phuket -one week Recommendations for where to stay and dive before Bali)

[Diver-ticulitis]

Any recommendations for best of Phuket area diving - which dive sites, areas, which dive ops? For places to stay - would it be best to stay near one dive op and travel to other dive sites? We'll be there for one week with 2 divers (plus one snorkeler friend - any areas we could go together where a snorkeler would have fun while we dove?)

This will be before one week in Bali mid-February- same questions for over there!

Seems that the best world diving is over there, but it's confusing to figure out !

Reasonable jet lag delay before diving after 29-hour flight?

 

[limbo]

In Phuket I would opt for Kata or Karon. Personally I would avoid Patong as much as possible or give it a miss completely. For Phuket diving I would recommend Quero, a regular poster on this site.

On Bali, I would recommend Candidasa or a location in that area. It's near to most of the dive locations and small but pleasant. If you stay in Kuta or Sanur, it will be a 3 hour car drive to Tulamben (Liberty). Candidasa is perfectly located for most dive sites. I had good experiences with Bali Bubbles in Candidasa.

 

[Quero]

Salut, Diver-ticulitis!

The best diving near to Phuket is the Similans/Surins area. However, to take best advantage of those dive sites as day trips, you should consider staying not on Phuket, but rather in the Khao Lak area since getting up there for a daytrip from a Phuket base requires a long drive in each direction. Snorkelers are welcome at many of the Similans dive sites. You could, of course, split your trip and stay for a few days at Khao Lak and a few more days at Phuket to take advantage of both locations. For local dives from a Phuket base, my own favorites are the Bida islands near Phi Phi and Shark Point, Anemone Reef, and Koh Doc Mai. The wreck of the King Cruiser has a lot of fans as well. The Phi Phi dives are accessible to snorkelers, but the others are not appropriate for non-divers. There are other dive sites where snorkeling is possible, but they're not as lovely. Still, you might choose to do those dives (as long as your expectations are reasonable) just to spend the day with your travel companion and not leave him/her back on Phuket alone while you and your buddy enjoy the day in the water.

For Bali, listen to Limbo and consider Candidasa, but don't discount staying right in the Tulamben area, my own favorite Bali-based dive destination and where I personally go every single time I have a chance. It drops off pretty quickly there so snorkeling would have to be very near to shore (which might be problematic in February due to wind and surf), but the Liberty wreck is definitely a must-do for any snorkeler as well as all divers visiting Bali since she lies with the shallowest part at only about 5 meters depth and the deepest at about 30 meters.

 

[vladimir]

Reasonable jet lag delay before diving after 29-hour flight?

You will traverse 12 time zones from Montreal, I think. I've heard a rule of thumb that it takes one day per time zone to fully recover from jet lag. That seems a bit much to me, but if you've never traveled to the opposite side of the world before, it gives you a rough idea of the internal havoc it causes. I like to schedule a day of laziness in a comfortable hotel before diving. It'll give you a chance to catch up on lost sleep, consume some extra fluids poolside, and get into vacation mode. But if you can sleep on the flight and stay adequately hydrated, there's no reason not to dive on the day of arrival, though I think it will be a logistical challenge.

 

[Quero]

Vlad is right. Logistically it will be a challenge to dive on the same day you arrive. Furthermore, even if you don't suffer badly from jet lag, you are likely to be experiencing travel fatigue that could impact your enjoyment of a dive immediately upon arrival. I get bad jet lag, but I find that diving helps for some reason--maybe it's being outdoors, or maybe it's the slight light deprivation, or maybe just exercise, but I get over jet lag in a few days when I dive whereas it actually does take me a full day per time zone when I'm doing routine things like working or errands. I recommend giving yourself a full day on land (not in the air or on a boat) before beginning to dive when you have traveled halfway around the globe to get here.

 

[limbo]

Salut, Diver-ticulitis!

The best diving near to Phuket is the Similans/Surins area. However, to take best advantage of those dive sites as day trips, you should consider staying not on Phuket, but rather in the Khao Lak area since getting up there for a daytrip from a Phuket base requires a long drive in each direction. Snorkelers are welcome at many of the Similans dive sites. You could, of course, split your trip and stay for a few days at Khao Lak and a few more days at Phuket to take advantage of both locations. For local dives from a Phuket base, my own favorites are the Bida islands near Phi Phi and Shark Point, Anemone Reef, and Koh Doc Mai. The wreck of the King Cruiser has a lot of fans as well. The Phi Phi dives are accessible to snorkelers, but the others are not appropriate for non-divers. There are other dive sites where snorkeling is possible, but they're not as lovely. Still, you might choose to do those dives (as long as your expectations are reasonable) just to spend the day with your travel companion and not leave him/her back on Phuket alone while you and your buddy enjoy the day in the water.

For Bali, listen to Limbo and consider Candidasa, but don't discount staying right in the Tulamben area, my own favorite Bali-based dive destination and where I personally go every single time I have a chance. It drops off pretty quickly there so snorkeling would have to be very near to shore (which might be problematic in February due to wind and surf), but the Liberty wreck is definitely a must-do for any snorkeler as well as all divers visiting Bali since she lies with the shallowest part at only about 5 meters depth and the deepest at about 30 meters.

Very good advice from Quero rgarding the Phuket/Khao Lak options.

Regarding Candidasa vs Tulamben, I think that in Candidasa there's a bit more variation and options of things to do where as in Tulamben it's fairly quiet but directly on the (stony) beach, but as pointed out, straight on to the Liberty. Both can be good, pending on what you're looking for.

You really want to avoid a 3 hour drive to and a 3 hour drive from the Liberty back to your hotel in Kuta or Sanur, just my two cents.