diving during a cruise

[Airleron]

I've done both. I prefer going to a destination and staying there for a week and diving. Cruise ship diving is often hurried, you carrying your gear everywhere (in Nassau we had to lug gear across the ship dock to the bus, and back. Not pleasant). When you're at the destination for a week, it's way more laid back, which is how I like to vaca.

Lisa

 

[rivers]

I did it for a year and half while working on a ship. Rarely did I go with the ship op and I had my own gear. I managed to get it hung and dry, without it taking up too much of my cabin (and crew cabins are a hell of a lot smaller). You'll be fine, it's do-able.

 

[knowone]

I usually put some gas, in a couple of tanks, and the car
and my entire extended family and the rest of the street
hit the mall whilst I go diving enjoying voluminous views
then afterwards we catch up at the spartan but nice local
pizzeria Ristorante, La Porchetta where we laugh and eat
and spend much time discussing and dreaming and even
fantasising about their humongous mediterranean mural.

 

[Doc]

[playfully written but hard truth nevertheless]

Am I doomed to suffer through this or...

Do you really like her, I mean really?

If not, either dump her now or just send her on the Cruise Ship once a year. She might have a fling with the waiter, but you can go off on a dive vacation. Win - win.

Oh, you really do like her? Send her on the Cruise Ship TWICE a year. She might have a fling with the waiter, but you can go off on a dive vacation. Win - win.

Cruise ship diving is absolutely loved and perfect for people who go on cruise ships and decide to go diving.

If you've been previously at a real dive resort, or have pushed even a place like Coz to the limit (like it sounds that you already have), cruise ship diving will not fulfill your greatest fantasy.

If your company with her while she gets to ride on what you call "spending days sitting on a moving city heading to tourist trap shops and drinking and eating myself to sleep each night" will make her deliriously happy, then - why not? You married her, pal, so man-up and roll over.

Cruise ship dive operations treat you as the lowest common denominator, the 5' deep pool certified diver as mentioned above. You may elect to do it cheaper and charter with a non-cruise ship related dive op, but they really don't care if you do have a Master diver card or your BPW set-up. They're going to treat you like an unknown, which you truly are, just like any dive operation. If you, over the years, have developed a known reputation with a dive-op, they may treat you somewhat differently, but for the most part, you're going to get the standard lunch meat on white bread treatment.

Show your lovely bride and her dive buddies this website >>> for The ultimate tiny cruise ship and explain to them how they are just really neat little eco friendly cruise ships. Save the whales and all of that.

[/playfully written but hard truth nevertheless]

PS This was not to disparage those who like these type of trips but as life is, we are all different...

Agreed on both counts.

 

[knfmn]

Or you can always do a really nice live aboard. The wife can stay topside and flirt with the staff and work on her tan while you dive as much as you'd like. Probably not as much to do as on a cruise, but if you can convince her that it's *almost* the same, you'll be a God amongst men.

Kristopher

 

[sam1]

If you decide to go the cruise route, you should take look at Star Clippers Sailing Tall Ship Cruises . I have been on three of their Caribbean trips. Their ships are 150-200 passenger sailing clippers. They offer diving from Zodiaks.

 

[Laurie S.]

I've done four cruises since getting certified and dove on everyone. Except for the first cruise, I've always set up my dives privately. I just went to French Polynesia in February and did 18 cruises, including 2 night cruises. I'm leaving a week from tomorrow to do a full transit of the Panama Canal from South America to the Caribbean and will be diving at Costa Maya, Roatan, and Cozumel. I take all my own equipment except for tanks and weights. I do actually take two one-pound weights for trim since the shops rarely have those. I've had a blast everytime and have several more cruises set up this year and next. I love to travel and sail, and this just puts it all together for me.

 

[parzdiver]

I have done many cruises and booked both through the cruise line and independently. Sometimes you wind up on the same dive boat either way.

The one place I would recommend booking through the cruise line is if you think there might to be a tight time constraint. The ship will wait for all the official excursions to get back. One trip I had for the stop in Key West, they were pulling up the gang plank right after we got back. As we were pulling away I saw a couple people running down the pier.....

 

[Doc]

The ship will wait for all the official excursions to get back.

Kinda' sometimes maybe.

I know of two occasions where that was not the case. One involved a last minute traffic accident tie-up and the other a broken-down dive boat. In both of these situations, the big white boat sailed away without the guests who were on official cruise-line dive trips. I know that a private aircraft was provided in the second instance, the traffic jam I have no idea how that resolved. I don't think they had to wait one week for the next circuit

It's something to consider, but it really shouldn't be a deciding factor. Reputable dive operations understand the process, whether they are official or independents.

Oh, and BTW... an oft asked question/ dilemma in re cruise ship diving. Dive knives are really not worth the hassle of this TSA gone wild mentality found on cruise ships.

 

[cocoajoe]

Unless you book a bigger cabin, there's not a whole lot of room for dealing with gear after the dive.