ScubaScott
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Has any got the goods on diving in Tobago? The good, bad and ugly? Thinking of heading there for the next dive trip....
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Tobago Diving
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We've been back since and it isn't much different....
Island of Tobago & Diving, 2001
Just returned from 10 days in Tobago. This was a second trip, the first was August 1995.
BWIA hauled us from Miami (to Barbados, Grenada, St Lucia, Port of Spain Trinidad) to Tobago, and it seems that there is also a direct MIA - POS - TAB route, but we enjoyed the airports of many nations.
Arriving at Crown Point, the Southern end of Tobago late at night, we got an excellent little Samurai from Cordner Auto and began the slow, right hand drive thru almost 2 hours of twisting mountainous roads to the far northern end (50 km) town of Speyside.
The Blue Waters Inn is a lovely property that is well suited to diver and eco-tourist (birder) alike. The staff was friendly, attentive and right on the spot. The rooms were varied, we got what was regarded as a lower grade "standard" that was just perfect.
The dive op, AquaMarine Divers is a passable operation, with better than average attention to in the water safety. Their new boats are an improvement and absolutely the best on this interesting end of Tobago, but they still haven't seen enough weight integrated bc's to offer to rig them onto the tanks before the boat bounces out of the slip. What a mess. It is a hurried operation with tired d/m's, possibly less than motivated due to the European clientelle's tipping practices. Dive briefings were lackluster with no drawings or sketches and due to the Tobago accent, unintelligible to most other than us Yanks. The Germans and Swiss were left dazed. They had a nice docking facility (the only one in Speyside), but it was poorly managed. The little things were lacking. Prices were about $390 for 10 dives. Night dives, although they were asked for and on the "menu", were never provided.
The diving, sorry to say, was less memorable than the previous trip. NO MANTAS. It is the considered opinion of several experienced diver operators, that diver interaction has driven the mantas into seclusion.
Redman of Red M Dive will do his best to find them for you, with the absolute proviso that no touching or pursuit be permitted. Find him at mdive@tstt.net.tt He runs a safe open dory dive op for many years...fve minutes away from the Blue Waters Inn, and 1 minute from the Manta Lodge.
Many Europeans were very interested to see what we regular Caribbean divers take for granted. It was NOT due to the DM's at AquaMarine, but the various Euro-divers saw flamingo tongues, nurse sharks, 4 different colorful slugs, arrow crabs, many nurse sharks, black tips, octopus, lobster, shrimp, blennies, juvenile drums, various eels and the standard Caribbean seafood platter. It was standsard DM practice to grab anything out of its hidey hole to amuse the guests.
The currents were worth the price of admission. This is a great place to "get your ticket punched". It was always .5 to 1 m.p.h., usually 2-2.5 m.p.h., and quite often 3-4.5 m.p.h. With Mark Evans, editor of PADI's British Dive Magazine Sport Diver we dove a site that included Aquarium and "African Express" reporting I believe 6 mph current. Yowzah.
We opted for the Breakfast only package ($11/day) which was excellent! Eat overlooking the fabulous vistas of Little Tobago Island from the lovely Blue Waters Inn. The little birds swooped to your table and demanded jellies and fruit.
Due to the odd dive timetable, 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., there was no time for lunch. Just a 20 minutes on each side sunbathing roast, then back at it. Bring snack bars and Crystal Light. Tobago water is quite safe.
Evening meals, we ate at Blue Waters twice, and it was quite nice... but I would suggest a short ride over the hill into Speyside proper and dine at Jemma's, Frank's (not named that on the sign) Birdwatcher Cafe, or "Redman's Simple". Try all three and be sure to try the mildly garlic flavored Calaloo soup (like Spinach) and be certain to arrange for "Hot Roti" which is the traditional island slave version of a burrito. (lots of chicken "parts" and garbanzos and chickpeas). The local brew, Caribe, is endemic and has the obviously well thought out and inarguable slogan, "A beer is a Caribe". Alrighty then.
Speyside has changed little since 1995. There are now telephones aplenty. The "final" town, over the last ridge also has a cell tower... Charlottesville is pretty much the end of the road, further driving was only possible with 4WD Jeep. Unlike years past, we were only able to drive along the Northern Caribbean side coast, now driving SW, for only 4.5 miles before turning back. The road had washed out to boulders. The remainder of the roads are quite good with the caveat that this is a mountain island with right hand drive. Think, then drive. If you're not absolutely up to the challenge, arrange for ground transfer, which from the airport to Speyside can be quite high. A rental Samurai from Steve Cordner rentals in Crown Point was only $40/ day. Gas was $1.45/ US Gallon.
The Manta Lodge did not offer a docking facility for diving, but it does have a nice pool and is within easy walk of all Speyside. It was quite noisy on several nights with amplified music. Looked like a good party, though. The Speyside Inn is a small but nicely appointed guest house along the same strip of "downtown" Speyside.
We took the long ride back to the 0700 hrs departure flight... a day early, just so we could do it in the daylight and not have to arise at "oh-dark-thirty" for the two hour drive. It was worth the use of our off- gassing day. Lots of scenic vistas on the Atlantic side, then cross over the mountain in Scarborogh to continue North on the Caribbean side.
In Crown Point we stayed at a passable place called Arthurs by the Sea that did involve us having to break in and out of as we returned from our last dinner at 2300 hours and left before 0600 hrs the next day.
In Crown Point we looked at the tiny but well regarded SunSplash Scuba on the strip along the way to Pigeon Point. Look at all the dive ops, talk to the folks, I think you'll find Jon & Caroline to have the more eco friendly operation. It is not Soto's of Cayman, but it is safe, small and homey. Find them via LYCOS.
In summation, Tobago is difficult for Americans to get to, but worthwhile. The currents are a great training basis for a trip to the Galapagos. Your best chance to see Manats, if you fulfill the above mentioned requirements, is with RedMan of M dive.
Island of Tobago & Diving, 2001
Just returned from 10 days in Tobago. This was a second trip, the first was August 1995.
BWIA hauled us from Miami (to Barbados, Grenada, St Lucia, Port of Spain Trinidad) to Tobago, and it seems that there is also a direct MIA - POS - TAB route, but we enjoyed the airports of many nations.
Arriving at Crown Point, the Southern end of Tobago late at night, we got an excellent little Samurai from Cordner Auto and began the slow, right hand drive thru almost 2 hours of twisting mountainous roads to the far northern end (50 km) town of Speyside.
The Blue Waters Inn is a lovely property that is well suited to diver and eco-tourist (birder) alike. The staff was friendly, attentive and right on the spot. The rooms were varied, we got what was regarded as a lower grade "standard" that was just perfect.
The dive op, AquaMarine Divers is a passable operation, with better than average attention to in the water safety. Their new boats are an improvement and absolutely the best on this interesting end of Tobago, but they still haven't seen enough weight integrated bc's to offer to rig them onto the tanks before the boat bounces out of the slip. What a mess. It is a hurried operation with tired d/m's, possibly less than motivated due to the European clientelle's tipping practices. Dive briefings were lackluster with no drawings or sketches and due to the Tobago accent, unintelligible to most other than us Yanks. The Germans and Swiss were left dazed. They had a nice docking facility (the only one in Speyside), but it was poorly managed. The little things were lacking. Prices were about $390 for 10 dives. Night dives, although they were asked for and on the "menu", were never provided.
The diving, sorry to say, was less memorable than the previous trip. NO MANTAS. It is the considered opinion of several experienced diver operators, that diver interaction has driven the mantas into seclusion.
Redman of Red M Dive will do his best to find them for you, with the absolute proviso that no touching or pursuit be permitted. Find him at mdive@tstt.net.tt He runs a safe open dory dive op for many years...fve minutes away from the Blue Waters Inn, and 1 minute from the Manta Lodge.
Many Europeans were very interested to see what we regular Caribbean divers take for granted. It was NOT due to the DM's at AquaMarine, but the various Euro-divers saw flamingo tongues, nurse sharks, 4 different colorful slugs, arrow crabs, many nurse sharks, black tips, octopus, lobster, shrimp, blennies, juvenile drums, various eels and the standard Caribbean seafood platter. It was standsard DM practice to grab anything out of its hidey hole to amuse the guests.
The currents were worth the price of admission. This is a great place to "get your ticket punched". It was always .5 to 1 m.p.h., usually 2-2.5 m.p.h., and quite often 3-4.5 m.p.h. With Mark Evans, editor of PADI's British Dive Magazine Sport Diver we dove a site that included Aquarium and "African Express" reporting I believe 6 mph current. Yowzah.
We opted for the Breakfast only package ($11/day) which was excellent! Eat overlooking the fabulous vistas of Little Tobago Island from the lovely Blue Waters Inn. The little birds swooped to your table and demanded jellies and fruit.
Due to the odd dive timetable, 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., there was no time for lunch. Just a 20 minutes on each side sunbathing roast, then back at it. Bring snack bars and Crystal Light. Tobago water is quite safe.
Evening meals, we ate at Blue Waters twice, and it was quite nice... but I would suggest a short ride over the hill into Speyside proper and dine at Jemma's, Frank's (not named that on the sign) Birdwatcher Cafe, or "Redman's Simple". Try all three and be sure to try the mildly garlic flavored Calaloo soup (like Spinach) and be certain to arrange for "Hot Roti" which is the traditional island slave version of a burrito. (lots of chicken "parts" and garbanzos and chickpeas). The local brew, Caribe, is endemic and has the obviously well thought out and inarguable slogan, "A beer is a Caribe". Alrighty then.
Speyside has changed little since 1995. There are now telephones aplenty. The "final" town, over the last ridge also has a cell tower... Charlottesville is pretty much the end of the road, further driving was only possible with 4WD Jeep. Unlike years past, we were only able to drive along the Northern Caribbean side coast, now driving SW, for only 4.5 miles before turning back. The road had washed out to boulders. The remainder of the roads are quite good with the caveat that this is a mountain island with right hand drive. Think, then drive. If you're not absolutely up to the challenge, arrange for ground transfer, which from the airport to Speyside can be quite high. A rental Samurai from Steve Cordner rentals in Crown Point was only $40/ day. Gas was $1.45/ US Gallon.
The Manta Lodge did not offer a docking facility for diving, but it does have a nice pool and is within easy walk of all Speyside. It was quite noisy on several nights with amplified music. Looked like a good party, though. The Speyside Inn is a small but nicely appointed guest house along the same strip of "downtown" Speyside.
We took the long ride back to the 0700 hrs departure flight... a day early, just so we could do it in the daylight and not have to arise at "oh-dark-thirty" for the two hour drive. It was worth the use of our off- gassing day. Lots of scenic vistas on the Atlantic side, then cross over the mountain in Scarborogh to continue North on the Caribbean side.
In Crown Point we stayed at a passable place called Arthurs by the Sea that did involve us having to break in and out of as we returned from our last dinner at 2300 hours and left before 0600 hrs the next day.
In Crown Point we looked at the tiny but well regarded SunSplash Scuba on the strip along the way to Pigeon Point. Look at all the dive ops, talk to the folks, I think you'll find Jon & Caroline to have the more eco friendly operation. It is not Soto's of Cayman, but it is safe, small and homey. Find them via LYCOS.
In summation, Tobago is difficult for Americans to get to, but worthwhile. The currents are a great training basis for a trip to the Galapagos. Your best chance to see Manats, if you fulfill the above mentioned requirements, is with RedMan of M dive.
mow2000
Registered
I was there about six or seven years ago. The impression I got was that they sell the idea of seeing Mantas but you most likely won't see them. A big disappointment to me.
We stayed a few days at three places on the island - west, middle and east (Blue Waters Inn). We snorkeled a bunch of bays before finally diving at Blue Waters. One thing I noted everywhere was poor visibility (not sure if this is seasonal). But the snorkeling was pretty good. It's been a while but I recall some turtles and some really interesting little non-stinging jellyfish which would swim around singly or in large schools (which traumatized my girlfriend but I loved them). The diving wasn't that memorable. Blue Waters I thought was nice and (at the time) was a pretty good value.
The rainforests are interesting and there is an infinite variety of birds. We visited a park which had a huge variety of exotic plants, trees, fruits, etc.
We stayed a few days at three places on the island - west, middle and east (Blue Waters Inn). We snorkeled a bunch of bays before finally diving at Blue Waters. One thing I noted everywhere was poor visibility (not sure if this is seasonal). But the snorkeling was pretty good. It's been a while but I recall some turtles and some really interesting little non-stinging jellyfish which would swim around singly or in large schools (which traumatized my girlfriend but I loved them). The diving wasn't that memorable. Blue Waters I thought was nice and (at the time) was a pretty good value.
The rainforests are interesting and there is an infinite variety of birds. We visited a park which had a huge variety of exotic plants, trees, fruits, etc.
chauncy19
Contributor
was in Charlottesville for two weeks in the early 90's so specifics probably not very useful. Did absolutely love the place,the people and island. Nature lover's paradise as I remember it. Less thrilled with the diving. If scuba was not a high priority in a Caribbean vacation Tobago would be at the top of my list.
I personally think minus the obvious viz issue of being good but not consistently top-notched, Tobago's diving is still top class and cannot be beat in the Caribbean.
And yes I am biased, but that doesn't necessarily make me wrong either :14:
Roatan, the new slogan is "Carib, the best reason for beer"
Trinidad and Tobago can offer you truely one of the most beautiful places, peoples and cultures if you just look at it from the right angle. Get someone to show you the proper angles and you won't regret it.
And yes I am biased, but that doesn't necessarily make me wrong either :14:
Roatan, the new slogan is "Carib, the best reason for beer"
Trinidad and Tobago can offer you truely one of the most beautiful places, peoples and cultures if you just look at it from the right angle. Get someone to show you the proper angles and you won't regret it.
bmaber
Registered
I got my Open Water cert in Tobago. The diving is first rate, the island is real all about diving, little else goes on there. I strongly recommend you dive with Manta www.mantadive.com --Yorgy and Amanda are the best!! They will treat you so good, and they have 3 good boats! They can also get you a room in a local hotel for a good rate!
You will need to change planes in Trinidad, don't even think of diving at Trinidad, there is no diving in Trinidad due to silt from the Orinoco flow out of South America you gota go to Tobago! Also Trinidad is dangerous, Tobago is very safe, many locals are afraid to go to the big island!
You will need to change planes in Trinidad, don't even think of diving at Trinidad, there is no diving in Trinidad due to silt from the Orinoco flow out of South America you gota go to Tobago! Also Trinidad is dangerous, Tobago is very safe, many locals are afraid to go to the big island!
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