Vietnam

[kumimonster]

just 2 more weeks and i'll be in vietnam.
may 25-30 i'll be in nha trang and i've set aside the 26/27 for diving. (maybe the 28th...)

anyway, still researching things.
has anyone made the trip up to Whale Island?

 

[Luko]

yep, in 2003 whale island was much better diving than Nha Trang, lots of macro stuff in the laguna and some blue water coral dives as well, three kings and belfry. that said it is still not up to Indonesia, Phils or even Thailand.

 

[kumimonster]

So far, attempting to book my dives in Nha Trang has so far been quite a memorable experience - and it's not been very positive so far. There have been glimmers of success and then it all comes crashing down. I'm sure in the end, it'll all work out. And if not, I'll just post about it, eh?

In any case, if anyone is interested, this is what I've been dealing with so far:

I've learned that where I'm staying is actually a decent journey from nha trang. My friend decided to splurge a bit and booked us at the six senses resort which is um... let me post a map. (I'm NE of Nha Trang where the red text is. This map is from some other resort but that's pretty much where i will be. Mun island is where the marine protected area is. Nha Trang is where, well, where it says "Nha Trang" ).


So initially when I contacted the resort about their dive excursions, they mentioned that they worked with a local dive operator and there's actually an office/shop for them at the resort. They sent me a price list that featured your main PADI courses (OW, AOW, EANx, Rescue, etc) and then listed off some refresher dive prices. I went directly to the one that was pertinent. 2-tank fun dive: 4,000,000 VND - approximately $200 (US). :shocked2:.

At the same time I did my own bit of online research by looking up operators via this board, tripadvisor, etc. I then prepared a basic e-mail mentioning my arrival date in town, my desire to dive for at least 2 days, and asking about the availability of 3-tank dive excursions. I also included my dive certs and that of my buddy, and asked some other general questions regarding gear rental (I'm leaving my cold water stuff at home!).
Most of the companies responded after a couple of days. One took 2 weeks to respond! Another company continuously responded by sending me a price list of their PADI courses and suggesting I consider taking their refresher course.
Of course, those price-lists also included basic 2-tank dives (usually around $60-75 US).

From what I understand, the majority of companies offer boat dives that leave from the main harbor in Nha Trang and the dives sites are located around the Mun Island Marine Protected Area. Rainbow divers was one company I contacted as well and they offered a 3-tank dive day at a price of $95.. Rainbow, as with other companies, include snacks and drinks as well as gear rental in their fees. Some companies charge extra for dive computer rentals.

There's another dive site called Electric Nose that I've read about - some short, single line reviews say it's not worth the journey while other divers say they really enjoyed their time there. Anyone here have an opinion?

While in contact with Rainbow Divers, I asked about Whale Island and they were very upfront in telling me that the dives up there were not what they once were and that aside from being a pretty and isolated location, I'm not going to get much more out of it. It's not that they weren't willing to take my money, if I wanted to go they totally would have! (BTW, private boat ride up there is around $600). I really appreciated the honest opinion. I was also told that if I really wanted to dive up there, they offered some afternoon and evening shoredives. (FYI, Whale Island is north. The resort told me it's about a 2.5 hour journey via coach/bus).

I then asked about the Electric Nose dive site. It's not a part of the marine area, and it's at a different location, thus requiring a separate boat hire. The price I got from Rainbow was $300 for the speedboat from my resort and $95 for the 3-tank dive. I mentioned to RD that it was a bit steep for me so they suggested I take the speedboat directly from the main harbor for $150 instead. That seemed MUCH better!

And since they also offer a 3-tank dive day at Mun Island, I booked that for me and my buddy for the following day.
They also told me that I should contact my resort about getting a boat transfer to the main harbor. RD would then get us to the shop and back for the actual dive journey.

Now here's the wrench in the works: when I asked the resort about getting a boat to the mainland they said sure it was possible:
$150 (US).
Each way.
Also, that boat doesn't go to the main harbor, but to another harbour (pearl farm) about 30 minute's ride north.

Now I did ask the resort about transfers into town in a previous message, however they neglected to respond. There are free slower boats that make the journey however those happen during normal workday hours. Not at 5am type hours when you're attempting to meet up with dive boats at 6-7 am!

So yeah. Right now, just the boat ride to the dock to go diving is costing more than or just as much as the diving!
And now I'm thinking that perhaps the $200 2-tank dive the resort offers isn't *that* crazy a price!

The resort works with Sailing Club Divers, another company I wrote. When I initially contacted them, I got their basic "in-town" price list. Another e-mail was sent off in which I mentioned that I was staying at the Six Senses and got another price list. It almost seemed like a scam but it's not. Basically their "annex shop" is run from the resort with a dedicated resort staff and instead of taking you into town, a speedboat takes you directly to meet up with their dive boat (with divers from town) at Mun Island. It's a later departure though, and perhaps that's why they don't offer 3-tank dives. (I've written them back and asked about this addition again though. I figure if my buddy and I are taking a private boat to meet them, perhaps we might be able to head out earlier and do one more dive).

So for me, unfortunately, I've gotten great communication from Rainbow Divers however with all the hassle of getting into town from the resort and the crazy "hidden" costs, I'm going to cancel the Mun Island dive day with my buddy and most most likely go with the resort/Sailing Club instead.
However, just because of the great communication and dealings I've had with Rainbow Divers, I'm going to splurge on that private $300 speedboat to Electric Nose (and get picked up at my resort directly).

Honestly, a lot of these places have great reviews on tripadvisor from variety of guests. But it seems to me that most of these reviews are from people that are getting their initial open water certs. Others are taking refresher courses. And I'm not saying that they're reviews don't count, but I'm trying to recall if any of the reviews I read came from divers that have experienced booking with other operators in other areas on a regular basis.

Now aside from the slow communication, the thing that annoys me most so far is the type of response I get after the initial dive inquiry. Sometimes even after a couple of e-mails too! As I mentioned above, the PADI courses are heavily pushed (open water, AOW, EANx, rescue, etc. ) in addition to the refresher and discovery dives.
I could understand that if I wrote asking about trying out diving for the first time but I did not.
I usually include my certs in my e-mail and I often add the fact that I'm excited to dive in nice, warm water as opposed to my regular more chilly home base of Monterey, CA.
I've gotten the feeling that this whole process seems kind of like a PADI machine where there's an urgent need to get as many people into the system rather than treat them as divers with a variety of experiences. Perhaps it'll change but I much prefer operators that treat divers like individuals rather than new meat for the PADI grinder.

Sure, PADI is what it is (and my certs are via PADI too) but when I work with a dive company that I like, it's usually the company and their ideas, individual employees, and business practices that stand out. I'm sure after I get over to Vietnam this opinion will change. I hope it does!

Anyway, that's been my experience so far. I made a personal blog post but I took out most of the ranty, colourful language and tried to make this a little more straight forward. I'll post more as I learn things and hopefully this will help future visitors to the area!

 

[Wingy]

LOL sorry you are having such dramas...seems to be a little like my last couple of vietnam visits....I think last time I was there I gave up after 19 hours and jumped on a plane to Cambodia. All I can suggest is keep bargaining if you really want to dive vietnam.

 

[kumimonster]

(the 2 rocks together on the far left is where we did most of the diving. click here for bigger photo!)



So here's another update!
Ended up diving for 3 days in the end. There were some great and good experiences and some hiccups too but in the end it all came through. (However it's not rocket science, it's a holiday and really it shouldn't be that much trouble!)

But before I recount my experiences, I should clarify again, that I am staying at the Six Senses resort. It's not actually near the city and accessing the resort requires a boat. The guests arriving and departing the resort are transported to/from the mainland via speedboat. Other than private hires and booked excursions, guests are pretty much "trapped." (Can one say "trapped" when you're talking about some super fancy luxury resort? I've got a freaking butler assigned to me here!). Anyway, four times a day staff is shuttled back and forth as well but on a wooden boat that takes just over 35 minutes. The dock it stops at is called Pearl Farm and almost 30 minutes' drive north of the city. In my post above, I thought that the Rainbow Divers' boat would be able to pick me up directly from the resort however I learned that no boats are allowed here without prior permission from the resort manager - so it's definitely something that needs to be sorted out in advance.

So to start, my first day of diving was with Rainbow Divers. It was Kerry P. that I communicated with for the majority of the time. It was Kerry that was most pro-active about responding to my e-mails and getting my questions answered. And it was Kerry that finally got an answer out of the resort about my transfer over to the mainland: instead of hiring a private speedboat at $120 (the price quote I received was $150), I would take the am staff boat at 0645 which would get me to the mainland (approx 0715). From there a car would take me to the dive shop and then to the main harbor. Luckily, since I was hiring a speedboat for my dives, I wasn't under the same time constraints as those that were diving via the main boat! Things seemed to be getting later and later as departures got slightly delayed. FYI, this whole time I had Kerry's mobile number in case things didn't go smoothly. (She did call the driver to find out where he was after I waited at the Pearl Farm dock for almost 15 minutes).

I didn't bring any gear besides my mask, computer, warm water gloves, and an SMB. So I used the shop's gear. I also paid for a Rainbow photographer come along (Iain Wood).
My dive companion for this day was Mr. Anh and he was a great companion and quite skilled at spotting all the little things.
When I asked other companies about this dive site - Electric Nose - most of them didn't go out there and/or said the diving there wasn't that great. They also mentioned that it was not in the Marine Park and that a lot of dynamite fishing occurs there. I found one review online that raved about the dive site with details and explanations and a few one-liners that said that it wasn't worth the trip. My opinion: it was well worth the trip! Also, best to get 3 tanks and make the most out of the journey!

We primarily swam around rock walls that went down to about 45 meters /147 feet (that's what people say). There's no need to go that far down however. Actually, there's not really any need to do much swimming because there's simply a lot of life hanging out in various outcroppings of a single wall. From coral to stars, clams to sponges! Lots of little and not so little hermit crabs hanging out, and of course the nudies! So many different kinds in more easier to see sizes (about 2-4 inches) to the ones that could comfortably fit on the top of a pencil. And in such a variety of colours too! Saw a few flatworms too. If you're looking for fish, there here but they're not *that* abundant (Although we did spot a barracuda swimming along). Come here to check out the super small things!

I wore a 3mm full. The water temp in this location changes constantly as you swim between rock faces and it does so at various depths. The dives here are deeper than at the Hon Mun Marine Park and even there I wore a 3mm full - granted they were rental suits had quite a bit of stretch in them so I had a decent amount of water flow. But then I'm used to the cooler Monterey water so maybe that helped me out a little bit.
On this day there was a small amount of current but nothing to write home about. As most of the online sources say, it is not a site for new divers.

The nitty gritty: Rainbow Divers charges $95 (US) for a 3-tank dive. The private speedboat out to Electric Nose ran me $150 (US). There was a fee for the photographer and yes, I did tip out as well. All in all, slightly a bit on the pricey side for 3 tanks but then running a boat out for a single person isn't the most cost efficient practice (there was the capt, and 2 DMs (one in the water with, and one out). In addition, I knew I wasn't going to be on a boat with a ton of other divers/snorkelers. I know that's a prime selling point for a lot of divers. I read on some other site that another company charged a couple around $65 for 3-tanks - but then that just seems a bit crazy low for me. In any case, if I had time to go out again, I'd go out to this dive site and I'd book with Rainbow Divers to take me there.

(thanks for reading! more on days 2/3 later)

Also Iain posted with some photos from our dive at Electric Nose.
I'm the white q-tip head so just disregard the human in those shots.
Also, I hate weight belts. And those fins. The tops of my toes aren't happy.


http://soulflyer.com/gallery/electric-nose.html

 

[kumimonster]

OK!

So for day 2 and 3 I went out with the resort team and boat. (Sailing Club Divers)
Day 2 was with my travel buddy Richard. Day 3 I went solo.
Each day we were accompanied by DiveMaster Vu.
Day 2: octopus rock & tri minh treat's
Day 3: south bay & coral garden

(Some of this is kind of a re-hashing of my first post).

Now initially when I inquired about diving, I sent an e-mail directly to the resort. It was not mentioned that they worked with Sailing Club Divers. I found that out later. I'm not sure how I did though.
I sent an e-mail to the resort's general inquiry address and it was then forwarded to the "experience manager" - (both on April 24). I then sent off more questions on April 25th and since I did not get a response, I sent off another e-mail on May 7th. I did get a response to that one (which didn't even answer half of the questions I had on the April 25 e-mail). I wrote back immediately with a couple of more questions however I got no reply whatsoever after that.

Since it was getting close to my departure date, I decided to write another e-mail once again (on May 12). This time I had already done a bit more research (however evidently not enough) and decided to go with another company because I was getting the feeling that my business really wasn't wanted. So when I wrote to the activities manager, I asked about getting a transfer to the mainland because I had decided to go with another company. I got a response on May 12 telling me that in order to get a transfer to the mainland it would require a private boat at a cost of $150 (one way). I don't know why this information wasn't given to me in a previous e-mail when I mentioned going out with another operator. On May 13 I sent an e-mail to the resort thanking them for the information and mentioning trying to work something out with Sailing Club. I got no further response.
(I'm under the impression that the person I was talking to wasn't a Sailing Club employee but worked for the resort so this first part isn't about the dive operator!)

I should also add that it's at this point in time that Kerry from Rainbow Divers stepped in to figure out transport to the mainland for my dive with them. I was determined to dive Electric Nose, however my following dive day with Richard was going to be with Sailing Club.

I also sent an e-mail off to Sailing Club Divers directly on May 9 and included in my message that I was staying at the Six Senses. I much prefer to book my dives well in advance but Dom, the person I was in touch with told me that the resort maintained a dedicated staff just for resort guests so it wasn't necessary. I also asked about 3-tank dives and diving Electric Nose but their boats just don't go out that far and the timing of their dives really doesn't allow for 3-tank days. However he did say that it'd be worked out (the dives, not the site). Since I didn't pack a camera, I asked about that and I was given a price of 550,000 VND. (Oh and 2-tank dives were 4,000,000 VND and the 3-tank pricing I got was 5,000,000 VND).
As far as the communication regarding these dives, Dom seemed open, enthusiastic and actually interested in responding to my questions in regards to dive sites, numbers of dives, gear, and my not-so-experienced dive buddy.

We arrived at the resort on a Sunday. I did my first dive on Monday (with Rainbow). Upon my return back from the mainland I walked over to the activities area and met up with Vu. We spoke about diving and I verbalized what I had previously written in regards to getting into the water. He also explained to me how 3-tanks weren't really feasible but I was kind of insistent on trying so he said they would bring an extra tank. In the end, it didn't happen. (Richard, my travel buddy didn't care really).

I probably should add here that the prices that Vu gave me were not the ones that matched the prices I got from Dom. It's not Vu's fault and I do realize that the resort's prices for diving are going to cost more. The resort isn't exactly your bargain basement set up! It requires a speedboat to bring divers to their main dive boat and there's a slightly greater distance to travel however I did show him the e-mail from Dom. I think someone needs to get their numbers in order. ;-)
The thing that sucks is that higher price would've cut heavily into my tipping money too!

So Richard and I got fitted for our gear and then the next morning we set out to the dock and met up with Vu and the captain with our gear already on board. We met up with the main dive boat over at the Hon Mun Marine park and transferred ourselves over and then got suited up. When we got to the dive site, we tied up to two other dive boats (different operators) and although they also had divers, we didn't really run into them that often.
We both put on 3mm full suits. The water was pretty warm but there were some chilly spots. We didn't go much past 40 feet though. That might've been the max depth actually. It's a great site for new divers with no current or surge to speak of. If I remember correctly the first dive was pretty flat with coral spread out everywhere. On the second dive there was a slightly sloping bottom with outcroppings of coral and sand as you got deeper. Pretty clear vis and some nice fish to look at. Also a frog fish and sea cucumbers and cute little gobies. I spotted a couple of nudies but otherwise, not much else. Not to say there wasn't anything there, I was just on the hunt for nudies since I saw so many the day before.

Vu told me that the sites we hit on this day were called Octopus Rock and Tri Minh's Treat (both right near each other and north of the island at the west end).
I rented a camera for this day. I suck at taking photos. I need a better camera to make up for my suck status.
Anyway, lots n lots of coral and clams and black longspined urchin everywhere. I love seeing the feather stars too. Personally, I enjoyed being in the water but I was pretty bored at these two sites.
Richard enjoyed the second dive more.
Gorgeous area though.

Since we were from the resort, they had a packed lunch for us which was a very, hearty club sandwich as well as fruit - more than we could eat!

When we got back, we chilled out at the activities center and I ended up booking another dive for the next day. Since Richard was going to do his manly spa treatments, the dives would be costing me a lot more since I had to pay a single supplement fee of 2,000,000 VND (according to the e-mail I got). Not sure how much it really was. I guess I'll find out! I would've loved to have gone out with Rainbow to the Electric Nose site but I didn't think that there was enough time to deal with arranging that. So I decided to go out with Vu again. Oh, and we HAD to go to a different dive site as well. :-D

And so we did! On the next day we hit South Bay and Coral Garden. I enjoyed these dives a lot more. And it's this day that I wished I had an awesome camera (and that if I did, that I was a decent shooter). But I didn't so most of this is from memory. It was a more leisurely dive since we didn't have to worry about my travel buddy floating away. And I got to maximize my air (The day before I'd barely go thru a 1/3 of my tank before having to come up).
Again the speedboat took us over and we tied up to a couple of other boats with new divers going for their open certs. The dives I did however were not hampered in any way by the classes or other divers on the boat which was really nice. Vu and I got to take our time.
So as we cruised along I kept looking for the tiny things as we swam along over the coral. I finally decided to stop and look around and that's when I realized we were surrounded by a mounds of hard and soft coral in a rainbow of colours. It was really gorgeous.

Saw a few nudies - not as much as day 1 - but also saw some giant clams - really nicely sized ones with scutes n all. Gorgeous variety of mantel colors as well.
The sea cucumber we spotted was pretty big as well and trucking along with its tentacles out in front. Never saw one moving/feeding like that before.
There were a few shrimp as well including a rainbow mantis that tucked itself away under some coral. Gorgeous, scary thing! Frog fish, lion fish. And again, more of that long spined black urchin everywhere.

All in all a much better day of diving for me. I'd love to check out that site once more if I ever got to come back. I hope Vu didn't think I was a pain in the butt!

 

[KevinG58]

So, it's subjective as hell, MMV etc, but do you think it worth the hassle? :blinking:

 

[Lorenzoid]

It does not sound like it was worth the hassle. When my wife and I were headed for Vietnam, we briefly considered doing some diving, but we decided it just wasn't worth it. Granted, we only had a couple of weeks in the country and had a lot of land-based things we wanted to cram in. If one is there for a month, or has been there before and done all the other amazing tourism there is to do, then I could see making this kind of effort to get some diving in.

 

[kumimonster]

So, it's subjective as hell, MMV etc, but do you think it worth the hassle?

Yes. I know it is subjective. But I did mention that it was my experience. ;-)

Was it worth it? hmm. Yes, I think if you're staying in Nha Trang it's worth it because all of the hassle I went through was primarily trying to get out of the six senses resort. If money is no object then sure, you can hire the private speedboat to shuttle you back n forth!

I think if I were to come back, I'd definitely do that 3-tank at Electric Nose. That was such an enjoyable set of dives. And again, most of the difficulty was because of the resort-to-mainland transfer although in the end it was sorted out so if you happen to come here and end up staying at the six senses resort, then you'll know what the best way to get to the mainland will be! If you're staying in town, everything will be so much easier!

From what I understand, some of these companies have been around for a long time but as far as this area being a "dive destination" - no. I didn't get that impression. It'd be nice if there were more challenging dives/dive-sites. Also shops need to sort out how to accommodate more levels of divers and respond accordingly ("yes, thank you, for the 4th time i don't want to take an open diver class").

Is it a great place to get your certs done? Sure. Hom Mun Island is nice and the water is really calm and pretty clear. And from the reviews I've read and the people I've met, everyone is really pleased and enthusiastic about being in the water (and the instructors really seem to enjoy teaching new divers the sport).
Personally, I prefer sending people to places like Monterey to learn because things are just a little harder in that cold, ocean water!

As Lorenzoid said, there are a great number of land-based things here to see too. (However I did most of my sight-seeing out of Mui Né). I'd definitely attempt to see them if I were to come back. As far as diving, I'd hire the private boat with Rainbow and bounce around the Electric Nose/Lighthouse dive sites again and maybe a Marine Park dive since that way you could say you did it.

Anyway, speaking of Monterey, I'm actually happy to be heading back home today and jumping into my chilly water - cuz it kind of feels like home sometimes.

 

[KevinG58]

Thanks for sharing your Viet Nam dive experiences and suggestions. I may put it on the list for my post-retirement 'expedition'.