drrich2
Contributor
For dive destinations and dive op.s, I hit Scuba Board the most. I also use Undercurrent.org, which requires a subscription. Some online Googling may turn up some other reviews.
If it's a live-aboard I'm looking at, Liveaboard.com and other dive travel agency sites and the individual vendor pages give me info.; individual live-aboard vendors like Aggressor Fleet and Explorer Ventures often have FAQ pages that are quite useful in researching logistics getting there, what I'll need and what special requirements may be in play.
Wikipedia is a start for getting an overview of the region, such as a Caribbean island.
If I want to watch videos of the diving, dive op. or the topside scene, YouTube serves a lot up for free.
Google Earth or Google Maps (street view) can let me get a feel for distances between points of interest, and the street view may let me virtually 'look around' the neighborhood a bit, so on arrival some things look slightly familiar.
Once you've got it together, read a number of trip reports on Scuba Board discussing your destination and dive op., take notes, compile the useful points from all that into a 'report' format, and whatever questions you've got left, start a thread on Scuba Board asking specific questions to learn more, and confirm your understanding of some of what you've learned from other resources.
Start way in advance so you've got time to review your sources. Once you pick an op. and book, your contact person may have useful info. - like food delivery options.
I may note more popular dive sites, but unless it's a shore-diving site, I'm likely to be headed whether the boat captain decides to go that day, so while a wish list is fine, I try not to get too invested in it.
If it's a live-aboard I'm looking at, Liveaboard.com and other dive travel agency sites and the individual vendor pages give me info.; individual live-aboard vendors like Aggressor Fleet and Explorer Ventures often have FAQ pages that are quite useful in researching logistics getting there, what I'll need and what special requirements may be in play.
Wikipedia is a start for getting an overview of the region, such as a Caribbean island.
If I want to watch videos of the diving, dive op. or the topside scene, YouTube serves a lot up for free.
Google Earth or Google Maps (street view) can let me get a feel for distances between points of interest, and the street view may let me virtually 'look around' the neighborhood a bit, so on arrival some things look slightly familiar.
Once you've got it together, read a number of trip reports on Scuba Board discussing your destination and dive op., take notes, compile the useful points from all that into a 'report' format, and whatever questions you've got left, start a thread on Scuba Board asking specific questions to learn more, and confirm your understanding of some of what you've learned from other resources.
Start way in advance so you've got time to review your sources. Once you pick an op. and book, your contact person may have useful info. - like food delivery options.
I may note more popular dive sites, but unless it's a shore-diving site, I'm likely to be headed whether the boat captain decides to go that day, so while a wish list is fine, I try not to get too invested in it.