Diving in Hawaii

[lbrooks34]

Originally Posted by gvre

When we dove with Jacks it was 2 years ago. We spent the whole week diving with them every day with our own equipment. We dove with the advanced diver group. Like I said they were good, but if you are in a hurry to get to a cruise ship you may have to push them and may consider another operator.
The point is if you can do the night manta ray dive it is one of our top 10 dives!!
Richard

I think it was a bad day at Jack's. We had newbies on the boat (as in first ocean dive ever), and the dive sites that were selected are considered very advanced. We did Pyramid Pinnacle, a dive with current, surge, and lava tubes with blow holes. A shallow dive if you want to explore the cave. Viz was just ok that day (of course, bad Hawaii viz is good Caribbean viz in my opinion). Others who have dived with the op said that it is better to go with the advanced group. That was not an option with the cruise. I also think things would have gone smoother if all the divers had had their own gear. But, still, the customer service just was not there. Oh well, I second the vote of comparing all other dives to Maui. We absolutely loved Ed Robinson. One of the best dive ops we have ever gone with. Very organized. I also like how they divided the groups into experienced divers and inexperienced divers. That worked out very well.

[jimw]

Gini B

I'm not sure if the phone is the same, but I would bet it is--as Tom is still handling that part of the business.

[madisonswims]

Of all the islands, the diving in Kona was the best. The best part about it was the variety of fish and the turtles!!! Loved it!!!

[foneguy]

dove with lahinia divers maui...great experience..infact that was an intro to scuba...been hooked ever since

[Hilary]

We dive with Ed Robinson's when we're on Maui (at least annually). Their boats go out of Kihei and take a max of 12 divers, unless you're on the 3-tank Adventure charter, which takes a max of 10 divers. My husband is a photographer and we find that the DM's not only find all the cool critters to photograph, but they also make sure that they have plenty of time to take the pictures they want.

We don't choose Mike Severns because their dive briefing is more like a marine biology lesson and very extensive. Some folks love that level of education, but as regular Maui divers, we find the Ed Robinson's briefings and critter talks to be perfect.

If you're interested in shore diving on Maui to save some money, try Shaka Doug or Maui Dreams. Both are excellent and the shore diving on Maui is very good.

Make sure you keep in mind that the charters go out VERY early and you'd need to be at the Kihei boat ramp by 6:00-6:30am (depending on the operator). So if you're looking to sleep a little more, check into shore diving for sure.

[robstrash]

Hilary is right above about Maui. We also use Ed Robinson, but you won't be able to get down to Kihei that early.

A great site for shore diving is http://www.shorediving.com/ The diving at Sheraton Black Rock is easy as they have a rental hut on the beach about 50 yards from the water for any equipment you need. We usually see turtles their too. Earlier is better and I think the hut opens at 8 AM.

[DM Doc]

there is a great dive locker on Oahu called Diving Concepts. I unfortunately don't have their phone # available. The Dive magazine Sports Diver usually has their website with other events/instruction. Great group of guys, Highly recommend to check it out.

DM Doc.

[DM Doc]

In reviewing my dive log, there are places I would surely return to. On the Island of Tahiti, there is a Sheridan Hotel in Papaetti we stayed at for several days. A DM is there on site. Had a dive between Papaetti and Morea that was fantastic. Easily 120' viz. In Raiatea, a dive shop called Hemisphere Sub; 689-66-12-49. Also on Bora Bora, The Bora Bora dive center; boradiving@mail.pf. All dives were wonderful, with plenty of sharks!

DM Doc

[Brownies52]

Which place would be best to dive from Kona or Maui. You have all mentioned your favorite dive op's, but is one location better than the other. Or does it not really matter. Will be cruising in May with an overnight in Maui and a 7am arrival in Kona. DH and son are the divers. Thanks

[bruce-r]

Originally Posted by Brownies52

Which place would be best to dive from Kona or Maui. You have all mentioned your favorite dive op's, but is one location better than the other. Or does it not really matter. Will be cruising in May with an overnight in Maui and a 7am arrival in Kona. DH and son are the divers. Thanks

Knowledgeable people that I trust tell me that Kona diving is better than Maui, not that Maui is bad, but Kona is better.

[larkwind]

My first thought was that Maui wins, hands down...but thinking about it some more makes it a toss up. Maui shore diving in early Dec. is fun (saw some super big turtles at Black Rock). Molikini and area is fine--shark nursery, lots of fish, garden eels at 70' were in murky water.

Kona (with Kona Honu in June) had a lot of variety in lava/formations and we did see some sharks ('glad I missed the one watching us as we swam by 6' away--DH was watching to make sure he stayed put ) and generally nice dives. Let us dive 'til 500psi even if others went up. Had to meet at the shop and then get ourselves to the marina; ship/shop/marina not far from each other, but not walkable--taxi could wait while you filled out forms.

But Lanai is as good as it gets--cave swim-throughs, beautiful canyons, eels, critters, fish, shells, and dolphins 10' away and all around the boat! If your overnight allows a Lanai cathedrals dive, take it. Maybe Ed Robinson's would pick up in Lahaina, if that's where the ships dock...that would save a 45min drive to Kihei by 6:30am.

Whatever you do--dive somewhere!

[Brownies52]

Thank you for your input. I really appreciate it.