What is the Number 1# Scuba destination?

[Debbraey]

:doctor: I HEAR and READ that Belize is the #1 scuba and snorkeling....But then I know that first hand come mid August..We plan on diving the Blue Hole there in Belize...For dive information check www.divebelize.com...
I personally enjoy a day at Venice Beach, Florida from shore....

Have a wonderful time where ever you dive
:scuba:

 

[crazed_dolphin]

I see a lot of people stating the sites in Florida as number one.....maybe for North American divers. For Asian divers Palau seems like the dream diving destination but is it #1? I can't say it's number one but however I can say it's in the top 10.

 

[crazed_dolphin]

My favorite diving spot so far is the east coast of peninsular Malaysia (Redang and Lang Tengah). THe diving was great and everything was so cheap. I paid less than $100 for 3 night lodging with 4 buffet meals a day. Every other night there was a BBQ. Rooms had AC and private bathrooms. No hot water but I didn't miss that in the tropics. They even have a package that includes 4 boat dive and transfer to/from the island to the mainland for $155.

 

[shiro85]

Scuba Chip once bubbled...
As soon as You see any dive destination become #1 in any poll watch for the diving quality to deteriorate significantly over the next couple of years. Think about it.... A #1 rating means CROWDS.

This is a good point.

If you look at stuff like Rodale's from a few years ago, you'll find that they used to report their "Reader's Choice" Top 3 destinations as Cozumel, Cayman and Bonaire, year after year after year.

Why? Because the vote was really just reporting what destinations their customer base (USA) most frequently went to.

And, as Caymaniac points out, the #1 restaurant is McDonald's.

If attendence is how you want to measure what's the #1 destination for USA divers, then the short list is Cozumel, Cayman or Bonaire, although I'd personally add Florida, too.


Now if you don't want to measure #1 by popularity, how do you want to measure it?

 

[Shanghai Manta]

Everyone knows this one will run & run
OK my 2 pennies worth !

It is as shiro 85 mentioned, American centric surveys will highlight dive sites easily accessible to the USA but you guys have other World class sites on your doorsteps tease) - Galapagos, Cocos Islands et al. !

As I live in Asia then I know crazed dolphin has a point (but not East coast Malaysia - sorry) !
Borneo (or Kalimantan if you are Indonesian) has world famous diving (Sipadan, Mabul, Layang Layang, Sangalaki) but not the very top notch, Indonesia waters (as the birth place of life on earth ?) are supposedly spectacular (e.g. one well known common dive site, Menjagan in Bali, has more coral variety than the whole of the Caribbean) and many other sites in Indonesia have unknown / unidentified / unnamed species found on many dives (fancy a shrimp named after your present g'friend / wife) ?

Similans ? Better go further North to The Burma Banks another world class and largely unexplored aquatic paradise.
Everyone in Asia & Europe talk about Palau, PNG, Fiji, French Polynesia, Marshall Islands and even more sites in the Pacific than there are McD's in NY !

Caymens, Hawaii, Bermuda ? Maybe, I've never been there but American freinds tell me they're great ! Whatever, there are more great sites out there than we will ever get to dive - now if I could just find the cash .....



Shanghai Manta
I said swim horizontal - not vertical !

 

[shiro85]

Shanghai Manta once bubbled...
Everyone knows this one will run & run
OK my 2 pennies worth !

It is as shiro 85 mentioned, American centric surveys will highlight dive sites easily accessible to the USA but you guys have other World class sites on your doorsteps tease) - Galapagos, Cocos Islands et al. !

True, but only the minority of US divers are ever going to go to a place like that because these trips are "too costly" for the fair weather (WWW) diver in too many ways: costs more money, costs extra vacation time, physically costly (coldwater), etc. They're also "diving only" trips in that you're usually on a liveaboard far away from non-diving interests such as bar hopping nightclubs. As such, its never going to make the 'Popularity List'.

Borneo...

Or a million other places in the Pacific...agreed.

Caymens, Hawaii, Bermuda ? Maybe, I've never been there but American freinds tell me they're great !

Personally, I wouldn't call any of these places "world's best", but from a transportation standpoint, they all are relatively convenient and inexpensive to get to, which makes it an easy trip to someplace decent.

Popularlity is a net combination of quality and convenience.

FWIW, Bermuda's not high on the 'Pop' list because even though its hours closer to the NYC & DC markets, its airfare is more expensive than Cayman, the land portion isn't cheap either, and the reefs are downright drab. Most divers are better off riding an extra hour in the airplane and go to the Bahamas and save a grand or two.

 

[crazed_dolphin]

Shanghai Manta....well, I liked east coast of Malaysia because it was very easy to get to and everything else was cheap. If I had the cash I'd rather go to Sipadan, Layang Layang, Bali, Palau, the Burma banks, Truk and Maldives. However I did like Lang Tengah because it was not crowded. I was the only diver for my 4 night stay and whenever I dived it wqas just with my dive master. Although Rodale's and Sport divers are nice magazines they're sometimes too American-centric. As for Asian Dive magazines is there a better one than Asian Diver? Japan does have a lot of dive magazines if you read Japanese. As for Cocos I don't think it's anyone's doorstep. It takes days to get there from the U.S. First you fly to Costa Rica. Followed by a dive to the port. Then finally a 30 to 36 hr trip on a boat to the Cocos. Good reason for the place not to be crowded. Unfortunately the remote location hasn't stopped poachers.

 

[Shanghai Manta]

CD,

If I had the cash I'd rather go to

Understood, but we were talking about the BEST dive sites in the world not the most convenient or cheapest

Asian Diver : great magazine - one of the best anywhere, however I fail to understand the pricing policy (which is why I no longer subscribe) when I have to pay twice as much living in Shanghai as divers in HK (and no it's not postal costs). I can buy the occasional edition in airports for almost the same price as in Singapore !

Cocos : good description of how to get there - however you missed my "tease" ! And for divers from Asia even that trip would seem like being on their doorstep !

Only the Costa Rican Govt. can stop the poaching and they don't want to tangle with the powerful fishing unions ! Shame.

BTW - as you are in Singapore there are some great deals from Garuda to Bali at the moment, and as you probably know decent accomodation USD10 per night, food is incredibly cheap and diving around USD 20 - 25 per dive for a package (I've just booked) !

Kevin

 

[crazed_dolphin]

Antarctica or Lake Baikal in Siberia anyone? I'd first need to take a dry suit course.

 

[mrkz1974]

Hey there:

Just joijned the forum and wanted to dip into this interesting conversation;

Best I've ever been is Belize, for tropical clarity and diversity, Coco's Island for ACTION (HAMMERHEADS!!), and the awesome Cenotes caves (that's near Playa del Carmen, Mexico) for fresh water clarity and vista (350 ft vis!).

I'm planning on going to the galapagos, anybody been there?

Marcos