Curacao-Buying Nitrox in a package or at the dive sites?

[amajamar]

I have read in this forum that there are some sites that request/require that you purchase air from them in order to dive. What is the reality of that situation, and if I purchase unlimited Nitrox from one op, will I be limited in my dive site selection?

Bonaire was obviously much different, just about everything was accessible no matter who you got your air from; I just want to understand how the "system" in Curacao works before I commit.

Thanks in advance!

 

[tc_rain]

I have not run into a site that that requires you to buy air from them but it is available at numerous sites. I have not dove all of the sites in Curacao but have dove quite a few. Some sites will charge you a small entrance fee but most of them have amenities such as sandy beaches, showers, lockers, food and bathrooms that you will be able to use. Bonaire is very convenient for diving since the roads run along the shore line and you can just pull over at a painted rock. Curacao is a bit different and the dive sites require a bit more driving. I have dove both places and IMO underwater they are very similar as far as what you will see. I realize a lot of people will disagree with me but I believe Curacao is a bit better. It is nice walking in the water from a sandy beach then stumbling over broken pieces of coral. I also like being able to sit down and have something to eat and drink on a long SI rather than a cold sandwich and warm water. I love Bonaire but Curacao gets my repeat business. If you are interested, check into All West. They offer package deals that include apartments, air and car. Not to mention a great view and dive site right out your door.

 

[amajamar]

I have not run into a site that that requires you to buy air from them but it is available at numerous sites. I have not dove all of the sites in Curacao but have dove quite a few. Some sites will charge you a small entrance fee but most of them have amenities such as sandy beaches, showers, lockers, food and bathrooms that you will be able to use. Bonaire is very convenient for diving since the roads run along the shore line and you can just pull over at a painted rock. Curacao is a bit different and the dive sites require a bit more driving. I have dove both places and IMO underwater they are very similar as far as what you will see. I realize a lot of people will disagree with me but I believe Curacao is a bit better. It is nice walking in the water from a sandy beach then stumbling over broken pieces of coral. I also like being able to sit down and have something to eat and drink on a long SI rather than a cold sandwich and warm water. I love Bonaire but Curacao gets my repeat business. If you are interested, check into All West. They offer package deals that include apartments, air and car. Not to mention a great view and dive site right out your door.

So I take it that your opinion is that I shouldn't worry about buying my air fro one op? Well, that's a relief, because the one thing that I love about Bonaire is the unlimited tanks from a single op situation! Load up what you want and go wherever you want.

And I would agree about a sandy entry and exit. That was the one thing about Bonaire that I did find challenging. We are experienced shore divers and yet the Bonaire shore was somewhat challenging at times. We met several divers who were not shore divers who really didn't like it and shifted to boat dives for the remainder of their vacation.

 

[tc_rain]

A lot of places will offer unlimited shore diving, where like Bonaire you can just throw the tanks in back of your truck and go; however, they charge a bit more then Bonaire (at least when I was there a few years ago). I think I paid a little over $100 for 7 days unlimited when I was in Bonaire. Earlier this year I paid around $210. There are a few dive sites in Curacao where nothing is around so you will have to bring tanks with you but you can rent them anywhere. These "isolated" sites usually have the Bonaire like entrys. Here is a good website of just some of their dive sites that should give you an idea of what to expect. Scuba Shore Diving Site Listing for: Curacao, ABC Islands

 

[JW13]

Yeah, I think your Bonaire pricing is long in the past. I don't know if you can get it for less than about $25 per day any more. Or maybe I didn't go to the right place this fall........

 

[Bryan.]

I have read in this forum that there are some sites that request/require that you purchase air from them in order to dive. What is the reality of that situation, and if I purchase unlimited Nitrox from one op, will I be limited in my dive site selection?

Bonaire was obviously much different, just about everything was accessible no matter who you got your air from; I just want to understand how the "system" in Curacao works before I commit.

Thanks in advance!

Merry Christmas amajamar!!
Curacao is an extremely easy island to dive... there really is no limitations to where you can dive except maybe Blue Bay as the op there restricts tank usage to their own. Everywhere else, you can set up a good value package and bring your own tanks.

As an example, ALL WEST Apartments and Diving provides a package including Room, Vehicle, and Diving. The vehicle can be a car or truck and the diving can be a combination of shore, boat, nitrox, etc!!! Again... making it easy for you.

Anyways... I hope this helps and if there is anything more I can help you with, please let me know. Always happy to help!!

Have a great holiday and see you on Curacao soon!!

 

[gustele]

Bryan is right. As far as I know only Diversity requires you to get a tank from them for diving at the locations where they have a dive shop. Currently this seems to be only Blue Bay.
Not all dive operators on-site will have Nitrox so I would advise to rent tanks from a dive op who has Nitrox. Not all dive ops are having unlimited packages so maybe you would have to do a bit more planning per day and get sufficient tanks for your dives that day. Depending on where you are staying this means that the best option is to look for a dive operator close by so that you can exchange your tanks on your way home after the dives or in the morning before your dive day starts.

 

[amajamar]

Merry Christmas amajamar!!
Curacao is an extremely easy island to dive... there really is no limitations to where you can dive except maybe Blue Bay as the op there restricts tank usage to their own. Everywhere else, you can set up a good value package and bring your own tanks.

As an example, ALL WEST Apartments and Diving provides a package including Room, Vehicle, and Diving. The vehicle can be a car or truck and the diving can be a combination of shore, boat, nitrox, etc!!! Again... making it easy for you.

Anyways... I hope this helps and if there is anything more I can help you with, please let me know. Always happy to help!!

Have a great holiday and see you on Curacao soon!!

Did get a pricelist from Allwest and although we are leaning towards Marazul for our room (as it has a small pool) we are planning on purchasing our Nitrox from Go West, (which is you guys, correct?) So, a couple of questions for you. It looks like you are within a half a mile or so from Marazul, is that correct? What is the shop hours daily and can you get tanks at night? Are tanks available "Bonaire" style, ie, load as many tanks as you want for the day, or do you just return for fills on a single tank? Do you have a Nitrox analyzer for use at all times, or do I need to bring my own? Are there any discounts for boat dives if we have purchased unlimited Nitrox or are the boat dives as shown on the pricelist?

Tanks a lot!

 

[Bryan.]

Marazul is a great choice and the managers their will certainly look after you. However, a few points to mention is that they do not have an onsite tank service like ALL WEST Apartments or a locker room, but otherwise an excellent choice.

All tanks whether it is nitrox or air can be picked up at GO WEST Diving's main shop at Playa Kalki. You can use (with the purchase of an no limit package) all the tanks you want however we ask you to use only 2/pp at a time. We have analyzer's here for your use to sign out your nitrox tanks and of course we credit boat dives with the purchase of any package. No issue!!

If there is anything else, please let me know!!

See you soon!!

 

[amajamar]

Marazul is a great choice and the managers their will certainly look after you. However, a few points to mention is that they do not have an onsite tank service like ALL WEST Apartments or a locker room, but otherwise an excellent choice.

All tanks whether it is nitrox or air can be picked up at GO WEST Diving's main shop at Playa Kalki. You can use (with the purchase of an no limit package) all the tanks you want however we ask you to use only 2/pp at a time. We have analyzer's here for your use to sign out your nitrox tanks and of course we credit boat dives with the purchase of any package. No issue!!

If there is anything else, please let me know!!

See you soon!!

Bryan, am I correct in believing that Marazul is about a half mile from the dive shop? That's the way it looks in Google Maps. What are the shop's regular hours, and is there access to 24 hour tanks if I don't stay at All West? Is using the storage lockers only for people staying at All West?