Diving in Bermuda

I'm going to go to Bermuda on the Norwegian Escape this august. I have never been and I was wondering something. Should I use the cruise ship dive operator or should I just book on my own. I saw Fantasea diving is right there on the dock and was wondering what you guys have done in Bermuda? What dive operators would you recommend for a first timer to Bermuda. I did see that Fantasea divers got a lot of good reviews on TripAdvisor, any info would be helpful.

Never been there and am looking forward to going and diving in Bermuda

I'm going to go to Bermuda on the Norwegian Escape this august. I have never been and I was wondering something. Should I use the cruise ship dive operator or should I just book on my own. I saw Fantasea diving is right there on the dock and was wondering what you guys have done in Bermuda? What dive operators would you recommend for a first timer to Bermuda. I did see that Fantasea divers got a lot of good reviews on TripAdvisor, any info would be helpful.

Never been there and am looking forward to going and diving in Bermuda

First, Fantasea IS the cruises ship's contractor.

I was there last September, and it was kind of interesting.

The diving is good. Since Bermuda is surrounded by shallow reefs, there are shipwrecks to dive all around.

I generally avoid booking dives through the ship, and avoid the dive operators that contract with the cruise line. Therefore I did everything I could to pre-book dives with Blue Water Divers, which is the next closest dive center to the port.

Well, Blue Water cancelled the first two of the three days we were there. Both Days Fantasea Diving went out, and conditions were certainly tolerable. The first day I decided not to dive, the second I dove with Fantasea, since they were the only operator going. (www.fantasea.bm).

It was a good-sized group on the boat, since they had the cruise ship divers from the Norwegian Ship (I was on Celebrity). However, the sites lend themselves to this type of dive, and their boat is well designed. Depths are about 40 feet, and visibility was quite good. The down side if you're a more experienced diver is they simply do 40 minute dives, so you'll come up with a lot of air. Again, this is common enough with a cruise ship's excursion. Their price for a two-tank dive is $169.00, but that includes gear rental. I had my own, so they discounted it to $131.75. Again this was as a walk-up. The Celebrity ship did not have an organized excursion with them that day, so they charged me their price. They were clear that, had the ship I was on had an excursion that day I would have had to go through the ship.

The next day, I finally dove with Blue Water Divers. I was hopeful to get a better experience. Alas, we were moored next to the boat from Fantasea at both of our dive sites, and Blue Water also dove by time, not by air consumption. In other words exactly the same. Their price for a two-tank dive Was $160.00, and that also was with my own gear. If you take the bus there it's only a few dollars, but a hassle. Taking a taxi is about $25.00 each way.

So, if I were headed back to Bermuda, I'd pre-book with Fantasea, thus avoiding the issue about being forced into using the ship's excursion. Also, as much as I like to dive, I think one day of diving there is sufficient. The fact that Fantasea is right at the ship is a huge plus, and my experience was that you gain nothing by going with the other operators.

I suspect to dive Bermuda properly you'd want to take a land trip there, and arrange to dive with a shop that's geared toward a more serious approach.

Harris

Denver, CO

I did Bermuda on the Celebrity Summit (Never again!). Loved Bermuda, and would happily go back using NCL. I booked a 2 tank day dive and a night shore dive with the ship, who contracts with Fantasea. The day dive was very enjoyable. I'm pretty sure we did a wreck and a reef. The night dive was cancelled via the ship, but I was able to book it directly with the company and go anyway. You can check out my TripAdvisor reviews if you'd like more info. I think my username is this same.

I'm going to go to Bermuda on the Norwegian Escape this august. I have never been and I was wondering something. Should I use the cruise ship dive operator or should I just book on my own. I saw Fantasea diving is right there on the dock and was wondering what you guys have done in Bermuda? What dive operators would you recommend for a first timer to Bermuda. I did see that Fantasea divers got a lot of good reviews on TripAdvisor, any info would be helpful.

Never been there and am looking forward to going and diving in Bermuda

Hi 092306,

We're going to Bermuda on the Escape next weekend. How was your diving experience? Did it work out with Fantasea? We have two advanced divers in the family and one who has not been certified yet. Also considering just snorkeling from the beach or renting a boat. Any pointers would be appreciated. Thank you!

Magda