Bucket List Trip

[JGeiss]

I am new to the forum and looking to plan a "bucket list" trip with my daughter when she finishes her masters degree in marine biology. We have been all over the Caribbean so please suggest some other must dive locations, live aboard preferred. I look forward to learning from all of your experiences.

 

[beester]

Marine biology... mm I would say liveaboard to those spots with OR bigger pelagics, ie cocos or galapagos liveaboards. Or small critter stuff, best to get on a Red Sea liveaboard to brothers isles, deep south, or even more in the coral triangle in the Pacific West (between philippines, Indonesia and Papua New Ginea).

 

[tursiops]

What aspect of Marine Biology interests her? The term is pretty broad!

 

[sunshower]

If you like big stuff, Galapagos. It lives up to the hype. Other ideas - sardine run in South Africa, Cocos...I agree with Tursiops' approach; there are tons of options.

 

[JGeiss]

She is studying cod population and impact of climate change in Newfoundland now. Focus on fish ecology. Studied sharks in college and has been to Galapagos for field work, but not scuba.
If you had one last dive trip, where would you go?

 

[tursiops]

For fish ecology and climate change, I might go back to Cuba, Gardens of the Queen, on the Jardines Aggressor. It is kind of the way the Caribbean used to be. I thought the Na'ia trip to the Bligh Water north of Fiji were the most fish-intensive dives I've had. The Great Barrier Reef is apparently suffering from Climate Change; go now, don't wait. My bucket list still has Raja Ampat, Ambon, several Indonesian sites.

 

[dirtfarmer]

Komodo or Raja Ampat

 

[Darnold9999]

(Komodo or Raja Ampat) and Lembeh

 

[drrich2]

The older you get, the more 'Life happens' and it's harder to get away for over a week at a time, much less 2 weeks (e.g.: job, costs of family, some people have a problem leaving non-diving spouses and young children behind). So trips to distant exotic destinations become more impractical. My hoped for 'bucket list journey to the moon' distination, a maybe once in a life time 'if & when I retire' dream, would be a contest between Komodo and Raja Ampat. By the time you factor in round trip to/from the U.S., maybe a day to recover, and a 10 day live-aboard to maximize the return on investment and justify the travel ordeal, you're looking at 2 weeks easy I suspect.

What kind of budget are you looking at? How much time can you dedicate to this endeavor?

Richard.

 

[tursiops]

The older you get, the more 'Life happens' and it's harder to get away for over a week at a time, much less 2 weeks (e.g.: job, costs of family, some people have a problem leaving non-diving spouses and young children behind). So trips to distant exotic destinations become more impractical. My hoped for 'bucket list journey to the moon' distination, a maybe once in a life time 'if & when I retire' dream, would be a contest between Komodo and Raja Ampat. By the time you factor in round trip to/from the U.S., maybe a day to recover, and a 10 day live-aboard to maximize the return on investment and justify the travel ordeal, you're looking at 2 weeks easy I suspect.

What kind of budget are you looking at? How much time can you dedicate to this endeavor?

Richard.

Richard, RT from Washington DC to Bali is $762 right now. That's cheaper than flying to Bonaire!.You need a better argument than cost. Time, yes, you'd want upwards of two weeks.