Where to dive in NZ in january

[funscuba]

All in the title, is it a good time to dive in NZ in january, where is the best place and water temp ? I'll be arriving before xmas and visiting the country, sooo north, west where is best to see the max best action UW ?
Thanks.

Ps: how is Tasmania for visiting and especially diving, worth it or not ?

 

[MB NZ]

Depends what you like of course, but the obvious destination is the Poor Knights islands. About 3 hours north of Auckland by car. Water temperature will be 20 - 21 degrees C. January - March are the best months in terms of water temperature and fish life.

 

[funscuba]

I am DM certified so anything is good for me, especially the big animals, any good places for sharks ? Any dive center to recommend ? From early february won't be in NZ anymore.

 

[MB NZ]

Big animals are very hit and miss (mainly miss) unless you want to go to the opposite end of the country (Bluff) and go cage diving with great whites. Water is cold down there! There are a huge number of sharks in NZ, but you rarely see them on SCUBA. Go spearfishing and you'll see too many! That said, I see whales, dolphins and/or sharks on the surface about half the time I go out on the boat. You just don't see them when diving.

As for dive centres, Dive Tutukaka is the obvious choice. It's a big outfit by local standards, but they offer a good service to the tourists. They run an "advanced" boat in the summer months, so you should be diving with people of similar experience. They are based in Tutukaka which is closest harbour on the mainland to the Poor Knights islands.

 

[clownfishsydney]

I also would say Poor Knights and Dive Tutukaka when I used them were great. Some of the best diving I have done in the world.

 

[funscuba]

Thanks for the tips, but 21-23 degrees is cold brrr ....

 

[MB NZ]

Thanks for the tips, but 21-23 degrees is cold brrr ....

NZ is not a warm water destination. Catches out tourists, even more so in winter. Their anxiety picks up when I start putting on my drysuit

 

[funscuba]

Subsidiary question, can anyone tell me what's the best mobile operator in NZ with the best coverage overall in the whole coutry as I've read that once you get out from the big cities the signal in the phones for the internet is very bad. I've read that Sparks and Vodaphone are pretty good, is that correct or not ?

 

[JohnN]

Dive Tutukaka has drysuits for rent. When I dove Poor Knights, my fellow divers on the boat had comments about the "American" and his choice of dive gear. . . On the second dive, I was the envy of everyone on the boat

 

[MB NZ]

Subsidiary question, can anyone tell me what's the best mobile operator in NZ with the best coverage overall in the whole coutry as I've read that once you get out from the big cities the signal in the phones for the internet is very bad. I've read that Sparks and Vodaphone are pretty good, is that correct or not ?

Spark is probably the best bet, but Vodafone (now called One) are also good. I think we switched to Spark because coverage was better in the far north where we live (and the Poor Knights are located). I wouldn't pay too much attention to the coverage maps. They are pretty much ******** and you can quite easily find yourself without any signal not too far from major cities depending on local geography. Welcome to NZ!