Whats the difference btwn Snuba and Helmet Dive?

[MsKatee]

We will be in St. Thomas soon and am wondering what is the difference between Snuba and the Deep Blue Helmet dive? has anyone done any of these.

 

thanks for your help

[zqvol]

In a helemt dive, as I understand it you are in a hard helmet with an air pocket around your head. Snuba is just like scuba diving excpeth that instead of having a tank on your back you have a hose leading to your air source that stays on the surface. Thus you are limited in how deep you can go and how far away you can get from the other people using your air source.

 

If you like to snorkel and want to try something like scuba I suggest Snuba.

[MsKatee]

zqvol

 

I'm still confused. It sounds to me that they are basically the same thing? Both connected to an air source, both with something over your head, both limited in how far you can go? Am I really confused or not that far away from it?

haha....thanks for replying...

mskatee

[Jerkins]

Helmit Diving basically looks like an astronauts helmit that weighs about 40lbs so it keeps you on the bottom. It has a hose just like snuba that comes from the surface. The main difference is that in helmit diving you can talk and you walk along the bottom. they compare it to walking on the moon. In Snuba you use snorkel equpment and you swim along under water with a regulator in your mouth so you can breath. It is basically the exact same thing as scuba diving except that your tank is on the surface above your and you have a 30' hose coming down to your regulator. hope this helps.

[zydecocruiser]

You can also wear glasses with helmet diving, I believe. Also don't think your hair gets wet. Examples:

 

 

 

 

 

[Marcys]

I'm trying to decide between these two excursions. Can you really talk to each other with the helmet on?

[bruce-r]

With snuba, you have nothing over your head, unlike a helmet "dive". The title helmet "dive" is also misleading, IMO. Participants don't swim freely in the water like they do for snuba, scuba, or snorkeling. They have to walk on the bottom and because of this they see mostly only fish and very little if any coral or sponge. As for talking to others underwater, it might be possible if you talk very loudly.

[MsKatee]

thanks, the pictures are worth a thousand words as they say!

 

:) mskatee

 

You can also wear glasses with helmet diving, I believe. Also don't think your hair gets wet. Examples:

 

 

 

 

 

[MsKatee]

bruce-r

 

that sounds like a gyp...only little fish an no coral...well, my husband and one other are signed up for it and they will probably enjoy it, i hope. we went down in the Atlantis submarine in Belize and it was magnificent! I am going inthe Atlantis in St. Thomas, I wonder how that will be?

:) mskatee

 

With snuba, you have nothing over your head, unlike a helmet "dive". The title helmet "dive" is also misleading, IMO. Participants don't swim freely in the water like they do for snuba, scuba, or snorkeling. They have to walk on the bottom and because of this they see mostly only fish and very little if any coral or sponge. As for talking to others underwater, it might be possible if you talk very loudly.

[Marcys]

Here's part of an e-mail I got from Coral World this morning:

 

In order to keep your head dry we have to put the helmet on before you

enter the water.

Some of the other Sea Trek operations around the world have communication

systems, we do not. We can't get the silly thing to work without a ton of

interference so right now it just sounds like you're in a hair dryer at

the salon :)

We do take your picture underwater and it is an optional purchase of $10

if you'd like to keep the photo. You can also take an underwater camera

of your own if you'd like. The Sea Trek helmet dive excursion takes one

hour with approximately 30 minutes of that time underwater.

[bruce-r]

bruce-r

 

that sounds like a gyp...only little fish an no coral...well, my husband and one other are signed up for it and they will probably enjoy it, i hope.

Well, I'm not totally sure you won't see at least some coral, but you won't be walking on it. That would kill the coral in short order. You will be walking on either a sand bottom or a metal deck underwater. I would expect to see more than just a few fish. The operators might even feed the fish which would attract a lot of them. The reason I would choose snuba over the helmet walk is there is more freedom of movement with snuba and you can swim above the coral and easily look down and see what is there.

 

If you have some sort of limitation that would prevent you from doing a snuba trip but still allow you to do the helmet dive, them by all means go and enjoy. I'd take one of the those disposable underwater cameras because even though the say "good to 15 feet" or so, I've known people to take them much deeper and still had them work.

 

Yes, you can wear eyeglasses on the helmet walk, and no you can't wear glasses under a dive mask.

[Marcys]

In an email I got from Coral World, I chose the 11:30 helmet dive and they told me they fed the fish then so we should see lots of fish.

[wwakla]

bruce-r

 

that sounds like a gyp...only little fish an no coral...well, my husband and one other are signed up for it and they will probably enjoy it, i hope. we went down in the Atlantis submarine in Belize and it was magnificent! I am going inthe Atlantis in St. Thomas, I wonder how that will be?

:) mskatee

 

 

Please come back and post when you return. My husband wants to do this. Are you going through Carnival or did you book on your own?

Oops just noticed you are traveling RC. Has anyone done this through Carnival or booked on their own? Helmet dive that is.

Thanks

[BeachMusic]

Just back from NCL Dawn, where friends tried to book on the spot at Coral World. There were no openings left for that day (Easter Week) but friend said there was a very big difference in price between shore excursion price and direct price. I would suggest you get the price from your ship, then hit Coral World's website and compare prices. (Add about $8.00) taxi fare p/p to that price and see which one works better for you. You can prebook direct with Coral World.

[Woch2331]

Go with viSnuba (www.visnuba.com), a class act and very much worth it. Frank was great with my wife and had her completely at ease. They were the reason I wanted to do the Eastern Caribbean again, but she 'out-voted' me and we're doing the Western this year. Guess I'll have to snuba when we stop in Grand Cayman. Check out my pics in the second link below...

[wwakla]

Woch2331 thanks so much for your help and I loved your photos. Thanks for sharing.