Looking for a dive destination suitable for 11yo diver

[grahamfairbank]

Thanks in advance -

I'm looking for the best place for my daughter and I to go diving for a week this summer. She is 11, and will has some quarry dives as well as some Maui shore diving under her belt for experience.

I'm thinking Bonaire or Cozumel, but open to most anywhere. In Maui, I couldn't find a boat operator that would take her out, and slightly afraid of this elsewhere.

She is somewhat afraid of larger creatures (rays/sharks), but, will get over it once she realizes they are cool

Willing to shore or boat dive

Willing to travel anywhere that keeps the trip practical in a week
not super concerned about costs, but shouldn't be ridiculous

Does anyone have experience taking junior divers out on a diving vacation?

Thank you!!

 

[Doc]

In that you are a Chicagoan, I recommend that you plan on attending the consumer dive show, Our World Underwater. Home - Our World Underwater February 18~20th.

You have a lot of open ended parameters:
Willing to travel anywhere that keeps the trip practical in a week
not super concerned about costs, but shouldn't be ridiculous

 

[grahamfairbank]

Planning on it - but... Im sure you know the feeling, its getting cold out and staying cold, and I can't help but think about warm!

 

[diversteve]

What about Curacao? It's the same excellent diving as Bonaire but the shore entries are a lot easier - at most you walk in off a sandy beach or a dive dock. On Bonaire she'd have to deal with entries over ironshore at most sites. View some of the entry photos for each island to get an idea of the differences: Scuba Shore Diving Region: ABC Islands

At a site like Varsenbaai we saw seahorses at 40', some eels and turtles feeding in 8' of water just west of the beach. The site operator said they're always there. One of the best sites on the island is the Tugboat - it's in 20' of water off a sandy beach. If you go there, the pier dive is very good also. Another good dive is Playa Lagun - in addition to a simple beach entry there are often turtles there - the fisherman clean their catch in the bay which attracts them. It's a bit farther out to the main reef from there - probably want to do part of it on the surface.

Everywhere I've mentioned has an on-site diveop - generally you pay a small usage fee (under $5) to use the facilities. And all rent tanks on-site so you don't have to haul them around. If you stay in Piscadera Bay, Hooks Hut (beach bar/dive shop) rents tanks you can take off-site - there are others also. Discovery Dive in Lagun let us have about a dozen tanks/wts. all week.

On Curacao there's also the DiveBus for guided shore diving and some pretty nice resorts. The Marriott in Piscadera Bay is one. They have a shore dive off their beach but it's a farther swim out than some of the other sites. There's also a Breezes if you like AI resorts. Lions Dive is another nicer option. All have shorediving off their property.

Flights to Curacao are probably easier for you also - we can get there by about 2PM from Phoenix - through MIA or IAH. There's other non-dive things for teens - the Sea Aquarium or the Ostrich Farm for example. She can safely feed sharks at the Sea Aquarium - they have a thick perspex wall that you push food through. And you could probably do the Dolphin Dive also - it's done just offshore on a reef that doesn't exceed much over 40'. It's $200pp though.

Ocean Encounters is the dominant operator on Curacao - they have 5 locations including Lions Dive, Breezes and the Hilton. So you might check with them about their policy for 11 year olds.
Curacao Padi Scuba Diving - Ocean Encounters Curacao

 

[Belmont]

Scuba at Beaches All-Inclusive Caribbean Resorts

 

[gypsyjim]

When my son was 11 and my daughter 15 we went to Bonaire for the first time. We were hooked!! Been back every year for 6 years now, and booked again for next June, though at 18 and 22 they can start to pay their own way, at least partially, if they can even get away for this trip.

It is the shore diving at your own pace, in an environment geared to shore diving, instead of mostly boat diving that keeps us coming back for at least one visit a year, that and the slower more relaxed pace than the larger more touristy islands like Aruba and Curacao.

 

[Kilili]

Well, Bonaire is pretty much zero current diving, like the quarries, as opposed to Cozumel. Depends on her comfort level. It's a nice destination, though the Caribbean pales to the South Pacific. Indonesia & Philippines much better.

Take her to Lembeh Strait, and let her see some really unusual stuff.

 

[DeputyDan]

Either Bonaire or Key Largo.

Both have nice easy diving with lots of stuff to see.

And the cost isn't crazy!

 

[Wisnu]

my younger daughter is 11 years now - she has enjoyed diving at p. weh, phuket, bali (tulamben, padang bai, seraya, amed, menjangan), manado/bunaken, lembeh, puerto galera, anilao, mabul, kapalai, sipadan, and recently ambon.
Ask your daughter to read her blog - and you'll find the answer

Melati luv Diving

 

[greylion]

What about Curacao? It's the same excellent diving as Bonaire but the shore entries are a lot easier - at most you walk in off a sandy beach or a dive dock. On Bonaire she'd have to deal with entries over ironshore at most sites. View some of the entry photos for each island to get an idea of the differences: Scuba Shore Diving Region: ABC Islands

At a site like Varsenbaai we saw seahorses at 40', some eels and turtles feeding in 8' of water just west of the beach. The site operator said they're always there. One of the best sites on the island is the Tugboat - it's in 20' of water off a sandy beach. If you go there, the pier dive is very good also. Another good dive is Playa Lagun - in addition to a simple beach entry there are often turtles there - the fisherman clean their catch in the bay which attracts them. It's a bit farther out to the main reef from there - probably want to do part of it on the surface.

Everywhere I've mentioned has an on-site diveop - generally you pay a small usage fee (under $5) to use the facilities. And all rent tanks on-site so you don't have to haul them around. If you stay in Piscadera Bay, Hooks Hut (beach bar/dive shop) rents tanks you can take off-site - there are others also. Discovery Dive in Lagun let us have about a dozen tanks/wts. all week.

On Curacao there's also the DiveBus for guided shore diving and some pretty nice resorts. The Marriott in Piscadera Bay is one. They have a shore dive off their beach but it's a farther swim out than some of the other sites. There's also a Breezes if you like AI resorts. Lions Dive is another nicer option. All have shorediving off their property.

Flights to Curacao are probably easier for you also - we can get there by about 2PM from Phoenix - through MIA or IAH. There's other non-dive things for teens - the Sea Aquarium or the Ostrich Farm for example. She can safely feed the sharks/rays at the Sea Aquarium - they have a thick perspex wall that you push food through. And you could probably do the Dolphin Dive also - it's done just offshore on a reef that doesn't exceed much over 40'. It's $200pp though.

Ocean Encounters is the dominant operator on Curacao - they have 5 locations including Lions Dive, Breezes and the Hilton. So you might check with them about their policy for 11 year olds.
Curacao Padi Scuba Diving - Ocean Encounters Curacao

In complete agreement with Curacao. I just came back and used the dive bus and that would be a good idea for you and your daughter to have a guide. I stayed at the Marriott and had a good vacation, but if I was going tomorrow i think I would stay at Lions Dive, it's just down the beach from the Dive Bus, who will pick you up at your hotel, take you diving, give you fruit and water between dives and lunch after dive two and then bring you back to your hotel. It's a great way to explore the island without getting lost or having to rent a car. You get free entry to the Seaquarium by staying at Lions Dive, which is right next door and terrific shore diving and OE will take you out for a boat dive if you like? The currents are very minimal if you have any at all, which was most of the time and the entries are nice beaches, easy for an 11 year old to navigate.

Curacao Hotel - Lions Dive & Beach Resort for an unique Caribbean experience?

The Dive Bus - WELCOME