SCUBA on expedition ships

[FlaviaOfTheMonth]

Has anyone had first-person experience with the SCUBA on the expedition ships Pursuit or Venture? Seabourn's site mentions many SCUBA opportunities on these ships and also refers to an on-board divemaster, however I can only find a single review that mentions SCUBA at all, and that guest found that every SCUBA opportunity was cancelled and the staff appeared to be somewhat unaware that there even was a SCUBA program. There are no photos of guests diving on Seabourn's IG. I know these ships are pretty new, but is this(SCUBA) a real thing or not? And if so, how integrated is it with the ship? Can you dive right from a ship's zodiac? Is there a limit or headcount on how many can dive at each location?

 

We are basing our cruise choices largely on SCUBA opportunities on and off the ship. If SCUBA is not a real part of the deal with Seabourn we will look someplace cheaper.

Edited November 23, 2023 by FlaviaOfTheMonth

[markandjie]

I don't have first person experience but given no one else is engaging figured I would. We're also divers but I would advise against planning on a well run dive program on Seabourn. I'm sure they do dive on occasion, but it's not going to be anything like what you'd get on a dive liveaboard. I'd set your expectations such that you're taking a luxury cruise and if you get a few dives in that's a bonus.

 

Last year we took our dive gear on an eastern med cruise on Encore and arranged our own dives on various Greek islands. Was frustrating as we weren't always docked on time and thus a few times almost missed our dives. And on Santorini we didn't arrive early enough to join a group dive so had to arrange a private dive which was both expensive and not great. 

 

My takeaway was to not try to mix Seabourn and diving in the future. 

[FlaviaOfTheMonth]

Thank you. That sounds a little different from how they present the SCUBA program for the two expedition ships. I would not expect it to be like a dive liveaboard but would want to be able to have definite dive opportunities at multiple ports, barring bad weather. The lack of response here though seems to indicate the program has not really spun up yet.

 

We've had pretty good luck with diving on cruises. The choices are either booking third-party and fighting to get on shore early enough, or booking through the ship (when offered). We have done both and generally it works out fine. Windstar has been the best though, they offer the outings and the dive boats dock right at the ship. We would love another line that offers easy SCUBA access.

[markandjie]

Good to know re Windstar. I looked at Nat Geo for Galapagos and they don't do any diving. Once Pursuit gets out and does the South Pacific I think we'll have a better sense for it. 

[AMMG]

Flavia, 

Any further information on SCUBA reliability on the Pursuit?  I have the same question/goals/concerns after reading the one review that said most SCUBA and snorkeling outings were cancelled.  

[FlaviaOfTheMonth]

I could not find any good reports on the SCUBA experience. I won't book until I see some evidence that this concept is fully baked.

[frantic36]

Has either Venture or Pursuit actually sailed anywhere that SCUBA is warranted as yet? I'm curious as I haven't followed that closely but I would think the usual cold weather regions and the Med wouldn't warrant it. Did they do Caribbean? 

[markandjie]

They briefly passed thru the Caribbean on the way to Antarctica. The South Pacific this spring for pursuit I think will be the first time to know for sure. They do have scuba tanks onboard.

[frantic36]

36 minutes ago, markandjie said:

They briefly passed thru the Caribbean on the way to Antarctica. The South Pacific this spring for pursuit I think will be the first time to know for sure. They do have scuba tanks onboard.

 

We will be doing Papua New Guinea & Indonesia next year where I hope to snorkel and I am sure reading about some of the small islands SCUBA & snorkelling should be good. Also doing Kimberley but with crocs and big sharks there I can't see it can be possible.

[FlaviaOfTheMonth]

I will wait for your report.

[frantic36]

1 hour ago, FlaviaOfTheMonth said:

I will wait for your report.

Okay. It won't be until late May/early June.

[Fitstylist55]

Cheers from the Southern Ocean!

Currently aboard the Pursuit and asked some questions of Gilleli of the Expedition Team (he will be a dive master in the South Pacific). Divers will need to bring personal equipment. Weight and tanks will be provided. No nitox offered. All divers need at least Advanced Open Water certification. There will be 2-4 dives offered per cruise. Gilleli stressed that as it is the inaugural season, procedures and offerings will evolve. 
 

Let me know any other questions and I’ll try to ask.

 

FWIW, My husband and I really enjoyed diving off of the Paul Gauguin in FP. Pre-cruise we enjoyed 5 days of diving with Ecole De Plongée De Tahiti—highly recommended! Many French military divers and medical officers dive with them.

[AMMG]

Fitstylist55,

 

Great info. Thank you. 2-4 dives on an 18 night cruise from Tahiti to Soloman Islands. Can you ask if there would be more snorkeling opportunities than 2-4 on that trip?  Just learning now about the Advanced Open Water requirement....    Is the Pursuit fabulous?

[Fitstylist55]

The Pursuit is stunning! The suites are beautiful with very well thought out features (walk-in closet door is the one flaw I see—ask for a stopper). 
 

About to go to my kayak safety briefing and I will inquire about snorkeling opportunities. 

[AMMG]

Cool. Thank you.  Enjoy!

[Fitstylist55]

1 hour ago, AMMG said:

Fitstylist55,

 

Great info. Thank you. 2-4 dives on an 18 night cruise from Tahiti to Soloman Islands. Can you ask if there would be more snorkeling opportunities than 2-4 on that trip?  Just learning now about the Advanced Open Water requirement....    Is the Pursuit fabulous?

Ok—more good info to report! Expedition Leader Juan Carlos Restrepo spent about 15 minutes with me and introduced me to Henrik Enckell who will lead up the dive team. According to the team, Henrik is a bit of a legend amongst divers.
 

Seabourn will try to offer diving/snorkeling at every “port”. Once you are booked, you should reserve your SCUBA slots. 8 divers per zodiac. Hope this helps!

[AMMG]

Thank you!  So nice of him and you.  Problem is I am not sure there's time to get Advanced certification before the trip that I already booked.  They didn't disclose this requirement in the pre-booking materials.  Sounds like it could be really fun.  Wondering if snorkeling would be as good.  

[FlaviaOfTheMonth]

How do the slots work? If there are 16 divers at a given port, can they all dive? And thank you very much for your real-time updates!

Edited December 29, 2023 by FlaviaOfTheMonth

[AMMG]

FYI, when I booked my trip, I immediately signed up for the SCUBA, not knowing about the Advanced requirement.  Now the SCUBA option shows "sold out".  So it sounds like they limit the numbers in total.  Not sure what that number is tho.  

 

[Mahogany]

1 hour ago, Fitstylist55 said:

The Pursuit is stunning! The suites are beautiful with very well thought out features (walk-in closet door is the one flaw I see—ask for a stopper). 
 

About to go to my kayak safety briefing and I will inquire about snorkeling opportunities. 

I planned on bringing my own door stopper (lots of CC complaints) when I sail Venture in March. I assume it's the design which didn't get rectified with Pursuit's build. Do they really have enough stoppers on board for all the disgruntled passengers? A small, but annoying problem.

[kej1]

On 12/29/2023 at 10:27 AM, Fitstylist55 said:

Ok—more good info to report! Expedition Leader Juan Carlos Restrepo spent about 15 minutes with me and introduced me to Henrik Enckell who will lead up the dive team. According to the team, Henrik is a bit of a legend amongst divers.
 

Seabourn will try to offer diving/snorkeling at every “port”. Once you are booked, you should reserve your SCUBA slots. 8 divers per zodiac. Hope this helps!

Thank you for the advice.  Do you know if they will provide wet suits?

[Fitstylist55]

53 minutes ago, kej1 said:

Thank you for the advice.  Do you know if they will provide wet suits?

I was told they will provide only weights and tanks/air. I prefer to bring my own wetsuit(s) so not a big deal for me.

On 12/29/2023 at 3:33 PM, AMMG said:

Thank you!  So nice of him and you.  Problem is I am not sure there's time to get Advanced certification before the trip that I already booked.  They didn't disclose this requirement in the pre-booking materials.  Sounds like it could be really fun.  Wondering if snorkeling would be as good.  

 

[FlaviaOfTheMonth]

OK so it sounds like "signing up for the SCUBA" means that you must select the SCUBA option for the trip right when booking. That might be how they would limit / control the number of divers. I want to avoid being on a boat with tons of divers competing for what appears to be 12 dive slots. If the numbers are controlled in advance that would be ideal.

 

Regarding the AOW requirement, it is possible to get AOW in 2 days of diving after taking the on-line study portion at home. In my opinion it is much less challenging than OW and is more about refinement of technique rather than learning something entirely new.

[Fitstylist55]

On 12/29/2023 at 4:04 PM, FlaviaOfTheMonth said:

How do the slots work? If there are 16 divers at a given port, can they all dive? And thank you very much for your real-time updates!

It sounds like they aren’t sure how it will operate either. SCUBA is offered but obviously not the sole focus of the sailing is how it was presented to me. 
 

They will store gear. The loading area on deck 3 is quite nice with ample cleaning stations. (I do think the Paul Gauguin’s marina is much more suited to SCUBA, however.)

Edited December 31, 2023 by Fitstylist55

[AMMG]

Fla' and Fit' - Thank you for this info.  Super helpful.  I'm going to go with no expectations except for gorgeous seas and ship.  Maybe will try AOW.  Just means a trip between now and then to get to a warmer climate.  Happy new year!