Diving from Ka'anapali, Maui

[divingscorpio]

I will be traveling to Maui and staying in Ka'anipali with friends but I am the only certified diver and hope to dive 3 days while there.
We have a place to stay and will be sharing a rental car. Does anyone have any recommendations on dive shops to use in the area? Shore diving vs. boat diving? If boat diving, which ones allow snorkelers on the boat if a friend or 2 want to join me?

Any recommendations will be greatly appreciated!

thanks!

 

[DiveMaven]

If you have to stay in the Kaanapali/Lahaina area since you're sharing a car and can't really hog it for hours at a time, your best choice will probably be to book with Lahaina Divers. They also take snorkelers. Going with them will enable you to have later check in times (7am or later), you'll have a variety of choices for dive location (Lanai, Molokini, Molokai, and W. Maui), and can book based on their set schedule so you know where you're going each day. Although the boat ride to Molokini is long, if you've never been to Maui it is a gorgeous ride, and if you're going during whale season, it's a great way to whale watch as well.

IMO before booking, you should be aware that Lahaina Divers has big boats (46' Newtons), take up to 24 divers (where I've only felt crowded while gearing up), divide their groups as much as they can by experience level and usually only have 6-8 in a group with one dive master, but they aren't really known to cater to the experienced and independent diver,

Shore diving on Kaanapali is decent, you can easily book through one of the resort dive operators so you don't tie up a car and have a buddy.