New Diver, Visiting Florida, No Dive Buddy

[Brad Anderson]

Hello!

I've got just 11 logged dives, as I completed my Open Water and Advanced Adventure Diver certifications in the Philippines last August. I'm visiting Orlando the last two weeks of May, and I'm looking for lower cost options for diving in the area. I'll be in Florida approximately March 22nd-31st. Any suggestions within approximately a 3 hour radius or so? I've gotten a couple of quotes from one company in the Orlando area (the only one of three to email me back) and the rates seemed RIDICULOUSLY expensive because I don't have a dive buddy.

Any suggestions for dive shops that accommodate divers like myself? Anyone else either new to the sport and in the area or willing to help out a newer diver?

Thanks for any tips!

 

[KDAD]

Your drive time opens up a lot of possibilities. You don't have a tremendous number of dives but if you feel that you're experienced enough you can go down to Jupiter and do some nice boat dives. It helps to be nitrox certified for these dives. well there will be a dive master in the water on a lot of these spoke dives you do 10 to be self reliant during the dive and don't have a strict buddy.

There are a lot of shore dives in the West Palm and Lauderdale area. Blue Heron bridge is a good dive. Look up Scuba Jenny from this board she offers guiding shore dive guide services

 

[jimw]

For low cost, just Google Blue Heron Bridge. It is a free shore dive about 3 hours south of Orlando in Riviera Beach. The dive is no more than 23 ft deep and perfect for new or divers in need of a tuneup. There are a number of dive shops in the immediate area for equipment rentals. Guides are available as well for a fee. The dive is tide de pendent, must go around slack high tide which changes every day. Use tides from Port of Palm Beach. The northern FL springs are also within 3 hours of Orlando. This is fresh water diving with 72 degree water year round.

The bridge or BHB is likely the closest to Phillipine muck diving you will find in this hemisphere.

See divedivadm facebook page---Blue Heron Bridge Dive Guide

 

[sheeper]

come dive with us! visit the vero beach scuba club on facebook. we'll take care of you! we can hook you up with shops and boats that support us

 

[uncfnp]

For low cost, just Google Blue Heron Bridge. It is a free shore dive about 3 hours south of Orlando in Riviera Beach. The dive is no more than 23 ft deep and perfect for new or divers in need of a tuneup. There are a number of dive shops in the immediate area for equipment rentals. Guides are available as well for a fee. The dive is tide de pendent, must go around slack high tide which changes every day. Use tides from Port of Palm Beach. The northern FL springs are also within 3 hours of Orlando. This is fresh water diving with 72 degree water year round.

The bridge or BHB is likely the closest to Phillipine muck diving you will find in this hemisphere.

See divedivadm facebook page---Blue Heron Bridge Dive Guide

^^^ Good advice.

I don't usually get this specific with recommendations but with the info given and if you head south focus on West Palm Beach. You can get low stress drift dives on nice reefs, a good chance to see sharks and a resident goliath grouper and maybe even a turtle or two.

There are lots of great dive boats and they always put a guide in the water that handles the float. And the boats I am familiar with will not make you choose an instabuddy, although of course you can, but instead let you more or less pair up with the guide. Just make sure you tell them your experience and any special concerns. You will need to be comfortable with ascending on your own or head up when you are near ready and see another diver headed up.

And as jimw said, thats also the location of the Blue Heron Bridge.

 

[sportxlh]

All the above suggestions are good. When I first started diving again, I really liked the Scuba Club in West Palm Beach since they send multiple guides down with no additional cost. They are very good with newer divers. The only real negatives are the fact they mostly run single tank dives and the fact their boat uses a swim platform instead of a ladder to exit the water. You can hire dive guides with other operators, but it will cost extra. Some other options are Pura Vida, Jim Abernathy Scuba Adventure (I'd avoid the shark baiting dives with your experience level though) and Narcosis. In Jupiter, I like Jupiter Dive Center and I understand Cap'n Sl8er is also good but you'll definitely want a guide given the deeper waters in Jupiter. If you can drive all the way to Pompano, you'll find a really easy and nice shallow ledge that is perfect to dive with a boat inst-buddy. I like Pompano Dive Center, South Florida Dive HQ and Scubatyme. Or just do the Epcot Dive Quest in Disney's living seas aquarium.

 

[sheeper]

Little Deeper Charters at Blue Heron Bridge Scuba is a great boat. Highly experienced DMs in the water on every dive.

Stuart Scuba runs the Down Deep out of Jupiter. Also a DM on every dive. Jupiter diving is known for big creature diving.

 

[scubadada]

I second getting nitrox certified before your visit, if you are not already. You can do e-Learning and then go analyze a couple tanks at your LDS for the cert. I assume you are diving a computer, if not, do.

As you have essentially no non-training dives, you may want to do Jupiter at a later date. Many of the reefs to the South are at 50-60 feet

 

[iamrushman]

all the info above is great ...have a great trip.

 

[sheeper]

conveniently enough with the boats from Stuart Scuba and Little Deeper we can have you do your Nitrox eLearning before you come down and then complete the academic and practical in conjunction with your dives. Just another example of the fine service we offer here in Florida!