Diving the Carribean vs. destinations in the South Pacific?

[ewaiea]

This is a bit of a loaded question, but since biodiversity is higher in the southeast Asia/Indo-Pacific part of the globe, do most of you feel that once you dive this area that a trip back to the Carribean is not as fun since you've seen "the best of the best".....?

I'm merely curious what some of you think - I know it's going to depend on many factors like what type of diving you want to do, what your preferences are, etc.....but feel free to interject with any of your thoughts.

Happy Holidays!

Eric

 

[ncchuck]

Absolutely. The only reason I dive the Carribean is cost savings. If I had the money, I'd dive Indonesia, Fiji, Micronesia etc. etc. every time.

That being said, I enjoy almost all warm water diving. I've tried Roatan, Utila, Belize, Cozumel, Little Cayman, Bonaire and several live aboards thus far. I read about other places right here on SB and I'm always looking for a great review of some place I've not visited. Suggestions are always welcome and I'm anxious to hear other opinions about your original question. I'm sure some will say it's just different but I think it's much different. It's just better over there.

 

[robint]

I don't think so....... I like all types of diving! I like visiting new and interesting places as well as the diving, too.

I love Caribbean diving , sure it doesn't have the bio-diversity of S. Pacific, but it also doesn't take me 2 days travel to get there and 2 days to get home with monster jetlag for a week after a trip! I love the ease of diving most places in the Caribbean, and the fact that English is spoken at every place due to tourism. I like that it is just easy, relaxed, and good diving. As a videographer and photographer, I have learned to find critters on my own, too. I don't need a DM to point things out. Our last trip the DM followed me around half the time to see what I found!!
So even though it isn't the "bio-diversity" capital of the oceans, there are tons and tons of things to see if you just stop and look. I have never had a bad dive in the Caribbean! I can always find something new EVERY dive, that I have never seen before.

I have only been to Hawaii and Palau in Pacific, but I enjoyed both because they were so diffferent from the Caribbean. Yes, diversity is a biggy. But the travel and costs are a hassle.
I do plan to go to Indonesia, and Fiji, and other spots in SP someday, but they will be fewer and farther between than my Caribbean trips (as noted for reasons in paragraph above).

I love California coldwater diving as much as the other two! Diving in 60 degree water, in a kelp forest so thick you can lose sight of all other humans more than 10' away. The critters are completely different, too. Vis on a good day is 40' and so it makes you really enjoy all the things you find, like dozens of nudibranchs, or garibaldis, or sea lions, .... It is great diving even though it is very cold water (40-70 degrees depending on season), low vis, surge, current, no DM to hold your hand or even lead you on a dive. It is a great place to feel totally independent and self-sufficient as a diver.

other places? Heck yeah. We have plans in the near future to go to NC to wreck dive - not Caribbean and not Pacific. We also plan to go to Yucatan to do a week of cenotes - also not.

Too many places to dive, not enough time or money to do them all, but I will keep trying!!!

robin

 

[Cajuncru Diver]

Absolutely not.....I had a wonderful time on the islands of the South Pacific & the GBR Australia, but every dive in the Caribbean and in the Florida Keys is a great dive.......there are only three classes of dives in my opinion......good, gooder and gooder!

 

[Damselfish]

I don't know that I would call a trip to the Caribbean "less fun" but sure I would prefer to be diving in the Pacific. But pretty much anyplace Indo-Pacific is such a long expensive trip from here that it's just not going to happen as often as Caribbean trips.

 

[TSandM]

I think the diving in the British Virgin Islands still ranks as spectacular, even after Bunaken and Lembeh. There were not as many amazing fish and octopus and so on, but the sponges, soft coral, gorgonians and the like were as colorful and fascinating, and the diving was much easier than Bunaken (less current).

On the other hand, I was quite disappointed with the Society Islands and the Cook Islands for diving. There was a LOT of dead coral, and sick reef, and the animals were sparse. The only place in our South Pacific trip where the diving was superb was Rangiroa.

So I suspect each region has its rich and not so rich dive areas.

 

[brunolc]

:cool2::cool2:

I'll give u a cheap suggestion. I think you all already haven't heard about 'Fernando de Noronha' island. A small paradise in Atlantic Ocean. Have been a former American Air Base on the II war.

There is an American Airlines direct flight from Miami or Orlando to Recife (Brazil) - a little bit expensive from one to cozumel - and then, u take another direct flight (about 45 min long) to Fernando de Noronha. The dive, food and hotels costs compensate too much the flight cost. That's it. Simple and cheap.
The biodiversity is incredible high than Caribean. I've already been to Bonaire, Curacao, Cozumel, and this year, I went there. The place is incredible beatifull, safe and and you have the chance to dive with sharks, turtles, dolphins, rawfish, octopuses, different colorfull mooreas, and also the sea flora is superb.
Best time to go is from september to march.
See some photos at my Flickr (go to my profile to see the address)

regards

 

[DRsharky]

If you love diving, you go wherever you can dive and always find some great things too see. I dive almost every day, sometimes 2 days in a row at the same dive spot, and the dives are never the same.
Same like Robin said, I like little things to look at. When I take pictures I can spend easy an hour, hour and half on one spot and admire the smallest creatures.
I had few people asking me if they can see BIG stuff here, well Caribbean is not really a place to go and see big creatures, but I've seen lots of stingrays, american rays, turtles, some reef and nurse sharks too, and calm clear blue water (most of the time )
I used to dive in cold waters of Vancouver (BC) coast, saw great and big life there, sometimes I miss seeing millions of crabs, lobsters, link cods and other fish that are not here, but then I realize I don't need to wear my dry suit diving here, so I am happy where I am and happy I can dive.

 

[Damselfish]

A lot of what I enjoy in the Pacific is not that it's always "better," which as Lynn points out isn't necessarily true, but that the critters are simply different from the Carribean. I've dove the Caribbean enough that it's rare for me to see new things there, it's mostly the same stuff I've seen so many times. In the Pacific I'm always seeing new stuff, which is partly the diversity but also partly that I haven't been there that many times.