Is Kona Worth It?

[justleesa]

Tank you berry much

 

[ScubaLuke]

Is there a best time of the year to dive Kona? I'm thinking about the Kona Aggressor.
Luke

 

[friscuba]

Is there a best time of the year to dive Kona? I'm thinking about the Kona Aggressor.
Luke

We dive year round in Kona. Water's gonna be it's warmest August through November. Last couple of year's we've been at 81 on the first of December and down to 76-77 by the end of December. January through March are the coolest water months.

For the Aggressor specific, I'd personally probably avoid the last half of December through February. That's when the northwest swells are at their most frequent and strongest. We typically get several sets of swells monthly coming in during that time - some years it's divable every day even though the swells are present becasue they're just not that big or the direction is right, some years the diving is absolutely crappy 2-4 days at a time several times a month. Most land based operators will just cancel on unsafe or just plain crappy days, the weather is almost always nice so you can still go out and do something topisde and have fun, just need to reschedule the diving. If you are caught out on the Aggressor and the diving is crappy for 4 days out of the trip (remember, that's an uncommon experience, but it is possible during that time of year), that's kind of a bummer.

Back to the original poster.... Yep, Kona's worth it. I agree with the poster who said island hopping might be more trouble than it's worth, but if you've made it to Maui twice, plan the next trip to Kona.

 

[ScubaLuke]

If you are caught out on the Aggressor and the diving is crappy for 4 days out of the trip (remember, that's an uncommon experience, but it is possible during that time of year), that's kind of a bummer.

Thanks,
That's just the kind of information that I was looking for.
Luke