scubabrandon
Guest
I dove with Chris Sawyer diving in St. Thomas the second week of August. I must say that after the hype I read, I was really let down.
I called to get pricing and to find out if any spots were still open for the morning dive. The price was fair and they still had some spots open. As with any other dives I have booked I had to give them a credit card to hold my place. After the lady got all my info and got me booked she gave me a big speech on how I HAD to be there on time and they would not wait. If I missed my dive and didnt give them 24 hours notice they would charge my card. I was told the dive boat left at 9am.
My cruise ship pulled into port at 7:45am, I got through immigration and was walking off the ship by 8:20am. Knowing I had less than 40 min to get to the other side of the island I got a taxi by myself. I told the driver I had to be there before 9am. He about killed us getting there, but by god I was there about 10 min early. I got signed in got my weights and went to the boat. Well we waited, waited, then waited some more. about 20 min after I was told the deadline to arrive was I finally asked what the wait was. Well we were waiting on a couple more people. Finally the boat left the dock a little after 9:30am. Half an hour late. I guess the "be here on time" rule applies to me only.
The diving was great if you were doing an open water check out. For me it was LAME LAME LAME. I laid my computer on the bottom and got 49 feet. Both dives were the same: A shallow reef. When I spoke with the lady on the phone, I was under the impression that my 2 dives would be different. She said there were so many sites including some wrecks.
The dive leader I had was a 24 karat a-hole. His name is Larry. This guy has no business leading real divers. He should stick to snorkeling. He offered up NO info on the reefs, gave no names. When I tried to ask him a question about the second dive site, he scoffed at me and went to the front of the boat. Believe me when I saw there were 3 other people on the dive that did not care for his terrible attitude. Larry- your actions are costing Sawyer dive some money, more on that later.
This is the thing that really ticked me off. On the way back after the 2 incredibly beginner dives, I went to the back of the boat to rinse off my computer and my camera casing with the fresh water hose that we were told by Wayne we could use. In fact Larry was using it to spray water on this 12 year old girl. She was not happy about it. I rinsed off my camera and was about to get my computer when Larry comes back and says "You cant use that for rinsing off equipmment". He said I was wasting the water. I asked why he could use it to spray people in the face that didnt want to be. I was told "Thats not the point". I shook my head and walked off. I'm on vacation so I'm not going to argue or get into anything. I dont need that crap or 'tude on vacation, nobody does.
I have had a few people pm me on this board and I have let them know the above info. 3 people have sent me back a message thanking me for the info and have decided NOT to use Chris Sawyer Diving. My dad is a diver and will be diving in St. Thomas at the end of September. He has also decided not to use Sawyer Dive. Larry- see what your attitude is doing for business.
I do have to give credit where it is due. Staci the photog was super nice and sent me a cd of great pics. The dive boats were very nice too.
I really wish I could have posted a gleaming review, but I have to give my fellow divers my honest write up. My advice is to skip Chris Sawyer Diving and try another outfit.
I called to get pricing and to find out if any spots were still open for the morning dive. The price was fair and they still had some spots open. As with any other dives I have booked I had to give them a credit card to hold my place. After the lady got all my info and got me booked she gave me a big speech on how I HAD to be there on time and they would not wait. If I missed my dive and didnt give them 24 hours notice they would charge my card. I was told the dive boat left at 9am.
My cruise ship pulled into port at 7:45am, I got through immigration and was walking off the ship by 8:20am. Knowing I had less than 40 min to get to the other side of the island I got a taxi by myself. I told the driver I had to be there before 9am. He about killed us getting there, but by god I was there about 10 min early. I got signed in got my weights and went to the boat. Well we waited, waited, then waited some more. about 20 min after I was told the deadline to arrive was I finally asked what the wait was. Well we were waiting on a couple more people. Finally the boat left the dock a little after 9:30am. Half an hour late. I guess the "be here on time" rule applies to me only.
The diving was great if you were doing an open water check out. For me it was LAME LAME LAME. I laid my computer on the bottom and got 49 feet. Both dives were the same: A shallow reef. When I spoke with the lady on the phone, I was under the impression that my 2 dives would be different. She said there were so many sites including some wrecks.
The dive leader I had was a 24 karat a-hole. His name is Larry. This guy has no business leading real divers. He should stick to snorkeling. He offered up NO info on the reefs, gave no names. When I tried to ask him a question about the second dive site, he scoffed at me and went to the front of the boat. Believe me when I saw there were 3 other people on the dive that did not care for his terrible attitude. Larry- your actions are costing Sawyer dive some money, more on that later.
This is the thing that really ticked me off. On the way back after the 2 incredibly beginner dives, I went to the back of the boat to rinse off my computer and my camera casing with the fresh water hose that we were told by Wayne we could use. In fact Larry was using it to spray water on this 12 year old girl. She was not happy about it. I rinsed off my camera and was about to get my computer when Larry comes back and says "You cant use that for rinsing off equipmment". He said I was wasting the water. I asked why he could use it to spray people in the face that didnt want to be. I was told "Thats not the point". I shook my head and walked off. I'm on vacation so I'm not going to argue or get into anything. I dont need that crap or 'tude on vacation, nobody does.
I have had a few people pm me on this board and I have let them know the above info. 3 people have sent me back a message thanking me for the info and have decided NOT to use Chris Sawyer Diving. My dad is a diver and will be diving in St. Thomas at the end of September. He has also decided not to use Sawyer Dive. Larry- see what your attitude is doing for business.
I do have to give credit where it is due. Staci the photog was super nice and sent me a cd of great pics. The dive boats were very nice too.
I really wish I could have posted a gleaming review, but I have to give my fellow divers my honest write up. My advice is to skip Chris Sawyer Diving and try another outfit.
