A special reader-submitted article on certified SCUBA enthusiasts using regular cruise ships for exciting and exotic dive vacations.
09.07.12
It is very easy to have a great DIVE experience on a regular cruise
You may have never considered taking a cruise vacation as a dive vacation. Many divers think only of booking a week long resort stay at an island location for their long awaited vacation. But in fact, cruise lines have been accommodating divers for many years and regularly sail to great dive islands as well as terrific vacation itineraries.
And while the whole concept of "dive vacations" on a major cruise line may not have received much advertising attention lately, not long ago lines Norwegian, Princess and Royal Caribbean had special departments onboard just to accommodate SCUBA divers. In most cases today you will now be on your own, but for advanced divers like myself the cruise lines still provide more than enough, and those lines plus Carnival and Celebrity have been putting divers in the water quietly and steadily every week for years now.
Boy, can I relate to this! I've been a diver for over 17 years and am open water, advance open water, and rescue diver certified. Needless to say, I love to scuba dive every chance I get. And going on a cruise affords me with some wonderful opportunities to dive in a wide variety of locations. It's a great way to go to several places during the course of a cruise instead of having to fly to each place separately.
While some ships offer good scuba programs, it's almost always better to do your own thing if you're an experienced diver. If you've never dived before and want to learn, do it before you go on a cruise. It's much better, cheaper, and easier doing it before you go than to do it while on your cruise.
If you've never dived before and don't know whether it's something you want to do or not, your local dive shop will almost always have an introductory class where they'll go to a pool, get you fitted in the equipment, show you a few things, and let you try it in a controlled environment. Some people can't handle the equipment, find it too confining, or get claustrophobic, so trying it in a pool is a great way to see if you're fine with it or not.
But if you find it's something you want to try, you will experience a whole new world that is absolutely amazing!
Pete
__________________ 45 Cruises & Counting! Favorites: Paul Gauguin to Tahiti: Uniworld River Cruises in Europe; any of the Celebrity Solstice-class ships; Holland America for 12-nights in the Baltics & Russia; RCCL for 14-night Greek Isles, Turkey, & Croatia; Holland America for 14-day Alaska cruisetour; 10-night Canada/New England cruise; 21 days in Hawaii including a 7-night NCL cruise; Oceania for 25 days in Asia; & 3 months touring Europe by train. And many days spent in all-inclusive resorts!
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