Guam - any dive shop/hotel recommendations?

[Geoff_H]

Well this is a repost since the original got deleted due to the recent forum problems.... quite simply I'm off to Guam for a few days in September and welcome any suggestions for good places to stay or dive.

I am up for any diving and any comfortable lodging - no need for 5* - just somewhere with a nice bed to catch up after a days diving!

 

[Geoff_H]

Well I'll take the liberty of replying to my own question, since I am just back from Guam - in the hope it might be of use if anyone considers a trip. Posting this in Zen Divers since Guam seems like a Japanese city at times, apparantly 70% of the tourists are Japanese and it seemed like 95% at my hotel!

I stayed with Fiesta Resort, which was pretty fine. Nice rooms, comfortable beds and good location right on the bay and within a few minutes walk of some good restaurants. $90 a night

Fiesta Resort Guam

For diving, it came down to a choice between

MICRONESIAN DIVERS ASSN - GUAM & PACIFIC MICRONESIA SCUBA DIVING
WELCOME TO LET'S DIVE GUAM! We hope you enjoy our website. English & Japanese text.

MDA is cheaper, but don't do hotel pickups or offer guides. I opted for Lets Dive Guam, 2 morning boat dives for $105 and they were good - everything ran like clockwork timewise and the guides were helpful informative and found critters underwater. Chris & his wife both speak fluent Japanese too for any Japanese divers.

Diving is ok, the water is 30 degrees's and the visibility superb but I was a little dissappointed with the lack of marine life and there are no lush flowing soft coral beds here... rocks and a few hard corals are the order of the day. Nevertheless it's still a good place to do a few relaxed dives.. here are a few pictures I took.

A young dragon wrasse - a PITA to photograph as it seemed to be on speed! (hence the lack of precise focus!)

Some pretty filefish (I think, can anyone ID the species?)

Blue striped sleeper gobies

An as yet unidentified nudibranch

The famous blue hole dive

 

[Geoff_H]

BY the way, I would strongly recommend anyone staying on Guam to hire a car - only around $50 USD a day and opens up a lot more to do in the afternoon's and evenings.

 

[The Mushroom King]

Hey nice shots ! and looks like it was reasonably fun. did you see any of the wrecks in the area?

I tried to find your nudi in one of my books. Its definitely a Phyllidia but not sure which one.

 

[Geoff_H]

I tried to find your nudi in one of my books. Its definitely a Phyllidia but not sure which one.

The nudi that is closest in colouration and protuberances in my Japanese opisthobranchs book is Phyllidia coelestis but it has a few differences (more "nippley" bumps, whiter body, longer & slimmer shape)

did you see any of the wrecks in the area?

I dived the "American Tanker" wreck, which is a barge carrying water sunk six years ago in a typhoon. Pretty uninspiring though, not much/any growth on it yet.

Of course, I could have been spoiled since I was only in Guam for a stopover on my way back from Truk Lagoon.... having spent a week diving some of the best wrecks in the world. Some of them are so beautiful they blew my mind. One in particular, the Fujikawa Maru has the most fish I've ever seen in one place, as well as stunning soft coral growth and nice swimthrough's and artifacts on the wreck.

Hanging out on the kingpin, with millions of baitfish everywhere and schools of hunting jacks, blue striped travallies and barracuda has to be one of my best ever dive experiences.

To give a small impression of the abundant fish life, here is a shot from a corridor along the bridge, which was replicated throughout the whole top section of the wreck.

 

[The Mushroom King]

The nudi that is closest in colouration and protuberances in my Japanese opisthobranchs book is Phyllidia coelestis but it has a few differences (more "nippley" bumps, whiter body, longer & slimmer shape)

I took another look. I agree that its close to a coelestis. but also close to a Phyllidia elegans ???? (actually I have no idea, but I think nudis are cool, and like trying to find them in my books!!)

Of course, I could have been spoiled since I was only in Guam for a stopover on my way back from Truk Lagoon.... having spent a week diving some of the best wrecks in the world.

ha ha - thats like visiting your local tokyo shrine after coming back from kyoto!!

Some of them are so beautiful they blew my mind. One in particular, the Fujikawa Maru has the most fish I've ever seen in one place, as well as stunning soft coral growth and nice swimthrough's and artifacts on the wreck.

Hanging out on the kingpin, with millions of baitfish everywhere and schools of hunting jacks, blue striped travallies and barracuda has to be one of my best ever dive experiences.

I've been trying to convince some friends to go to Chuuk and thier argument is they want to see fish, not just wrecks!!! this is fantastic!!! thanks so much - Dang it looks good!!!

How did you arrange the trip? did you stay on a liveaboard? any suggestions for chuuk? thanks for the picture it looks fantastic!

 

[Geoff_H]

I went with the Odyssey

Welcome Aboard the Truk Odyssey - Wreck diving in Truk Lagoon Micronesia

This was my second trip with them, and I would highly recommend them.. their boat is spacious, the operation professional and the guides superb. Top class. You can dive as much or as little as you like, at whichever times suit you.

The only snag is the long waiting times for the boat - we had to boat our trips a year or more in advance. You might be able to sneak onto the boat in unsold parts of a chartered dive week but then you run the risk of being stuck on the outside of a group of people who all know each other.

I didn't finish (or even start really) sorting through my photos but here are some more from Truk

My buddy exploring a walkway

The obligatory clownfish

A cool little pipefish

Some soft coral on the Fujikawa Maru

A marble ray

And some more "wrecky" ones - a view from the bridge

An artillery gun on deck

A light tank on deck

 

[The Mushroom King]

Oh man those are just so amazing!!!!

we are thinking of a 2009 trip so booking should be ok for us. Damn... 2009 seems so far away....