Palau Tides - Liveaboard v Land Based?

[Steve P]

The $600.00 discount was too much to pass up! This will be our first trip to Palau and bottom line is that we're traveling half way around the world for the diving - so the option of 4+ dives per day sounds pretty good to me. Also allows my wife choice of 2 - 3 dives/day. Hopefully, we we will have a good crew that has flexible schedule to ensure we get best condtions. Also hoping we get a group of fun, but good, fellow divers. Did I mention the $600.00 discount? Week of July 29th. Maybe some fellow SB followers will join us? We're in the middle of a big snow storm in Chicaago right now, but I'm thinking of Chuuk & Palau!

 

[farsidefan1]

Been with both Sams and the Aggressor. Both are excellent!! I did the prepaid 3 dive a day arrangement with Sams and they watched currents and tides every day to maximize the dive experience. That said with a $600. per person discount I'd swim to Palau to be on the Aggressor. They are absolutely reliable in providing a terrific week. With both ops they know the best time to do the dives and the DMs check the currents before the divers get in. At the Peleliu Express the DM, who had already given a very thorough briefing with warnings, checked the site and looked back at us with a huge grin and said, she is a running today, those that want in let's go right now". It was a WOW dive. Exciting but a couple bowed out. We didn't tease them at all, reassuring them that you should always call a dive you're not comfortable doing. Palau is simply the best diving I've ever experienced. My old eyes aren't that good at admiring pygmy seahorses. I like looking at blown up pics of them but in person I'd never be able to see enough to appreciate them. Dang, I'm jealous, have a ball.

 

[Steve P]

Been with both Sams and the Aggressor. Both are excellent!! I did the prepaid 3 dive a day arrangement with Sams and they watched currents and tides every day to maximize the dive experience. That said with a $600. per person discount I'd swim to Palau to be on the Aggressor. They are absolutely reliable in providing a terrific week. With both ops they know the best time to do the dives and the DMs check the currents before the divers get in. At the Peleliu Express the DM, who had already given a very thorough briefing with warnings, checked the site and looked back at us with a huge grin and said, she is a running today, those that want in let's go right now". It was a WOW dive. Exciting but a couple bowed out. We didn't tease them at all, reassuring them that you should always call a dive you're not comfortable doing. Palau is simply the best diving I've ever experienced. My old eyes aren't that good at admiring pygmy seahorses. I like looking at blown up pics of them but in person I'd never be able to see enough to appreciate them. Dang, I'm jealous, have a ball.

Thanks farsidefan. Good to hear of the thorough dive planning and briefing on the Aggressor. I thought of Peleliu as well when making final decision. Both of us have fair amount of experience in a variety of conditions including currents and drift diving, but haven't used reef hooks or dived advanced sites like the Galapagos or Peleliu. However, I have more experience than my wife and if Peleliu is offered during our trip (seems that it generally is based on the Aggressor Captain's trip logs) its nice option for her (or both us) to skip it knowing there's another 3 dives scheduled later the same day! I suspect the Aggressor schedules this dive later in the week after divers have a had a chance to evaluate their ability to hook in and out of other sites like Blue Corner. The other advantage of liveabaord, as others have posted, is dropping in on popular sites early a.m. before the land-based boats arrive. As far as those pygmy seahorses - I hear you! Maybe time to invest in a bifocal mask.