Dive cert. vacation

[Bubblesong]

Don't forget the wife! Pick the hotel where she can go out and about safely, so she will keep going on trips with you!

 

[j_t_sloan]

Don't forget the wife! Pick the hotel where she can go out and about safely, so she will keep going on trips with you!

She is my #1...happy wife=happy life!

 

[Snoweman]

I would second Playa and Cozumel. Playa has the beach and Coz has the diving. It's about a 30 minute ferry ride between them. The Riviera Maya is very safe, but I wouldn't rent a car. Police are known for pulling over speeders and demanding the fine on the spot. It has happened to me, twice. One was in Playa and one on Cozumel. Other than that, the government and drug cartels know to stay away from the area. It's easy to get to and very, very cheap. I recommend Tres Pelicanos in Cozumel. I have used them on both my dive trips to Coz and don't see any reason to go anywhere else. Once you drift dive, you won't want to do anything else.

 

[outofofficebrb]

Thanks everyone for all the advice. Leaning heavily towards the Bahamas right now. Looking at Nassau or Freeport. Which one has better diving ?

I didn't dive in Nassau, just Grand Bahama (Freeport area) and Bimini so I can't compare the two for you. Freeport water was about 75 in late March, Bimini was 79 at same time period. In Nassau, Stuart's Cove is pretty famous, especially for their Caribbean reef shark dive, though I can't speak to any of their services since I did not dive with them. I know of others who have, though, and said good things. Weather and beach quality was prettier in Nassau to us than Freeport (Grand Bahama) but it may have been luck of the draw with weather at the time. Bimini's beach (Radio Beach), water, etc. blows both out of the water, hands down. I'd go back to Bimini in a heartbeat and would transit at the same resort in Nassau but I probably won't return to Grand Bahama unless I wanted to do Tiger Beach again.

I will second the others Jon Cozumel and the Playa del Carmen/Tulum area. Also great value, slightly cheaper than Bahamas. Both are good options but if you want to try drift diving, Cozumel is famous for this.

 

[KathyV]

I've dived in Florida and various spots in the Bahamas (and Hawaii) during March/April and the water is too cold for me (mid to upper 70s) but I have turned into a warm water wimp!

I would go further south to find a spot with warmer water (around 80) that will provide good scuba and dive certification options for you and lots of beach and topside attractions for your wife.

Keep in mind that March is still during the high-season so prices will be near peak everywhere in the Caribbean, but you may be able to find good prices for airfare depending on the destination.

Provo in the Turks and Caicos and Grand Cayman are possibilities; lots of diving and beach and topside activities; these are expensive destinations but you can usually get good airfare prices.

Take a look at St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands, lots of shopping, restaurants, and activities and very good Caribbean diving, and the Fredricksted Pier is a major Caribbean shore dive and snorkeling destination.

Also check out Curacao, there are many topside activities around the main city of Willemstad and very good diving. Airfare may be high but you might find good deals on diving and accommodations. Curacao has better beaches and more non-diving activities then neighboring Bonaire, which is primarily a diver's destination.

 

[j_t_sloan]

Thanks everyone for all the great feedback and info ! I found round-trip tickets to Miami for under $350. So looks like we will be going to the Keys in June. I wanted to go to the Bahamas but didn't want to wait for passport. We will plan better for a Caribbean trip or possibly Mexico next spring.
Any suggestion for dive instructors in Key Largo?

 

[SoccerDad]

One. If only! Tiger Beach runs $400-550, hammerheads run $300. $700 for the two shark days alone per person was a chunk of the budget. So, if you back that out, it was about $1,300 a person for 10 days of hotel, food, lodging, airfare, and 8 tanks. Not bad, right?

Planning our trip to Bahamas - what dive op did you use - lodging and airline? Direct flights out of LAX?

 

[outofofficebrb]

Planning our trip to Bahamas - what dive op did you use - lodging and airline? Direct flights out of LAX?

We used Neal Watson in Bimini and Reef Oasis in Freeport. Neal Watson is at Bimini Big Game Club and Reef Oasis is at Viva Wyndham. We did all inclusive at Viva Wyndham and did a la carte at Bimini Big Game Club. At the time, we flew from SFO to Charlotte then to Nassau with American Air for $330 RT. We caught a deal. The puddle jumpers between the islands were about $70-90 IIRC. Flamingo Air and Western Air. Your only other alternative is an all day ferry at inconvenient times and not all days of the week. forget that!

 

[Snoweman]

We used Neal Watson in Bimini and Reef Oasis in Freeport. Neal Watson is at Bimini Big Game Club and Reef Oasis is at Viva Wyndham. We did all inclusive at Viva Wyndham and did a la carte at Bimini Big Game Club. At the time, we flew from SFO to Charlotte then to Nassau with American Air for $330 RT. We caught a deal. The puddle jumpers between the islands were about $70-90 IIRC. Flamingo Air and Western Air. Your only other alternative is an all day ferry at inconvenient times and not all days of the week. forget that!

When did you go? That was a hell of a deal!

 

[outofofficebrb]

When did you go? That was a hell of a deal!

We went towards late March to the 1st of April but bought our air tickets back in late Oct if I remember correctly. I’ve had some great, inexpensive runs out that way. The Caribbean deals have been kind to me. I went to Cancun for $190 from SFO back in Sept 2015 and dove Cozumel for the first time then.