Where to live in Sydney?

[apadua]

Hi Guys,

This is just a little bit off-topic.

I have the next 10 weeks in Sydney and need to find a place to live. I was about to rent a place in Darlinghurst (i like the restaurant/coffee shop/etc scene) but it occured to me that I have no idea where people go diving and where the boats leave from. And I figured, since I don't have a car, that hauling 20kg of gear around at 6am in mass transit would not be very easy (or would it?).

So there you have it - does it matter where I live? Would my life be muuuuch easier if I lived closer to either a dive-shop that would help me get to the site or close to the harbour where the boats leave from?

Thanks so much,

Andre

 

[bowlofpetunias]

I would suggest LaPeruse as a good "home base" Sydney Dive Achademy is close.. Bare Island has quite a large number of dive sites. The layout of the sites mean that there is a better chance of getting in somewhere in most conditions.

Public transit buses come right close too. There are a couple cafes that are nice.

 

[thanksforallthefish]

Sydney Dive Shops
Frog Dive
Sydney Dive Academy
Abyss
Dive 2000
St George Underwater
Plunge
Aquatic Explorers
Shiprock Dive
Dive Centre Manly
Dive Centre Bondi
Sub Aquatics


Dive Boats
Sea Tamer - Dolans Bay (South Sydney)
SeaTamer Dive Charter Frequently Asked Questions

Yves Scubaroos - (various pick up, but i think mainly Rose Bay Eastern Suburbs)
Scubaroos

Pro Dive - Pick up at Manly (Northern Suburbs) or Rose Bay (Eastern Suburbs)
Scuba Dive in Sydney - Manly - Boat Dives - Sydney Double Boat Dive with PRO DIVE

Frog Dive (pick up at Balmoral normally - Northern Suburbs) - only schedule dives on weekends
Boat Dives in Sydney - Frog Dive Scuba Centres

Aquatic Explorers (Tonkin St wharf Gunamatta Bay - Southern Suburbs)
www.aquaticexplorers.com.au | Scuba Diving Sydney |
www.voyagercharters.com.au | Australia's Premier Dive Charter Service


A Very good Reference Site for SYdney Diving
Michael McFadyen's Scuba Diving Web Site



NORTH OF THE HARBOUR

Harbord - have not dived this yet
-33.781671, 151.294515

Shelly Beach (Manly)
-33.80073, 151.29746

Fairlight
-33.799597, 151.273680

Balmoral Nets (Balmoral Beach)
-33.82786, 151.25308

Clifton Gardens (Chowder Bay)
-33.838943, 151.251807



SOUTH OF THE HARBOUR

Camp Cove (Watsons Bay)
-33.83912, 151.27978

Clovelly Pool (Clovelly only diveable after 6pm in summer)
-33.91510, 151.26765

Gordons Bay (clovelly)
-33.91554, 151.26489

Bare Island (La Perouse)
-33.989848, 151.231870

Kurnell
-34.001449, 151.222835

Oak Park (Cronulla)
-34.070465, 151.157198

Shiprock (Dolans Bay - Slack water dive only!!!!!!!!!)
-34.068697, 151.129249



============================================================

Swansea Bridge (Swansea - Slack water ONLY - abt 1.5hrs north of sydney)
-33.08637, 151.63899

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These dives are at Nelson Bay - Abt 2.5 hrs north of Sydney
Halifax Park
-32.711350, 152.159211


Fly Point
-32.714769, 152.151537

============================================================

These dives are at Shellharbour ~ 1.5 hrs south of sydney

Bass Point - The Gutter
-34.59295, 150.89891


Bass Point - Bushrangers Bay
-34.59590, 150.89965

============================================================
Bass Point - Gravel Loader
-34.59289, 150.88408

 

[pasc]

Hi,

I think your list might be a little out of date now. The last few years haven't been too good for the Sydney dive boats. :depressed:

Dive Boats
Sea Tamer - Dolans Bay (South Sydney)
SeaTamer Dive Charter Frequently Asked Questions

I don't believe Sea Tamer still runs (at least with any regularity).

Aquatic Explorers (Tonkin St wharf Gunamatta Bay - Southern Suburbs)
www.aquaticexplorers.com.au | Scuba Diving Sydney |
www.voyagercharters.com.au | Australia's Premier Dive Charter Service

I'm not so sure about them, but there was a rumour going around for a while they weren't running either, or at least not very regularly.

 

[apadua]

This is an awesome list! Thanks so much. I'm punching these into Google Maps to see where each is located. I ended up getting a place close to CBD, so what I'll be doing is researching how to get to these places using mass transit.

Thanks again!


Andre

 

[thanksforallthefish]

Hi,

I think your list might be a little out of date now. The last few years haven't been too good for the Sydney dive boats. :depressed:



I don't believe Sea Tamer still runs (at least with any regularity).



I'm not so sure about them, but there was a rumour going around for a while they weren't running either, or at least not very regularly.

Thanks we very rarely do any boat diving in sydney, the last was at least 3-4 years ago.

 

[bowlofpetunias]

For your information since you are near the CBD and may have some spare time. The Australian National Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour is free entry. You only have to pay if you want to tour the ships. You can go through the Museum for nothing and there are some fascinating displays there.. I do some volunteer work there when I can fit it in so I am a bit biased

 

[bracko]

I'd call prodive and see if they're able to help you out? they cater to a lot more tourists than other shops and they're only a ferry ride away from the city!

 

[pasc]

Hi,

I didn't really have time to give a useful reply before, but here's an attempt...

Sydney does not really have a vibrant boat dive community. As pointed out by thanksforallthefish, it's entirely possible to be an active diver in Sydney and rarely if ever go on a boat dive.

Assuming you're a recreational diver, and you're keen on boat diving, and are in the Sydney-CBD area, you've only really got two main options: Scubaroo & Pro Dive.

Scubaroos will normally have a charter at 10AM on Saturdays and Sundays, usually for a double dive, but he has no diving equipment on board, so you have to bring everything yourself including weights and two tanks. Scubaroos does not provide a divemaster to guide you under water although you'll get a location brief if you don't know the area. The skipper will tell you that he is just a dive site taxi driver.

Pro Dive on the other hand will have a charter at around 8AM and a second one around 1PM. They have all gear on board and can rent out anything you need including full tanks. They will also have divemasters in the water if you want to be shown some stuff in the water, and you want to go with them. If you prefer diving with your buddy only, they're also quite happy to let you do that.

Both of those operators are very experienced and people I would trust. While I personally mainly use scubaroos, and will only go on pro dive when I have friends who need to rent gear, I would still recommend Pro Dive to someone in your situation.

There's another boat in Sydney harbour used by some of the dive shops called the Hoochie Mama. Charters on that are normally offered through dive shops, rather than directly with that operator. He has no gear available on board but as charters are often done through shops, something can probably be arranged.

There's three other dive boats I'm aware of in Sydney, and which I have have never used: the Frog Dive boat (leaves from the Northern Beaches which can be quite far from the city); Southern Cross which caters mainly to rebreather divers; and a new boat that runs from near Palm Beach called scuba munkies (this is even further north than Frog Dive, and on the Northern Beaches too).

A lot of the dive shops will also have a group that will go most weekends. This normally involves meeting at the shop and then car-pooling to a diving location. I'm unable to provide advice here as I've rarely gone on such trips. Different shops cater to different crowds. Some do more for the local divers who stay around with the club for ages, while others cater more to the tourist or back packer crowd. It really depends on what you're looking for and there's quite a few dive shops in Sydney...

I'd say that a vast majority of experienced divers simply go out with some friends to a shore diving location, only going to dive shops to get some tank fills. It what's I usually do, and it looks like it's what a lot of the other Sydney divers on this board do as well.

Hope that helps!

Pasc

 

[bracko]

the Frogdive boat generally leaves from Balmoral sundays and Longreef saturdays.

they are [a lot] cheaper than prodive, but lack the convienence of having a large boat with rental gear on board. they can arrange car pooling, but this is generally not done through the store, it's a ask around and hope someone agrees basis.

my suggestion, get a car if you want to be doing a lot of diving in sydney.