Diving Stuart Cove's Nassau Bahamas

[sharkbaitDAN]

Does anyone know if you can buy a cd of pics from your dives . I'm going next week . I saw that you could order the pics online but didnt see the option for a cd of all your images as a package?

At this time there is no option to order all of your photos as a package. You can choose which images you want, and those can be put on CD to be mailed. The pricing once you are here is not the same as what is shown online, nor are the packages for the shark dive the same. Hope this helped.

 

[jpepper70]

I had the same experience when I dived with them 6 years ago. Short dives, rush to get back, big cattleboat. I'll never go back.

 

[george w]

hey SRA yes you can get the CD we did and it is well worth it we got both vidio and still pictures great quality

 

[Dantheengineer]

I had the same experience when I dived with them 6 years ago. Short dives, rush to get back, big cattleboat. I'll never go back.

All depends on when you go. I enjoyed a mornings diving with four of us on the boat not two months ago..........
Me, DM (rik), the Capt. (Dexter) and one other guest.
It doesn't get any better than that!

They do get busy though....

 

[H2O Gal]

Dan-
That must have been heavenly! I've been with Stuart Cove's three years in a row now. I've run the entire gamut from 20 divers on the boat to as few as six. We like using them, but the only beef we have with them is such short bottom times. I always come back with at least 2200 psi, and when I was diving air it didn't bother me too badly, but since we used Nitrox on the last visit it seemed quite a waste of money! I understand they need to get back to the dock for the next group of divers. Do they give you any more time if you do the afternoon dives?

 

[Dantheengineer]

Dan-
That must have been heavenly! I've been with Stuart Cove's three years in a row now. I've run the entire gamut from 20 divers on the boat to as few as six. We like using them, but the only beef we have with them is such short bottom times. I always come back with at least 2200 psi, and when I was diving air it didn't bother me too badly, but since we used Nitrox on the last visit it seemed quite a waste of money! I understand they need to get back to the dock for the next group of divers. Do they give you any more time if you do the afternoon dives?

Heavenly isn't a word to use lightly, but yes. Just that!

In my experience the afternoons tend to be quieter so as a very general rule i'd say they are slightly more relaxed. It all depends on whether things are going right.

If it's busy, a boat breaks down, the customers are unhappy and requesting difficult facilities (like a camera bucket larger that 50 Gal ), then i wouldn't bank on it.

 

[Falcon99]

My wife and I are planning a custom trip to Nassau in late July and have no idea where to start. Honestly, some of the comments and reviews I've seen for both operators are a little distressing. Yeah, some of them are unfounded gripes like "They didn't take care of my elderly mom on her first dive" or "they didn't make sure my tank was strapped tightly", and the like.

But there are a couple of recurrent themes that are making me not to even dive.

I don't want to be on a cattle boat in 20 feet of water for a 30 minute dive.

If the majority of dives are like this, I'll leave my stuff home.

But if there are distinctive times of the week, or special requests that can be made with the operators to better maximize the trip, what are they?

Is it even worth packing my gear, or should I save the money for a later trip to Cozumel?

 

[Antsy]

I agree with Muggsy -- Stuart Cove's is an incredible operation. Very professional, informative, and thorough.

We did the same shark feed dive she described in April. I can't say anything more than Muggsy said, because we had the exact same experience in the exact same location. In fact, my profile pic is from the second dive on that trip (in the rock circle).

I had dreamed about diving with sharks for years, so I was all too excited to do this dive. The only time I was even slightly afraid was when I first jumped in the water, knowing there were many sharks below me. But once in, and with all the other people who jump in, AND with all the other people below you swimming in and among the sharks below, my fears dissapated. I still look at the pictures and video today, almost not believing I did it just because of how it looks, but I'd do it over and over again in a heartbeat. When you're down there, the sharks seem like dolphins and are definitely just as graceful.

Keep in mind, these are Caribbean Reef Sharks, which are worlds different than Tigers, Bulls, and Great Whites. I knew that bull sharks were much more dangerous, but I never knew why -- I heard on Discovery that their testosterone level is up to 80 times higher than that of other sharks. Great Whites will typically only "taste test" a human before deciding it doesn't like you and leave you with a pretty bad wound, sometimes fatal. But a Tiger -- and especially a Bull -- will keep right on eating.

Anyway, I just wanted to put in my two cents for Stuart Cove's operation -- a real class act. We stayed in Nassau (specifically, Paradise Island) and enjoyed the entire trip, with Stuart Cove's shark feeding dives being one of the brightest highlights.

 

[jleary24]

Just got back from 2 dives at Stuarts Cove in Nassau Bahamas.

I've never posted here about positive experiences I've had with dive operations (though I've thought of doing so re: The Dive Bus in Curacao and Jack's Diving Locker in Kona, HI). But my wife and I just returned from five days in Providence Island and did six dives with Stuart Cove's. My wife was completing her Open Water certification and did her four check-out dives with Ingrid, a native of Wales and one of the outstanding instructors there. Ingrid has logged over 3,500 dives all over the world and possesses all the attributes of a superb instructor. My wife was so comfortable after her four check-out dives, she enthusiastically agreed to do the two shark dives with me - and is now hooked on diving. I'd like to mention each one of the helpful staff by name, but as someone mentioned before, there were so many helpful and friendly folks on staff I couldn't keep track of them all. We will definitely be going back. Though somewhat off topic... I also highly recommend Orange Hill - particularly the relatively new "cottages". It's a hotel on the NW side of island that is popular with divers. It's the last pick-up and first drop-off stop for the Stuart Cove's bus. The "honor bar" at the hotel is relaxing place to meet fellow divers and talk about the cool things you saw underwater that day.

 

[diablonyc2]

I am actually going with two friends this week to Stuart Cove (for the 1st dive). I have two days of diving and the following question:
- If there are 3 of us, will they find an extra buddy or let us dive as a group with a DM?
- We ARE doing the shark dive, but for our 2nd day, does anyone recommend a wreck or site to dive? We have one novice with us.

We want to do a night dive, but have to wait till down there to see if they will do one.