shark_tamer
Contributor
Just got back from Santa-Lucia, Cuba for a one week dive vacation, from July 4th to July 11th.
The dive center is named ¨Shark's Friends¨ and it is situated on the beach, next to the Oasis Brisas resort.
It is not named ¨Shark's Friends¨ for nothing : They do an AWESOME shark dive !!!
It is a shore dive in the channel just west of Santa-Lucia, and they take you to the site by bus. Upon arrival at the site, every diver gets his/her gear ready and relaxes for 10 - 15 minutes before the dive master briefs you on the dive.
The ¨ Shark Show ¨, as it is called, takes place at 25 meters down. Divers are directed to a location at the bottom, roughly 5 meters away and 1 meter above the location where the DM will hand feed a group of bullsharks, roughly 2,5 to 3,0 meters long ... very impressive !! Safety is enforced by 2 instructors/DMs each equipped with a speargun, just in case something goes wrong !
Bottom time for this dive is 35 minutes, and both times I did the dive, I was 1 minute away from DECO ... be sure you keep an eye on your computer, console and your buddy !!!!
The shark show is right next to the ¨Mortera¨ wreck. During ascent, time should allow you to visit the wreck.
When in Santa-Lucia for diving, this dive is not to be missed !!!!
During the time I was there, it was very windy, and this condition prevented us to dive the sites east of Santa-Lucia. Most of the dives were at the barrier reef where the current and surge is less. I would not consider these dives memorable, but they were above average dives. We saw barracudas, nurse sharks, lots of fish and beautiful corals, and 2 wrecks.
Here's a list of these sites :
- Poseidon 4 : 34,8 meters
- Cueva Chiquita : 30,1 meters
- Escalon : 25,0 meters
- Alta Gracia : 31,4 meters ( tugboat wreck )
- Black coral : 34,4 meters
Water temperature was constant @ 28oC.
Viz was roughly 25 meters average.
The whole staff at ¨Shark's Friends¨ is very qualified and eager to make your dives memorable. The center was recently remodelled and equipment is fairly new, including brand new tanks and compressors.
The only negative point I have is that they accept uncertified divers, or take divers beyond their capabilities on certain dives. But this is common to vacation/Caribbean diving !!!!
All in all, I highly recommend ¨ Shark's Friends ¨ dive center, and specially the bullshark dive.
The dive center is named ¨Shark's Friends¨ and it is situated on the beach, next to the Oasis Brisas resort.
It is not named ¨Shark's Friends¨ for nothing : They do an AWESOME shark dive !!!
It is a shore dive in the channel just west of Santa-Lucia, and they take you to the site by bus. Upon arrival at the site, every diver gets his/her gear ready and relaxes for 10 - 15 minutes before the dive master briefs you on the dive.
The ¨ Shark Show ¨, as it is called, takes place at 25 meters down. Divers are directed to a location at the bottom, roughly 5 meters away and 1 meter above the location where the DM will hand feed a group of bullsharks, roughly 2,5 to 3,0 meters long ... very impressive !! Safety is enforced by 2 instructors/DMs each equipped with a speargun, just in case something goes wrong !
Bottom time for this dive is 35 minutes, and both times I did the dive, I was 1 minute away from DECO ... be sure you keep an eye on your computer, console and your buddy !!!!
The shark show is right next to the ¨Mortera¨ wreck. During ascent, time should allow you to visit the wreck.
When in Santa-Lucia for diving, this dive is not to be missed !!!!
During the time I was there, it was very windy, and this condition prevented us to dive the sites east of Santa-Lucia. Most of the dives were at the barrier reef where the current and surge is less. I would not consider these dives memorable, but they were above average dives. We saw barracudas, nurse sharks, lots of fish and beautiful corals, and 2 wrecks.
Here's a list of these sites :
- Poseidon 4 : 34,8 meters
- Cueva Chiquita : 30,1 meters
- Escalon : 25,0 meters
- Alta Gracia : 31,4 meters ( tugboat wreck )
- Black coral : 34,4 meters
Water temperature was constant @ 28oC.
Viz was roughly 25 meters average.
The whole staff at ¨Shark's Friends¨ is very qualified and eager to make your dives memorable. The center was recently remodelled and equipment is fairly new, including brand new tanks and compressors.
The only negative point I have is that they accept uncertified divers, or take divers beyond their capabilities on certain dives. But this is common to vacation/Caribbean diving !!!!
All in all, I highly recommend ¨ Shark's Friends ¨ dive center, and specially the bullshark dive.
