Question Buddyless diver looking for trip advice

[Doctor Rig]

I’m thinking there are lots of divers like myself, who don’t always have a buddy available when they want to go on a dive focused trip, both months or only weeks away. Beyond the SB Invasions & Surges, and one’s own dive shop, what experiences and suggestions would you share or suggest?

Traveling alone is doable, but it’s just more fun to share it with a friend, buddy &/or group, IMHO (and much safer too, especially if medical help is needed).

 

[MB NZ]

I've done lots of liveaboards by myself. Always got on with people and made friends apart from the last one where I was in a small minority of English speakers and the other two were on honeymoon. It's not to say that the other passengers weren't really nice and friendly, just that it can be tiring to speak a foreign language all the time and most people gravitate towards their own language groups, myself included.

 

[Landau]

My wife is not a diver, so I’ve dove at with at least 15 different shops around the world without a buddy and always had good experiences. Some favourites are below.

But if you want a dive focused trip I’d suggest a liveaboard. I loved the Infiniti in the Philippines. Philippines Liveaboard

Or land based and closer to you Club Med Turkoise. They have their own boat and lots to do at the resort after diving. Also lots of solo travellers and entertainment staff to dine with.

Turkoise | Turks & Caicos | Club Med All-Inclusive

Discover the beautiful Club Med resort of Turkoise in Turks & Caicos. It is the perfect destination for your next all-inclusive family summer vacation.

www.clubmed.ca

Both did a great job of matching me with divers of a similar skill level.

If you have questions about either let me know..

Edit: I couldn’t get the US version of the Club med site to link. It kept switching me back to Canada. If your interested make sure you are on the US site to see pricing in your currency.

 

[rick00001967]

i did a solo trip to grand cayman for my ow instructor evaluation some years ago. i actually met a very nice younger guy thru scubaboard who lived on the island and we did some diving together. worked out great. i also ended up meeting another older fella at a shore diving site in town who was traveling with his wife. we also enjoyed some fun dives together.

 

[Ski7586]

I am in a very similar position when it comes to diving and traveling. I have had good luck with liveaboards. They have all been in the Caribbeans so I did not have to deal with a language barrier as everyone was speaking English. I have found the other divers to be very friendly and willing to accept solo travelers into their groups. I’m sure there are exceptions but I have always felt comfortable and welcomed by the other divers. One plus is you don’t have to worry about finding a buddy because there is always some diving.

I have been to Bonaire several times as well both in groups and solo. It is way more fun in a group. As someone who is certified through SDI for solo diving, when I went alone I did all my diving solo. It was nice because I got to dive what I wanted to when I wanted. I did find people tend to look at you more down there when diving solo, never had any problems with anyone and a few friendly people asked questions about it and invited me to dive with them which I accepted for a few dives.

 

[Darnold9999]

My partner does not dive so I always do dive travel alone. Liveaboards are the easiest, you will likely be partnered with another diver or pair of divers and typically the liveaboard crowd is pretty inclusive and easy to get along with. As you are all on a trip with a defined start and end date you can quickly integrate into whatever group dynamic happens. Next is dive resorts. i.e. a resort that caters to only or mostly divers. Similar dynamic to a liveaboard, except that people are coming and going so there is less of a single group dynamic and more small groups get formed. As a single traveler you can end up by yourself, but it has been my experience that such a result is rare. It very much depends on how food is served in a resort and how divers are allocated to boats. If the meals are taken buffet style at a single long table then you will likely be included in whatever groups happen whereas if meals are delivered to small tables the group dynamics change and you are more likely to be alone. The boat size and allocation also impact this dynamic. Larger boats mean larger groups to chat between dives. Smaller boats can mean you are on your own or with another diver or couple. If you are travelling alone and you schedule dives with a dive company as part of the travel - you will likely be on your own - even if you are paired with another diver, that diver will likely be off doing something else when not diving.

In dozens of trips I have only been truly alone on two. One recent trip was to a very remote dive/snorkel resort where I was the only diver and the only other group was a family of four snorkeling who did not speak English. We each had our own boat. Meals were delivered and could be taken in the bungalow or the restaurant so I never saw them other than to say hi in passing. Another trip was to a large resort (30 or 40 divers) where the boats were small, meals were delivered to small tables and there was a lot of turnover in guests. Met a couple of people, but mostly dined and dove alone or with someone I just met to share the table and or the guide. I am OK with that, but not everyone will be.