Looking at a first time trip to Curacao, and pondering the "bus" vs. the "Boat". Give me your experiences.
Discuss "The Dive Bus"
- Thread starter rhwestfall
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OP
f-ing comedians everywhere...
OP
Truth be told, my daughter gets sea sick, so thinking a guided shore dive, and leaving the terror of international island driving to someone else has it's appeal....
Always hear good things about the bus. I've made 60+ shore dives (unguided) in Curacao over a few trips and have yet to step on a boat. Honestly I don't think I'm missing too much but I may book a trip or two next time just incase.
AdivingBel
Diver
Watamula is a nice boat dive (it's really the only one we don't miss) and it's a short boat ride from GoWest. Driving on Curacao is pretty mundane especially out west. We really enjoy the shore diving, beach diving, day trips (pack a lunch and a trunk full of tanks) to the more remote little coves, and the "house reef" diving at Marazul. Haven't dived with the Dive Bus, but I've also heard good things. A lot depends on how long you're going to be there and where you're going to stay. We spend most of our time near Westpunt. Have fun. 
So true, if your staying in the Westpundt
area
you won't need the dive bus to fill a weeks worth of diving. Go West Dive operation has a great house reef and All West Apartments affiliated with Go West has also a superb house reef. They are actually one continuous stretch of sloping embankment with good hard and soft corals all around. You will see turtles at the All West Apartment reef unless you have blinders on. Bring your camera! From the Go West dive shop they go to Watamula twice a week check the days to be sure. Watamula is usually the second dive of the day so you can just do the Watamula portion after lunch around 1pm. It's only a 10-15 minute boat trip from the dock and back.
Damselfish
Contributor
Always heard good things about the bus but never used it. Driving in Curacao is actually not bad though, and doing your own shore dives pretty easy. It may depend where you want to stay and where you want to dive, as using the dive bus may constrain you on that some.
Take this with a grain of salt as I don't get seasick, but Curacao waters tend to be pretty calm for boat diving, maybe not as bathtub as Bonaire but close. My husband has major issues with seasickness and the Scop patch is the only thing that works well for him on boats. We went to Curacao a lot while the Scop patch was off the market years back, because it was a place he could handle with other remedies.
Take this with a grain of salt as I don't get seasick, but Curacao waters tend to be pretty calm for boat diving, maybe not as bathtub as Bonaire but close. My husband has major issues with seasickness and the Scop patch is the only thing that works well for him on boats. We went to Curacao a lot while the Scop patch was off the market years back, because it was a place he could handle with other remedies.
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I've met Suzy (owner) - they're fun people so I;m sure the dive crew is also.She spent about 15 mins. with ua going over dive site directions in detail after we decided our schedules would not mesh so we couldn't dive with them that week.
I do know they dive many of the better sites - pick up at any resort in town - and provide a guide as well as all gear transport/setup etc. I believe they dive the same site twice in most cases.
I agree with the others - shore diving on Curacao couldn't be easier. Most dive sites are also sandy beach entries, almost all have on-site dive operators for tanks/weights plus most will offer to watch your car while you're gone. The few western sites where a dock is needed to get out over the ironshore - they've built one. At some there's a small usage fee if you use the facilities - often waived if you rent tanks from them.
In many cases once you leave the main road - the road you're on ends at the water/divesite. It's all easy low-current diving that parallels the shore line so it's hard to get lost
If you're staying near town Westpunt is worth the 45min drive out. One of the best shore dives is off Go West's dock and they go to Watamula once or twice per week. On Curacao the farther from town the less resort/dining options you'll find. On our trip we did a few days in Lagun to do all the far west dives thenmoved to the Piscadera Bay area just north of downtown and were more tourists although we still did some dives.
Your daughter like Dolphins? Ocean Encounters Curacao - Dolphin Dive Curacao
it's a little pricey but only a 5min. boat ride from their main shop.
I do know they dive many of the better sites - pick up at any resort in town - and provide a guide as well as all gear transport/setup etc. I believe they dive the same site twice in most cases.
I agree with the others - shore diving on Curacao couldn't be easier. Most dive sites are also sandy beach entries, almost all have on-site dive operators for tanks/weights plus most will offer to watch your car while you're gone. The few western sites where a dock is needed to get out over the ironshore - they've built one. At some there's a small usage fee if you use the facilities - often waived if you rent tanks from them.
In many cases once you leave the main road - the road you're on ends at the water/divesite. It's all easy low-current diving that parallels the shore line so it's hard to get lost
If you're staying near town Westpunt is worth the 45min drive out. One of the best shore dives is off Go West's dock and they go to Watamula once or twice per week. On Curacao the farther from town the less resort/dining options you'll find. On our trip we did a few days in Lagun to do all the far west dives thenmoved to the Piscadera Bay area just north of downtown and were more tourists although we still did some dives.
Your daughter like Dolphins? Ocean Encounters Curacao - Dolphin Dive Curacao
it's a little pricey but only a 5min. boat ride from their main shop.
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Where are you planning on staying? Makes a difference. If staying in Willemstad or just east, guided dives or something like the dive bus may be a good option as driving through Willemstad is a bit tricky. If staying to the west of Willemstad, the driving is very simple and easy. The ride from the airport to Westpunt as an example could not be easier - a right out of the airport, a right at the first rotary and follow the road and signs until there.
If you shore dive on your own and hit shore sites with dive ops you can always arrange for a guided dive for any site that you would feel more comfortable or more enjoyable with a guide. We shore dive for a lot of reasons but one of them is that my wife gets seasick easily on boat rides. Some of the boat rides in Cur can be relatively short and easy. We have done 1 tank PMs with gowest to watamula and it is a short 5 min ride. It can be a little choppy though at the site as it is getting partially around the tip and out of the full lee of the island. Wife easily tolerated the short trip and bit of chop at the site.
Enjoy your trip
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