Sandals Negril in Jan...

[RDRINK25]

Going down for 4 days hoping to get 2 days of diving and 1 night dive. What can we expect should we bring log books? Any dive site's that are a must that we can recommend? I know it wont be as good of diving as Cozumel which we just got back from in Oct but it was a deal we couldn't pass up($600 for 3 nights)! My wife and I was just AOW certified in Coz in Oct so we both have recent dives. We are not looking for 140' dives but also not looking to stay @ 30ft either. Any suggestions all appreciated?

 

[craracer]

I would bring your log books as the dive OP might require them to show experience/# of dives.

My advice to you would be to slow way down when diving. You will be looking for micro life since over-fishing takes a lot of the larger fish out of the equation.

I wear a full 3mm suit, and was cold on several of the dives (I've been in Jamaica somewhere between 6 and 10 times at various times of the year.). You should be able to rent a shorty to wear over a full 3mil suit.

Get out of the resort and experience some of the local food. You won't regret it. Koyaba and LTU are my favorite places to eat.

The beaches are public property, so expect to be solicited by the locals. My best advice is to politely say "No tanks mon". They can be rather bothersome (i.e. irritating), but just be firm and polite.

Shallow Plane: Has a small Cesna (or some plane like it) just off of the reef. Popular site, but not great.
Middle Shore is a decent dive.
Shark Reef: Great place to see a ton of juvenile fish.
Turtle Dive: Also another great place for micro-life.
Throne Room: The only place where I've seen dolphins.
Arches: Popular spot, but I don't remember much about it.
Gallery: Starting from the middle of the reef, you'll find great swim-through's. Great topography with huge barrel sponges/groups of fish.
Spadefish Reef: Can't remember.
Fish Pond:Can't remember.
Sandals Reef: Can't remember.
Bloody Bay Deep: As you can guess, it's a deep dive (40m) (130+ft).
Kingfish: Not many fish here, but the reef is in the best condition of any area. The reef looks like large mountains. About a 27 meter dive (90Ft).
Deep Plane: Yep, the name explains it all, but I don't remember much about it.
The Hunt: Decent place to run into Nurse Sharks.
Throne Room: Saw my one and only turtle here.
Golden Gate: Lots of swim-through's, but an equal amount of dead coral.
Hunt: Also a good place to see Nurse Sharks. Good site.
The Valley: Great diversity of critters here (Drum's, Grunts, Blenny's, Flounder...).
Mid-shoal: Tons of critters.
Arches: Good place for night diving.

 

[ibj40]

Going down for 4 days hoping to get 2 days of diving and 1 night dive. What can we expect should we bring log books? Any dive site's that are a must that we can recommend? I know it wont be as good of diving as Cozumel which we just got back from in Oct but it was a deal we couldn't pass up($600 for 3 nights)! My wife and I was just AOW certified in Coz in Oct so we both have recent dives. We are not looking for 140' dives but also not looking to stay @ 30ft either. Any suggestions all appreciated?

If you are looking for what most of us consider "normal" diving, that being you get on the boat in the morning, do two tanks with an SI somewhere, and are back at the resort at noon or so, you need to check with the on-site dive op and see if that's what they do.

We went to Couples Negril in 2003 and there the diving was one tank in the morning around 9 and then another tank in the afternoon around 2. Only day they did a two-tanker was Saturday. Plus, check on whether they will even do a night dive or if there is a critical mass of divers required for them to go out at night.

When we went back in 2008 we used an off-site dive op, Sundivers, but understand that they have changed quite a bit since then.

We really enjoyed diving in Negril, and can assure you that the reefs were a lot better in 2008 than they were in 2003, in terms of fish populations. We dove many of the sites referenced above.

 

[Scuba One]

I lived in Jamaica years ago, running the diving/watersports for a couples all-inclusive resort that later was taken over by Sandals.

Below are the diving rules sent to me by the dive operator at Sandals Negril.

Regarding your email request; NB: The under mention are need to know information. It is straight forward, and also standard throughout Sandals/Beaches Resorts

• Certified diver who have dive within 6 months can go straight to a dive, once he or she clear medical and show proof of dive e.g. Logbook with stamp authenticating the dive/s & depth. Dive Computer
• All diver/s that have not dive in 7 months and up must do a pool assessment of 4 skills.
• Certified diver/s that has not dive up to 18 months must do a refresher at a minimal cost.
• All diver/s below Dive Master Level must do a shallow dive before they (diver) can go on any deep dive.
• All diver/s that complete the shallow dive satisfactory will be able to do both deep and shallow dives daily
Once the requirements are met all certified divers can dive twice (2) per day seven days per week if they (Diver) so desire.

All participants certified or non-certified diver/s MUST fill out a medical questionnaire before he or she can participate in recreational diving. This information is in case a medical clearance from a doctor may be needed for any medical condition including medication being taken. See (Sandals All Inclusive Caribbean Resorts & Vacation Packages | Wedding, Honeymoon, Couples Only) to view medical statement

Here are photos I took in Negril
Sucba One Travel - Negril Jamaica Underwater photos

 

[RDRINK25]

We will only be able to do 2 days of diving. What I am wondering is that they we just do a shallow 9am dive for our first day so at least we can get 2 shallow dives in the first day. Then the second go to a deep site and a shallow site? Any chance you have an email address that I could send an email to?