Please recommend a place for snorkeling and scuba diving

[zinfamous]

Belize. Ambergriss Cuy.

 

[Apathetic]

If you plan on actual SCUBA diving, I highly recommend you get certified before your trip. There are several major certification agencies out there (NAUI, PADI, SSI, and SDI). It doesn't matter which one you go with. Find an instructor who you're comfortable with and who's tied to one of these agencies.

Dave

 

[JEDIYoda]

The Monterey Peninsula....

 

[Scarpozzi]

If you plan on actual SCUBA diving, I highly recommend you get certified before your trip. There are several major certification agencies out there (NAUI, PADI, SSI, and SDI). It doesn't matter which one you go with. Find an instructor who you're comfortable with and who's tied to one of these agencies.

Dave

My wife is NAUI certified... She did this through a university over the course of a semester....yeah a few months. I'm PADI (Put Another Dollar In) certified....and just to mess with her got certified in about 36 hours. 😀

 

[glenn1]

Great Barrier Reef if you can swing it, it's like being inside a huge fishtank at the aquarium. Don't have all my photos available now, but here's a sample:

 

[SamQuint]

Maui is great for snorkeling and scuba. Molikini crater right off the island is awesome. Also lots of sea turtles around the island. Water is crystal clear with amazing visibility.

We took a tour with these guys

http://www.pacificwhale.org/

It was amazing.

 

[BurnItDwn]

I never got certified for Scuba, but went through some tourist company the 1st time I was in Cozumel. It was awesome! Very nice reef, maybe 30 feet deep or so, very clear water, magnificent for scuba or snorkeling.

2 of my uncles and 1 of my aunts were certified for scuba in the past, but they mostly did lake/freshwater dives in or around lake Michigan visiting / viewing wrecks.

 

[RossMAN]

snorkel tagged

 

[mmntech]

My cousin is in Half Moon right now, staying with a school friend whose family own a place at the resort. I'm sure it's nice and all but I'm concerned at the fact that they warned her, before going, not to talk to the local men. Is this how things are in all the Caribbean?

Depends on where you go. Aruba and it's neighbours Curaçao and Bonaire are still part of The Netherlands and are as safe as going to Holland. That business with the American girl a few years ago was isolated incident. Pretty much anything that's still a European colony is okay. Cuba is also very safe. You never really get the vibe that you're in danger when you go there. The worst you have to contend with are beggars. You don't see police officers roaming around with AKs there either. Apparently the prisons are so terrible, it keeps people straight. There also seems to be a lot of very attractive ladies working police and security there. There was this one at the airport when I went there recently that was young, cute and had a the nicest arse I've seen in a while. Too bad no strip searches were involved. 😉

I'd consider Bahamas, Turks & Caicos, and Barbados to be moderately safe. Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands can be a bit sketch. Everywhere else, use caution and don't travel alone, especially at night. I'd probably say Jamaica is the least safe country to travel to in the Caribbean, unless you're stupid enough to go to Haiti.

 

[AViking]

I've been to some of the best places in the world and for open water you should do warm water for max enjoyment.

Snorkeled that place where you were and if you like that I'd probably head to Thailand. I've done Belize and although the blue hole is great, for open water I think belize would be boring. The coral was way too broken.

You can open up just about any dive book for ideas but I'd try to stick to warm water, with good coral, large pelagics, well established with good gear, and very little current. That last bit is important and makes it hard to find a good spot. It's why I think Thailand is a good option or I'd recommend Indonesia instead. Go there when you have 50 dives.

Thailand is one of the cheapest places on the planet but there is the aurfare. If that feels like it's out of your budget then maybe consider Honduras. Open water is crazy cheap but I've never dove there.

 

[AViking]

For scuba, one of the best places on earth is the California Channel Islands...the American Galapagos. Meeting place of south vs north currents...more mixed species comingle than maybe anyplace else on earth...everything from Blue and Humpback & Gray whales to elephant seals, sea lions, harbor seals, stellar sea lions, many kinds of rays, etc.
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California's Santa Barbara Channel is the original birthplace of the worldwide commercial diving industry, in late 1800s due first to the formerly prolific abalone that were here, then later due to the offshore oil industry that was first started here in the earlier 1900s that later shifted to Gulf of Mexico Texas and to other countries.

Not so great for snorkling, which is happier in tropical places. Water here is pretty cold year round. I like snorkling in Fiji even more than on the Great Barrier Reef because it's warmer, closer, just all-round nicer. So for great snorkling fly to Nandi or Cairns (then drive up to Port Douglas). For some of the best scuba in the world (and finest dining and wineries and theater) fly to Santa Barbara.

This is some hardcore diving in my experience. The whole California coast for that matter. The water is COLD. At 30 meters you're just above freezing. Visibility is often too low to be safe due to, at least me, wanting greater visibility than the length of the great white sharks. People are incredibly unsafe and it's kinda every man for himself. I've seen too many idiots do things like inflate their bcd at 30 meters to surface. Or touch everything they see. I would take my gear, pay a boat with a lot of other people, no divemaster, and you kinda do everything yourself. There are very experienced divers on these boats that bring multiple tanks of different gasses and might be down for a couple hours so my 20 minute dive is followed by hours sitting on the boat waiting for them to go spearfishing at 200 feet or chasing sharks for kicks. If anything you should go on these boats to hear these commercial divers tell their stories but don't do it until you have some diving experience. Most of them have lost someone to a shark or a kraken so for a beginner I can't imagine it being any fun.

I would never recommend this for a first time diver.

Even something as tame as the beach by Catalina where they fill your tanks is dangerous since you're on your own and you can get tangled in the kelp.

Definitely stick to warm tropical waters in my opinion. Cold water can be great but then you should invest in a dry suit, join a club, and do your homework. That's asking quite a bit from most people.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Maui is great for snorkeling and scuba. Molikini crater right off the island is awesome. Also lots of sea turtles around the island. Water is crystal clear with amazing visibility.

We took a tour with these guys

http://www.pacificwhale.org/

It was amazing.

Hawaii definitely has potential if you go out by boat. There's decent snorkeling in some of the beaches, but rough seas and bad shorebreak can make it dangerous. Some of the protected pools are decent for seeing fish, but not reefs.

I'm a huge fan of hawaii because you don't have to worry about most of the 3rd world issues or even a passport. Since I'm East coast, the only thing that bothers me is the 9 hour flight. I can be in Mexico in half that time.

 

[corwin]

Maui is great for snorkeling and scuba. Molikini crater right off the island is awesome. Also lots of sea turtles around the island. Water is crystal clear with amazing visibility.

We took a tour with these guys

http://www.pacificwhale.org/

It was amazing.

Personally I didn't find Molikini all that impressive, yes there's lots of sea turtles but not much else, and not nearly as colorful as the Exumas in the Bahamas. Here's Molikini

Versus the Exumas

Molikini looks more like a barren waste land, and that was pretty much what all my dives around Maui and Oahu looked like, without even getting into the current that made me suck air like an addict...personally I'd do the Exumas 100x over before I went back to Hawaii...and for the best dive experience I've ever had try the Aqua Cat, for a dive cruise they pamper you pretty damn well, fresh water wash as you come out of the water, fresh fruit and snacks waiting when you get on deck after every dive, damn good food and free drinks if you want to relax at night, or during the day and skip some dives...next I really want to go to Honduras, my dive master keeps telling me about Roatan

 

[Jeeebus]

Close to home - hard to beat Bonaire. Seriously considering retiring there.

Far away - French Polynesia (Tahiti, Bora Bora, etc.). Though given how beautiful it is, you likely won't enjoy snorkeling/diving again in normal locales.

 

[norseamd]

if you see any of these in the americas they are invasive

no saying that we should completely control the migration of animals everywhere

 

[corwin]

if you see any of these in the americas they are invasive

no saying that we should completely control the migration of animals everywhere

They were brought over in the bilge of cargo ships...and they're poisonous...and they're damn pretty too:awe:

 

[purbeast0]

Personally I didn't find Molikini all that impressive, yes there's lots of sea turtles but not much else, and not nearly as colorful as the Exumas in the Bahamas. Here's Molikini

Versus the Exumas

Molikini looks more like a barren waste land, and that was pretty much what all my dives around Maui and Oahu looked like, without even getting into the current that made me suck air like an addict...personally I'd do the Exumas 100x over before I went back to Hawaii...and for the best dive experience I've ever had try the Aqua Cat, for a dive cruise they pamper you pretty damn well, fresh water wash as you come out of the water, fresh fruit and snacks waiting when you get on deck after every dive, damn good food and free drinks if you want to relax at night, or during the day and skip some dives...next I really want to go to Honduras, my dive master keeps telling me about Roatan

molokini was REALLY colorful when i went there back in 2008. it's a lot more colorful than your pictures show. there wasnt' any big fish in there though that is for sure. but the color was outstanding. just from your pics too it looks as though the visibility isn't as clear as it was when i was there. it also looks like it might have been overcast in your picture.

 

[AViking]

That shark picture is awesome!

 

[corwin]

molokini was REALLY colorful when i went there back in 2008. it's a lot more colorful than your pictures show. there wasnt' any big fish in there though that is for sure. but the color was outstanding. just from your pics too it looks as though the visibility isn't as clear as it was when i was there. it also looks like it might have been overcast in your picture.

Those were taken in January of 2010, and wasn't overcast at all...just not nearly as colorful as the Bahamas were, not even close🙁 The turtles were amazing though, so was whale watching

 

[corwin]

That shark picture is awesome!

I actually like this one better

Mantas are cool too

And eels

mmmm...calamari

And the ever beautiful lionfish

 

[purbeast0]

yeah those are some awesome pics. hey corwin, do you have any of the blue/red filters that are supposed to be good for underwater pictures to get more "real" colors? i had not heard about them until recently when i was looking at getting a gopro. apparently when getting underwater shots a red or blue filter makes the pictures look better when underwater. i might check that out before i go to turks and caicos and try it out while i'm over there to see how the pics come out.

 

[purbeast0]

Those were taken in January of 2010, and wasn't overcast at all...just not nearly as colorful as the Bahamas were, not even close🙁 The turtles were amazing though, so was whale watching

damn that sucks, i hope it's not dying or something there. i loved snorkeling there. when i went in the bahamas it was overcast for me that day 🙁. it was still cool though and they took us to see a bunch of sharks at the end of the trip which was awesome.

if i remember tonight i'll try to get some pics of molokini that i took when i was there.

 

[Jeeebus]

Not to be THAT guy, but octopus is not calamari. Both are absolutely delicious but very different. Just bought a couple octopus for cooking this weekend. Mmmm.

 

[purbeast0]

Not to be THAT guy, but octopus is not calamari. Both are absolutely delicious but very different. Just bought a couple octopus for cooking this weekend. Mmmm.

yeah calamari is squid right? i saw a school of squid when snorkeling off the shore in aruba. now THOSE are some weird looking creatures. it took me quite a while to know wtf it even was. i didn't know they schooled either.

 

[yinan]

I have been diving in both Bonaire and Cozumel. Both were awesome, but I liked Cozumel a little bit more. Probably going to be planning a Belize trip for this summer soon.

Only bad part about diving is hauling all of the gear around through airports and such. Other than that it is awesome.

Also, GoPros are real nice for underwater shots. I take 2 diving with me. 1 is mounted on the mask for video, and I have the other on my wrist for still shots.