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Dive Review of AquaCat in
Bahamas/Exumas

AquaCat, Jan, 2004,

by Douglas Hansen, CA, USA (Contributor Contributor 15 reports). Report 989.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 4 stars Food 5 stars
Service and Attitude 4 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 5 stars Shore Diving 1 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 5 stars
Advanced 3 stars
Comments The AquaCat is a very comfortable boat with a very good crew. They went out of their way to accomodate their passengers. The boat is in excellent shape with very large cabins. There is lots of storage space in the cabins, and the crew will store your empty suitcases elsewhere on the boat so you dont't waste cabin storage space on luggage. The food was very good and perhaps a little overly plentiful! It was easy to put on a few extra pounds during the trip. Upto five dives a day are possible, including a night dive on most days. Most of the rooms had large picture windows, all the rooms had individual air conditioning controls, private heads and showers, and even a small refrigerator. Hot showers were available on the dive deck. Nitrox was available for an extra charge, and you had your choice of tank capacities. Often there were snacks available on the dive deck after dives. Sea kayaking, fishing, lobstering, and shore excursions were available for no extra charge.

The crew was very safety conscious, often checking the current before allowing divers to enter the water. A check-in/check-out board was used to keep track of divers on board or in the water. Drift dives were done en masse. A chase boat was available in case some divers surfaced far from the boat. There was always at least one divemaster or instructor in the water during the dives. However, once they were satisfied with your skills, you could go off and dive your own profile.

The diving was nice, but generally not that exciting. There were several nice sites, especially Dog Rocks wall, and at several sites we saw numerous sharks and large grouper. However, most of the dives were in fairly shallow areas with sand and rubble bottom. The corals were not in very good shape in some areas, and the fish life could be a little sparse. Some of the drift dives were in very minor current, and the divers were herded together by the divemasters so that we could all be picked up at once. The one shark feeding dive was interesting for about 10 minutes, then I wandered off to try and find other creatures.

My wife and I felt that the service provided by the crew was exceptional, and that the accomodations were excellent. The diving ranged from fair to good. This is an excellent boat and itinerary for new and intermediate divers. Divers with more experience may want to look for something a little more challenging.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 251-500 dives
Where else diving California, Bonaire, Curacao, Fiji, Indonesia, Palau, Philippines, Cayman Islands, Hawaii, Florida Keys
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, windy, cloudy Seas choppy, currents, noCurrents
Water Temp 74-77°F / 23-25°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 50-80 Ft/ 15-24 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Depth: 130 ft. Max., less if using Nitrox
Liveaboard? yes Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks Lots Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles None Whales None
Corals 3 stars Tropical Fish 4 stars
Small Critters 4 stars Large Fish 5 stars
Large Pelagics 2 stars

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

Subject Matter 4 stars Boat Facilities 4 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 4 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments Dedicated camera rinse tanks and one large table. Outlets nearby for recharging. The camera table was a little small for the number of photographers on this trip.
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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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