Trip Report Scuba Junkie Komodo: sketchy diving practices

[cetacean]

@Plutonist

Should have also mentioned that these days I won't do more than 2 dives on air in a day. If I'm planning on diving 3 or more dives in a day, then I'm diving Nitrox. If they don't offer it, I'm limiting myself to the two dives...

 

[Plutonist]

@Plutonist it just sounds like you were frustrated you didn't get enough ass-kissing for your opinion. you could have been proactive bringing up your concerns instead of coming across like a karen. and anyone diving without a computer is on them, its possible to rent for a fee as needed.

You must be projecting, as your little outburst of anger makes you look like the frustrated person. It fits well with the picture of someone who would defend these diving practices. If you believe that this "is how it is" (your words) I feel sorry for you, as you never partook in a properly guided muck dive. It "is on them" concerning the safety of divers also doesn't leave a good impression: Cash is more important than diver's and marine life's well being. Is that the picture you want to paint?

If I am frustrated, then only owing to the blatant abuse of marine life, which is also betraying the super-friendly resort staff. They haven't deserved being dragged through the mud like this.

A guest response form or a short talk with the guests is not "ass-kissing", it is basic professional behavior. There is a reason ALL other places I've been to do this in one form or another. It costs virtually nothing and effectively prevents people from venting elsewhere. Not doing so is an incredibly stupid business practice and just shows that the organisation is flawed.

If you think the kind, friendly and professional behavior I've come to expect in Indonesia is "ass-kissing" I can again only feel sorry for you, as you never have experienced proper hospitality.

FYI: A "Karen" is the archetypal "I want to speak to the management" person, which is what you accuse me of not doing in the same sentence. I hope you see the irony.

As a fairly serious underwater photographer I recall a very similar experience diving with them. The guides are all very friendly and very laid back, and I;m assuming their motivation is mostly just to please the guests, however manipulating the u/w life (to a bit of an extreme) was too much.

Thank you for confirming what I saw. It was bonkers - zero respect for the small marine life. And yes, as I noted, I don't want to single out any particular guide as they mostly were great. This is a systemic issue of neglect from the management.

 

[Centrals]

@Plutonist it just sounds like you were frustrated you didn't get enough ass-kissing for your opinion. you could have been proactive bringing up your concerns instead of coming across like a karen. and anyone diving without a computer is on them, its possible to rent for a fee as needed.

A "self righteous" karen. LOL.
Complaining nitrox was NOT available!!!!! Anyone who care to read SJ Komodo web page will notice nitrox is NOT available.
Complaining about the behaviour of fellow divers!!!!
Complaining other diver not using dive computer!!!!
Couldn't find the person in charge of the resort!!!! Probably never ever bother to ask.

 

[cetacean]

A "self righteous" karen. LOL.
Complaining nitrox was NOT available!!!!! Anyone who care to read SJ Komodo web page will notice nitrox is NOT available.
Complaining about the behaviour of fellow divers!!!!
Complaining other diver not using dive computer!!!!
Couldn't find the person in charge of the resort!!!! Probably never ever bother to ask.

@Centrals

Re: The non-availability of Nitrox is not completely obvious - you need to go the bottom of the "know before you go" page. You should be able to find it, however I'm not faulting someone for not seeing that (although they could have/should have asked ahead of time).

Having said this, it's 2025 - if you're offering 3 dives/day in a place like Komodo (which is not always easy diving) you should offer Nitrox.

My experience: SJ was a couple steps up from a "backpacker" resort, but several steps below what I would expect from a good dive resort.

 

[Plutonist]

@cetacean: Please don't feed the troll. SJ don't deserve being associated with this person.

 

[runsongas]

@cetacean so dive shops should be policing what gear divers use and how they conduct their dives now? are we going to ban using tables/wheel to conduct dives or diving without a snorkel?

@Plutonist you say the staff were kind and friendly, but yet they didn't ask you about your stay after. something doesn't add up there that would be the case.

 

[Plutonist]

Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying since the beginning, if you care to read the original post. And I don't see the contradiction. The staff are great and follow the procedures set up by the management. The guiding (on non-muck dives) was fantastic. But the management sucks! I can of course not exclude that in our case something went wrong - errors do happen, someone might have been sick or inconvenienced. But from our experience it appears that there is no procedure to query the customers for their satisfaction. And that boggles my mind as this is such an obvious thing.

As @cetacean notes: The guides in general are super nice and experienced - they just want to make the guests happy. We felt well taken care of. But if the management doesn't know what is going on under water (I hope they are not OK with what we observed!), it means that the organisation sucks, sorry. "How was the guiding?", "How was the food?", "How was the room?", "What could we do to improve?", "Would you pay for Nitrox?" should be standard questions after a stay. It's not the customers job to improve your operation.

 

[Centrals]

@Centrals

Re: The non-availability of Nitrox is not completely obvious - you need to go the bottom of the "know before you go" page. You should be able to find it, however I'm not faulting someone for not seeing that (although they could have/should have asked ahead of time).

Having said this, it's 2025 - if you're offering 3 dives/day in a place like Komodo (which is not always easy diving) you should offer Nitrox.

My experience: SJ was a couple steps up from a "backpacker" resort, but several steps below what I would expect from a good dive resort.

LOL.
FAQ has no meaning to some of you.
If nitrox is so important then why didn't she ask the question when first contacted SJ? I never assumed anything if it is important. INCOMPETENT.
Offering nitrox is entirely up to the operator. There is NO right or wrong.
I had dived with SJ in couple of their places and never ever found any issue with them.
From my own experience it is always the other divers that P me off.

 

[Centrals]

@cetacean: Please don't feed the troll. SJ don't deserve being associated with this person.

You even complained about tipping!!!!
That said a lot about you.

 

[runsongas]

@Plutonist that's the thing, all of those questions were asked of me at the end of my trip and also other divers when checking out. so if the staff were still excellent, then the fact you weren't asked is due to some other reason. as we weren't there, none of us can posit why.