New to diving and looking for recommendations for shops to dive with in Kihei HI.

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GTSscuba

New
Messages
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Location
Woodinville, WA
# of dives
None - Not Certified
Hey guys and gals this is my first post, hopefully I found the correct forum for my question.

So anyway I was supposed to get certified this week while on a Royal Caribbean cruise. Well let's just say it wasn't successful. Didn't make the first class due to confusion and lack of help at the customer service desk on where we were supposed to meet. Then wasn't able to do my open water dives due to the water being to rough at the port we stopped at. So I'll be doing my cert after we get home.

Anyway we have a trip planned to Maui in October. I think we're staying in Kihei. Anyone have any recommendations of shops to go out with or where the best places to go in the area are?
 
I liked Maui Dreams as a shop and for shore dives, also for boats Ed Robinson and Mike Severns, though some boat trips are restricted to more experienced divers.
 
I will be in Maui in July. I will be diving with B&B Scuba at Molokini Crater. The rest of my diving will be done with Extended Horizons out of Lahina. I would suggest checking out the dive operators and determining what dives interest you the most. The shops around Kihei will mostly dive that side of Maui. The dive I am most excited about is the Lanai Cathedrals. I did get to talk to the Owner at Maui Scuba Shack, this weekend at the Long Beach Scuba Show and he was very nice and wanted to make it well understood that his dives tend to be longer than some of the other operators.
 
I've done a bit of diving around Maui. Couple thoughts for you:

1. If you're a new diver, I'm not sure I'd recommend the Lanai Cathedrals. Swimming through the lava tubes is a lot of fun, but divemasters will lose line-of-sight on you.
2. I'm a fan of the smaller boats, as long as you're OK with a potentially bumpier ride and more rudimentary toilet situation. I'm really NOT a fan of jumping in the water with 20-30 other divers. On the other hand, the bigger boats tend to be more neurotic about pre-planned time and depth limits. For a new diver, that can be a good thing. For experienced divers , it can be really annoying if the plan can be safely altered underwater. Whatever you decide, you might want to ask what their max number of divers will be, and the ratio of staff to customers in the water.
 
In Kihei I;d go with Severn's - besides being a good crew most of them are naturalists so you learn more about what you see.Robinson's often attracts more advanced divrs so sites are chosen accordingly. Another option is Maui Diamond II which is booked thru Maui Dreams Dive Co. but it's based in Ma'alea Harbor so 10 mins drive north of Kihei.

All the Kinei boats leave from the Kihei boat ramp and go to Molokini - often followed by a 2nd dive off the south Muai coast. Inside Molokini Crater is very benign with lots of fish since the snorkel boats feed them.

It wasn't clear from your post but if you plan to do your cert dives while there - maybe talk to Maui Dreams Dive Co. or Shaka Divers - either does escorted shore diving in that area - many of the beaches are also name dive sites so entries for the most part couldn't be easier.

I kind of agree with the Cathedrals comment above although they're not very deep - the issue is in some areas the overhead is completely closed off to the surface. Also sometimes the surface is rougher there - we watched the Hawaiian Rafting zodiac get tossed around pretty good one morning - not that our MDS boat wasn't also rocking - just not as bad. The Lanai boats leave from Lahaina Harbor - allow 45-60mins. for the drive - it's more congetsted than the distance indicates - even early in the morning as the resort workers are going to their jobs in the big Ka'anapali resorts.

Moved to the Hawaii forum.
 
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Ed Robinson’s is great for boat diving for beginners on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, and often goes to less often dived S. Maui sites. If you’re interested in the Cathedrials on Lanai, drive up to Lahaina and go with Lahaina Divers. Their big 46’ Newton Dive boats make for a smoother trip across the channel. Plus they are excellent with new divers. Dive & Sea has a fabulous boat and provides for a great day both on and in the water. You can’t go wrong with Mike Severns, Pro Diver has a good reputation, and Makena Coast is good too. The Maui Diamond has a good reputation and they sometimes go to some mid-island sites other don’t, plus they offer a night dive once a month.

I’ll have to respectfully disagree with Frenimy’s information regarding Scuba Shack. Their dives are NOT longer than other operators in S. Maui and I’d encourage you to read some of the less than positive reviews on Trip Advisor. After 14 years of diving Maui with quite a few of the different operators, Scuba Shack is the one shop I couldn’t recommend.
 
I've been to Maui twice (including my first ocean dives) and went with B&B for 16 dives I think. I would recommend them, I can't remember a time they had more than 6-8 divers on the boat. What I like the most is that you are done your two dives and back on shore by 9:30-10:00 am, leaving the rest of the day to do what you want topside. You have to be an early riser though as you need to be on the boat by 5:45 am:)
 
I What I like the most is that you are done your two dives and back on shore by 9:30-10:00 am, leaving the rest of the day to do what you want topside. You have to be an early riser though as you need to be on the boat by 5:45 am:)

This is a good point. The operations that leave from the Kihei boat ramp go out very early, and maybe even before sunrise...and you are on the west side of the island so it's very dark. It's not exactly a diving consideration, but you'd be wise to scope out the route to the boat ramp location the day before in daylight.

As for dive operations to recommend... I'm not aware of any bad ones, but I don't have that much experience on Maui. I suggest that you simply call or email the various outfits that look good and tell them what kind of dives you're looking for and evaluate their responses. I've found Hawaiian dive operators to be very accommodating

The Lanai Cathedrals is a really nice dive, and not at all difficult. If you are feeling confident in the water, and have an experienced buddy close by, you should be fine. The tough part is getting there from Maui. It's a longish, bumpy boat ride, and the day I went about half the boat lost their breakfast over the side. Take your anti-nausea meds...
 

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