Hi Everyone,

I'm hoping for some insight.

my sister and I will be visiting Hawaii for the very first time in late July. We have selected the island of Oahu for our stay. We plan to do some snorkling and our father suggested scubadiving as well. I have done much research on the subject and need your help. We are not certified but many offer a introductory dive. Is it worth it, what would we see that is different from just snorkling. I just want to see lots of colorful fish and coral, mayby a turtle if lucky. Any help would be greatly welcomed...

I suppose it really depends how deep the water is. We went to Cuba last year and snorkelled off the southern coast, and the water was clear and shallow enough (about 25 feet deep, maybe more) to fully enjoy snorkelling (we're going to Maui in a couple of weeks so hope to do the same there.) Diving can take some time to qualify for - you might have to spend an entire day getting the initial qualification - but once you're fully qualified you can dive all over the world.

Get certified to dive, but only if you plan to dive again in the future. otherwise, you'll waste time (even the introductory course) learning things you'll never use again. plus, on the intro dive, I doubt if they'll take you very deep. Basically (and simply put), diving allows you to go deeper. but when you go deeper, the sunlight becomes more and more blocked. Therefore, the colors aren't as vibrant deep down. This is offset by the fact that you will get to see, by diving, wrecks, larger fish, etc.
With snorkeling, you can see some awfully nice stuff just below the surface. Of course, you have to know where to snorkel. look for a coral reef. then you'll see some things.

Let me mention one last thing. Diving is WORK. (I am a diver.) It is very serious. One mistake can kill you. But it is fun, and you get to see some things not many people get to see. But it requires work and patience and dedication.

Though I've never been to Hawaii, I have done the Intro dive many resorts offer in Cancun about a year ago. The intro dive consisted of a class in which you learned the basic of the dive equipment and then practiced the fundamentals of diving in a pool at the hotel.

It takes a little practice to learn the fundamentals. The hardest part for me was getting my ears to pop as I decend in the water.

But once you get in the ocean, its great. Everything seems to be much easier, though like JT said, it is work, but also kind of relaxing.

We dove in 35-40 ft of water along the reef in between Cancun and Cozumel. We were in a group of about 20 with 3 instructors, one to guide us along, one to help anyone who might neeed it, and another to take pictures and help.

I've been snorkeling many times and I enjoyed diving much more. You see many more things than you would normally see. I am planning to go to Hawaii next May for my honeymoon and plan to dive with my fiance there.

I'd say give it a shot. The good thing with the intro course is that if you don't like it your only out $100 or so instead of $1000 or more after you buy all your gear.

Let us know how your trip goes.

IMO...snorkling can be a chore....getting roughed up by the waves; grabbing a mouthful of air and diving down to the reef, etc...

scuba can be lots of work also....especially the training. i've seen quite a few people go through the trouble of enrolling in the class buying lots of expensive gear just to "freak out" when they actually have to go diving (i never will understand this).

many expert divers will warn you against the crash courses offered at resorts....but if you are not going to dive below 25ft you should be OK. serious scuba diving is not something to take lightly.

best advice......if you take the crash course and like it,and you plan to dive again...take the full basic open water class. there really is no comparison between snorkling and scuba.....if you do try scuba, you'll know what i mean.

My husband dives and I snorkle - many times on the same reefs. We travel with a great group of divers throughout the world. Everyone compares sightings at the end of the day and honestly the divers have never seen anything that I haven't seen snorkling. Granted, he dove in water over 100 ft and I haven't, but he didn't see much while he was there - at least nothing that would make me go through the trouble and expensive of certification. Just MHO.

I am a certified diver, have been for several years and guess what?? I never dive. I would rather snorkle. I felt sort of closed in in deep water and with snorkleing, you can just stay on top if you want. I have seen some beautiful things just snorkleing. Diving is so much work, all of that equiptment and it can be very dangerous. I think you will have so many things to see and so much to do on your trip that taking the time to learn to dive and then more time to actually go diving would eat up too much of your vacation. Have fun whatever you decide.

Kim...One note of caution that hasn't yet been mentioned. If you do plan on taking the resort course and are taking medication of any kind on a daily basis, be certain that you have a note from your doctor stating that it is safe to dive while on that medication. I knew nothing about this and it resulted in my entire family staying back 'cause Mom couldn't go too. lt;

We've snorkeled in Bermuda, St. John, Cayman, Cancun, and Maui, and seen some fantastic things, from beautiful coral formations through exotic fish to moray eels, octopi and sting ray, despite being in shallow water. Maui was probably the least impressive, as the water was quite deep where we were taken. Shallow reefs of Cayman and Bermuda were the best.

Another word of caution even for snorkelers...leave your jewelry behind! Between my watch and wedding and engagement rings, some fish mistook my hand for a tasty tidbit as I swam along, hand dangling behind me, and I ended up with cute little teeth marks in a perfect oval on the outside of my pinkie. Might not have been quite as cute had the fish been bigger!!

I prefer to SCUBA because I'm below the waves, I'm a floater so the weight belt keeps me under and the tank of air makes it easier to get closer to the fun stuff (by the way, never touch a reef).

I spent about $250 for the course a few years back and around $250 for the certification trip. You could do the certification dives on your Hawaii trip. Check your Yellow Pages for a local dive shop and they might let you watch/audit a class.

I don't own much equipment because it is a pain to haul around. I might get in one or two dives a year and it is much easier to rent the gear at the location. And if you have problems lifting 50 pounds or more, Scuba might not be the best sport for you.

Look for a dive shop with PADI certification (5 star is the highest rating), ask questions, ask more questions and have fun.

I've been certified for about one year and definitely would prefer to dive. Snorkeling is fun, but you don't get the same "close up and personal" experience that you get with diving. My first real dive trip was to Turks and Caicos - I was able to get within touching distance of a four foot long grouper. I was also able to descend along a cliff wall and check out the lobsters, anenomes, fish, eels, etc that were hiding in the crags. I couldn't contain my amazement back on the boat after my 1st dive. On my last trip to Maui, I got a chance to swim alongside turtles. When at the bottom waiting for the rest of my dive group, a large manta ray swam by me close enough to touch and a reef shark swam alongside me later when I was exploring a small cave area. I got a close look at an octopus as well.

I enjoy snorkeling and also think that you can see a lot of the same things as when you dive, but most of the time, you're ten to thirty feet above the stuff you're looking at (other than fish), and can't really get a close look or the feeling that you get when you're down in the deep.

It is an expensive activity, but worth it in my opinion if it interests you. I had not really snorkeled much before my certification (I didn't because I got seasick easily), but now must absolutely dive when I go anywhere near warm water.

I wanted to say thank you to everyone who posted. I was so happy to read all of your respones. I was a competitive swimmer and lifegaurd and have thought about getting certified. But since I usually don't get to travel to places where I would have the option to dive I never have. My sister is going on this trip and although she is active I think learning to dive might take to much time away from our relaxing. You made very good points about cautions to watch out for. All the places I have looked at were Dive Shops that are PADI certified(5star). I think for this trip we'll stick with snorkling at Hanauma Bay. Would love any other suggestions...

But if I ever get to Australia I will definately take the diving course... Thanks again

I'm not a diver, although I have been seriously tempted to take the course, but I think I will stay with snorkeling. I have been fortunate enough to snorkel on St. John and Grand Cayman in the Caribbean and from Key West in the States. With snorkeling, your equipment is minimal, and your enjoyment is maximum. Although you should always stay alert in the water (duh) it is relaxing to me to just float on top of the water and observe the fish and coral beneath. If I want to do a surface dive to get a closer look, that is always available, but from a snorkeling perspective, I have been face to face (within inches) sea turtles who were as fascinated by my features as I was with theirs. I never snorkel alone and I stay aware of distance and currents, but otherwise, I can leave my brain on the beach and just enjoy the sensory experience without worrying about time, or air or anything else.

Just my opinion, of course. To each his or her own.

I forgot to add that I've been snorkeling in Hawaii also and although it may be sacrilege to say, I enjoyed the Caribbean more. More coral equals more color equals more fish equals more enjoyment to me. The water was warmer and everything underwater wasn't primarily gray from aeons of lava flow.

Look on the web saw a site that takes you to watch coral spawning in the third week of august.

I, too, was withing inches of sea turtles while snorkling in Hawaii. And as far as The Great Barrier Reef goes, we snorklers saw just as much or more than the divers. (I saw the sharks, he didn't.) Diving on the GBR is quite different than Hawaii or the Carribbean - the really cool stuff is in very shallow water at times (because of the tides). While the very experienced divers on "dive only" live-aboard boats may see things that we didn't, the novice divers aren't in any better position than snorklers on the day trips to the reef. Snorkling on "bommies" on the GBR was amazing.

I snorkel and dive, and I really love both. Though I've never been to Hawaii, I've heard the diving isn't as good there as in the Caribbean, so it doesn't seem worth it to get certified just for Hawaii. If you plan to get to the Caribbean in the future, then it might be something to consider.

It is true that diving can be dangerous if you don't know what you're doing. I personally would never want to rely on a resort course. And if you get certified you had better plan on diving every year at least because with too much time in between dive trips you'll forget everything. Before our last dive trip (before which the last trip was 3 1/2 yrs.) we rented dive equipment and practiced in a family member's indoor pool. There is no way I could have just gone diving again with out refreshing my skills. Some dive operators are very strict (and IMO should be) about you having dove recently or they might not let you go with them.

There is nothing like diving. To swim among the fish suspended in the blue ocean waters is so spiritual, dreamlike. I used to be afraid of the idea and said there's no way I'd ever dive. But my husband convinced me, and I'm so glad he did.

Hope you're trip is fun!

I need advice. Me and my fiancee are going to hawaii for our honeymoon. We do not know how to swim since we have lived in a major city all of our lives. We would love to snorkel in maui but we don't know how to. But I heard it is safe even without knowing how to swim. We are terribly afraid of drowning, but love to see what all of you snorklers are seeing. Can anyone advise if the rental places supply like a life vest for us to float? Thanks in advance.

Ray,

Does your town have a YMCA? Call the Y or your town's recreation department to see if you can schedule private swimming lessons before the trip. Tell the teacher (or the person who schedules lessons) your goals for your upcoming trip.

If you want to use a vest make sure it is Coast Guard Approved. Check the size (it's by weight) and check the straps. Make sure the vest won't slip over your head even when buckled.

Best wishes.

I took an introductory dive in Maui and couldn't believe the difference btwn snorkeling and scuba. When you snorkel it seems all the creatures are afraid of you and scamper away, maybe because you're on the surface and the large silhouette scares them. While diving, turtles and exotic fish would swim right in front of me and sort of linger. It is work..checking how much air you have in your tanks, letting air in and out of your vest(and lungs) to make sure you don't sink like a rock or float to the surface, etc etc. It was fairly easy for me, the only problem I had really was the weight of the equipment post-dive. So I do agree with the poster who said if you can't handle a lot of weight don't do it. And you won't be able to go above a certain altitude 24(?) hours after you dive so don't plan on flying anywhere the next day or so.