In Key Largo, I particularly like Conch Republic Divers but also Quiescence (if you want a six pack). I also dive with Rainbow Reef at times when I'm solo. Their boats are always crowded but they have great staff and include a guide if you want one.