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Hi all. I am stumped. Two friends are interested in visiting RA for a snorkeling trip. I am not sure how to approach their request. It’s my feeling that LoB’s cater to mostly to scuba divers, with dedicated dive guides. It’s hard to accommodate guests on a LoB that freedive/snorkel, since the...

Centrals has a good point. Aninexperienced or newly certified diver will affect the dive group. Typically, a new diver runs out of air before the others in the group, in particular with currents or on a moderately deep dive. As a guide, I had to pick dive sites and dive profiles that would...

Its still not clear to me how this region will not share the fate of Bali - love to death with tourism and development. As a dive guide, the Komodo dive sites changed dramatically from 2012 to the present.

The last time we visited Batu Bolong (guide on the Blue Manta), we dropped the water at about 7am. The timing was due to (1) the tides - we wanted to visit the dive site with current and not at stack, and (2) later in the morning, we watched over 12 day boats and about 5 LoB's dive the site. At...

Perfect. If I was your DM, I would rely on your pre-dive analysis. I might watch the your first time measurement, mostly to make sure it was done properly.

As a former DM, I always checked nitrox before every dive. I made sure that my team had a update just after the dive briefing. . We had two to three analyzers on the dive deck.

We always ascend slowly from 5m. In particular, with beautiful coral gardens and schooling fish, why rush the ascent. After a deep recreational dives, it’s a safe and prudent practice for slow ascents from a SS. Or any dive...

Early October is a fine month for a Banda Sea Crossing. There are many dives sites that host hammerhead sharks, the water is a bit warmer than September, and the visibility is vey good. An extra layer such as a hoody vest is always welcome.

I wonder if I can convert my Navionics locations to iNavX, as a batch job?

At Blue Magic, missing the dive site is due to a lack of understanding of the dive site and the currents/tides. A good cruise director will not make such mistakes. Like many things in life, LOB’s vary in their ability to provide the best dive experience. Personally, I prefer to dive RA from a LOB.

I am with Luko on this. Alor is a special place and finding the best sites using the tides and lunar cycle takes experience. In addition, the dive group experience plays into the mix. My experience at Alor Eco has always been outstanding. Alor has very good guides. Gilles is a pleasure to dive...

Dan, sometimes October is a wonderful time for a crossing trip. The water is a bit warmer, good visibility, and schools of hammerheads are common. Usually the schools are at about 35m+. That said, September can provide good visibility and schooling hammerheads. It seems that the September...

Not completely correct. Over many seasons, we have seen large schools of hammerheads at about 37m depth with very good visibility. At other locations, a few come up to our safety stop, mostly curious. Ask PJ or Mimpi there are sometimes more exceptions than the rule.

I use free free fins in SE Asia, almost exclusively, except while teaching. In my limited experience, carbon fiber fins do not hold up after a season on a LOB. Although I am careful with my fins, the fins gets tossed on the deck, or someone might step on them while on the dingy. I use a Mares...

My two cents, mostly used while guiding/teaching in SE Asia (~3-4 dives/day for say 6 weeks). For my outer ear, I used Otic Domeboro Solution: 2 percent acetic acid, water, aluminum acetate, sodium acetate and boric acid. According to DAN, acetic acid slow down bacterial growth, while the...

From my limited experience, Wakatobi is not the best region for bigger fish and the dive sites are a bit over/rated. Try to visit Misool.

Another yes vote, depending on the season. FYI, a few sites in RA during the full or new moon have moderate currents, similar to Komodo. The only downside is north central Komodo is crowded and you will see lots of bubbles at the popular sites.

I am not sure that LL would be my first choice for macro.

Although a LoB gives you more dive site options than the resort, even the far field atolls are overfished, the corals are not heathy, with much dynamite fishing and long drag line scars on the atolls. That said, it’s always fun to see large nurse sharks and the occasional schools of hammerheads...

The Israel Science Foundation funds such studies. A few marine scientists at Hebrew University might be interested. Just a thought..