Angiem Posted September 1, 2006 #1 Share Posted September 1, 2006 Any divers out there? My husband has asked me to find out what brand scuba equip is used for their excursions.....he has Scuba Pro and if he could he would like to just bring his regulator instead of hauling the whole bag. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Angie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MauiLvrs Posted September 1, 2006 #2 Share Posted September 1, 2006 We're probably going to dive enough on our next cruise that we decided to take most of our own gear except for weights and wet suit. When we did the Panama canal, we used rental gear because we only did one dive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrysalis Posted September 1, 2006 #3 Share Posted September 1, 2006 I don't think that Sun has any of its own equipment.....what you will use on excursions is the equipment owned and maintained by the tour operator...and the brand might be different with each excursion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacqueline Posted September 1, 2006 #4 Share Posted September 1, 2006 I dive on most my cruises- from the carribean to tahiti. The operator of the excursion is the source of rental equipment. Most peple do not bring their own gear because of the bulk involved. I bring my computer and mask/fins. The dive operators that Princess uses are well equipt or Princess wouldn't have a contract with them Sometimes, I have set up my own arrangements for diving in which case, you can contact the dive operator in advance to be sure that you are comfortable with the quality of their gear. I will say that I have seen few if any people bring their BCD. I love my regulator but do not want to risk traveling with it to do just a couple easy recreational dives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MauiLvrs Posted September 2, 2006 #5 Share Posted September 2, 2006 The dive operators that Princess uses are well equipt or Princess wouldn't have a contract with them. Every dive that we have booked through Princess has been a PADI ***** facility and we have been happy with the dives and the companies involved. While we would have been able to save $65/person in Cozumel because there was a dive operator giving 2 tank reef dives for $35, I doubt that we would have had as dive an experience and wonder if we would have even returned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Another ship trip Posted September 2, 2006 #6 Share Posted September 2, 2006 It is such a personal item that if you have room, bring the regulator. You're used to your own equipment and you know its history. Plus you will save on the rental. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MauiLvrs Posted September 2, 2006 #7 Share Posted September 2, 2006 It is such a personal item that if you have room, bring the regulator. You're used to your own equipment and you know its history. Plus you will save on the rental. That is where we started and decided that our BC would be nice to have too. The bare equipment will fit in a small rollaround and as we won't be taking weights doesn't weigh a lot. Most of the dive booked through Princess seem to indicate that they come with equipment, so there wouldn't be much cost savings. And the cost of booking through Princess isn't much more that what would be expected through any other 5 star dive shop. We are not going to take our wetsuits or weights this trip, but as we're planning on diving for 5 or 6 days though that we'd feel more comfortable with our own gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacqueline Posted September 2, 2006 #8 Share Posted September 2, 2006 I have never heard of anyone taking weights to a warm weather destination. Weights and tanks are always included in the price. The one thing I would bring, depending on the time of year you travel is your wetsuit. It can be hard to get a good fitting one from the dive operator. Of course some people never seem to get cold, so evaluate your own tolerance with the conditions that you will be diving in. Unless you have a minisuite, finding room to rinse and dry your equipment after each dive is a problem. Most dive operators have limited freshwater available and ask you to rinse on the ship where water is abundant. Getting your gear to dry is not easy. It will never dry on the balcony as the humidity is too great. It will take up a lot of room in the bathroom but it will dry in there. Of course you won't have a lot of space left. A bcd is pretty sturdy so no worries packing that.. But do carry-on your regulator - don't check it. Sure nothing may happen. Or it might have gotten bounced around. I don't even like to check my mask as it has worked perfectly for me for years and its not the sort of thing that I would want to have to replace on a cruise vacation. Definitely carry on your dive computer, as it is nice to have the dive logged and check out your profiles later. I have given up bringing my transmitter to monitor air consumption- I just use a gauge with air/depth. The regulators that you rent often do not have an extra hi-pressure port for that accessory. I can see where people either bring their whole rig or nothing. Everything in one's kit is so interconnected and customized that it can be hard to bring one piece without another. I will say the the Princess operators have good quality equipment for the dives that you will be doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacqueline Posted September 2, 2006 #9 Share Posted September 2, 2006 BTW I do agree that in most cases it is best to use the Princess operator, just because of the timing issues. Should you go out with another operator say in Grand Cayman, the traffic an be so horrific that you will cause yoruself a lot of stress. And then you have to tender back to the ship ! And the people who get the first tenders in the morning have Princess excursions, so you have to sit and wait and stress to get to the dive boat on time. Cozumel is just such a busy place that I again would agree, its just too much stress. Most of the people I have met on Princess excursions are pretty good darn divers with a lot of experience (exception is TP where there are some new brides learning to dive for their husbands.... as one put it to me,his last wife didn't dive). Yes, I have used other operators where Princess doesn't offer diving (ie St Kitts). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiseKing Posted September 2, 2006 #10 Share Posted September 2, 2006 Angie, I've been on several Princess cruises to dive. Although it may seem like a tough gear haul I would suggest bring your own full set of gear. Mask,Snorkel,Fins,Reg and BC. I'm not a cold person but for protection use a 1/2mm dive skin for the Caribbean. I would suggest a sturdy roller bag and check it through. I've done this on several cruises and been fine. I know there will be horror stories about lost gear as we have all had different experiences but so far so good. Remember nothing will ruin a dive quicker than ill fitting or ill maintained gear. Whatever you choose I wish you safe diving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Another ship trip Posted September 3, 2006 #11 Share Posted September 3, 2006 Husband certified in 1981 and has a few hundred dives. He has taken his equipment when he plans to dive 2 or more times. In 20+ cruises, there have only been about 2 where he didn't dive (one was Alaska!) and I will second what a previous poster said about rinsing bc's etc. It's a lot more time when you get back to the ship and your bathroom becomes a dive gear shop every port day! BTW, while hubby takes his gear most of the time, I only take my mask and snorkel, dive card, maybe my fins, and remain flexible about diving up until the day before. I always rent the rest. Most of the time it has been fine, but twice I have had a leaky regulator which kind of ruins that dive. The operator changes out the rig for the second dive of course, but by then, you've drunk a quart of ocean! If I don't dive I always have fun doing something else with my son while hubby has fun diving. I may not dive in November since hubby wants to dive with the sharks for the third time and that is NOT something I want to do! Also, be careful choosing your operator when diving in Roatan. While the diving sites are phenomenal, I have had a few "unsafe" dives there in different years with a local dive shop. For example, on one of our dives a local operator "lost" a diver while we were at Mary's Place and the diver was never recovered. (They were doing a search and recovery when our dive group arrived at the site.) That same day and with a different operator, I dove Mary's Place and our divemaster separated from the group and took off out of vision before part of group even got to the bottom. Stay with the boat tour in Roatan or else thoroughly check out the reputations of whom you choose to use ahead of time. Have fun!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiseKing Posted September 3, 2006 #12 Share Posted September 3, 2006 I have often gone up on deck and used the showers by the pool to rinse. I do a quick but thorough job being mindful of others wishing to use the showers. I will then sometimes find a railing or sunny spot near where I am sitting to dry it out. It's amazing how all of the sudden you find all of the other divers on the ship. It makes for some great story swapping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angiem Posted September 3, 2006 Author #13 Share Posted September 3, 2006 Thanks for all the replies. We have been on several cruises also and he always brings all his gear....which means another case to haul around. I just need to find out who the dive operators are that princess uses in the ports he wants to dive in and see if they use Scuba Pro. If so, he will only bring the regulator!!! Do u think Princess could supply me with that info? Angie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gvre Posted September 3, 2006 #14 Share Posted September 3, 2006 Having dove all over the world. We bring our own equipment. We use the Princess dive operators as a last resort. I have founded them to be,over priced, overcrowded boats, with lot's of inexperienced divers. Rather check with the snorkel and scuba board for good excursion operators to the area you are going. You will find lots of good recommendations. We hang our BC and wet suits from hangers on our balcony. Great place to let them dry after rinsing them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MauiLvrs Posted September 3, 2006 #15 Share Posted September 3, 2006 I have never heard of anyone taking weights to a warm weather destination. Weights and tanks are always included in the price. . For shore diving.... Haven't found anyone in Hawaii yet that provides free weights with tank rentals. If you know of one, let us know:D (we have thought about taking our soft weights this next trip because many boats don't use soft weights. I have often gone up on deck and used the showers by the pool to rinse. ... Now that is a great idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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