Diving in Hawaii

[crangirl]

:confused: My husband and I and 2 other couples are cruising on The Pride of Hawaii Jan 22 out of Honolulu. My husband got certified this past summer and I need to know what companies are good to go with to dive and where is the best places. Our cruise takes us to Hilo, Maui on a overnight, Kona and Kauai on another overnight. We are getting together tonight to plan out some things we will like to do. If anyone could help me I would appreciate it. thanks-:)

[Middleager]

In Oahu, I dove with Capt. Bruces and would highly recommend them. It was in west Oahu, not in Waikiki or Honolulu, but they pickup from my Waikiki hotel. In Oahu, there are >30 dive ops and most of them don't have their own shop or boat, but are rather buying wholesale seats from those that have a boat. It's of course better to deal directly with those that have their own boat as you have a better chance to go to the locations you like, rather than going thru a "broker" like op that is going on someone else's boat.

 

 

There isn't good diving in Hilo. In Kauai, you could go to south Kauai, Poipu Beach area, as the waves are probably rough in N/E Kauai. Kona has very good diving, with lots of good dive ops. You can start with this op that have links to other ops.

 

There are a number of dive ops in Maui but I didn't dive there so couldn't really give recommendations there.

 

Have fun diving.

[bruce-r]

Dive in Kona, visit the volcano in Hilo.

[ajcolorado]

My brother-in-law is a fairly experienced diver but my son and husband were newly certified when we went to Hawaii. When we did our research, the name we kept seeing again and again was "Mike Severns Diving" - www.mikesevernsdiving.com/

 

We booked with them and everyone was very impressed with the dive master, the equipment, and the experience. My husband and son have a lot more experience now and, so far, they've never been with a company that has been equal to Mike Severns.

[10X]

I have dived with Mike Severns and really had some wonderful dives. They keep their groups small so you never on a "cattle boat". They go slow and easy through the water and spend lots of time finding critters for you.

 

I have also dived with Maui Dive Shop. They take care of you really well but they also have lots of people - more of a Cattle boat operation. They also move quickly through the water, buring up a lot of air. Once I stopped to take a half dozen photos of a Frogfish and when I was done, the group was no where in sight, so ti appears that they don't have a problem with leaving you behind.

 

On Oahu, I dove with Arron's Dive Shop. They were really good and we had a small group, and the dive masters were fantsatic. The only trouble is that they do not have their own boat so they contract with a boat owner to take you out.

 

The boat owner might have also contracted with another dive shop for the same day, so you might not get to go where you'd like to. I wanted to go to the "Corsair" which is located at 105'. However, the boat owner had also contracted with another dive shop that was taking out new students for their open water dives. That means that 105' was unacceptable, so we went where the students could dive shallow.

[tootsiescurly]

:confused: My husband and I and 2 other couples are cruising on The Pride of Hawaii Jan 22 out of Honolulu. My husband got certified this past summer and I need to know what companies are good to go with to dive and where is the best places. Our cruise takes us to Hilo, Maui on a overnight, Kona and Kauai on another overnight. We are getting together tonight to plan out some things we will like to do. If anyone could help me I would appreciate it. thanks-:)

We highly recommend Kona Honu Divers. They have excellent boats and equipment. They do not take large groups with exception of the night Manta dive. Do not miss this dive!!!! It is an experience of a life time. You sit on the ocean bottom, 25 to30 ft down with a flashlight to illuminate the plankton. The manta rays swim over your head scooping up the plankton. It is a beautiful sight to watch these large graceful creatures. They also video the dive to purchase afterwards.

[Middleager]

The manta ray dive in Kona is supposed to be fantastic. However it is a night dive, and unfortunately not for cruisers (including me when I was there last year) unless you want to miss the ship. If not cruising, it is a dive to stay for.

[GiniB]

I lived in Hawaii (on O'ahu) for five years and worked as a divemaster there for most of that time.

 

On O'ahu: The shop I worked for no longer exists. Most of the dive shops located in and around Waikiki and Honolulu cater almost exclusively to Japanese tourists. Not that that's bad, but they dive in huge groups and most of their divemasters barely speak English. That being said, here is the name and number of a shop used by many "locals" and resident military folks. They have very nice boats and good crews.

 

Ocean Concepts Waianae: 808-696-7200

 

Big Island (Hawai'i): I dove with several operations there, but the very best by far was Dive Makai Charters: 808-329-2025. In fact, they were probably the best operation I've dove with ever. I've done over 1000 dives all over the world and these folks are the best. They do not have a dive shop, but they have a very nice boat and the most knowledgeable crew you'll find anywhere. Other posters were correct in saying that there's no good diving in Hilo. Go see the volcanoes instead.

 

Maui: I usually dove with Maui Dive Shop, they have several locations on Maui and do a descent job. Try to get on one of the Lana'i trips if possible. The Molokini trip is okay, and they'll try to push it, it's an easy money-maker for them, but it's not the best Maui has to offer. They have several boats of different sizes. Request to be on something of the 12-pack size or smaller, thus ensuring a smaller group and better service.

 

Kauai: Bubbles Below was always our favorite there. Diving on Kauai is always weather dependent.

 

One important thing to remember about Hawai'i diving: due to the high surf and strong seas, there is no soft coral anywhere in the Islands. The seascape is not "pretty" like it is in other areas of the world. Don't be surprised to see a generally boring, rubbly, grey ocean bottom. Hawai'i blows you away with its incredible sea life. You'll see so many fish that are unique to the area alone, you'll forget all about the lack of pretty coral.

 

Enjoy.

[GiniB]

Dear 10X,

 

Don't feel too bad about missing the Corsair. Although it's cool that it's a "real" wreck (as opposed to the YO257 or the Mahi which were sunk as artificial reefs) and that it's a genuine WWII artifact, it is pretty stripped down. It takes about two minutes to see everything it has to offer and you spend the rest of your time looking at garden eels! That's one of the "real" reasons many dive shops won't take tourists there. They're more likely to take you to the YO or Mahi as there's more to see.

 

If you're determined to see it, though, next time you're on O'ahu, contact Pacific Diving Adventures (808-235-9453), they cater more to locals and resident military folks and always loved taking folks to the more "unique" sites. I worked a couple of trips for them on a barter basis.

 

Enjoy!

[gvre]

Do the Night Manta Ray Dive in Kona!! We have dove all over the world and this is one of the Top Ten. We spent a week diving in Kona with Jacks Dive Locker they where good. Took good care of us and our equipment.

Tahiti Dive Photos

[lbrooks34]

gvre,

 

We recently had a different experience with Jack's Dive Locker. Did not care for them at all. A very inefficient operation in my opinion. A lot of waiting around before you even get to the boat. The owner, Jeff, even went along and was our group's guide. While we were able to descend without the group, they had equipment problems on both dives (two hoses with rips in them). This delayed the dive considerably. That was his rental equipment by the way. Since there was a newbie in our group, Jeff spent all of his time literally holding her hand underwater. She was terribly overweighted and sunk straight to the bottom and landing on my dive buddy. Maybe it was just a bad day. Even after the dive, knowing, that there were six cruisers on his dive boat with time constraints, we had to wait around for him to unload equipment. A local couple who was on the boat offered to give us a ride back to the pier. Luckily, we still had time to visit some of the shops on the strip (though we had did have an idea that we may not have had that kind of time). We were able to get through security, drop our gear in our stateroom, got back on the tender to the harbor and saw the other four divers standing in the long security line. They really enjoyed the operation. Of course they were catered to, had Jeff do an underwater video, and had recently had a bad experience with Maui Dive Shop in Molokini. We went with Ed Robinson in Maui and just loved them. Jeff did apologize for our experience, but we will not dive with that outfit again. Just too much time sitting around and waiting pre and post dives as well as during the dives.

[GiniB]

We dove with Jack's several times when we lived in Hawai'i. Never had any issues with them, but we don't need a lot of attention and always had our own gear. They do sometimes overload their boats, but most of the shops do that when the cruise ships are in port. I didn't realize Jeff was now an owner. He was just a divemaster when we dove with them. I stand by my contention that Makai (information listed in my post above) is the best operator you'll find anywhere. I have never gone out with an operator who loved what they did more than Makai does.

[10X]

GiniB, I appreciate the information on Dive Makai. I have been looking into diving with them on our next trip to Hawaii, and even sent for a informational packet. We plan on spending about a month on The Big Island in Kona and they sound like just what I'm looking for. I appreciate your insight.

 

Denny

[gvre]

When we dove with Jacks it was 2 years ago. We spent the whole week diving with them every day with our own equipment. We dove with the advanced diver group. Like I said they were good, but if you are in a hurry to get to a cruise ship you may have to push them and may consider another operator.

The point is if you can do the night manta ray dive it is one of our top 10 dives!!

Richard

[larkwind]

Consider Ed Robinson's when in Maui--DM's are really interested in the sealife; equipment was fine; small group (12 divers w/3 DMs); trip to Lanai Cathedrals was spectacular (used to be Wednesdays; swam with dolphins underwater and watched them topside); DM took the time to reweight me after first dive just because he couldn't believe I needed that much (but I did). Friendly, very professional group and the critters in Hawaii are not matched anywhere in the Carribean...go to Cozumel for coral...we keep comparing all our diving to Maui!

[GiniB]

Denny,

 

When you email them, let them know you'll be there for a long time, they might give you a package with a number of dives in it (and a lower price per dive).

 

I had already been a divemaster in O'ahu for about two or three years the first time I dove with Makai. I was amazed by the things I learned from them about my own "home waters." They are so much more environmentally aware than most operators over there and waaaaaay more knowledgeable about fish behavior than anyone I had ever seen. If you're the type of person who wants to know not only what the fish are doing, but why you will love them! I think they will do a manta ray dive trip and I'm sure it's great too. We always did our manta dives as shore dives. Many of the operators who do it as a boat dive waaaay overcrowd their boats for that one. It's a very easy shore dive as long as the surf isn't too high.

 

As far as Maui goes, we never managed to find an awesome operation like Makai there. We always dove with Maui Dive Shop, requesting tours for advanced divers and with small groups only. Many times they don't offer these on days the cruise ships are in simply for economic reasons. Why only take out 6 people all the way across the channel to Lana'i when they can take 30 on a short hop to Molokini?

 

I've heard good reports about several Maui operators, but never great reports. So I think you're okay with pretty much everyone. Prepare to be underwhelmed. There used to be an operation there called Eco Adventures Maui that had good service, but I don't think they're still in business.

[10X]

GiniB,

 

Dive Makai sounds great. What attracted me to them was they advertise two dive speeds, slow and stopped. Being a quasi underwater photographer, it was just what I needed. I'm not one to try to cover as much reef as possible and surface quickly because I ran out of air. I'd prefer to travel 50 feet and see 100 things than travel 1500 feet and see 1.

 

Mike Severns is similar to Diev Makai as they spend a lot of time talking about the wildlife. I might try Ed Robinson the next time we're on Maui too. Everything I've ever read about them is geared toward what I'd like.

 

Maui Dive Shop runs a great operation. You never have to do anything yourself. The dive master contacted each member of his group and talked with them personally. They spent a lot of time going over hand signals, just in case there is a problem underwater. They also supplied a pretty good lunch onboard (the best I've had on any dive), and plenty of it. Stopping and taking pictures with them is a chore though unless you don't mind being left behind. They cover a lot of ground in short order.

 

In 2006 on Bonaire, four of us did two shore dives. On neither of them did we venture more than 50' vertically or horizontally from our entry point. There was so much to see and take pictures of that we didn't need to, nor did we want to because we were afraid of missing something.

 

We just booked a 31 night cruise beginning in April 2008, Sydney to San Francisco. We have two port stops in Hawaii along the way, O'ahu and Maui. I need to find a dive oeprator who has a late excursion. The ships don't arrive until 7-8 AM and the Maui dive boats all leave about 6AM, so I'll miss them. Know anybody who might do this on either island?

 

Denny

[GiniB]

Denny,

 

I will contact some friends who still live in Hawaii and see if they can recommend someone. Sounds like a private divemaster would be best for you.

 

You will learn some new hand signals from Makai too. They have some great ones!

 

I'll get back on here when I can find out something for you.

 

Gini

[jimw]

Gini B

 

I just wanted you to know that Dive Makai has been sold. We were there during the transition period in Sept, 05. We also dove with Makai a few years before that. They were everything you described, simply the best!!! We would try them again, but I'm not sure they will be as good as Lisa, Kendra, etc were.

 

I just took a look at the '07 edition of Diver's Chapbook from Undercurrent that I got a few days ago--all reviews of the new operation are very positive!!

[GiniB]

JimW,

 

Do they still have the same phone number? I so hope they carry on the tradition of excellent service and environmentalism that Lisa and Kendra started. Glad to hear the reviews are still good though! Thanks for letting me know.

[lbrooks34]

When we dove with Jacks it was 2 years ago. We spent the whole week diving with them every day with our own equipment. We dove with the advanced diver group. Like I said they were good, but if you are in a hurry to get to a cruise ship you may have to push them and may consider another operator.

The point is if you can do the night manta ray dive it is one of our top 10 dives!!

Richard

I think it was a bad day at Jack's. We had newbies on the boat (as in first ocean dive ever), and the dive sites that were selected are considered very advanced. We did Pyramid Pinnacle, a dive with current, surge, and lava tubes with blow holes. A shallow dive if you want to explore the cave. Viz was just ok that day (of course, bad Hawaii viz is good Caribbean viz in my opinion). Others who have dived with the op said that it is better to go with the advanced group. That was not an option with the cruise. I also think things would have gone smoother if all the divers had had their own gear. But, still, the customer service just was not there. Oh well, I second the vote of comparing all other dives to Maui. We absolutely loved Ed Robinson. One of the best dive ops we have ever gone with. Very organized. I also like how they divided the groups into experienced divers and inexperienced divers. That worked out very well.

[jimw]

Gini B

 

I'm not sure if the phone is the same, but I would bet it is--as Tom is still handling that part of the business.

[madisonswims]

Of all the islands, the diving in Kona was the best. The best part about it was the variety of fish and the turtles!!! Loved it!!!

[foneguy]

dove with lahinia divers maui...great experience..infact that was an intro to scuba...been hooked ever since

[Hilary]

We dive with Ed Robinson's when we're on Maui (at least annually). Their boats go out of Kihei and take a max of 12 divers, unless you're on the 3-tank Adventure charter, which takes a max of 10 divers. My husband is a photographer and we find that the DM's not only find all the cool critters to photograph, but they also make sure that they have plenty of time to take the pictures they want.

 

We don't choose Mike Severns because their dive briefing is more like a marine biology lesson and very extensive. Some folks love that level of education, but as regular Maui divers, we find the Ed Robinson's briefings and critter talks to be perfect.

 

If you're interested in shore diving on Maui to save some money, try Shaka Doug or Maui Dreams. Both are excellent and the shore diving on Maui is very good.

 

Make sure you keep in mind that the charters go out VERY early and you'd need to be at the Kihei boat ramp by 6:00-6:30am (depending on the operator). So if you're looking to sleep a little more, check into shore diving for sure.