Is Oahu Diving Any Good?

[polyester1970]

I'm in the process of planning a dive trip. We just had a baby a couple months ago and we want to keep the flight as short as possible and ideally a direct flight. We're in California so Honolulu would fit that requirement for us.

I've been to Maui and the diving there is pretty good. I've heard that Oahu's reef are not in very good shape probably because of the high traffic there. I tried searching the web for photos/videos of diving in Oahu, but didn't find much.

Can anyone give me your opinions about the diving in Oahu? We'd most likely stay in Waikiki but could probably dive anywhere in Oahu within an hour or so drive. I'd like to dive somewhere with a nice & healthy reef system. I don't care that much for wreck dives, but I haven't done any big impressive wrecks before either. I've dove Playa del Carmen, Mexico and thought the reef there was fairly poor.

 

[ArcticDiver]

Considering all the posts on this subject this has to be a troll.

 

[friscuba]

I doubt it's a troll after looking at this poster's earlier posts. A search might be in order though. Anyway... gotta mention.... SFO-KOA is a direct flight from the Bay area, so Oahu and Maui aren't the only options. Plenty of healthy reefs in Kona, don't know how they compare to Playa del Carmen.

 

[VBlueV]

it's not always the reefs "are not in very good shape"..
just lacking bright colors.. drab yellows and grays mostly.. but the reefs are alive.

thread with some "oahu" photos:
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/hawaii-ohana/263491-halona-blowhole-12-6-08-pics.html

snorkeled/free-dived panama (the country), okinawa, diego garcia (seychelles), and dived/snorkeled oahu..
while the former have more colorful coral.. oahu has just as plentiful wildlife as the others.

 

[thunsaker]

I dove on both the North (which you can't dive in the Winter when the waves are 30 Feet) and the South Shores of Oahu in July of 2004. I did not care much for the south shore since all the traffic has messed up the reefs. The North shore was a little better and some of the dive sites have lava tubes. I used a dive shop called Deep Ecology on the North Shore.

I did go back on a cruise in November of 2006 and Dove in Kauai, Kona, and Lahaina on Maui, which were all better than Oahu. I enjoyed Kona the best and would definetly go back. Lahaina was nice since it had a ton of sea turtles when I dove there.

 

[rgbmatt]

Oahu has plenty of nice reefs - just as good as Maui or Kona if you know where to look. However, because the island is older and has more of a "shelf" built up, the good areas tend to be far from shore and difficult to access.

Some of the Waikiki/Ala Moana spots are a little drab; the tour companies may have chosen them more for convenience than aesthetics. If you can get on a good charter that takes you to the better dive sites, you'll get your money's worth. Some of the Hawaii Kai and Waianae spots are especially nice.

 

[j_spot]

would I dive hawaii if I was all about colourful coral? no.

Would I dive hawaii if I was all about fishies? Yes. Without a doubt. Lots of endemic fish and other creatures.

The variety of life is great, but its not the most colourful corals. I dove the west coast in October and would recommend it.

 

[scottitheduck]

Agreed with rgbmatt..... tons of great critters here on Oahu and lots of variety of dive sites. Check out my photo blog for a good overall feel of what diving is like out here.

How long do you have to spend on this trip? A few days of diving can give you quite a good sampling of our waters from wrecks to reefs and even some caves and caverns.

G

 

[sea nmf]

Also, keep in mind that wrecks become good reefs.

 

[scottitheduck]

OK......

Not to beat this post to death, but I just returned from an AM charter. Highlights include

1) Spotted Eagle Ray at the Seatiger
2) Frogfish at the Seatiger
3) Two massive Turtles at the Seatiger
4) Two Octopus at Horseshoe Reef
5) Two whitemouth moray at Horseshoe
6) Four huge turtles at Horseshoe
7) One snowflake moray at Horseshoe

Not to mention the countless damsels, wrasses and butterflyfish that are always around....

Did I mention that I love my office?!?!

G