Dive Review of
Mermaid Sport Divers/N/A in
Aruba

All over the Caribbean.  Cozumel.  Bermuda.  Florida and Florida Keys

Dive Conditions

Based on your experience.  Usually, they want to keep you around 100 ft.
but there are a couple of reefs, one notably (Fingers), that can go to 120
and beyond.    

Seperate rinse tanks both at the shop and on the boat.  Overall good photo
opportunities for both macro and normal shots.    

Overall Rating

I have been going to Aruba for 16 years (time-share owners at Playa Linda
Beach Resort on the stip at Palm Beach) and diving it for 6.  It always
seems to get short shrift in the Chapbook for its diving, with reports
saying the diving is a pleasant diversion from the night life, bars,
casinos, etc.  While Aruba definitely has all that (and some recent less
than stellar publicity), the diving is underrated as I and those I know see
it. The wrecks get the most press.  The Antilla (a German WW II freighter
intentionally sunk by its German crew on the high-rise hotel side of the
island) is a great site, good for easy penetration and home to many large
and occasionally free-swimming green morays as well as many, many smaller
spotted morays.  Visability can be a bit spotty -- poor to good.  Another
wreck on this side of the island is the Pedernales, sunk in about 30 feet. 
Vis is usually quite good and the surrounding reef and fish are always
interesting.

The Jane Sea wreck on the South Shore is fairly deep -- 95 to the sand by
the stern -- and very easy to penetrate.  The twin plane wrecks by the
Sonesta reef are a blast.  The newer one is intact; you enter the rear of
the plane and swim through the fuselage - all seats removed - up towards
the cockpit, which has all of the controls and pilot seats intact.  You can
almost picture the skeleton people from Pirates of the Caribbean sitting at
the controls!  You then exit at the side of the plane by the cockpit. 
Cool.

What seems to be a secret is the reef diving in Aruba.  Depending on the
site, the corals and sponges can be surprisingly healthy. 
"Fingers," a deep reef dive can drop to 130 feet, though most
dive op's will keep you well above that.  Tire Reef, Mango Halto and
Sonesta are all medium depth reef-drift dives with interesting critters. 
Squid, shrimp, HUGE lobster, numerous large green morays and occasional
(very) reef sharks, turtles and occasional sea horses.

I have dove with practically all of the op's in Aruba and Mermaid Sport
Divers is by far the best.  They are located near the high-rise hotels and
Carlos, the owner, will pick you up from any of the resorts and take you
back after the dives.  Their boat is at the main town pier in Oranjested
(which saves a long boat ride from the resort-strip to the South Shore dive
sites).  They drive you there in their van.  Tito, the boat captain, is an
authentic Aruba legend whose talents include everything from
stunt-motorcycle riding to steel-drum playing.  He sometimes, depending on
the number of divers (usually less than 10), accompanies the main
divemaster, Bero, who is really what keeps me coming back year after year! 
Bero is one of those rare individuals who is always happy!  From newbie
novice to veterans with thousands of dives, Bero's goal is to assure a
safe, memorable dive for everyone - and he always succeeds, making everyone
feel like a part of his family.  He's uncanny at finding all sorts of
critters, large and small.  A true professional and a compassionate, caring
person, he takes the cake as the divemaster extraordinaire.  As for
profiles and freedom, if they are familiar with your skill level, they'll
let you dive your own profile.  You won't want to wander too far away from
Bero, though -- you'll miss too much!  Find a seahorse, show the
divemaster, and get a free dive.


 

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