I just returned from a fantastic 8 day trip to Hawaii. The final island stop on the trip was Oahu. Based on recommendations, I choose to dive with Diamond Head Divers while in Waikiki. Boy was that a bad decision. Everything from the moment I stepped foot on the dock had me completely underwhelmed with this dive operation.
Firstly, the crew seemed to be inconvenienced taking divers out. Upon arriving at the boat, we were made to feel as if we were a burden to the crew. No introductions were made and no instructions regarding the boat/gear/procedures were given.
Secondly, when I inquired as to where we would be diving, I received a half-hearted "Dunno" response. When I suggested making a wreck dive, like the YO-257, the sarcastic, but completely serious, comment "You're gonna make me go there?" took me by surprise. Needless to say, I felt that I was putting out the crew by suggesting a dive site. (We ultimately did end up diving there due to a lack of other suggestions.)
Finally, I was specifically bothered by the fact that the DM tried a few times to have me take a 63 cu ft tank in lieu of a 80 cu ft for the first dive (our deep dive!). At first, I joked with the DM that they were passing off a 'pony tank' charging me the same price as a 80 cu ft tank. But he tried two more times to have me take this tank. Refusing to take the tank, the DM commented that he'll have to take the tank. I personally took offense to the fact that they thought because i'm a smaller female diver that they could try to pass this tank off on me.
I'm not a dive novice nor am I a 1000+ seasoned dive professional but i've been on my fair share of dive boats and dive trips. This, by far, was the most underwhelming experience I've had on any of my dive excursions. They were unhelpful, lacked knowledge about dive sites and marine life and generally seemed disinterested in the diving.
The dive site briefings were anything but informative. In fact, I had no idea that there was another wreck about 50 yards away from the YO-257 until the DM decided to guide us over there about 5 minutes before the end of the dive! Back on the boat, I asked the DM and boat captain about marine life I had seen on the dive. The DM was clueless and the boat captain seemed totally uninterested almost bothered by my questions.
After the first dive, my dive buddy and I agreed we'd find another dive op for our other diving days as soon as we hit dry land. We choose to dive with Aqua Zone in lieu of Diamond Head Divers.
Needless to say, I would not recommend this dive op if you plan on diving on Oahu/Waikiki area.
:cool2::kiss2:
