Vacation to Orlando with no car, any dive trips?

[dodgie]

Hi,

Bit of a wierd one I know, but I'm going away with my girlfriend to do the usual Disney thing in Orlando for two weeks end of June / beginning of July, we'll be staying on International Drive but won't have a car (both of us are under 25 and can't afford the extortionate under-25 suppliments per day!). I've recently introduced my girlfriend to scuba diving and so she's currently doing her SSI Open Water course here in the UK and will be qualified (hopefully) by the time we go away.

My question is, I know we are right in the middle of Florida (not a good move I guess for a dive holiday, but we had already booked it before she got interested in diving), are there any dive shops that run day-trips to dive sites from Orlando? Preferably from International Drive although I realise that's probably a long-shot and I'm not adverse to getting a cab to somewhere reasonably nearby.

Any help would be most appreciated, really looking for stuff well suited to beginners as it will mroe than likely be my girlfriend's first non-training dive and my first in a good few years (I'm a PADI Adv Open Water, although will be doing a Scuba Reivew before I head out if there's a chance I might be able to do some diving).

Cheers

Richard

 

[StSomewhere]

You could always dive the giant Epcot tank at Living Seas. Do a search, its expensive as all getout, but its doable and supposed to be a really different experience. I'm probably going to give it a shot when we go back to MCO again in May.

Other than that, I don't know. Blue Springs in Deland (or is it Debary, I can never remember) past Deltona/Orange City on the I-4 to Daytona will require a car, other than that I'd guess WPB or FLL is the nearest reef diving. Or TPA the other direction, but that's the Gulf not necessarily reefs. Car rentals are expensive for the under-25 set (man, just typing that makes me feel old!), but if you drove to WPB for a day trip then the costs for a 24 hour car rental shouldn't be so bad. Just a thought.

From what little I've seen so far, most of the Orlando dive shop trips are of the "meet up at a predermined location with your dive gear" variety

Let us know if you find out something different.

 

[simbrooks]

Richard, how much diving are you intent on doing? For "a fee" there are some dive shops who will give you travel, entrance and a DM (well might as well as they are driving you ), but it isnt cheap. Its probably about as much as the Epcot dive experience ~$120 i think.

Blue Spring is in Orange City, but close Its about a 40 min drive with good traffic from I-drive. Do you need to rent stuff, or are you bringing it? I really dont recall much issue with renting a car, but then again since i bought one over here i havent had much of an issue that way. What were you hoping to dive, reefs, wrecks, springs. I might be able to swing a little time off or such for fellow Brits if you pay for the rental, split gas and such - my car isnt really big enough to haul more than one set of gear and by then my GF should also be into diving as well, i would be more than happy to drive you around on the weekends to dive spots. Just let me know what's up.

BTW welcome to the board.

 

[dodgie]

Hi Simon,

Thanks for your quick response.

Richard, how much diving are you intent on doing? For "a fee" there are some dive shops who will give you travel, entrance and a DM (well might as well as they are driving you ), but it isnt cheap. Its probably about as much as the Epcot dive experience ~$120 i think.

Yeah I was worried about that!

Blue Spring is in Orange City, but close Its about a 40 min drive with good traffic from I-drive. Do you need to rent stuff, or are you bringing it? I really dont recall much issue with renting a car, but then again since i bought one over here i havent had much of an issue that way. What were you hoping to dive, reefs, wrecks, springs. I might be able to swing a little time off or such for fellow Brits if you pay for the rental, split gas and such - my car isnt really big enough to haul more than one set of gear and by then my GF should also be into diving as well, i would be more than happy to drive you around on the weekends to dive spots. Just let me know what's up.

BTW welcome to the board.

That's a really kind offer thanks! The only problem with the car rental is the companies charge an extra daily fee if you are under 25. I'm only just under 25 which is frustrating (25 in October) but they don't seem to care when asked, 24 is 24 even if it's 24.9!!! As StSomewhere mentioned though it might be ok just for a day.

I'm going to look into hire for a day, but if that's still not viable we'll seriously consider your very generous offer.

I'm intrigued (and obviously dead jealous), you say you are an engineer on your profile, and you have moved out to Florida from England, what do you do if you don't mind me asking? I'd love any excuse to up sticks and move to somewhere sunnier especially with diving!

Cheers

Rich

 

[StSomewhere]

Blue Spring is in Orange City, but close

I have relatives in Deltona and Lake Mary, and we get down their three to six times a year. You'd think I'd at least know where the "local" stuff is by now.

 

[Orlando Eric]

I being the ever so helpful chap! The dilema seems to be that you are here with your girlfriend and want to dive, adversly Simon's car can only hold gear for two... let me think of a solution I am sure that it will come to me......................

 

[simbrooks]

I being the ever so helpful chap! The dilema seems to be that you are here with your girlfriend and want to dive, adversly Simon's car can only hold gear for two... let me think of a solution I am sure that it will come to me......................

Let me just add that while i think i can see your "solution" i really dont lend my car out (yes its only worth $8k at best now) to people i dont know from Adam (dont mean that in an offensive way Richard), but i believe most people would wholeheartedly understand that kind of issue....

I might have access to other cars of a larger size, which might be more helpful, or if we went somewhere that only requires one tank a piece or no tanks (and they were renting gear) then more gear can be stored or more folks taken along. Lets just wait and see, but handing my car keys over to someone off the internet sounds a little dodgy (not dodgie ) to me.

 

[Orlando Eric]

Simon- - Not what I was thinking at all. I thought that he could go to Sea World and dive the living seas and You could take his GF diving!

OR - You could take him diving in the springs and I'd take His GF diving at the beach.

(This post is in jest and neither myslef or Simon would actually steal away someones S.O. .....)

 

[baitedstorm]

(This post is in jest and neither myslef or Simon would actually steal away someones S.O. .....)

:laughing:

 

[simbrooks]

Simon- - Not what I was thinking at all. I thought that he could go to Sea World and dive the living seas and You could take his GF diving!

OR - You could take him diving in the springs and I'd take His GF diving at the beach.

(This post is in jest and neither myslef or Simon would actually steal away someones S.O. .....)

What you needed last post was a smilie, it helps get the meaning across

I might well have Christina up and diving around that time, which would make a nice little group to go hit some springs or the drift diving scene down WPB way - hence the bigger car need.