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Dive Review of Jack's Diving/ in
Hawaii/Kona

Jack's Diving/ , Oct, 2009,

by Jan C, WA, USA (Reviewer Reviewer 3 reports). Report 5230.

No photos available at this time

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Accommodations N/A Food N/A
Service and Attitude N/A Environmental Sensitivity 4 stars
Dive Operation 5 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 2 stars
Beginners 4 stars
Advanced 3 stars
Comments I am never sure how to report on Hawaii diving. I love to dive but I also like to see things when I dive. The dive shop did a great job - their customer service is great (even if the check in is always a little harried and seems unorganized). Jack's boats are in good shape and once you are onboard you are well taken care of. The problems start once you get in the water. I listen to dive briefings, but I am skeptical about the part raving what you will see - there are never any guarantees that there will be all these great things - yes, it is possible, but well, let's get real, it is a crap shoot about what will be at a site on a given day. The saddest thing about Hawaii diving is the lack of fish - we saw the same few species on all three dives and nothing over 10 inches. All small skittery fish (guess I would be skittery too if I knew that there was a good chance the person looking at me wanted to collect me for someone's aquarium). I was very disappointed with the quality of the reefs - there are hundreds of urchins and crown of thorns - which eat up everything - and lots of algae. Diving in Hawaii is also very expensive. What I paid for an advanced dive and the Manta dive was more than I paid for the condo for a week (ok, I got a good deal on the condo, but still I think $225 is alot to pay for 3 dives). I selected the advanced dives because I dive year round and didn't want to be on a boat with students or folks who dive every couple years when they go on vacation. The other divers on the boat were good divers and we averaged over 60 minutes per dive. The manta dive is great - well, great when they mantas show up - and for us they did. The first dive is a bust - no coral and very few fish. It is possible to find a couple interesting things - we saw a rare butterfly fish - but that really wasn't enough for a whole dive. The mantas are wonderful and it is great fun - but again, 40 minutes of good fun (and not really diving, just sitting on the bottom watching them) - for 2 dives isn't a great deal for your money. I am heading to Maui next month and will do some shore diving - will report how that looks. Last time there was lots of runoff from new homes being built in the Kihei area - so we'll see. Hawaii needs tourists to come back, they need to think about their natural resources - and figure out how to revive them because it will be a long time before I spend that much money to see very little.
Websites Jack's Diving   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience Over 1000 dives
Where else diving Caribbean, Bonaire, Fiji, Australia
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas calm
Water Temp 78-°F / 26-°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 50-75 Ft/ 15-23 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Advanced dives - we dove our own profiles. On the first dive, DM restricted our bottom time, but on later dives we were on our computers and dived until air or dive time ran out.
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas Squadrons
Dolphins Schools Whale Sharks None
Turtles None Whales None
Corals 2 stars Tropical Fish 2 stars
Small Critters 2 stars Large Fish N/A
Large Pelagics N/A

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Subject Matter 3 stars Boat Facilities 4 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 3 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments Good set up for cameras - large rinse tanks and camera tables.
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Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

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