About Me
No info available
Activities
Going to do my best to be fair here, and my only motivation for writing this review is so that divers can make informed decisions when they’re planning their time/spending their money.
Good stuff first!
- The skippers were always very pleasant, the (older) Steve brought energy and fun to the boat
- Dan was super helpful in giving buddy pairs suggestions for planning their dives
Other stuff:
- I made the poor decision to spend 2 weeks in Tutukaka on my own - the town is absurdly expensive; this is not a Dive! Tutukaka problem of course, but I personally witnessed a diver asking the front desk staff for recommendations, with the front desk staff not providing him with anything; I jumped him and suggested a few places he could go (recommendations the surf shop down the road had given me)
- The guides seem pretty inexperienced (most that I came across had basically done all their training/diving only in this one location, and weren’t planning dives well); on one particular dive the guide ran an up/down/up/down profile, and was freaking out about me going down to 26m (I am a DMT with over 300 dives in 18 months, over 350 now, across 9 countries and countless dive sites/conditions/currents); as a result of this I developed an immediate sinus migraine (pretty common to many divers who are forced to do an up/down/up/down profile by some guides, especially when the guide in question wants everyone within an arms length so you’re also getting constantly smacked in the head by other divers’ fins) and couldn’t stop throwing up - I knew what I was dealing with and asked this guide for some space, but she was belligerent (while I’m throwing up into a bag for like the 5th time) making snarky remarks at me (literally while throwing up) and again while I’m getting some rest so the headache could settle. I gently conveyed to Dan this is not appreciated or appropriate, but of course this particular guides ego was far too inflated to offer any sort of apology for her behaviour, not did the operation offer a partial refund for the dive I had to skip due to the limitations of their guides’ abilities.
- In buddy pairs, the diving was far more enjoyable, though the diving in PKIs is pretty below average; poor vis, not much to see other than rays and nudis; don’t believe the PADI website and lists; spend your money elsewhere if you’re a foreigner. the Northern Arch and Blue MaoMao arch were pretty much the only dive sites worth doing - but once and done.
- If you’re travelling with your own gear, be careful. I requested the operation to give my gear a rinse after the migraine incident, and came back the next day to have my gear strewn all over the back of the shop; deeply disrespectful. As divers we all know how much gear costs and we invest our hard earned money in it; thankfully my gear wasn’t damaged or lost, but for the kind of prices you pay, this is not what you expect.
- Again, if you’re travelling with your own gear, they will not rinse it, and they ask you to hang it up in the strong, strong, New Zealand summer sun. NOPE. First rule of caring for your scuba gear - never put it in the sun; I was pretty shocked that they asked me to do this on multiple occasions, which I politely but firmly refused to do. They also give you a filthy tub to rinse your gear in.
- a fellow lovely female diver asked the same snarky guide if there was a place she could have a quick shower as she was leaving in her campervan soon after - “sorry, no”. After the first time I used their toilet I realized she lied. Bizarre. I had met the diver on the same day, and offered her a shower in my hotel room since the dive operation clearly seemed to lack..I don’t know, kindness? Honesty?
- like I said, I’ve dived in 9 countries; idk how many sites and conditions within those and I’ve never come across a crew with less of a vibe. I was a solo traveller, and sure, everyone was nice - contrived - but nice. No genuine kindness whatsoever, though.
- Kelly, Andrea, Ceara, Steve, and Dan were nice tho. Totally not worth the money however. - via 