Bill Parker
Contributor
Roatan, Utila, and Guanaja.
Least expensive warm water diving for a few weeks
- Thread starter WizardTrips
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cbm32
Contributor
I don't call a grand a week for lodging inexpensive at all. I am renting a one bedroom apartment in on Coz for $600 for six weeks.
afdgf
Contributor
I do not know why no one has suggested the Sea of Cortez or other Baja locations which would be fairly cheap. I think someone mentioned Cabo. Cabo has the reputation of being cold, but my wife and I honeymooned there (a million years ago) in January and we only wore diveskin and polartec and we were fine. Have you considered Loreto, La Paz, or other areas in Baja?
N2theBlue StCroix STX
Registered
Greetings WizardTrips;
St. Croix, US Virgin Islands -- Airport STX -- is pretty darn cheap. I just booked a roundtrip in March with STX/LAX/PHX/LAS on the itinerary. I'm flying back for my brother's wedding. The roundtrip was about $630 STX/LAX and PHX/STX in March 2015.
US Virgin Islands are as easy to travel to as Chicago for USA Citizens -- no passports needed.
Diving in St. Croix is great.
Our Facebook page shows a lot of our dives every week. Loads to see! Waters are typically have excellent viz (always a factor of nature to change), creatures are prolific, dive site variety is diverse, and accessibility is easy. Late Feb-March is a great time to hear (and sometimes see) whales. Dolphins are abound and playful when encountered. Feb/March water temp is 77-78'F. Sept/Oct water temp is 85'F. The wind/waves are East-to-West, thus the west end (Frederiksted side) of the island is in the shadow/lee and is typically flat waters like a lake with about 30+ well known and 20-30 lesser known divesites -- Most popular are The Frederiksted Pier, three different divesites for Wrecks, and the reef (exemplified by famous Swirling Reef of Death -- featured in a dive magazine cover page years ago). The north shore has a bit more for waves and features the Salt River Canyon and the Wall.
Boat Dives are $110 for a 2-tank dive. Add $10 for top-to-bottom gear.
If on a multi-day boat dive package, the price drops and your shore diving gear is free for the day. You can easily fill tanks or switch them out for about $8.
If your only Shore Diving, its $30 for 24 hrs (1 tank of air and top-to-bottom gear included). You can easily fill tanks or switch them out for about $8. That's $210 for the week, and only ~$8 for air refills.
Accommodations:
AirBNB, VRBO, Craigslist, and Couchsurfing.com are all rather inexpensive.
If looking for a small room, try: Cotteges by the Sea, Sunset Beach Condos, Camp Mt. Victory, etc. (there's a list on our website).
What are the MUST SEE DIVES of St. Croix?
(1) The Frederiksted Pier -- WEST/FREDERIKSTED -- One of the Seven Jewels of the Caribbean. Also, #1 place in the Caribbean to find seahorses. Its like diving a Gothic Catherdral with pylons reaching towards the sky and the stained glass windows are replaced with a dazzling display of corals and sponges. There are still two sections of the old pier (destroyed by hurricane Hugo in 1989) with over 50 years of growth, too. This dive site will easily take several dives to explore, from the end at 90' (known as Three Amigos), to the end of the cement walkway at 42', or near shore and the old Pier remnants at 20'.
(2) Night Dive -- WEST/FREDERIKSTED -- The Frederiksted Pier. Bio-luminescence is a highlight! Moreover, the colors EXPLODE at night under your dive-light! Also, there are other creatures that come out at night... especially Octopus.
(3) The Salt River Canyon / The Wall -- NORTH SHORE -- 100 yards off shore and at ~40' deep, the Wall drops to several thousand feet deep (deepest point: ~13,500'). This brings a diversity of life that is not often seen in the world. Because this is on the north shore, conditions can be a bit chopy/bumpy. Waves can be knee high or 5'. Salt River Canyon is a boat ride to get to unless you use one of the dive companies that have a boat directly in the Salt River Marina. Salt River is a prehistoric underwater carved canyon/river/waterfall. Brilliant.
(4) The Wrecks -- WEST/FREDERIKSTED -- A: Deep Wrecks (2 @ 72-110'); B: Shallow Wrecks(3 @ 35=60'), C: Armageddon (the massive wreckage of the old Pier dropped at 90-120'). These are all quite close to each other.
(5) The Reefs -- WEST/FREDERIKSTED -- Calm waters, extended dives, and water features that can have the dive be 30-55', or 55-120'. There's a ridge on the west where dives can be either deep or shallow. The waters are almost always calm because this is on the wind-protected side of the island. The cover-story of a magazine was divesite: The Swirling Reef of Death. You'll have to ask for the funny story from the captain. There are over 40 divesites for both shallow and deep dives that'll keep you delighted. Very easy to book a 3-5 day package and see a lot! HUGE beaches for the non-divers, stand up paddleboarding, and the charming laid-back rest you've been looking for.
Please note: When Cruise Ships are in port, the US Dept of Homeland Security does not permit diving on The Pier (until after it departs).
Loads of options for dive companies that will rent gear, guide dives at the shore, or take you on a boat dive. TripAdvisor.com is a great resource to find out more. Lots of parking 100 steps away from The Pier.
Enjoy your travels and Enjoy St. Croix!
St. Croix, US Virgin Islands -- Airport STX -- is pretty darn cheap. I just booked a roundtrip in March with STX/LAX/PHX/LAS on the itinerary. I'm flying back for my brother's wedding. The roundtrip was about $630 STX/LAX and PHX/STX in March 2015.
US Virgin Islands are as easy to travel to as Chicago for USA Citizens -- no passports needed.
Diving in St. Croix is great.
Our Facebook page shows a lot of our dives every week. Loads to see! Waters are typically have excellent viz (always a factor of nature to change), creatures are prolific, dive site variety is diverse, and accessibility is easy. Late Feb-March is a great time to hear (and sometimes see) whales. Dolphins are abound and playful when encountered. Feb/March water temp is 77-78'F. Sept/Oct water temp is 85'F. The wind/waves are East-to-West, thus the west end (Frederiksted side) of the island is in the shadow/lee and is typically flat waters like a lake with about 30+ well known and 20-30 lesser known divesites -- Most popular are The Frederiksted Pier, three different divesites for Wrecks, and the reef (exemplified by famous Swirling Reef of Death -- featured in a dive magazine cover page years ago). The north shore has a bit more for waves and features the Salt River Canyon and the Wall.
Boat Dives are $110 for a 2-tank dive. Add $10 for top-to-bottom gear.
If on a multi-day boat dive package, the price drops and your shore diving gear is free for the day. You can easily fill tanks or switch them out for about $8.
If your only Shore Diving, its $30 for 24 hrs (1 tank of air and top-to-bottom gear included). You can easily fill tanks or switch them out for about $8. That's $210 for the week, and only ~$8 for air refills.
Accommodations:
AirBNB, VRBO, Craigslist, and Couchsurfing.com are all rather inexpensive.
If looking for a small room, try: Cotteges by the Sea, Sunset Beach Condos, Camp Mt. Victory, etc. (there's a list on our website).
What are the MUST SEE DIVES of St. Croix?
(1) The Frederiksted Pier -- WEST/FREDERIKSTED -- One of the Seven Jewels of the Caribbean. Also, #1 place in the Caribbean to find seahorses. Its like diving a Gothic Catherdral with pylons reaching towards the sky and the stained glass windows are replaced with a dazzling display of corals and sponges. There are still two sections of the old pier (destroyed by hurricane Hugo in 1989) with over 50 years of growth, too. This dive site will easily take several dives to explore, from the end at 90' (known as Three Amigos), to the end of the cement walkway at 42', or near shore and the old Pier remnants at 20'.
(2) Night Dive -- WEST/FREDERIKSTED -- The Frederiksted Pier. Bio-luminescence is a highlight! Moreover, the colors EXPLODE at night under your dive-light! Also, there are other creatures that come out at night... especially Octopus.
(3) The Salt River Canyon / The Wall -- NORTH SHORE -- 100 yards off shore and at ~40' deep, the Wall drops to several thousand feet deep (deepest point: ~13,500'). This brings a diversity of life that is not often seen in the world. Because this is on the north shore, conditions can be a bit chopy/bumpy. Waves can be knee high or 5'. Salt River Canyon is a boat ride to get to unless you use one of the dive companies that have a boat directly in the Salt River Marina. Salt River is a prehistoric underwater carved canyon/river/waterfall. Brilliant.
(4) The Wrecks -- WEST/FREDERIKSTED -- A: Deep Wrecks (2 @ 72-110'); B: Shallow Wrecks(3 @ 35=60'), C: Armageddon (the massive wreckage of the old Pier dropped at 90-120'). These are all quite close to each other.
(5) The Reefs -- WEST/FREDERIKSTED -- Calm waters, extended dives, and water features that can have the dive be 30-55', or 55-120'. There's a ridge on the west where dives can be either deep or shallow. The waters are almost always calm because this is on the wind-protected side of the island. The cover-story of a magazine was divesite: The Swirling Reef of Death. You'll have to ask for the funny story from the captain. There are over 40 divesites for both shallow and deep dives that'll keep you delighted. Very easy to book a 3-5 day package and see a lot! HUGE beaches for the non-divers, stand up paddleboarding, and the charming laid-back rest you've been looking for.
Please note: When Cruise Ships are in port, the US Dept of Homeland Security does not permit diving on The Pier (until after it departs).
Loads of options for dive companies that will rent gear, guide dives at the shore, or take you on a boat dive. TripAdvisor.com is a great resource to find out more. Lots of parking 100 steps away from The Pier.
Enjoy your travels and Enjoy St. Croix!
MarlinMark
Registered
Dive Bus in Curacao was great for shore diving. Mark and Carlos were really friendly and helpful. Definitely check it out if you are in Cur.
Also, try Grenada. Grenada has some great dive operations and isn't expensive. The tourist area, South of St. George's has lots of places to stay.
You can get great rates at the Gem Holiday Beach Resort, on Morne Rouge Bay. The Gem isn't fancy, but their apartments are fine - Esp. if you want to cook a few meals. Use Dive Grenada for a small group of divers. Helen and Phil will take great care of you. Their equipment is top notch, and they only take out small groups.
Rent a place on Morne Rouge Bay, get picked up by your dive shop, and visit Rocky's bar, down the beach. Heaven on Earth!
---------- Post added March 20th, 2015 at 06:12 PM ----------
I stayed at Sunscape Curacao in July of 2014. Nice resort and all-inclusive (Order two or three drinks at a time because they're small). Food was good.
Diving was great! Lions Dive operation has a satellite there. Extremely professional, on-time, with well trained Dive Masters. Lions Dive Resort is about 1 km. South of Sunscape - That's where the main dive shop and facilities are located. It's a little more expensive than Sunscape. Shore diving sites are very hard to find, and would require a car. The Dive Bus (A great place to book shore dives) is basically across the street from Sunscape. We just walked over there, though they will happily pick you up at Sunscape. Best shore diving I ever had was in Bonaire - That is the standard to beat.
Also, try Grenada. Grenada has some great dive operations and isn't expensive. The tourist area, South of St. George's has lots of places to stay.
You can get great rates at the Gem Holiday Beach Resort, on Morne Rouge Bay. The Gem isn't fancy, but their apartments are fine - Esp. if you want to cook a few meals. Use Dive Grenada for a small group of divers. Helen and Phil will take great care of you. Their equipment is top notch, and they only take out small groups.
Rent a place on Morne Rouge Bay, get picked up by your dive shop, and visit Rocky's bar, down the beach. Heaven on Earth!
---------- Post added March 20th, 2015 at 06:12 PM ----------
I stayed at Sunscape Curacao in July of 2014. Nice resort and all-inclusive (Order two or three drinks at a time because they're small). Food was good.
Diving was great! Lions Dive operation has a satellite there. Extremely professional, on-time, with well trained Dive Masters. Lions Dive Resort is about 1 km. South of Sunscape - That's where the main dive shop and facilities are located. It's a little more expensive than Sunscape. Shore diving sites are very hard to find, and would require a car. The Dive Bus (A great place to book shore dives) is basically across the street from Sunscape. We just walked over there, though they will happily pick you up at Sunscape. Best shore diving I ever had was in Bonaire - That is the standard to beat.
Thailand Divers
Registered
I would consider Phuket in Thailand. Ok the flights are more expensive but the rest of the holiday are super cheap. Appartments are very cheap from May - Nov and the diving is very good. The only down side is there can be rain over night. This does not damage the viz very much. The viz is normally 20 meters at this time of year. The diving costs around 127 dollars per day. This includes 3 dives, equipment, return transfers from your hotel, breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea and soft drinks. Phuket Scuba Diving | Similan Islands | Thailand Divers This also saves money as the food in the day is included so you spend less on the evenings. Check out Thailand Divers - Phuket. - Ban Patong, Phuket, Thailand - Scuba Diving | Facebook
robint
Contributor
So much for honest opinions.
descent
Contributor
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