The question was: "do I really need my compass for a few cruise dives?"
The answer is probably no, but . . . . .
Do you really need your seatbelts in your car? Most of the time no, but it is still a really good idea to use them all the time because you never really know for sure when that rare situation will occur where you really need them. Do you need a dive knife/shears? Probably not, but when you need them, you NEED THEM.
Can you get away without having a compass? Sure. But have you considered a risk/reward comparison? What do you gain by eliminating the compass? What do you risk by eliminating the compass? What do you gain by keeping the compass? What do you risk by keeping the compass?
Answer these questions and you answer your question. Forget what anyone else does or thinks, it is you butt that is either in a sling or not.
FWIW, I have a compass on each of my consoles, and they never leave their receptacles, even though I rarely use them when I dive in Cozumel. I know where they are, and they are always there when I do need them. My mother used to preach "a place for every thing, and every thing in it's place." Makes it easy to find things. I pack my gear bag the same way for the same reason. (and my hockey gear bag, and my skiing gear bag, and my boot bag etc.)
Wristshot
