Tell my sister not to be afraid of BOB/BOSS

[cme4ltc]

My sister and I are wanting to do the underwater excursion in St. Thomas. She thinks it will be fun, but is a little "scared". I keep telling her that there is nothing to be scared of. If any of my fellow cc members can help me, I will greatly appreciate it. I would hate to have to go on my own and tell her what a great time I had:D Leaving on AOS on 1-28-07 and would like to get this booked as soon as possible.

[BillOh]

My sister and I are wanting to do the underwater excursion in St. Thomas. She thinks it will be fun, but is a little "scared"..

 

When we went, there were two people who expressed fear getting into the contraption. My wife was one of them. The people running the excursion were very helpful and calming. My wife had a great time. You can see pictures on my link below (page 2 of the cruise pics) I could give you my wife's email address if she wanted to ask her questions.

[mdmourges]

I did this a few years ago. My only problem was that the configuration of the glass in the helmet distorted things (made them a little "curvey"). This was particuarly the case when you turned your head side to side. This made me feel a tad sea sick when we finished and I am generally not prone to sea sickness.

 

Mark

[sunlover5]

Another one here! I wasn't scared at all. But then I had problem getting into the contraption. I knew what I had to do, but..... There is a guide for every 2 people. So he just calmly said, go under the water and just swim into it. I did and felt dumb, it was so simple. We had a great time. Our guide took our camera and took pictures of us together. It was fun. Have a great time and tell her not to worry!! Also, they have hand signals so if you have any problems, just give the signal and they'll take you up.

[Pomperaugrr]

This is a great excursion, and is very well run in St. Thomas. We've done it in St. Thomas and in Cozumel. The crew in St. Thomas will give a full safety briefing. It is very safe, and you only go down about 12 to 15 feet. Each unit is tethered to a bouy and safety divers are with you the entire time. It is amazing. If you feel uncomfortable, once you are on the tour, simply give the signal and they will have you surfaced within seconds. Everyone had a blast. The underwater part lasted about 25 minutes, but it is worth every penny. The crew was awesome. You have lots of time to snorkle while they have groups out in the units. There is nothing to be afraid of. I enjoyed the St. Thomas version better, only because you see a lot more coral. Be sure to bring an underwater disposable camera from home. The divers will feed fish right in front of you and will take some memorable photos. We will be doing this in St. Thomas again, when we are there on Serenade, next January.

 

Eric

[Autumnrose]

Does she know how to swim? What is her fear? I only ask because I can not swim. While in St. Thomas I didn't do the BOB but we did do the Helmet dive. I am very afraid of the water. I can't even but my own head underwater without panicking. When we went to the helmet dive I almost had a panic attack. But it really was great! I wish we could have stayed down longer. If she is anything like me perhaps the helmet dive would be better. Your head never gets wet! You put the helmet on before going below water so your hair remains dry. From what I understand with the BOB you have to get in it underwater. Please correct me if I'm wrong. With me I just don't think I would have been able to do that.:o

[GeorgiaMOM]

We did this in December of 06. The best thing we've ever done. :D

We were so impressed with the operator and his crew. They were excellent. One lady was so scared about getting into the water. They were so wonderful with her, she eventually got in the BOSS and went around for about 10 minutes. The owner, can't remember his name was in the water with her. He was great. :D We would do this again it was great!

[TMarie]

My sister and I are wanting to do the underwater excursion in St. Thomas. She thinks it will be fun, but is a little "scared". I keep telling her that there is nothing to be scared of. If any of my fellow cc members can help me, I will greatly appreciate it. I would hate to have to go on my own and tell her what a great time I had:D Leaving on AOS on 1-28-07 and would like to get this booked as soon as possible.

 

I was so in love with this excursion on our last cruise! We had 5 or 6 people who went on the BOB together. Its not very fast, pretty slow moving but the view is breath taking! So much better being down lower, instead of looking at the coral and fish from above like when you snorkel. And its so weird, because the bubble is rounded, some things look really close, when they are really far away. And the guy threw fish food in in front of our group so millions of fish swam by...it was amazing!

 

I am going to try to talk my BF into doing this again while we are in St. Thomas!

[BillOh]

From what I understand with the BOB you have to get in it underwater. .:o

 

You are correct. In some cases, they tell you to close your eyes and the divers would guide you in.

[fozzyfoz]

we did it and loved it (and we also did the helmet dive and can compare). one lady on ours didnt even know how to swim and they guided her in and made sure she was comfortable. she came out and said it was the best thing she ever did. everyone on the boat gave her an ovation when she got back off the BOB.

[travelquick]

now I wanna do it :confused:

[cme4ltc]

Thanks to everyone for their input. BillOH, your pics were wonderful and I think that's what nailed it for her. Then the other comments here on the boards made her realize that there is nothing to be worried about, she can swim after all. I will have her post when we return to thank everyone for encouraging her to take a trip of a lifetime;) Watch for "live from AOS" coming to a computer screen near you:D

Terri

[BillOh]

Thanks to everyone for their input. BillOH, your pics were wonderful and I think that's what nailed it for her. Then the other comments here on the boards made her realize that there is nothing to be worried about, she can swim after all. I will have her post when we return to thank everyone for encouraging her to take a trip of a lifetime;) Watch for "live from AOS" coming to a computer screen near you:D

Terri

 

Glad to hear it, I will look forward to hearing about it. For me, in this thread, I was glad to hear that this excursion is now in Cozumel. Since we will be there on Freedom, I'll be sure to book early.

 

After the help we have received from others on this forum, its great to give back.