Diving in Greek Islands

[kiwilassee]

Hi there

I've done a couple of try dives before and now have the scuba bug!

I want to complete my PADI Open Water course in the Greek Islands at the end of March, but on searching the web it seems there are so many different islands I could go to.

Does anyone have any advice about which islands are the best to visit? I'd love to see turtles, morays and maybe even some (small!) sharks... if that would be possible.

Any advice is welcome!!!

 

[Robinhood]

I can't offer ALOT of advice on the Greek Isles, but I can tell you not to go to Corfu. Corfu is probably the or one of the western most islands. You get there usually by way of ferry from Italy. The island itself was fantastic and I loved it...the diving was WAY too expensive and didn't have much to offer. There certainly was no eels or much else that I recall. All I remember was rocks! :frown2:

Hi there

I've done a couple of try dives before and now have the scuba bug!

I want to complete my PADI Open Water course in the Greek Islands at the end of March, but on searching the web it seems there are so many different islands I could go to.

Does anyone have any advice about which islands are the best to visit? I'd love to see turtles, morays and maybe even some (small!) sharks... if that would be possible.

Any advice is welcome!!!

 

[DocVikingo]

The Scuba Diving Destinations section of this board has a forum dedicated to Europe. You'll see it just a little way down the board from General Travel Discussions.

As such, I have taken the liberty of moving your question to that forum in hopes that it may receive a more comprehensive response.

As a new member, I welcome you to familiarize yourself with the board. It has a lot going on.

Best regards.

DocVikingo

 

[itziar]

[

Hi Kiwilassee,

I cannot offer comparative advice, since I just have dived with one operator in the Greek Islands. I was in Mykonos last summer, and found "Dive Adventures" in Paradise beach through the internet, and contacted Costas, the owner of the shop. I decided to go with this operator because I was impressed by the information in their web page and I really did not know who else to ask -- I had not yet found Scubaboard then. I actually was very pleased with the shop and the people who worked there: friendly and professional. You can visit my web page and see some photographs of my dives in
Mykonos at http://www.inaoep.mx/~itziar/images/mykonos0306.html. You have a link to the shop web page there too, in case you are interested in contacting them. Dive Adventures caters mainly for the ocassional diver hopping through the islands, but we did 11 dives with them and were very pleased with the dives and the care they took of us. My husband and I had recently obtained our OW certifications, and felt very confortable with the advice and supervision provided by the DMs, who were not oppresive, but would always offer their best counselling when asked. I observed that they had a good bunch of students too, but they taught in a private or semi-private fashion, so although the courses were a bit more expensive than here in Mexico (or the US , for that matter), I thought it was worth the money. The wife of a friend of mine, a Greek, took the OW course with them a few month afterwards and she was extremely pleased with both her teacher and the shop as a whole.

As for marine life, in the Mediterranean Sea I did not see any turtles, and in general, I thought there was less variety than in the tropical seas I have dived in, but I actually enjoyed the fields of sea grass, and saw a bunch of groupers, jacks, eels, octupus and sea stars. And I saw some antique amphoras too!

If you have the chance, there or in any other island, do not miss the oportunity to dive. It will always be different from Scotland, right?

Cheers,

Itziar

 

[Paul Evans]

If your going to do it in Greece and want to see turtles, you need to base yourself at either Kalimaki or Laganas on the island of Zakynthos, theres a Eurodivers dive school there, they have excelent boat and gear??

Be lucky and you may see some turtles, best bet, hire a paddle boat from kalamiki beach, head out to the marker bouys and if you are really lucky you can snorkel with them.

Remember the Greeks gov. controls diving. lots of restrictions!!!!!!!!

Bottom line if its diving you want, go to the red sea, This could be the best place on earth to dive???????????

:icosm01: :icosm01: :icosm01: :icosm01: :icosm01:

It'll probably be cheaper to finish your OW in the Red Sea, You won't regret it.

 

[Paul Evans]

The Med is Dead, if you want sharks go to the RED SEA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


The Med is'nt dead, but remember diving in greece is highly controlled and it really in'nt a patch on the RED SEA.