Big Island Watersports

I am a certified PADI diver. My dad is not. He is, however, certified to use an airpack as he is a hazmat/​firefighter. Once, we went on a discover SCUBA dive in Curaçao (my first ever dive). He was not a big fan of the discover SCUBA. Because of that, I knew we would not be able to do another discover and the times weren’t right to do a Scuba /​snorkel because we were coming off the cruise ship. So hey — let’s try SNUBA!
It was right next to the Kailua pier, where our ship docked. My voucher said to check in at the shack and I was a little unsure where that was — so if you’re looking from the hotel towards the ocean, it’s towards the left. We did our health questionnaires and got geared up. It was January, so at first — it was a little cold, but warmed up once we got a little further out. We did a shore dive so we had to swim out (with equipment on) a little while. Then we headed down. Oh man did I forget how much I like to be under water! The SNUBA was definitely a freeing experience, but I did feel sort of like I had a leash on at times. I would go a little too far and I’d feel a tug and kept thinking someone was grabbing my (non-​existent) tank. Overall, it was a very enjoyable dive. The best part? When we got back to the shack, my dad said he would definitely do that again and it was one of his favorite excursions from this trip. Scored some daughter points!
Sorry I have no pictures — forgot the underwater camera…

A friend and I dove with Big Island Water Sports last week as a part of a cruise excursion. The crew was very curtious and was a pleasure to dive with. The sites would rival some of those in Cozemel and are all within minutes of the marina. The only reason I am giving them three stars is the fact of the condition of the rental gear. We both went through five regulator sets before we were able to find regs that did not have isssues. My first dive only lasted a little over ten minutes at depths less than 55 feet due to leaking BC dump valve and multiple leaks in the regulator (I manually inflate my BC to conserve air and add bottom time) normally I get 55 – 65 minutes. When I questioned them on the first dive about the leaks they said not to worry it was not that big. Hind site is always ²⁰⁄₂₀ but looking back on it now I should have been more insistant and demanded a refund but did not want to cause a scene.

Please Ignore the bad review here that Mike wrote. He is a fool, and knows nothing of the dangers. Experienced Scuba Divers would know better. He should give himself one star for being stupid. Here is a review from my trip two weeks ago:
I would go into the Manta Ray dive but the other reviews are right on the money with the description. The only thing I would add is that we saw more Mantas than 28, I think they said there were about 40, but I don’t know how they can tell when the water is so filled with them and they are doing that awesome dance above our heads. I have done some really cool dives all over the world and this is a really unique experience and should not be missed if you are on the Big Island.
I wanted to also re-​assert how awesome this dive company was, and specifically Colin and Janine. I have paid big money to go on live aboard trips in the Caribbean and Thailand, Mexico and Hawaii, and the professionalism of the crew, the boat, and the care given to the divers was above and beyond anything I would have expected. They have a first class boat and they don’t get greedy and over crowd the vessel, and the snacks were great too. And best of all they made this whole thing a lot of fun with humor and knowledge of the experience related to us so well. From goofy hats for a great picture, to excellent professional briefings and site descriptions, these guys are first class.
One example of going above and beyond the call, was that my sister couldn’t find her dive card and Janine and Colin went on a mission to find it online. They could have easily said tough luck, but they made it happen, and it was so very appreciated by my whole party. They deserve my highest rating for all aspects of this adventure!

The first thing they did was snoop on our kid to determine our health problems. A perfectly healthy kid with asthma was not allowed to go snooba-​ing and had to snorkel. So that ruined it for 2 of the 3 people.
The locations were too close so the snorkeling was lame. It was just like my hotel. The only thing they got right was the gear, it worked ok. But they wouldnt let my wife go down below 10 feet either because she asked about earache. What they should have done was refund our money so we could go somewhere else with less sneaky personnel.

This was only the 2^nd time I’ve been snorkling. They were very friendly and down to earth, but also clearly knew what they were doing. They took us out along with a more experienced group of scuba divers, but did an excellent job of attending to everyone’s needs.
The water was beautiful and clear. We saw no sea turtles, which was a little disappointing to me, but some brilliantly colored fish.

Walt told us they ran «a first rate Mickey Mouse operation», but they were really just first rate. Down to earth, found some great reefs, knew the areas well and directed us to schools of pretty fish while we were snorkeling. The guys who run the operation, Lynn and Walt, are affable and welcoming.
We went snorkeling under Walt’s careful watch while four boys (I would guess ranging from 9 — 17 years) worked withe Lynn on their certifications under the sea. Very low key– but what impressed me was the way these guys took care of their passengers– from the newbie snorkelers with shaky sealegs to the youngest scuba student who got cold earlier than his older brothers.
Walt gave us some great restaurant recommendations, pointed out all of the fish we would see and helped me identify the blue parrot fish I saw in addition to the others with picture cards.
Walt even showed us «very special piranhas» that feed on cheetos (not really piranhas at all, but I forget what he told me they really were) — it’s not often you get to cheetoh-​feed the fish!
The waters were a little rough that day, but we really enjoyed the experience– and Walt and Lynn couldn’t have been nicer– I am usually a do-​it-​yourself adventure girl vs. the planned tour excursion, but I would say this experience was definitely worth the money and it’s obvious these gentlemen love sharing the Honokohau Bay area with those who visit. After seeing the other tour boats in the harbor packed with tourists, I was even happier with our choice — 6 of us, 2 crew, great service and a lovely afternoon on a smaller boat. Mahalo Big Island Water Sports!