Harry’s Dive Shop

After an arduous hunt for Vibram Five Fingers shoes in New Orleans, we found that Harry’s has a nice selection and more importantly, a well-​informed, patient, and helpful staff. In a modern culture of «get your items and give me your money», Harrry’s staff was courteous and generous with their time, helping us find the right shoes and the right fit. I highly recommend this place!

Harry’s Dive Shop has everything a SCUBA enthusiast, novice, or want-​a-​be diver could imagine. Cindy is owner and the most knowledgable person on this water planet. My son was having ear issues going deep in the water and she said she could remedy and today she kept her word using her secret her magic mental powers he made it to the bottom of the 16′ deep pool several times with no problems. He now is planning on completing the Scuba Orientation class and on to the full Scuba class this coming summer. Way to go Cindy. Thanks again for making someone a very happy camper. Tuna

Stopped by here for a scuba refresher course. The cost was pretty standard, $ 200, and was 2 – 3 hrs long. The staff are very friendly and the course was thorough, Suzanne was my instructor. They have a pool in the back which is also open every Saturday for diving practice. They also do swim classes. Medium-​sized shop with a pretty good selection of gear to choose from.

My boyfriend has wanted to get dive certified for a while now, so for our anniversary he bought me my starter gear (fins, boots, a weigh belt and weights, and a mask with snorkel) and covered my class fee of $ 350. Notice I said, «he» always wanted to get dive certified. Despite the fact that I had never had a yearning to become scuba certified, I thought, «what the heck» and I love marine life. Hello, Finding Nemo!
We took the entry-​level Open Water Diver certification, basically Diving 101. The class was three weeks, twice a week. Though I didn’t admit it to them, I have had anxiety issues in the past in regards to tight, closed space and topics on how one might die… That being said, our instructor Todd along with other members of the staff did their absolute best to make Robert and I feel comfortable with the learning material, gear and getting acclimated to the under water environment and processes that will lead to our continued existence. I know feel like I have a white belt in Diving… not much, but a huge accomplishment for me!
Besides the instructors, Cindy, the current owner and daughter of Harry, is this tough-​as-​nails seasoned diver that will answer any and every question you might have in regards to diving. Think of her as a diving samurai. The rest of the retail staff are really sweet too. I wanted to try out a pair of goggles during class, and they were very comfortable with me using them and returning them later that week.
Diving ain’t cheap, but like learning a language, it’s a skill you will have for life and can continue to grow (locally, through other classes at Harry’s). I appreciate the anniversary gift immensely and it will come in handy when we visit Costa Rica in January. Once you get past the Open Water Certification, diving is as expensive as you want it to be considering the gear and continued learning. Harry’s has more of the top-​end stuff, but I’m sure Cindy would be able to recommended items in different price ranges, and I do believe they have a rent-​to-​own gear option.
Also, once you become certified, the community of divers that work and go to Harry’s Dive Shop seem to be extremely welcoming. I look forward to completing my Check Out Dive soon, and joining that community. :)

I have really come to love this place over the past few months. Here’s why:
EDUCATION:
These guys offer a TON of SSI classes, and they offer them often. From the research I’ve done, SSI courses are more stringent than PADI, and then the instructors here go beyond that even. There are plenty of things that I’m willing to be lazy and skate by with the minimum requirements, but when my life is hanging on the line? No way. So I definitely appreciate how focused they are here on making sure their new divers are not only certified, but actually qualified to get in the water and be safe about it. They are very pro-​continuing-​education as well, which I dig. Course prices seem to be in line with the ones I’ve seen elsewhere.
FACILITY:
LOVE. They have their own indoor pool, and the water stays at a cozy 88 degrees year-​round. Depth is 16 feet at the deep end, and roughly 4 feet in the shallow end. This allows them to offer cool stuff that a lot of places I’ve looked at don’t, like their awesome Saturday stuff: lap swimming ($ 5), Try Scuba (only $ 25 including gear), and pool diving ($ 25-​$ 35). Restrooms are clean and well-​maintained, and there are a couple of hot showers to rinse the chlorine off right there by the pool.
RETAIL SHOP:
The selection is a little limited (they actually do have more stuff than what they can display due to the limited space, so definitely ask if you’re looking for something you don’t see), but they seem to have pretty much everything you would need to get started and be comfortable in the water. After doing some research on the web, I’m figuring out that they don’t carry a lot of lower-​end equipment. They carry brands that have a reputation for good quality and great customer service (ScubaPro, Aqualung, etc); products they feel are tried & true and that they can stand behind. Wetsuits are upstairs, with a couple of dressing rooms as well. My favorite part of the retail setup? That you can try out stuff before you actually buy it. Some things look amazing and sound perfect but you never really know how it’s going to fit /​feel /​work until you get it in the water. Prices are right in line with what you’ll find online for some of the bigger ticket items, but so seem a bit higher for some of the smaller /​accessory type things.
They also offer rental gear, tank fills, equipment service, the whole nine yards. In response to another reviewer’s comment about service, I will say this — there are brands that they carry and service, and then there are brands that they can service but have to order parts for (which can take up to 6 weeks from the mfr, which is why they don’t carry those lines). If you didn’t buy your equipment from them and aren’t familiar with their brands, I would definitely check to see what the turnaround time is for your specific piece of equipment. The are definitely not a larger shop with infinite inventory of parts for every single brand out there.
This place has the look and feel of your grandma’s house. Lots of dark wood, pictures everywhere, tons of homage to the past and to loved ones all over the place that you can’t possibly even pick up on the first few times you walk through the door. Everything has a story. There’s a big TV in the front that they have tuned to kid-​friendly movies at times, which is awesome for the times I’m there with the kiddo. They also have quite a few pet birds that live in one of the back rooms, and during the day you can usually find one or more of them wandering around the store.
STAFF:
Everyone here has at least some experience with the equipment and experience in the water, and can make recommendations based on something beyond the catalog description. They give you pros and cons to the different types of fins, BCs, the whole nine yards, and will work with you to try and find what’s going to suit your individual needs, even if that happens to take forever because you’re had to fit. I haven’t ever been made to feel like I was asking a «dumb» question (although I’m sure there have been plenty of those) and have never been talked down to because I am inexperienced and don’t know jack. We’ve gotten lots of personal advice, lots of welcome and smiles, and heartfelt congratulations and excitement for our certification and upcoming trip to Curaçao. I seriously LOVE these people, every single one of them (and we’ve dealt with them all at some point or another over these past few months, it seems). I felt like family from the very first day I walked in, and always leave with that «I just wanna hang out for a while» feeling. My kid runs and gives hugs the moment he walks through the door and again before we leave, and they are always welcomed with open arms.
BOTTOM LINE:
Good gear, convenient facility, super people that have «been there and done that» and are willing to share that information to make your life easier, and eager to welcome you into the fold of this sport for which they have much passion. Winning combination.

Best Dive Shop!!!

Extremely nice and well educated. Have been diving for a long time and just moved into town. They were extremely nice and inviting !