Dive Review of Scubaqua Dive Center/Old Gin House in
St. Eustatius

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Scubaqua Dive Center/Old Gin House: "A great dive shop in Statia", May, 2016, by Paul Fitzpatrick, TX, US ( Sr. Reviewer 7 reports with 9 Helpful votes). Report 8927 has 1 Helpful vote.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Statia is different from most of the Caribbean in that there is no wall, just a gentle slope away from the island. Much of the coral has grown up on lava flows. The dives are not multi-level as a result; you stay at 60 feet or so for an entire dive before heading up. Nitrox is critical, but Scubaqua Dive Center provides it free as a result. The coral is in very good shape for the Caribbean, and we did not see a lion fish on most dives. The highlight is the abundance of juveniles and small things and the variety of fish. We saw lots of turtles, both green and hawksbill and some very large angels. There are several good wrecks for diving on. Scubaqua Dive Center is an outstanding operation, taking very good care of divers, and finding the hard-to-find critters and fish. We dove in groups of 3-6 per divemaster, and could stay down as long as the air held out and our computers allowed. There is no shorediving. The dive center does 2 morning dives and one afternoon dive. Many divers do one morning and one afternoon dive, so the interval between the 2nd morning dive and the afternoon dive is short. The night dive on The Chien Tong wreck (known as turtle hotel) is well worth doing. The shop is very popular with Europeans; we were the only Americans there. The Old Gin House is the most convenient place to stay. It is okay and certainly better than many places that cater only to divers.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	throughout Caribbean, Galapagos, Hawaii
Closest Airport	Statia	Getting There	Fly from St Martin
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm, no currents
Water Temp	81-°F / 27-°C	Wetsuit Thickness	5
Water Visibility	80-100 Ft/ 24-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Divers had to start for the surface at 750 psi or at no deco limits.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	1 or 2	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish	N/A
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments

Report currently has 1 Helpful vote

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Dive Review of Scubaqua Dive Center/Old Gin House in St. Eustatius

Scubaqua Dive Center/Old Gin House: "A great dive shop in Statia", May, 2016,

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

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

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

Dive Review of Scubaqua Dive Center/Old Gin House in
St. Eustatius