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Dive Review of Kosrae Nautilus Resort in
Micronesia/Kosrae

Kosrae Nautilus Resort, Jul, 2013,

by Leigh Vinzant, CO, US (Reviewer Reviewer 6 reports). Report 7072.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 4 stars Food 4 stars
Service and Attitude 5 stars Environmental Sensitivity 5 stars
Dive Operation 5 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ 4 stars
Beginners 5 stars
Advanced 4 stars
Comments The main objective of this trip was to go the Chuuk and dive the wrecks of Truk Lagoon. Because it was such a long ways to travel, we chose to break it up and spend a week in Kosrae. This ended up being an excellent decision. To get to Kosrae, we took United's island hopper from Honolulu, making stops in Majuro and Kwajalein first. Everything went smoothly from the time of our arrival until we were dropped back off at the end of the week. Salik from Kosrae Nautilus Resort was waiting to greet us at the airport. He drove us to the resort and delivered our bags to our room while we met Doug, the owner and checked in. The room was large, clean and comfortable with cold a/c and hot running water. The resort had a pool, bar, restaurant, and on-site dive operation. The food was good and service was friendly. Fresh fish was available most days and many of the fruits and vegetables were grown on the property. We arrived on a Saturday and after a good night's sleep, we were ready for some exploring. Pretty much everything on the island shut down on Sunday, including the diving, but Doug made arrangements for us to go on a mountain hike to see Japanese WWII caves and a waterfall. The hike was beautiful through the rainforest, but if you go be prepared for intense heat and humidity! Our diving began the next morning. Two-tank dives were the norm, but we opted to do three dives a day and it wasn't a problem for Nautilus divers. Around 8 o'clock after we'd had breakfast, we loaded our gear into a dive trailer and van and headed to one of the two dive boats that Nautilus divers owned. They kept them at different marinas and once the wind and swell had been determined, Doug decided which boat to use. We were fortunate that the winds died down in July and we could dive anywhere we wanted due to flat, calm conditions. By the end of the week we had dove all the way around the island. Kosrae was known as "the Hard Coral Capital of the World." I was extremely impressed with the variety, abundance, and health of the coral. Caribbean divers will be amazed! Most of our dives were between 40 to 70 feet and lasted at least an hour. Buoys were installed to protect the reefs, so we would start our dive at one buoy and drift with whatever gentle current there happened to be. Our guide would tow a float and the boat would follow. We were picked up wherever we surfaced. Often, we made it to the next buoy and the boat would be moored there waiting for us. In addition to hundreds of kinds of coral, we saw a great variety of reef fish. There were so many types of butterflies and angelfish and lots of colorful anthias and anemonefish. We saw a few sharks, many turtles, and even a manta ray. We were served cold water before and after each dive and there was fresh fruit and banana bread available during our surface intervals. Lunch was served during our second surface interval. On several days, the spinner dolphins came out to play. Doug would drive the boat so they could swim in our wake. After diving, we loaded the van and headed back to the resort. The farthest marina was about 30 minutes away, but it made for very short boat rides. Of the two boats, the smaller one could hold four divers and entry was by back roll. The larger one could hold more divers, but Doug prefers to limit it to six. Divers had the option of back roll or giant stride entries on this boat.. We never had more than three diving guests and on some days, it was only the two of us. In addition, we never saw another dive boat the whole week. Back at the resort, there was a fresh water rinse tank and a place to hang gear to dry. At night, it was locked in a secure room. The resort at first look is a bit plain, but it is very efficient and environmentally friendly. Everything was in great working order and we were never in need of anything. I would love to return to Kosrae to dive again and would definitely stay at Kosrae Nautilus Resort.
Websites Kosrae Nautilus Resort   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 501-1000 dives
Where else diving Florida, Bahamas, Grand Turk, Bonaire, Roatan, Belize, Caymans, Truk Lagoon, British Columbia
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny Seas calm, no currents
Water Temp 85-86°F / 29-30°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 60-200 Ft/ 18-61 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Dives were loosely guided. Needed to be in the vicinity of the guide in order to surface near the float.
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks 1 or 2 Mantas 1 or 2
Dolphins Schools Whale Sharks None
Turtles > 2 Whales None
Corals 5 stars Tropical Fish 5 stars
Small Critters 4 stars Large Fish 2 stars
Large Pelagics 4 stars

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

Subject Matter N/A Boat Facilities N/A
Overall rating for UWP's N/A Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments [None]
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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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