JFS
Contributor
Check with Blue Dream Dive Shop at Playa Azul Hotel in the north. They often do 1 tank dives in that area.
Single tank morning dives?
- Thread starter MarkH
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cozcharlie
Contributor
Kind of along the line of what @JFS , mentioned. Pepe Scuba at the Coral Princess hotel half a mile north of Villa Aldora might be an option on some days if Blue Dream Doesn’t work out (Playa Azul is probably 1.5 miles north of Villa Aldora ). I am not sure how often Pepe’s comes back to the hotel between dives (even though they are in the north I gather they go south a lot which would mean they are out for at least two tanks ).
As far as snorkeling—Just to be clear , the currents on the north walls (away from shore ) are some of the worst in the island. DO NOT try to swim out to the main wall a few hundred yards from shore (you might wind up miles from where you got in, and some people have not made it back at all). There is decent snorkeling right at the shore line up north (it is a rocky shoreline with 10-12 foot wall at the shore) , though I am not familiar with snorkeling in front of Villa Aldora. Currents vary quite a bit day to day in the north. The snorkeling is fine maybe 90 percent of the time at the shoreline , but 5-10 percent of the time it can be too strong to swim against depending on exactly where you are (I think in general the Villa Aldora area isn’t that bad ). I can’t remember if they have any swim buoys there but one thing to watch out for is if you see a wake as current goes by the stationary swim buoys (kind of a warning sign ). Also if you choose to go north from Aldora be aware there is a marina there and a lot of boat traffic goes in and out. If you are trying to cross in front of the entrance to the marina you would absolutely need a surface marker . If you are just staying very near shore by Aldora or to the south you could probably get by without one , though you obviously have to watch out for boats coming in and out of Aldora. While in in general you will hear boats moving quickly , newer engines moving slowly are much harder to hear. I will sometimes hear fishing boats flying by a few hundred yards away but not hear a dive boat slowly idling 20 yards away ).
As far as snorkeling—Just to be clear , the currents on the north walls (away from shore ) are some of the worst in the island. DO NOT try to swim out to the main wall a few hundred yards from shore (you might wind up miles from where you got in, and some people have not made it back at all). There is decent snorkeling right at the shore line up north (it is a rocky shoreline with 10-12 foot wall at the shore) , though I am not familiar with snorkeling in front of Villa Aldora. Currents vary quite a bit day to day in the north. The snorkeling is fine maybe 90 percent of the time at the shoreline , but 5-10 percent of the time it can be too strong to swim against depending on exactly where you are (I think in general the Villa Aldora area isn’t that bad ). I can’t remember if they have any swim buoys there but one thing to watch out for is if you see a wake as current goes by the stationary swim buoys (kind of a warning sign ). Also if you choose to go north from Aldora be aware there is a marina there and a lot of boat traffic goes in and out. If you are trying to cross in front of the entrance to the marina you would absolutely need a surface marker . If you are just staying very near shore by Aldora or to the south you could probably get by without one , though you obviously have to watch out for boats coming in and out of Aldora. While in in general you will hear boats moving quickly , newer engines moving slowly are much harder to hear. I will sometimes hear fishing boats flying by a few hundred yards away but not hear a dive boat slowly idling 20 yards away ).
OP
MarkH
Contributor
Thanks for the info regarding the current. For snorkeling, we will be staying close to the shoreline and definitely not going out hundreds of yards from shore or around the marina.
The current at the Villa Aldora, close to shore, is usually always benign. But it does shift from north to south occasionally. Easy to deal with…just swim against it when you enter the water, then just drift back home when you are ready to. Entrance and exit up stairs makes it double easy. That goes for snorkeling or beach diving with free tanks at poolside. Just stay close to the wall and you will experience some of the best underwater experience... next to the great walls down south.Bring a light as the night snorkel is amazing. And if you leave your dive gear on the Aldora boat as most do, the Villa has free snorkel gear for all guests.
Enjoy!
DAVE
keesmon
Contributor
OP
MarkH
Contributor
It's a strange coincidence that were not going on vacation somewhere landlocked...
Scubagolf
Contributor
Once upon a time I had pretty much the same issue with a non-diving, snorkeling spouse. Doing single AM dives was just not an option, so I made the peace by diving 2 mornings of 2-tank dives during dive vacation weeks, which was OK with you know who. Problem solved. Four years into this, my wife decided to get certified. Problem again solved. We are now 17 years and 300+ “buddy” dives later.
My wife was somewhat discouraging to me when I told her that I wanted to get certed to dive, but once it was clear to her that I was going to do it, she said that there was no way she was going to wait on shore to see if I was coming back alive every time I went diving, so she got certified as well. That was nearly 30 years ago and we have many hundreds of happy dives together.
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