Hi Linda,
The trip to the Cocos that I have booked is upon the Okeanos Aggressor from July 30- Aug. 9th, 2011. It will be my 11th time on the Okeanos Aggressor and I have been on the Sea Hunter once in 2008. I have also been on the Sky Dancer once to the Galapagos. Right now we have 5 spaces left on our trip.
Okay, that said, whether you sign with us or not here is my honest opinion. On the Sea Hunter, the food was good and the crew very nice. The boat is just as comfortable as the Okeanos but I prefer diving off the inflatables that the Okeanos offers. They once had the larger skiffs and no one liked them. I didn't mind so much but to each his/her own. The Hunter's cabins were no different in size or quality than are the recently upgraded cabins on the Okeanos but the salon where you eat is much smaller than the Okeanos. The crew on the Okeanos are wonderful and the food plentiful and very good and their snacks are excellent.
The Hunter's camera table was, in my opinion, one of the worst of any ship I have been on. Divers had to leave their expensive cam rigs on the floor with people walking around because everyone was assigned these little cubbyholes that were only big enough for the smallest camera set ups.
My one experience to the Galapagos on the Sky Dancer was a huge disappointment as we went on it when it was only 1 year old and thought we would have this beautiful new ship to dive off of. The opposite was true. The drains in the shower were rusted and some, including myself, literally cut their feet while taking a shower. The boat ran out of both food and rum and we wound up with soup until the boat could take the time to resupply itself. I didn't care about the alcohol but running out of food was absurd. The crew were complaining at the time that they weren't getting paid. After the trip, my partner and I filed a complaint with the Dancer fleet's president and were ignored. The Fleet, to the best of my understanding, has since been taken over so that Peter Hughes is no longer in charge. I have no idea whether they have or have not improved things.
I am prejudiced. I just love the Okeanos Aggressor and will continue to appreciate all that is great about it. The Hunter is considerably more expensive but still an excellent boat, a bit faster than the Okeanos, with a good crew; just a lousy cam table.
So there, I have been as honest and objective as I can regarding the Cocos. Remember that it is very important to go during the summer months because that is when the hammer schools and other large pelagics come in. I only lead groups there during late June through late August though I have heard that September is not bad either.
There is a ton of info on the Cocos trip at my website:
www.worldfilmsandtravel.com Here is the exact page:
Cocos Info Also, you might want to read the guest comments page to see how past guests felt about things.
Absolutely, feel free to call me at 619-464-4505 or email me with any questions or concerns you may have regardless as to whether you join my group or not. The Cocos are my favorite place in the world to dive and I love to turn people on to it. By the way, the Okeanos Aggressor cabins have one Queen bed and one single bed in each cabin, your own shower/BR etc, etc.
Hope this helps you and others who may be interested.
Steve
