Bringing kids diving in Belize?

[jeanne001]

Our granddaughter will be 10 in August and wants to get certified in Sept. 08 and we were trying to figure out where to bring her on her first diving trip. We were thinking about Belize.

Are there enough shallow dive sites to do approx. 3 dives per day? If yes, where in Belize would you go? Where would you stay?

Would you recommend another place?

I am interested in your opinions, We are not committed to Belize. We could go anywhere with her (within reason). We just want her to have a trip she'll never forget and hopefully will want to do a trip with us every year (plus local diving).

Anyway, your input would be greatly appreciated.


thanks, Jeanne

 

[ronbeau]

Our granddaughter will be 10 in August and wants to get certified in Sept. 08 and we were trying to figure out where to bring her on her first diving trip. We were thinking about Belize.

Are there enough shallow dive sites to do approx. 3 dives per day? If yes, where in Belize would you go? Where would you stay?

Would you recommend another place?

I am interested in your opinions, We are not committed to Belize. We could go anywhere with her (within reason). We just want her to have a trip she'll never forget and hopefully will want to do a trip with us every year (plus local diving).

Anyway, your input would be greatly appreciated.

thanks, Jeanne

I have never been to Belize (yet). Other possibilities you could consider (in no particular order).

Florida Keys
Curacao
Bonaire

 

[Doc]

You can sort out the diving on your own, but when in Belize, I always dive shallow- that's where the good stuff is.

When people ask about children on dive trips, one thought comes to my mind. Is there sufficient local infrastructure to provide medical attention and very quick evacuation if needed?

For Belize, the answer is yes.

A child's systems are so much more prone to quick degradation due to any number of causes, mostly because of their physical size. This is not a secret, but many travelling parents decide to ignore it.

The best Islands for this kind of emergency medical access are Cayman, Nassau, Grand Bahama, Cozumel, and the more populated islands of Belize. Belize is especially on this list because of the large volume of general aviation. You're only two hours out from Houston, even on a bad day.

Just something to think about, and for this reason alone, Belize is a great choice.

Good shallow diving, too!

 

[Rescue Diver68]

Key Largo is where I would take her. Many shallow sites and plenty of reef and critters for a first trip.

 

[peterbj7]

Belize can certainly fit the bill very well, especially up here in the northern cayes (San Pedro & Caye Caulker).

Just a couple of points. I think a 10-year old would find three dives in a day very tiring, and I strongly recommend you restrict your sights to two.

I'm generally reluctant to teach 10/11 year olds as I find they're usually not mature enough to take on board what they're doing, and understand the risks. There are exceptions of course, and I recently taught an 11-year old who was a complete natural. Are you sure it is your granddaughter's ambition to dive, or yours for her?

 

[robint]

I have to agree with peterbj7 on this one. Though 10 and 11 yr olds can get certified now, most aren't physically or mentally prepared for it. Is your granddaughter big enough to wear a BC and aluminum 80 tank on her back? Most dive ops don't have rental gear made for kids or small tanks. How is her health? Does she have colds and ear trouble alot? The ear canals are not fully developed in most kids at age 10, so will she be able to equalize? Lots of considerations on the physical side.

My daughter got certified at age 12. Mentally she did great and was very serious about all the procedures and following the depth rules. But even at 5' tall and 80lbs she had a hard time with the gear at times and got tired after even one dive. We had to take powerbars on the boat for her to eat between dives, along with gatoraid to rehydrate her. After 2 dives she was pooped and barely made it to a restaurant to eat. It was very exhausting for her. By 13-14 she was doing fine and could handle 3 dives per day. She also grew another 6" taller and 20 lbs heavier. We bought her own gear at 13 which helped greatly, too.

Since my husband has worked as a DM for several years and now is an instructor, I see students very often. I have seen over the years lots of kids getting certified. Rarely have I seen 10 & 11yr old complete the class successfully and be comfortable with it. (I can only remember one girl recently who was certified at 10 and is still diving at age 13.) Many are just getting certified because the other family members are doing it or because they are getting pressured to do it.

Just some things to consider before you book a trip. Remember their are depth limits for 10/11 yr olds. How many 40' dives are there at a destination? Also, everyone else on the boat has to do the same dive - so are they going to want to continue to do shallow dives over and over because there is a Jr. Diver on the boat? Just things to think about.

robin

 

[jeanne001]

Wow! Really good points to think about. We took her to a discover scuba class at our local pool through our LDS and she loved it. It has been all we have heard about ever since. Which is what lead us to her getting certified when she is old enough. She reads all our dive magazines when they come. I just ordered her her own subscription to Scuba Diving magazine.

The 3 dives a day probably will be too much for her now that you bring it to my attention. I do not want to overwhelm her. I want her to have a fun time and we want her dive because she wants to not because we want her to. So if she feels that 2 dives a day is OK, it will be OK with us too. Ditto goes for 1 dive a day. I also think she probably will need help steadying herself with all her gear on, I sometimes do. I have no problem helping her or anybody else for that matter if you need it.

At her Discover Scuba class, I think they put her gear on her in the pool. She has another Discover Scuba class scheduled in a couple of weeks, I will pay more attention to how well she handles the gear during this class.

Of course I realize that she will have depth restrictions, which is why I came here to find out a good place to bring her that will have plenty of dive sites to choose from, but at the same time, will not make all the other divers dive the same dives sites over and over just because they have a junior diver on board.

Does Belize have alot of shore diving? I know Bonaire does. But I don't believe Bonaire has alot of topside attractions to do. Does Belize or any other place fit the bill with both topside attractions and dive sites that would be suitable for her?

Or am I asking too much out of one particular trip?

THANK YOU VERY MUCH for all your replies.

Jeanne

 

[jeanne001]

BTW, our LDS does have gear that fits her and she is a very healthy girl. She does not get alot of colds nor is she sick alot. I can't even remember the last time she had an ear infection.

Since she has only been in the pool to a depth of 6 feet and maybe had to equalize once, I can't say if she will have problems equalizing at depth.

Just more info to ponder.

Jeanne

 

[peterbj7]

Equalisation is more of an issue in shallow water, or in the shallow part of a dive, because that's where the rate of change of pressure is greatest. If she can equalise successfully at 6' or so she'll probably be OK in deeper water. I say "if", because I've known people put up with significant discomfort because they don't want to admit they can't equalise. At 6' you can get away with it, at 20'+ you can't.

We have small kid's gear for rental, though our small masks are on their last legs. We also have smaller tanks for small people.

The mask is very personal, and if you haven't already got one for her you should do so. Make sure she tries it in a pool so you can be sure it fits her comfortably and doesn't leak. Don't go for a complicated mask with side windows/purge valves etc. Just get one whose skirt fits the side of her face and sits comfortably above her upper lip and below her hair line. Be prepared to have to replace it every year or so while she grows. A suitable mask should cost no more than US$50. You'll probably want to get her fins as well, so she can snorkel in shallow water.

There is no shore diving here, and precious little anywhere in Belize. There are however some nice shallow sites inside the barrier reef where she can get comfortable with diving. Thereafter all dive sites outside the reef can be taken at any depth, with initial entry from the boat being in 40'-45' of water. There's no reason why she (and presumably you) can't head up the reef to the shallower water while the other divers head to deeper water. We (and I'm sure others) will ensure there are enough guides on the boat for this to happen - we don't allow unaccompanied dives.

All of this presupposes that she is in fact a suitable candidate.

 

[jeanne001]

We had purchased her mask, snorkel and fins last summer. I will check to see how her mask fits before her next DS class. Thanks for the info about the shore diving. I am also glad to hear of the extra DM on the dive boat to accomodate our situation.


Thanks for ALL of your help.

Jeanne