How long should I wait to hear a response from a dive operator?

[Learner Diver]

• What information should be asked and received?
• What amount of deposit is adequate to secure your place?
• Must the information be easy to comprehend and to the point?

 

[TerryC]

Message below, I messed up

 

[fred32176]

• What information should be asked and received?
• What amount of deposit is adequate to secure your place?
• Must the information be easy to comprehend and to the point?

The best thing to do is call the shop. When I've emailed operators, I may ask a bunch of questions and I believe they try to call me, but I don't answer numbers I don't recognize so... better to call them.

Ask anything you think is important. Policy on canceling dives, rescheduling dives, interest in special trips, etc.
I usually call, get the info I need, then book dives online. Then shortly before I arrive I may call the shop and remind them of any special requests, flexibility etc.

 

[TerryC]

We try very hard to respond to all bookings within 24 hrs. obviously time zones make a difference so I don't think 48 / 72 hours is unreasonable.
You should ask for whatever information you need to make you feel comfortable about diving.
You should also be 100% honest with the information you give the operator.
Also remember the person replying may not have English as their first language.
The USA date format mm//dd can also cause issues, we use a specific booking form to alleviate this and on replies we write the date in full.
Deposits depend on the individual operator so read carefully the booking rules, especially regarding cancelation.
Always pay deposits by CC
Also, particularly if cruising take note of local time changes (or not) during daylight savings time.
Enjoy your diving.

 

[divingdayz]

At our dive center we aim to respond within 24 hours or less. Obviously, this can be difficult when people are emailing from different parts of the world. If asking questions, we find it easier if people make bullet points, then we can address each item individually. It cuts down on the amount of emails needed.

As for deposits, it really depends on the product you are getting. Deposits for courses are higher as materials need to be paid for. Deposit for fun diving are less, but are often non-refundable. It really depends on the dive center.

 

[TMHeimer]

Diving on the FL panhandle in winter I found the biggest concern was whether they would cancel the charter or not due to not enough patrons.

 

[Learner Diver]

The best thing to do is call the shop. When I've emailed operators, I may ask a bunch of questions and I believe they try to call me, but I don't answer numbers I don't recognize so... better to call them.

If they are elusive in their replies, is this a good reason to avoid using them and look elsewhere?

 

[Belzelbub]

If they are elusive in their replies, is this a good reason to avoid using them and look elsewhere?

Unless a language barrier is at play, then I would say yes. I see no good reason for a dive op to be elusive in their replies.

Is this hypothetical, or is there an actual conversation involved? If it’s not just hypothetical, it may be helpful to post your communication and the reply (with identifying info removed). This way, a non-involved party can weigh in on the actual conversation.

 

[Learner Diver]

I believe I speak the King's English well enough to understand when someone is being elusive. The conversation I had with the previous two dive operators has lead me to look elsewhere. I'm now in contact with a third operator.

 

[Belzelbub]

I believe I speak the King's English well enough to understand when someone is being elusive. The conversation I had with the previous two dive operators has lead me to look elsewhere. I'm now in contact with a third operator.

Aah. OK, so your question was useless. You’ve already made up your mind, and didn’t really want any opinions.