Anniversary Diving trip - need help deciding

[sea_star]

Hi,

We are celebrating our ten year anniversary and having trouble narrowing down where to go.

We typically travel med/budget (clean but def not 4-5 **). So where would offer good value, but perhaps be worth spending more on.

Would any of these places have a good chance to see hammerheads? If so what would be best time. Ideally we would like to go in August (but if it's better to go at another time that is fine too!).

Here are some places I'm considering:

• Maldives
• Havelock Island
• Red Sea
• Indoesia - Raja Ampat or Sulaweisi (not sure about this though because last vacation was to Pulau Weh in Sumatra).

Thanks!

 

[robint]

from what I understand, you best bet to see hammerheads in August would be the Galapagos. I don't think Indonesia is well known for sharks of any type, much less hammerheads.

Is seeing hammerheads the most important requirement of the trip? Or are there other things you want to see? Price budget?


robin

 

[ScubaduoAdventures]

We cannot comment on Havelock Island but but know the other three areas very well.

Raja Ampat has some of the best and most diversified diving in the world though no hammer heads and and not a budget destination but well worth it. Sulaweisi has a lot more budget and mid priced options but again no hammer heads and both are different than diving pulau weh.

The Maldives do have some hammerheads to see but again the liveaboards and resorts that offer the best diving are not exactly budget minded either and it is iffy as to whether you will see those sharks as it can be hit or miss.

The red sea is a better bet if you dive down south of Marsa Alam and into what is called the Brothers region. You can find some very fair prices check out this link to Emperor Divers.
Red Sea Dive Sites, Maps and Descriptions - by Emperor Divers

Even ther though it is still a bit iffy on see hammer heads but you have a chance. The 4 main dive areas to see them are Cocos Island out of Costa Rica, Malpelo Island in Columbia, The Galapagos which were mentioned and Socorro out of Los Cabos Mexico. Out of these the best priced option would be Socorro and though you may or may not see hammer heads in the hundreds you will be able to see them along with other species of sharks, Mantas which they are famous for, Dolphins and more.
If you are interested we are taking out a trip there this Dec. 14-22nd on the Nautilus Explorer which is very nice for the money. Click on our link and check out our travel page 2010 trips.
Home

 

[mantagirl]

Hi!

As you have probably gathered from the other replies, the good places for hammerheads tend to be off live aboards which tend to be either pricier or, if cheaper, boats you'd rather not be on! Cocos is in the $5000 range and Malpelo has iffy weather conditions and very strong currents. Galapagos has wonderful hammerheads but again you're looking at $4000/person for the boat alone.

And romantic? Boats that go to these places are nice but not really where I would pick for my anniversary.

There are countries that have good value where you can get great diving in a romantic setting (though no hammers). Sipadan water village is a wonderful destination, very romantic with fantastic diving. You might also try Misool Eco Resort in Raja Ampat, beautiful, romantic and great diving. Marit and Andy who run the place are awesome. A third wonderful resort with fab. diving is Wananavu in Fiji. Airfare is reasonable and it's a great value in a beautiful location. The new GM, Ben and his wife, Rachel, have made great upgrade to an already wonderful dive destination.

Hope it helps! Check 'em out or drop me a line if you want more info.

(Carin Kiphart) Mantagirl
mantagirl@live-adventurously.com

 

[Manuel Sam]

I agree with the above postings in that if you are looking for "almost" sure hammerhead sightings, then it boils down to Cocos, Malpelo, Galapagos and Socorros (aka Revillagigedos). BUT, if you are looking at August, then Socorros is out because the liveaboards season there runs from late October/early November to May. Also, Galapagos can be done land-based if that fits your budget better - liveaboards there right now are ouchrageous.

BTW I am assuming that you are referring to Scalloped Hammerheads that often occur in schools as opposed to Great Hammers which tend to be more solitary and which are harder to see.

There are, however, a few other land-based places that you could consider, where they have been seen in the past, and with a little luck, you might see some, but not in the numbers that can be seen in those other four liveaboard destinations.

These are not in any particular order and for whatever it's worth, at least they are in this hemisphere:

1. San Salvador in the Bahamas - check out Riding Rock Inn (if it's still there)
2. Tobago
3. La Paz in Mexico - there are two divesites where hammerheads used to be seen (I saw them there but this was back in 1994 and in 2001). One of them is El Bajo and the other is Las Animas
4. Cabo San Lucas, also in Mexico - at a site called Gorda Banks

Hammerheads in the above places tend to be seasonal. I don't know about Tobago and San Salvador, but August is a good time for the two Mexico places.

There are places in Asia where you might be able to see them diving land-based but these are also seasonal (usually springtime) and there's also the matter of the long and not inexpensive plane rides: Layang-Layang in Malaysia, and Quimod Shoals off of Malapascua in the Philippines.

Good luck.

 

[lmorin]

Manuel Sam mentioned San Salvador in the Bahamas and Riding Rock Inn. We were at the Club Med right next door last June for our 40th anniversary. The diving was really quite good. We did 2 boat dives each AM and on each dive, hammerheads were seen. In fact, every diver saw at least one, except my wife and me!