Main Menu
Join Undercurrent on Facebook

The Private, Exclusive Guide for Serious Divers Since 1975 | |
For Divers since 1975
The Private, Exclusive Guide for Serious Divers Since 1975
"Best of the Web: scuba tips no other
source dares to publish" -- Forbes
X
 

Dive Review of Komodo Dancer in
Indonesia/Bali, Komodo, Flores

Komodo Dancer, Aug, 2005,

by Edith and John Summey, IL, USA . Report 2111.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 4 stars Food 4 stars
Service and Attitude 4 stars Environmental Sensitivity N/A
Dive Operation 4 stars Shore Diving 3 stars
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 4 stars
Advanced 5 stars
Comments This was a return trip with my husband after a great solo trip on Komodo Dancer the previous September. I had gotten great videos and photos during that trip. The visibility had been perfect, diving superior, the service excellent, guest-staff interaction entertaining and delightful, and the trip very enjoyable. I wanted my husband to experience the same. So, I had high expectations. Many of those expectations were met, others were not. Some were due to chance like visibility and dive conditions. I guess it is impossible to compare two trips because you never see the same thing the same way. I did manage to accumulate an impressive collection of rather spectacular photos of various underwater scenes and creatures.
One difficulty during this trip was a feeling of restriction from the imposition of a 60-minute limit on dives especially after having more freedom to dive one's own capacity during our two immediately previous liveaboard trips in North Sulawesi. It is one thing to know that there is a certain quantity of gas in one's cylinder and to be able to choose how to manage it in order to control the dive time and quite another to have an artificial limit placed on the dive. The preset time becomes a deadline that looms like a threat creating a sense of urgency and pressure that disturbs the tranquility of the dive. It robs the diver of one more element of discretion about shaping each underwater experience. At the end of a dive it can cut off a last minute opportunity to capture something special that may appear. That potential contributes to a state of anxiety. Every diver cannot magically exit the water in exactly 60 minutes, so the divemasters should not make a big issue about whether a diver ends the dive at 57 minutes or 64 minutes. The dive master and tender should be there to service and assist the divers, not act like a drill sargeant issuing orders.
The bottom line of a dive trip is that you can be on the best boat in the best waters with the best marine life around, but if the dive staff makes you feel uncomfortable about some aspect of diving and becomes overbearing, it is difficult to enjoy the trip. If the September trip had been like the August trip, there would have been no August trip for us.

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience Over 1000 dives
Where else diving USA (FL, IL, NC, TX, MO, CA, Alaska), Canada(BC, Nanavut), Greenland, Carribbean(Bahamas, Turks&Caicos, Curacau, Bonaire, Belize, Mexico)Pacific(Socorro, CocosIsland , Galapagos, Tahiti, Truk Lagoon, Palau, Yap, Sipadan, Bali, N.Sulawesi, Phuket, Burma, PNG) Australia, Antartica, Mediterranean (Costa Brava, S. France, Corsica, Sardina, Italy), Red Sea
Closest Airport Getting There

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, dry Seas calm
Water Temp 80-0°F / 27--18°C Wetsuit Thickness 0
Water Visibility 80-0 Ft/ 24-0 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions The biggest problem was quibbling over precision of the hour limit of dives. Rigidity in this "rule" was unreasonable and irritating and ultimately caused a breakdown of harmony. Divers should not be subjected to a hassle over a few minutes one way or the other.
Liveaboard? yes Nitrox Available? N/A

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas 1 or 2
Dolphins 1 or 2 Whale Sharks None
Turtles 1 or 2 Whales None
Corals 5 stars Tropical Fish 5 stars
Small Critters 5 stars Large Fish 4 stars
Large Pelagics 3 stars

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

Subject Matter 5 stars Boat Facilities 5 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 5 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments Good charging station, adequate staging area for cameras and housings prior to diving. Towels for drying and covering housings and cameras.
Was this report helpful to you?
Leave a comment (Subscribers only -- 200 words max)
Subscribers can comment here
 

Subscribe Now
Subscribers can post comments, ask the reviewer questions, as well as getting immediate and complete access to ALL 1386 dive reviews of Indonesia and all other dive destinations. Complete access to all issues and Chapbooks is also included.

 
Featured Links from Our Sponsors
Interested in becoming a sponsor?
Reef & Rainforest, Let our experience be your guide -- Reef and Rainforest
Reef & Rainforest
is an agency for travelers that scuba dive. Looking for Biodiversity, critters, Komodo, Raja Ampat, temples? We specialize in adventures to Indonesia.

Want to assemble your own collection of Indonesia reports in one place?
Use the Mini Chapbook Facility to create your personalized collection.

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.

Undercurrent Home


Get more dive info like these and other important scuba updates sent monthly to your email.
And a FREE Recent Issue of Undercurrent

Free Undercurrent Issue
Get a free
monthly email and
a sample issue!


Find in  

| Home | Online Members Area | My Account | Login | Join |
| Travel Index | Dive Resort & Liveaboard Reviews | Featured Reports | Recent Issues | Back Issues |
| Dive Gear Index | Health/Safety Index | Environment & Misc. Index | Seasonal Planner | Blogs | Free Articles | Book Picks | News |
| Special Offers | RSS | FAQ | About Us | Contact Us | Links |

Copyright © 1996-2024 Undercurrent (www.undercurrent.org)
3020 Bridgeway, Ste 102, Sausalito, Ca 94965
All rights reserved.

Page computed and displayed in 0.13 seconds