Diving FL with kids

[dodd]

My sons (12 and 10) just got Jr open water certified and I was looking at taking them somewhere in FL to go diving. They would be limited to around 40'.

Any suggestions?

Thanks
Tom

 

[djtimmy77]

Key Largo. The shallow reefs are great and are well within that range.

 

[sportxlh]

Upper Keys like Key Largo or Islamorada: lots of shallow reefs.

An alternative is the first reef line in Pompano if you don't want to drive all the way to the Keys.

 

[PatW]

I would suggest Key Largo also. There are quite a few sites with a less than 40' max depth, decent visibility, little current, good coral both hard and soft and good fish populations.

 

[luscioman]

Key Largo is the place to go for you. Usually shallow dives and little current on the reefs.

 

[sheeper]

if you don't want to go all the way to the Keys, the Blue Heron Bridge in Palm Beach would be awesome. the kids would totally love it. Just dive the high tide.

 

[iluvtheocean]

there are a lot of shallow reefs off ft lauderdale, not to mention the shore dives are in 20' or less --- are you driving or flying? key largo would require a car rental out of FLL or MIA - and hotels are cheaper in Ft Lauderdale

with their ages --- could consider the Epcot dive -- and then get to do disney

 

[Steve_C]

Epcot would be great for them. Most of the Key Largo reef dives are 20-30 ft. You also often have a choice. Boat anchors and if you move out it will slowly deepen and if you move in it will slowly get shallow.

If you are in the Epcot area you could also go up and dive Rainbow River. This is an easy drift dive down a spring fed river. Max depth of 20. There are some fish to see. Water is crystal clear. Ponton boat takes you up and you drift back following the boat.

 

[jameseg]

Another vote for Key Largo. On Molasses Reef, most of the dive sites we visited bottomed out around 35'. Another consideration is the abundance of well regarded dive ops. My wife and I used Rainbow Reef, which was excellent, with some of the most enthusiastic and personable DMs I've come across. From research here, sounds like there are plenty of other ops down there that are also very good.

James

 

[CajunDiva]

Your guys would LOVE the diving in Key Largo. Last year we went down there with a buddy and his 11 year old son. He went through the certification process with Rainbow Reef Dive Center. The instructors were all great with him. I would recommend them without hesitation. In fact, we'll be there next week for the 2nd Annual Cajun Invasion

Whatever you decide, I hope you all have a great time and enjoy the diving in Florida...