More Qestions About the Star Flyer "SCUBA"

First off, thank you Kathy for setting us straight on our cabin choice.:)

Other interest that has brought us to the Star Clipper Lines and the Star Flyer (besides a real sailing ship) was the availability of SCUBA Diving excursions. Can anyone fill us in on some of their experiences with the ship board SCUBA programs? Our long term plans include a trip to the Caribbean out of St Maartin as a test before we commit to flying half way around the world for the itinerary to Thailand

Just returned from Royal Clipper on the Windward Island itinerary. Was very impressed with the quality of the dive gear and ease of diving - walked down the stair to the marina platform (a ramp lowered from the stern) and onto the zodiac with our dive gear waiting. You can store your gear in their dive locker (frees up room in your shower!) or rent the entire kit from them.

The first day underway, a dive meeting was held in the forward lounge by Head-of-Sports Willy and Divemaster Megan. We had about 6 folks (including ourselves) show up, which we were told was on the low side. I believe they said they could accomodate up to 8 (limited by sets of gear - if you bring all of yours that's not a limiting factor). Also, not everyone will dive in every port, so that's another factor.

Dives were scheduled for every port, but are subject to weather. Only in St. Luica (high wind and waves) did the team cancel diving. You sign up for dives by putting your name on a dive sheet which is kept in the library. As long as you're on the list by the night prior (so they know how many tanks to prepare) you should be good to go (again, subject to weather and space). Note that the team will go diving if even 1 person signs up!

Dive sites are pretty much pre-set. You'll see all the planned dives at the first day's meeting. Most are in the 30'-70' range, with a couple being more advanced (up to 100' or nightdives). Depending on the amount of time inport, each stop will have between 1 and 3 dives planned. The quality of the dive sites varies greatly, and the team will be pretty upfront if you ask them which is best. We found Dominica to be spectacular (a surprise) but Isle de Saintes to be average (a disappointment after Dominica). Note: If you do the Dominica dive, ensure you accompany the local guide (some sites require one), rather than the ship's divemaster (our group split into 2, to allow the beginners to practice their skills). In 45 minutes the guide pointed out an amazing array of fish and coral that was fascinating.

Pricing: you'll pay 48 euros per person for each dive (yeah, a bit high given the exchange rate), plus another 10 euros per dive to rent equipment (anything from just a BCD to the whole enchilada - it's one price for renting). Also, if a dive is considered "advanced" (i.e. deep or night) and you do not have an advanced certification, that will add another 10 euros to the price. As with everything, you can put all the charges on your bill. Oh, yes, it may be obvious, but don't forget your dive cards (if you have them)! If you're not certified, you can take the "intro to scuba" course for an introductory dive. The team indicated that 1 week usually isn't enough to become certified (they do offer PADI certification, which usually takes 2 weeks, if you're doing back-to-back cruises), but given the small number of divers, I believe one fellow actually did all the work and dives to certify in 1 week.

All in all, the SCUBA excusions were a nice addition to the sailing experience, and we enjoyed both them and the dive team (don't forget to leave a tip in the "chocolate fund" box the last night when you turn-in dive gear - the dive team doesn't participate in the normal split of tips for ship's services).

Thanks for that wonderful review of the the Star Clipper"s SCUBA program, one can only hope the Star Flyer has the same program.:)

Hi thought the prevous discussion on diving was good and covered most of the key points so I won't go over those areas. Scuba diving is a good add on for your trip if you just want a couple of dives in warm water.

My wife, Kathy, wrote about our opinion on cabins. I am the diver in the family!

The Star Clipper is a wonderful sailing ship, However, it is not a large cruise ship. For example, the Royal Clipper had two dive masters aboard, a stern ramp which acted as a boat launching platform and much more room to wash off gear etc, (I did the Transatlantic crossing from Rome in Oct. 2005 and spent two weeks doing the Grenadines and Windward islands 11/05-11/20/05) and they could provide certification courses this year. They offered one night dive which was great, we saw the largest lobster any diver had ever seen!

In contrast, I sailed on the Star Clipper for two weeks (12/04) and did the Leeward and treasure islands. We had one dive master, and no night dives were offered. On both cruises I did most of the dives offered including all the deep and wreck dives. Both ships tried to offer beginning and more advanced dives. Most experienced divers did not do the dives which were for beginning divers, don't worry there is so much to do that it won't matter if you miss a dive!

I brought my own gear, including a camera when I dove, both ships will store your gear. I have about a hundred dives in both warm and cool water (Northern CA).

We don't get sea sick but if you do the best cabins in my opinion are close to midships and lower in the ship!

Check out http://www.starclippers.com to take a virtual tour of the various cabins! You'll have a great time.

If you want to see our pictures of the the Royal Clipper/Star Clipper go to our web sites

http://homepage.mac.com/michaelreed1/PhotoAlbum8.html

http://homepage.mac.com/michaelreed1/PhotoAlbum9.html

http://web.mac.com/kathywer1/iWeb/Site/Home%20Page.html

we hope this helps. We hope to have photos from sailing on the Star Flyer next year. the Indian Ocean crossing seems like a dream trip.

Happy Sailing

Michael

This is a great thread, and I am wondering if anyone has any updated information about the availability of diving from the Star Flyer? We are thinking of going on her in January for the Costa Rica/Nicaragua trip and would like to be able to dive if possible.

We are certified as advanced divers, but are also quite happy just being under water in a nice location!

This is a great thread, and I am wondering if anyone has any updated information about the availability of diving from the Star Flyer? We are thinking of going on her in January for the Costa Rica/Nicaragua trip and would like to be able to dive if possible.

 

We are certified as advanced divers, but are also quite happy just being under water in a nice location!

Thought I would update this with the latest (June, 2013) which I heard from Star Clippers.

They said that diving would be dependant on whether or not a divemaster was on board, and at least for our planned jouney (Costa Rica in January, 2013) they could not guarantee that a divemaster would be on board.

They did say that the cruise director would try to help out with arranging diving, if a divemaster was not on board, but again they could not guarantee that diving would be possible.