Age Restrictions - Scuba Diving

[Nccruiser01]

My husband and I are newly certified divers and are interested in a Cocoa Cay/Nassau cruise on the Mariner this fall.  I thought I had read somewhere that RCCL had age restrictions (no one over 60?) for their dives.  I looked at the website and it doesn't state this for either of these ports.   We are aware that there are limitations for medical reasons, but has anyone ever been denied a dive based on age?

[Captain Billy Bob]

scuba and snorkeling forum

 

Try asking in the scuba and snorkeling forum. Lots of good info there.

[Katy_Tbird]

31 minutes ago, Nccruiser01 said:

My husband and I are newly certified divers and are interested in a Cocoa Cay/Nassau cruise on the Mariner this fall.  I thought I had read somewhere that RCCL had age restrictions (no one over 60?) for their dives.  I looked at the website and it doesn't state this for either of these ports.   We are aware that there are limitations for medical reasons, but has anyone ever been denied a dive based on age?

 

My dad was 75 when he and I went on a RCCL dive excursion on a Mariner cruise.

[Nccruiser01]

Thank you Captain and Katy!

[dpostman]

Just to add, as some future readers might be interested in the other end of the age range.  On Anthem, I did the Scuba Excursion in Cococay with my son and daughter who were at the time 17 and 12 respectively.

dp

[Zendeck]

9 hours ago, dpostman said:

Just to add, as some future readers might be interested in the other end of the age range.  On Anthem, I did the Scuba Excursion in Cococay with my son and daughter who were at the time 17 and 12 respectively.

dp

Yes we are on that end and have been doing snuba while we wait for our youngest to turn 12 next yr..... we can then learn and try scuba 😀

[Zendeck]

13 hours ago, Captain Billy Bob said:

scuba and snorkeling forum

 

Try asking in the scuba and snorkeling forum. Lots of good info there.

Thank you for the link!

[sailor05]

Book your scuba through a third-party directly anyway. Royal's prices for these are seriously jacked up.

[leisuretraveler223]

Of all the excursions to do through Royal, Scuba Diving tends to be the biggest ripoff of all.  Just book it on your own. If you're PADI or SSI certified, age isn't a concern. If Royal puts some arbitrary limit on it, it's just to assuage their lawyers.  Those lawyers are one of the reasons it's a ripoff.

[dpostman]

31 minutes ago, leisuretraveler223 said:

Of all the excursions to do through Royal, Scuba Diving tends to be the biggest ripoff of all.  Just book it on your own. If you're PADI or SSI certified, age isn't a concern. If Royal puts some arbitrary limit on it, it's just to assuage their lawyers.  Those lawyers are one of the reasons it's a ripoff.

 

I understand what you are saying, but for us on Cococay, there are no other third party suppliers, and I felt that $90 CAN ($67 US) was a fair price for all the supplied gear rental and the excursion. The only thing we brought with us was mask, snorkel and shorty wet suit.  I should add that the gear and tanks supplied by RCI were all in really good shape.  Also, the Cococay diving excursion is an easy shore dive to bring kids and teens (in fact, anyone) that don't have that many dives under their belts yet.  I admit it is not the diving experience you might get in Cozumel or Bonaire but the water was warm and clear, and we did see lots of sting rays. 

 

dp

Edited April 30, 2019 by dpostman

[leisuretraveler223]

2 hours ago, dpostman said:

 

I understand what you are saying, but for us on Cococay, there are no other third party suppliers, and I felt that $90 CAN ($67 US) was a fair price for all the supplied gear rental and the excursion. The only thing we brought with us was mask, snorkel and shorty wet suit.  I should add that the gear and tanks supplied by RCI were all in really good shape.  Also, the Cococay diving excursion is an easy shore dive to bring kids and teens (in fact, anyone) that don't have that many dives under their belts yet.  I admit it is not the diving experience you might get in Cozumel or Bonaire but the water was warm and clear, and we did see lots of sting rays. 

 

dp

 

Never dove at a private island.  That's a whole different story like you said, because there is no other option.  Elsewhere, Royal is just the middleman for diving outfits you can book with directly for a better price.

[mac66]

2 hours ago, dpostman said:

 

I understand what you are saying, but for us on Cococay, there are no other third party suppliers, and I felt that $90 CAN ($67 US) was a fair price for all the supplied gear rental and the excursion. The only thing we brought with us was mask, snorkel and shorty wet suit.  I should add that the gear and tanks supplied by RCI were all in really good shape.  Also, the Cococay diving excursion is an easy shore dive to bring kids and teens (in fact, anyone) that don't have that many dives under their belts yet.  I admit it is not the diving experience you might get in Cozumel or Bonaire but the water was warm and clear, and we did see lots of sting rays. 

 

dp

 

Keep an eye out, sometimes the prices go down. We booked scuba w/equipment on Coco Cay for $48 US. It was $54 when I first started looking. It is now back up to $68. You have to check everyday to catch it on sale.

Edited April 30, 2019 by mac66

[cruisinfly]

6 hours ago, leisuretraveler223 said:

Of all the excursions to do through Royal, Scuba Diving tends to be the biggest ripoff of all.  Just book it on your own. If you're PADI or SSI certified, age isn't a concern. If Royal puts some arbitrary limit on it, it's just to assuage their lawyers.  Those lawyers are one of the reasons it's a ripoff.

 

The two-tank boat dives with equipment that I purchased from the RCI cruise planner were very reasonable for Cozumel and Grand Cayman (both on sale) and cheaper (or as cheap) and what I've paid for 3rd party two-tank boat dives.  ($89 in Cozumel is the cheapest I've ever paid. $109 in Cayman is a good price.)

[leisuretraveler223]

4 minutes ago, cruisinfly said:

 

The two-tank boat dives with equipment that I purchased from the RCI cruise planner were very reasonable for Cozumel and Grand Cayman (both on sale) and cheaper (or as cheap) and what I've paid for 3rd party two-tank boat dives.  ($89 in Cozumel is the cheapest I've ever paid. $109 in Cayman is a good price.)

 

I'm really not sure what to tell you.  Royal contracts with local dive operators.  Everybody has to make money on it.  Cut out the middle man and you'll pretty much always get a better price.

[sailor05]

It's also not only about the price, but about the size of the groups and the BS you go through waiting on everyone to arrive at the meeting point in the morning. I just don't have the patience for that. I have found that booking separate also gets you out in area's that the excursions don't go. I can go to Cozumel 10 times and dive somewhere different every time. The excursions will go to the same places and will follow each others boats out to these places.

[cruisinfly]

I've done both private scuba tours and scuba tours purchased through the cruise lines.  There are pros and cons but I've found that if the price is similar, it's better for me to book through the cruise line for a few reasons:

 

--If the ship misses the port, no loss of funds, no cancellation fees

--If the ship is delayed or getting off the ship is delayed, the tour will wait (I've almost missed a private tour because of this)

--Priority in leaving the ship for the tour, especially if it's a tender port like Grand Cayman

--Opportunity to have any issues handled with the shore excursion desk

--No worries about missing the cruise ship if the scuba tour doesn't end on time.

--The tour operator is supposed to be "vetted" but this may not mean much because a PADI facility is also "vetted".

--My experiences with all scuba tours, private and through the cruise ships, have been very-good to excellent.

 

I recommend you compare prices but I'll agree that if you choose a private tour operator, you'll have more choice in what you get and where you get to go.

 

Enjoy!

[KansasK]

My husband is a diver and has come across age limits depending on the port. He could not dive in Aruba because the operator had a 65 year old age limit. Other ports do not have age limits,  except to be old enough. You have to look at the excursion to know. Mostly he is still able to dive. 

 

I don't think Royal is setting the age limit. 

[mac66]

Some dive excursions have weight limits. 

 

But if it doesn't mention an age limit in the booking info I wouldn't worry about it.