bobfmdc
Contributor
We have been diving Grand Turk for 13 years--maybe 9 trips, and will be back in July. We have always used Grand Turk Diving. Their owner, Smitty (Algrove Smith), is well know throughout the area and a great guy. Although we always stay on Grand Turk, we have often dived with people from the cruise ships who make their own reservations directly with the dive shops.
Although Oasis has the contract with the ships, you can make your own reservations with Grand Turk Divers or Blue Water Diving (there are only 3 ops on the island). I don't think you can cut the cruise ship out of the picture with Oasis. Currently, Grand Turk Diving charges $105 +12% tax for a two tank dive. My impression is that when you book through the cruise ship it costs much more than this.
A final note is that the vis and the sites Oasis dives on the cruise ship trips are among the worst on the islands. The best by far are the ones north of Coburn Town. It is a long haul to get from the cruise ship to these sites and my impression is that the cruise ship excursions don't go up there. We don't normally dive the southern sites unless the wind is so strong that we can't hit the northern sites. They are only a 20 minute ride from GT Diving and Blue Water, which are almost in town.
Although Oasis has the contract with the ships, you can make your own reservations with Grand Turk Divers or Blue Water Diving (there are only 3 ops on the island). I don't think you can cut the cruise ship out of the picture with Oasis. Currently, Grand Turk Diving charges $105 +12% tax for a two tank dive. My impression is that when you book through the cruise ship it costs much more than this.
A final note is that the vis and the sites Oasis dives on the cruise ship trips are among the worst on the islands. The best by far are the ones north of Coburn Town. It is a long haul to get from the cruise ship to these sites and my impression is that the cruise ship excursions don't go up there. We don't normally dive the southern sites unless the wind is so strong that we can't hit the northern sites. They are only a 20 minute ride from GT Diving and Blue Water, which are almost in town.