Scuba Diving in Bermuda

[kruiser68]

Has anyone done the Scuba Two-Tank Dive Excursion from St. George's Port of Call? I'm looking for excursion information for Norwegian's Crown Cruise Ship (which dive shop do they use?), but would take any cruise ship scuba excursion. My husband and I are going for our last check-out dive this Thursday and will be leaving on the Crown September 9th. We would like to use the excursion from the ship for our first dive since we don't know what to expect. When I called NCL's excursion office, the person said that it didn't show that there were any extra charges for equipment, but also didn't say what equipment was included. We want to know if we should bring BCD's, regulators and wetsuits. We want to leave them home if they are included in the excursion price. We are limited to one bag each for the shuttle we are taking to the pier. Thanks

[cram33]

I looked at the excursions on the NCL website for scuba for the Majesty in St. George Sept 20 in Bermuda and the price included equipment. Check there.

[JMTtor]

Hi -

 

I found your post looking for other potential divers on the 9/20 Majesty cruise. I'm traveling on that trip as well - I'm the only diver so far in our "roll call" sailing. We have quite an active group in all age ranges (20s through 60s); please feel welcome to join us at the following thread (and no, I didn't start it, so don't hold me responsible for the typo in the title!): "Philadelphia to Bermunda 9/20/08" (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=587163).

 

Now, re. diving - Triangle Divers (http://www.trianglediving.com) is pretty close to St. George, and I've made an inquiry about diving with them on Monday night as well as Tusday and Wednesday afternoons. Their afternoon 2-tank dives leave at 2p.; I'm waiting to hear whether they would pick up at the ship or if I'll have to get transportation to their boat. If you'd want to join me for any of the dives, you're welcome. I'm open water certified and have 40 logged dives thus far (most recent was a week of diving in Antigua in February this year).

 

In any event, if you (not sure whether you're the lone diver in your party or whether there are others, but anyone would be welcome) would be interested, please let me know. I'd rather dive in a small group than on a ship's cattle boat (and the dives are generally less expensive direct from the op, too), and I'd like to dive more than one afternoon. Regardless, have a great trip!

 

jmt

 

9/20/08 NCL Norwegian Majesty - 7 nt. Bermuda (Philadelphia RT)

3/23/06 RCI Enchantment of the Seas - 4 nt. Western Caribbean (Ft. Lauderdale RT)

1/6/06 RCI Majesty of the Seas - 3 nt. Bahamas (Ft. Lauderdale RT)

5/14/05 RCI Splendour of the Seas - 7 nt. Mediterranean (Barcelona RT)

1/8/05 RCI Voyager of the Seas - 7 nt. Eastern Caribbean (Miami RT)

8/15/04 RCI Grandeur of the Seas - 7 nt. FL/Bahamas (Baltimore RT)

4/5/04 RCI Monarch of the Seas - 4 nt. Baja Mexico (Los Angeles RT)

3/23/03 NCL Norwegian Star - 7 nt. Hawaii /Fanning Island (Honolulu RT)

8/24/03 RCI Empress of the Seas - 7 nt. Bermuda (New York RT)

6/7/02 Celebrity Galaxy - 10 nt. Western Caribbean (Baltimore RT)

3/23/02 RCI Monarch of the Seas - 5 nt. Western Caribbean (Miami RT)

9/1/01 RCI Explorer of the Seas - 7 nt. Eastern Caribbean (Ft. Lauderdale RT)

8/20/00 RCI Nordic Empress - 7 nt. Bermuda (New York RT)

8/15/99 RCI Enchantment of the Seas - 7 nt. Western Caribbean (Ft. Lauderdale RT)

7/26/98 RCI Legend of the Seas - 7 nt. Alaska (Vancouver RT)

2/14/97 RCI Sovereign of the Seas - 3 nt. Bahamas (Miami RT)

3/96 Big Red Boat Atlantic - 3 nt. Bahamas (Port Canaveral RT)

10/89 Carnival Mardi Gras - 3 nt. Bahamas (Ft. Lauderdale RT)

[kruiser68]

Hi -

 

Now, re. diving - Triangle Divers (www.trianglediving.com) is pretty close to St. George, and I've made an inquiry about diving with them on Monday night as well as Tusday and Wednesday afternoons. Their afternoon 2-tank dives leave at 2p.; I'm waiting to hear whether they would pick up at the ship or if I'll have to get transportation to their boat. If you'd want to join me for any of the dives, you're welcome.

 

My husband and I are planning to dive again with Triangle when we cruise to Bermuda in October. Have you contacted them yet to see if they would pick you up? When we were their last September we booked a night dive through the ship. It was just me and my husband that had signed up. They did have someone drive us home, the tide was out at the end of our dive and the boat wouldn't make it back to the dock. I'm hoping that they would still be able to pick us up if we don't book through the ship. I had contacted them through their site, but they never recieved my inquiry. I finally contacted them directly, but just to ask which nights while we were there they would be offering a night dive. Still haven't contacted them about transportation.

[JMTtor]

Hi -

 

Yes, they're supposed to pick me up at the ship and drop me off there as well; I'm also leaving my gear with them from Tuesday night to Wednesday, as I'm planning to dive Tuesday afternoon and evening as well as Wednesday afternoon, so I don't have to haul it back and forth to the ship when I'm going out with them again.

 

Since you went out with them before I'm assuming you're happy with their service? How was your night dive last year?

 

I sent an e-mail to confirm the arrangements this week, but I haven't yet heard back -- hopefully I'll hear today, as we leave tomorow! :eek:

[kruiser68]

Hi -

 

Yes, they're supposed to pick me up at the ship and drop me off there as well.

 

Since you went out with them before I'm assuming you're happy with their service? How was your night dive last year?

 

How did your diving go? Did your transportation to and from Triangle work out? Our night dive last September was great. It was our first ocean and night dive all in one. We were very happy with them. It was our only dive with them. Our other dive (2-tank, morning)was with BWD. I think it would be too long of a bus ride from St. Georges. Last time we went out of Hamilton. Can't wait to go back next month, just 17 days away.

 

Michele

[osd9]

I'm heading out on the Dawn this Sunday, 10/12/08. I'm the only diver on our roll call. I was wondering if anyone here knows which dive shop the NCL Dawn books with? The ship only offers one 2-tank dive on Friday from the ship. I want to dive at least two 2-tank dives and I would prefer using the same shop for all dives so I can leave my equipment with the shop.

 

Any advise?????

[kruiser68]

I'm heading out on the Dawn this Sunday, 10/12/08. I'm the only diver on our roll call. I was wondering if anyone here knows which dive shop the NCL Dawn books with? The ship only offers one 2-tank dive on Friday from the ship. I want to dive at least two 2-tank dives and I would prefer using the same shop for all dives so I can leave my equipment with the shop. Any advise?????

 

When we were on the NCL Crown in September of 2007 (docked in St. George) we booked a night dive through the ship and it was with Triangle Divers. I don't know if they would use Triangle if you are docked at Hamilton of the Dockyard, maybe Blue Water Divers then? We booked a morning dive with BWD also that trip. Took a bus there out of Hamilton where we were docked at the time. We leave on the Dream the 12th out of Boston. We are planning on diving with Triangle.

[iheartbda]

I'm heading out on the Dawn this Sunday, 10/12/08. I'm the only diver on our roll call. I was wondering if anyone here knows which dive shop the NCL Dawn books with? The ship only offers one 2-tank dive on Friday from the ship. I want to dive at least two 2-tank dives and I would prefer using the same shop for all dives so I can leave my equipment with the shop.

 

Any advise?????

 

Just passed this on to a friend who did a number of dives the week of Sept.20. She's out of town on business so may not be checking the boards. She booked independently of the ship and had great dives. Hopefully she'll get back to you.

[osd9]

Thanks for the info Kruiser68. I booked today with BWD for Thursday,10/16 AM dive. I'm on the Dawn and she's docking at the King's Wharf. I'm hoping to also get out, or down, at least one more time....hopefully Wednesda, 10/15, but most likely the ship won't let me disembark early enough to make the AM dive Wednesday, so I'll probably end up diving Friday, 10/17.

 

iheartbda....thanks for passing this on to your friend....

[JMTtor]

Hi all -

 

As Colette said below, sorry not to respond until now, but I basically got off the ship two Saturdays ago and had to turn around to go to New Mexico on business three days later; just got back yesterday afternoon and have been catching up with the posts. To answer the questions in the thread since my last post:

 

1. The Majesty books with Triangle Diving, the only dive shop on the east end of the island close to St. George - http://www.trianglediving.com. And yes, they both picked us up and dropped us off at the ship both days. For the night dive, the two of us going were on the afternoon dive so we just stayed on the dive boat; Triangle picked up a third diver from the ship for the night dive by car.

 

If you're on the Dawn and based at King's Wharf, you'd likely be going with Blue Water Divers, the closest dive shop on the west end, with a location at Somerset Bridge -

http://www.divebermuda.com.

 

Either way, booking directly with the dive shop if you're planning to do more dives than the ship offers will save you some bucks (especially if you're bringing your own equipment), because the ship's dives are priced for divers who don't bring their own equipment, and both dive shops also give multi-dive discounts. I did a package of four dives plus the night dive booking directly with Triangle. You can e-mail either of the dive shops by going to the contact pages on their websites.

 

2. As to how the diving was with Triangle, I'd dive with them again in a heartbeat. The predive briefings were very good, and because some of the areas could be tricky to navigate, they provided a guide for the dives for every two to three people. The first day of diving there were only two of us, and our guide was Steve - a Brit who was part of the Bermudian government and a vicar of the Church of England - a wonderful guide. We did North Rock, which is about seven miles out from the island (you can see the lighthouse on the rock from the north shore), and the wreck of the King George, two miles back from North Rock. We were even able to penetrate the wreck -- it has a lot of areas for exploration, and none of them are totally enclosed, so there's little danger of becoming lost or hopelessly entangled, though there are a few areas that are a challenge to get through without banging your tank.

 

We also did our night dive on the King George, but there was no penetration at night. Saw more cowfish (trunkfish) sleeping in the anemones and soft corals around the ship than I'd ever seen before -- also a nice big (@ 3') hogfish sleeping just above the sandy bottom, oblivious to the ring of divers all around it training their torches on it. A great experience; if you have time for the night dive I'd recommend you do it. There were about a dozen divers on the night dive. Note: the two of us who had dived the wreck in the afternoon buddied up without a guide for the night dive, but with the descent/ascent line lit by strobes and a marker at the 15-foot safety stop, plus no penetration allowed on the night dive, I was very comfortable. Triangle did provide guides for others in the group who had less diving experience or who were not comfortable going themselves (I'm sure if we had asked for a guide on the night dive we'd have had one).

 

Our second day diving there were eight divers in addition to the guides; we dived the wreck of the Taunton and the Cathedral/Basilica reef system. Both also very nice - the Taunton is quite shallow but the wreck is strewn across a wide swath of the sand; the two huge boilers and the ship's immense prop in particular were VERY impressive. The reefs had many caverns and swimthroughs in the reef; make sure you follow your guide and watch his approaches.

 

Triangle's owner, Graham, is the captain of the dive boat and very knowledgeable about the reef system and wrecks. Our guide the second day, also named Graham but who goes by his last name, Christmas, was a young Brit who's worked for Triangle a few years and also an excellent guide, pointing out many areas of interest in the wreck and leading us through a series of challenging and fun swimthroughs.

 

All in all, I wish I had more time to dive on the trip, but we had two great afternoons and one great evening with Triangle. At some point I'll post my photos -

 

Hope all of you have great cruises, and a great time diving. Bermuda is one of the best.

[osd9]

Jan:

 

Thanks for the detailed report.

 

With regard to cost, NCL charges $169 for ONE 2-tank dive from the Dawn...probably using BWD at Somerset Bridge. I was able to book TWO 2-tank dives with BWD for $195. I'm bringing all my own equipment.

 

Now, depending on the cost of travel, the savings may not be all that great, but it's a savings nontheless. I have to assume that a taxi ride to the dive shop is going to cost $15 each way or $30 per dive roundtrip. So two dives adds $60 to the total cost or $195 + $60= $255. The ship includes transportation to a from the dive shop. Besides the savings, the cruise ship (Dawn) only offers one scuba diving excursion for the entire 3day stay in port, so if you want to do multiple dives, you have to book on your own anyway. There really isn't any concern with missing the boat either unless you want to do an afternoon one-tank dive on the last day in port.

[JMTtor]

Sounds as if you're all set! Too bad Blue Water won't pick you up at the ship as Triangle did for us; did you ask about a pickup? Maybe you can convince Blue Water to come for you as well.

 

I'm sure you'll enjoy your diving; Bermuda is a great dive base. Wrecks and reefs all around the island. You'll enjoy yourself; post here about your dives after you're done!

[JMTtor]

I should have mentioned -- all dives were around the 50 minute timeframe, more or less; water temp was in the 79 to 82 degree range, and the viz was at least 50 feet, even on the worst day.

[Meggiewegs]

Can I pop in here with a quick question? :) My DH is the diver, so I'm asking what is probably a completely ridiculous question. When you guys say that you brought all of your own equipment, do you mean the whole shebang? (wetsuit, fins, BC, reg, computer, snorkel, mask, gloves, weights) Although the price is much better booking your own dives, rather than thru NCL, I doubt that DH wants to deal with the hassle of bringing all of his own equipment. And renting it would be an extra expense.

 

Wow, I sound like a real cheapskate, huh?! I'm trying to book something for him on the sly, thus my questioning things, rather than him. :) Thank you for your input!!

 

Megan

[JMTtor]

I had my own mask, fins, snorkel, BC, reg/octo, and computer, as well as my own dive skin (depending on the water temp, either a skin or a 3 mil shorty wetsuit is probably enough in October). But you can also rent gear at the dive shop. Check on the shop's website for rates for dives with equipment: Triangle (http://www.trianglediving.com/our_rates.php) if you're on the Majesty, Blue Water (http://www.divebermuda.com/rates.aspxif) on the Dawn.

 

All dive shops provide tanks and weights; the equipment rental cost covers the other gear.

 

If your husband has his own computer, he may prefer that to renting one from the shop, as most computers track dives over the long term.

 

Have fun - hope this helps! ;)

[osd9]

BWD said that local laws won't allow them to pick me up at the ship....sounds like an agreement with the taxi company and cruise line. No big deal.

 

I'm booked for Thursday and Friday AM 2-tank dives. Hoping to also get in a night dive either Wednesday or Thursday.

 

I'm bringing my own Reg/octo/computer, BCD, Mask, Fins, Snorkel (for use on the beach), Boots, Gloves, light (hopefully get in a night dive), SMD, Reel, log book and 2 mil shortie. Oh, and since my reg is DIN, I'm bringing my DIN to Yoke converter. I'm not flying, so it's just a matter of shoving the dive bag in the back of the car and then wheeling it to the dock. It's a lot less stressfull diving with equipment you are comfortable with. Tanks and Weights are included in the cost of the dive.

 

Anyone know if they had Nitrox available for the deeper dives?

[JMTtor]

Hi -

 

I know Triangle had the DIN tanks, as my dive buddy had a DIN reg, so Blue Water may have them as well (in fact, I'd bet on it, since a lot of divers in Bermuda are European, where DIN is more the rule than the exception). Re. Nitrox - most of the dives in Bermuda are shallow, so the chances of your needing Nitrox are slim -- but if you think you might want to go with it, e-mail Blue Water and I'm sure they'd let you know.

[osd9]

Good to hear about he DIN valves. Do you remember what size tanks they had?

 

I'm hoping to get out to the Hermes Wreck in near 80fsw. The nitrox would certainly give me better dive/bottom time on that wreck.

[Meggiewegs]

Thanks for the replies! I will check to see how much renting is. Although he definitely would be more comfortable with his own equip., he's already said he doesn't really want to lug the big ol' bag onto the ship... along with the multitude of bags for the rest of the family. (a 4-yr-old and a 16-month old!)

[osd9]

Hi -

 

I know Triangle had the DIN tanks, as my dive buddy had a DIN reg, so Blue Water may have them as well (in fact, I'd bet on it, since a lot of divers in Bermuda are European, where DIN is more the rule than the exception). Re. Nitrox - most of the dives in Bermuda are shallow, so the chances of your needing Nitrox are slim -- but if you think you might want to go with it, e-mail Blue Water and I'm sure they'd let you know.

 

OK...just got back yesterday.

 

Dives were great.

 

Tanks are ALL yoke. I stopped at a dive shop while in Hamilton..Dave's Scuba.... and they don't even sell DIN valves. I'm glad I had my DIN-to-Yoke adapter with me. Also....Nitrox is not available anywhere on the Bermuda Islands....as per both BWD and Dave's Shops.

[JMTtor]

Geez -

 

Since Triangle had the DIN tanks and Europeans use them frequently, I just assumed the other dive shops would have them as well (shows you the old adage about what happens when you "assume" things holds true!). Doesn't surprise me that none of the shops have nitrox, since the dives are all so shallow there, relatively speaking.

 

Glad you had good dives, though - did you do all South shore?