Easily accessible from Florida; pretty reefs, decent tropicals, and plenty of resorts that feed sharks; excellent for long weekends. . . . Hurricane season June through October; winter weather December to March means mid-70s and cooler water; sweaters in the evening; average nighttime temperature is mid-60s, but can drop into 50s if winter air blows off the continent. . . . While Nassau is surrounded with expensive hotels and restaurants, readers report occasional surly behavior by locals. . . . Out island resorts small and personal. . . . Of the islands with a land-based resort, San Salvador offers the best diving.

Andros

Small Hope Bay, December 1996, Ray Fealko, Cortland, OH. "Water 77 degrees, vis. 50 to 100 feet. Give more leniency to your dive profile than most; not interested in certification or logs. Took us to the wall, informed us the best coral to be found is ­ below 130 feet and threw the anchors over the side unto the coral. Have the been doing this for 37 years? Then they suspend a bucket over the side and told us to stay in sight of it. Once down, they work certifying divers (or baby-sitting instead of guiding). The shallow second dives are in 25 feet of uneventful corals in a surge. . . . They push specialty dives as being more personal at an extra cost. Got the opinion the entire lodge is being run with that idea. If you don't pay extra ­ no extra treatment. Small Hope Bay Lodge is pretty ragged looking, rustic, a primitive and remote destination."

Small Hope Bay, February 1997, Robert & Michelle Brearley, Johnson City, NY. "60+ dive sites. Special Blue Hole, night and deep "over­the ­wall" dives. No current, no surge. Ride to most sites under 10 minutes. Great vis (120­150ft.) Water: 77 degrees. Abundant marine life with wide variety of reef fishes and healthy sponges and corals. Saw barracuda, rays, octopi and dolphin. Previous week group swam with a whale shark and captured on underwater video. Pristine water and beaches. Impressive dive staff. Three divemasters Jim, Mike and Skeebo very knowledgeable, caring, great senses of humor and high regard for safety. Took the time to teach better technique. Ratio of divemasters to divers was sometimes as low as 1:1 yet all dives went off on schedule (3 per day plus night dive when six or more sign up). Boats large, clean, well maintained and fast. Videographer, Paige, accompanied most dives and will compile your own personal video including footage from your most memorable dives at your request. Videos are edited, set to music and augmented with a bit of canned footage. The result is studio quality and a treasured keepsake. . . . Buffet meals (breakfast to order) served in the central lodge dining area are excellent and presented beautifully. Staff is warm and friendly. Cabins are clean and quaint and constructed of indigenous materials imparting just the right "island" feel. More than adequate for our dive needs. Classy operation. We are not experienced divers nor world travelers but cannot imagine a dive vacation much better than this."

Small Hope Bay, April 1997, Karin Scherner, Vienna, VA. "My first diving experience; got certified I am definitely hooked. The dive instructor was great and provided the patience and personal attention I needed. Small Hope does not offer TV, AC, radios. It is all "get away from it all" place. I enjoyed it tremendously. vis: 100­150 ft. water: 70­76 degrees."

Small Hope Bay, June 1997, J. David Osguthorpe, Charleston, SC. "Food plentiful though mostly mundane (which is OK), the reefs as good as most in the Caribbean (Belize barrier reef, South Caicos, are a few exceptions), and the people were friendly. Facilities seem to be deteriorating. Founder Dick Birch died last year, and while the ownership is still in "the family", how much of the profit is being plowed back into the resort is unclear. . . . one of the two motors on the main dive boat was out for 3 days (those "10-15 minute trips to the reef" weren't), Several cabins leaked in a heavy rain. Resort still represents a cost effective, pleasant trip. Recommend it (especially to divers who travel with children, as they are entertained while you're diving."

Small Hope Bay, July 1997, Jean & Bob Kirkpatrick, Russellville, KY. "Twenty-one family members, from 1 to 65. Best place we've found for this group. Very family oriented with a laid back atmosphere. Even give dinner to children 2-12 and baby-sit them. Well equipped playroom with ping pong table. Rustic beach front cottages with ceiling fans, no A/C. Beaches are nice, with hammocks and lounges. Two kayaks, hot tub, no pool. Fun snorkeling at dock and in nearby creek. Great terrace with bar and outdoor buffet for most meals. All meals, drinks and three dives/day included. Food is great! Diving is good. Short boat rides, some very unusual sites. The Blue Hole and Over the Wall. AM dives at 9:30. first dive deep, 2nd very shallow with short surface interval. PM dive at 2 usually 50 ft.. vis: 50-100 ft. water: 84-86 degrees. Staff nice, conscious of safety and reef protection. Dive boat fair, no cover and tank racks in center rather than behind seats. Great atmosphere if you don't need luxury. Also great bone fishing."

Bimini

Bahama Island Adventures/Bimini Beach Club, June 1997, Lawrence H. Moser, Charleston, SC. "Divemaster Marko, kept a clean boat, good location talks. Able to dive our own profile, up with 500 psi. vis: 75-100 ft. water: 83-85 degrees. No dive restrictions enforced, able to dive our computers. No longer does a night dive. Big disappointment. New owners are trying to renovate and upgrade. Food simple, but good. Emil, the resort manager, makes you feel at home."

Bimini Island Adventures/Bimini Beach Club, February 1997, Gloria Davis, St. James, MO. "Resort is clean and comfortable but basic. Rooms have no phone or TV but do have A.C. No locks on doors so don't bring valuables, no desk safe either. No problem with crime on island, but I was nervous leaving camera and jewelry unattended. Food OK. Breakfast had good variety and lots of it but lunch was just a sandwich and chips, hot dogs served once. Dinner not included but very good at resort, also very good food on north Bimini if you want to catch the ferry to Alice Town. Friendly people. Diving pretty good. I came in July last time and liked it better. Dive operation does not provide guided dives; they give you a good briefing and let you go on your own to dive your computers. Fish life very good although saw no sharks. Snorkeled with a pod of dolphins one day, great fun. Water 78 degrees with pretty rough water, but got to dive all but one day because of weather. Vis was from 40 to 70 ft. Summer has 150 + ft."

Bimini Undersea Adventures, June 1997, Alan D. Hutchison, Reno, NV. "Headed to Bimini Undersea Adventures, primarily to take my 10 year old grandson on the wild dolphin encounter. My wife, son and daughter­in­law also came along. Wild dolphin encounter worth the trip. Two pods of Atlantic spotted dolphins that we swam and snorkeled with. Bill Keefe had 25 people in the water and not all of them followed instructions (don't chase the dolphins) but it was still a wonderful experience. . . . Diving another story. One afternoon had 25 divers and snorkelers on the boat. Another time I had to try three times to find a full tank of air for the second dive. Several dives held the potential for serious problems. . . . a dive on the Bimini Barge to 92 feet with 18 divers in a 2 knot current resulted with divers bunched up on the one mooring line running out of air. . . . on the drift dive we were told the reef was 80 feet deep and it was actually 140 feet. Three of the divers became separated from the group, so with one dive boat and two groups of drift divers, there could have been a problem. Dive boat adequate, but often overcrowded. I mentioned to Bill that we had a name for this type of operation in Cayman and he told me I could have chartered the smaller boat! The boat needs a paint job and all of us ended up with flecks of white paint on us and our gear. I classify the diving operation as "one notch above a cattle boat", but the dolphin encounter was worth the trip and we did have enjoyable dives."

Bimini Undersea Adventures/Compleat Angler, September 1997, Karin Aherns, Princeton, KY. "Allowed to plan our own dives according to tables, after briefing. Excellent divemasters, answered questions, great briefings, helpful getting us in and out of the water, did not "mother hen", but were around if someone had a problem on the boat or down under. vis: 70-150 ft. water: 83-87 degrees. Compleat Angler, nice, clean, rooms well maintained, old historic atmosphere, comfortable but not fancy."

Blue Water, May 1997, Kenneth Breier, St. Louis, MO. "Dive boat: awful crew, salty-boat, poor condition, dive sites for beginners, not much to see. vis: 75-125 Ft. water: 80-84 degrees. Only interesting dive was continental shelf and that not great. We were there 5 days and didn't even dive last day and a half. Boat never on time. Island cute and small. No car rental, enjoyable for a 2-3 days. Food good but same at all places. 3 good bars."

Scuba Bimini/Bimini Beach Club, Ron Angerer, Jacksonville, FL. "The worst; very disorganized. Did not have scheduled departures or sign up lists. Weather wiped out the first day of diving. Assuming it would not break, one boat captain went back to the mainland the next day, leaving one boat (capacity 20 divers) and 25 total dived. After telling everyone there would not be any diving the second day, the remaining boat left late that afternoon with a number of people in town. They did not make it back for the scheduled night dive. The next (last) day was no better. With only one dive boat available, the scheduled departing time was 5:30, a time inconvenient enough for all scheduled divers not to show up so we could all fit on the boat. Second dive departure time was 10:30, but 18 of us had flight reservations back to Ft. Lauderdale at 1300. How convenient."

Scuba Bimini/Bimini Beach Club & Marina, May 1997, Joan B. Nagy, New York, NY. "Ocean-view rooms, clean, but no amenities except good, but noisy, AC. Water pressure okay on ground floor, not on second. No locks on doors; no problem. . . . Sandwiches for lunch, lots of fried stuff for dinner. Good, but the same every night and a bit pricey. Good value otherwise. Large bar area (honor bar at off hours). Great beach snorkeling. No-see-ums a major problem when wind dies. Nothing else to do on South Bimini. Travel by land plus water taxi to North Bimini inconsistent unless you're with a large group and can name your own schedule. . . . Water temp: 81-84 degrees; divers in 3mm most comfortable. Viz 60-100 feet. Fills more than 3,000 psi. . . . Most dives 35-65 feet. Large variety of small fish, some sites more abundant than others. Some reefs covered with sand from storms earlier in year. Saw reef and lemon sharks nearly every day and turtles twice. South Wall starts 120 feet; drift dive (1/2 knot) and Captain Clark asked us not to go below 90, so didn't see a lot, except hammerhead 30 feet below. Main boat holds 20 divers, 14 comfortably. Limited shade. Scuba Bimini puts on second boat for crowded weekends. Short on desalinated water, so no rinses until end of trip. Leave gear on boat, with BC's hooked up to tanks. Profiles limited, but no one checked; on your own if you so choose. 2 morning dives, 1 or 2 afternoon dives: if group wants to go, the Captain accommodates. One night dive: nearly 2 dozen 2 1/2 to 3 feet midnight parrot fish, but few lobsters, no morays, no octopus."

Grand Bahama Island

Caribbean Divers/Bahamas Princess, February 1996, No name. "To avoid cattle boats call Presley Knowles at Caribbean Divers (809) 373-9111. All dives are guided, but you can go your own way if you want. He'll pick you up and return you to your hotel. Bahamas Princess offers cheap trips from certain cities - Richmond, VA, Norfolk, VA; Raleigh, NC, Ft. Lauderdale. FL - 800-545-1300. Hotel has a casino, golf courses and a pool. It's clean and food is o.k. Diving is only average, but it is a great deal because of the direct flight!"

UNEXSO, June 1996, Vickie Brown, Dacono, CO. "Dive shop required a C­card, asked me to show log book. If you hadn't dived in a year or show a log book they took you to their pool for a run through of the basic skills. Allowed 35 minutes on a 60 ft. dive, which started on the divemaster watch. 2 people on our dive who ran into problems on deck after everyone else was in the water, so we wasted 10 of our 35 minutes waiting for them. Time should have started after everyone was in the water and descended together. Were required to stay behind the divemaster and he swam very slow, didn't feel like I got to see to much. The photographer was allowed to stay down 10­15 minutes longer than everyone else. Did not seem fair to the rest of us. Well run organization, but didn't help with gear. vis: 75­100 ft. water: 80­82 degrees."

UNEXSO/Princess Country Club, MAY 1997, Ann and Larry Lauer, Provo, UT. "Princess Country Club across the street from the International Bazaar in Freeport, 5 miles from UNEXSO. Arrange shuttle pick-ups with UNEXSO at 7:15 AM for 8:30 AM dives or at 9:00 AM for 10:30 dives. . . . Nothing but praise for the dive operation. Made 6 dives; treated courteously and professionally. All dive personnel are instructor-rated, outstanding divers and knowledgeable about the marine life. Shop is well stocked; prices in-line with States. Don't buy dive shirts, until you've seen the ones available at the shop! . . .Three reef dives a day; 8:30 AM is the deep dive to 100 ft, the medium dives to 60 ft go out at 10:30 and the shallow dives to 35 ft leave at 2:00 PM. You can dive all three. Two boats go to each dive and you can choose the dive site you prefer. . . . Show C­cards. Option of a dunk in their 18 ft deep tank to practice skills. . . . (only one other ocean trip to our credit). Boats hold 10 to 12 divers and 3 instructors. Option of going as a buddy pair (no guide) or as part of the tour. Each guide has 4 to 6 divers and the dive is 35 minutes. SPID City; abundant coral heads on white sand in 60 ft. Vis at least 60 ft for week. Coral heads teeming with life, and extend 6 to 10 feet above the ocean floor. Fabulous variety of soft and hard corals. Several large groupers, hundreds of chromis, arrow crabs and a cleaning station. Close to the Shark Dive, and 2 sharks cruised, fronted by squadrons of pilot fish. . . . When one diver runs out of air, the entire group is not penalized. Each diver "peeled off" as their tank emptied. . . Boats are moored to permanent buoys and two ball-buoys are tossed off the back of the boat; one has a weighted ascent line. Re-entry up an angled, open-step ladder. Sit down, remove your BC and weights and fins. Guide makes sure your BC is disconnected from your tank, with the empty tank re-stowed along the sides. You get your own gear on the boat and attach to a tank. Large cooler of ice-cold water and two fresh water tanks for mask-dunking and for cameras only. You get your equipment off the boat, rinsed and stowed. They provide wooden lockers. Lock: deposit of $15.00. . . . Dolphin Dive worth Every penny! Chance to interact with a couple of semi-tame, very well-trained dolphins in the open ocean, a 15 minute boat ride. Trainer explained the behaviors, as well as the hand-signals to interact with the dolphins. Divers form a circle in the sand on their knees. Trainers cue the dolphin do particular behaviors. There are signals for petting, for placing and retrieving a ring on the dolphin's rostrum, a kiss from the dolphin, and a rostrum push where the diver stands vertical in the water, not touching the bottom, and is spun in a circle by the dolphin pushing against an outstretched hand. The kiss you receive is with your regulator out of your mouth, bubbling merrily as the dolphins' rostrum is against your lips. . . . Picasso's Gallery, a dive to 50 ft; scattered coral-heads, arrow crab, brittle star, a good-sized moray. . .Theo's Wreck, a steel-hulled cargo ship, sunk as an artificial reef, 100 feet down. Tube sponges growing profusely, schools of grunts and snappers in her massive holds, a 5 ft barracuda, two huge gray angelfish. . . . Ann's Paradise at 55 ft. Southern Stingray and her baby. Cleaning station, tons of rainbow parrotfish, 2 trumpetfish, stoplight parrotfish. . .the 800-number: I made our reservations in November for my husband and I and my son and his girlfriend. Some Dolphin Dives were filled 6 months in advance; paid our deposit and waited. Sent final payment 30 days before departure date as instructed, and received vouchers that were dead wrong! Apparently, some person with an overly-moral world view decided that the two women were to be housed together and the two men were in their own room! The folks in Florida sent us new sets of vouchers with couples together, but we found nothing but problems each time we tried to use the vouchers. The airline still had Larry and David on one ticket with Ann and Naomi each with their own (different last names, remember!), the taxi trip to the hotel was the same, and the hotel still had us in separate rooms. Ended up in adjoining rooms, which did not facilitate independence. . .Princess is a nice hotel; gorgeous pool and good restaurants, although the rooms aren't huge, but clean and well-maintained. The food is expensive in all of Freeport/Lucaya. . .Casino on hotel property, but if you want to gamble with high minimum bets and lousy pay-backs. Shopping is fabulous, great prices for jewelry (yes you can bargain!), expensive makeup and perfume, and liquor. Markets are a bargainer's heaven."

UNEXSO, July 1997, Carolyn Hoffman, Vienna, VA. "Water 80 degrees. Specialty dives - Shark, Dolphin, Theo's Wreck - were excellent. Night dive poorly managed - the divemaster took forever to find the target wreck - but that was an exception - In general ran smoothly. Dive boats usually had only 8 - 12 divers and the staff careful not to rush us. Videos of our dives were well done, although we did have problems with the sound on one. We had a complicated dive schedule with our children doing snorkeling too and we had many problems with the reservations system. In the end we got exactly what we wanted."

UNEXSO/Pelican Bay, July 1997, Carole Mouton, Sugar Land, TX. "Shark Junction and Dolphin Encounter dives are very planned. vis: 40-100 ft. water: 80-85 degrees. Dive restrictions enforced were some dives were guided with depth and time limits. Most dives 700 psi (with a computer) was end of dive limit. Divers don extra weight and plant themselves on the bottom in specific area. 3 sharks appeared on our shark dive, also, southern sting ray, lg. Groupers and other lg. fish not seen on other dives. Dolphin dive had 2 trained dolphins spinning divers around and kissing them. Fun, but not worth repeating. Great photo opportunities. Dive sites are close together and similar. Nice passages, formations at some. Theo's Wreck night dive was spectacular, lots of brilliant color and coral. Played with huge octopus and saw 3 foot parrot fish."

Xanadu/Lakeview Manor (time share), July 1996, Steve Neal, Fairfield, TX. "Water: 78 to 84 degrees. Vis: 40 to 80 feet. Shark feed 15 + reef sharks, large groupers, stingray, eels. Shallow dives saw spotted scorpion fish, lobster, stingrays, many flamingo tongues. Xanadu equipment shows wear, crowded 13 to 15 divers plus 5 crew on shark dive. 11 o'clock dive full of resort course students. Dive at 8:00 am to miss the crowds. Theo's wreck ­ my computer was one minute from deco so I went up 20 feet to observe. The others, many of whom just learned to dive,. Stayed at 100 to 105 feet for 7 to 10 minutes more. Divemaster must have had a liberal computer."

Xanadu/Undersea Adventures/Royal Islander, October 1996, Doug Boren, Huntington, WV. "Package through Neal Watsen's. Worked very well. Royal Islander's clean, modern, staff friendly and helpful. Across the street from International Bazaar; great for shopping and variety of restaurants. Down side: charged $.25 for small bag of ice in ice machine. Wish I had known to budget for the extra $1­$2 per day for that. . . . Xanadu was great. Provided prompt and free pick­up and return to the hotel. Very accommodating;took us out though we were the only two divers and despite bad weather. The shark feed dives very well run. Most exciting dives I've ever had. The staff always ready to do whatever it took to make our dives and stay good. vis: 20­60 feet. water: 78­82 degrees. Despite rain for the whole week, conditions were above average."

Xanadu/Undersea Adventures, December 1996, Joyce Soper, No. Kansas City, MO. "Our first ocean dive. Mistakenly we went over the holidays! Some dives we canceled because most of the staff failed to show up. Divemaster was friendly but the boat was old and uncomfortable. Our 8:00 AM dive time was delayed until 9:30, waiting for the staff. vis: 50-60 ft. water: 65-80 degrees. Dive restrictions: had to keep with group, surface at 800 psi. Everybody surface at the same time. Video available of your dive, but it was black/white or bright red! ($50). Hotel overpriced, but comfortable. One restaurant, no place to snack. We had to go Port Lucaya by taxi. ($20)."

Xanadu, Phil Mancuso, June 1997. "Xanadu and UNEXSO go to the same places and have the same types of dives. Xanadu is a less well known and does not end up with "cattle car syndrome." For example, at Shark Alley dive we had 6 divers while my friend's group (he and his wife went on two different occasions) had 16 divers each time. Xanadu gives you as little more one on one attention which makes the dive more personable. . . . The dive facility is at the resort so you can walk from your room to it; it has its own beach at the resort (some other resorts do not have beach access). . . . You must take a cab to get to anywhere. The cab fairs were reasonable and regulated. . . . Resort was clean, the people friendly and helpful; restaurant and bar on site with decent food. Room were a little shabbier than what I am used to, but they were sufficient (and clean) for laying your head down between sun and fun. . . . I highly recommend the Shark Alley dive and Theo's, no matter who you go with."

New Providence Island

SunSkiff Divers/Atlantis, June 1997, Stanley Richter, Oak Ridge, NJ. "Water 85 degrees. Picked up every morning. Crystal and Monty, owners of Sunskiff, are experienced and polite. Their 30 foot scarab was a rocket to the dive sites. Had the boat to ourselves and did everything without crowds. They make sure you get plenty of dive time. They have a number of secret sites that are loaded with fish - big, small and plenty of sharks. They are also excellent instructors if you are interested in any courses."

Stuart Cove's, July 1997, T. Lopatih, Lk. Hopatcong, NJ. "Compared three shark feeds in the Bahamas. UNEXSO/Freeport: 15-20 large female Caribbean Reef Sharks were fed via polk/spear on sandy bottom at 50'. Excellent shark action for 30 minutes and then food ran out. Could have make longer by bringing more feed. . . . Feeds at Walkers Cay lasted up to an hour, divers could move around perimeter and stroke sharks (up to 100) if they wanted to. . . . Stuart Cove divers had to remain still and could not touch the sharks. I would rate Walker's Cay Stuart Cove and UNEXSO 1-2 3 for diversity of shark dives. Overall, Stuart Cove's the best due to wall diving and excellent hotel accommodations."

Stuart Cove's/Radisson Grand, September 1997, John Sekan, Las Vegas, NV. "Happy locals, expensive food, drinks, taxi's. Nice sand beaches, nothing to see snorkeling. Free pickup from all dive operators, roads narrow and dangerous. Stuart Cove's exceptional. vis: 80-120 ft. water: 80-83 degrees. Shark dive so thrilling I did it twice. Went wall flying with a dive propulsion vehicle on the edge of the tongue of the ocean. Saw two wrecks and one plane. Effortless experience, more bottom time than conventional diving. Able to dive my own profile. One dive alone we went one and a half miles on an aluminum 80 at 50 feet."

Harbour Island

Valentine's Dive Center/Valentine's Resort, April 1996, Carolyn Hoff man, Vienna, VA. "Went to Harbour Island to dive the Current Cut, but we never got there. The dive operations claimed weather problems for the entire week, but also kept telling us it wasn't worth the long boat ride. The dive boat was uncrowded and personnel were friendly. vis: 70­100 ft. water: 77 degrees. Diving restrictions enforced were time and depth. Dive guide got lost once and we had a long, long swim back to the boat. Accommodations were Spartan and not in good condition. No TV or phone in room. Town fun to walk around in. People friendly."

San Salvador

Club Med Columbus Isle, July 1996, R. J. Padgett, San Francisco, CA. "Beautiful location, but don't go in late July or August when the French arrive (not a problem, as most rooms are reserved for Europeans that time of year, or so we were told by an American G.O. and a Club Med booking agent (actually quite rude). French and Italian G.O'S. inhospitable to American and English speaking Canadians., and give priority in every respect to French speaking guests. . . . Accommodations are luxurious by Club Med standards. No dressers, but nicely appointed rooms with air conditioning. Beach is terrific. Diving excellent once you are in the water. Boat a very sloppy operation; filled beyond capacity, loose tanks thrown onto bow of boat to squeeze in extra divers. Tanks often low or empty, a situation for which Club Med divemasters ridiculously blamed the divers! vis: 80­90 ft. water: 79­83 degrees. Skip the night dive unless you enjoy getting stung by jellyfish. Resort is advertised to have a minimum age of 12, something apparently enforced only for American guests, as many Europeans brought small children. Club Med rotates their personnel from time to time ­­ Columbus Isle is definitely due for a change."

Club Med Columbus Isle, July 1996, T.E. Clayton. "Great for beginners: easy well supervised dives. Computer divers left to their skill level, however strict 45 minute­130 ft. 1st dive and 30 minute­70 ft. 2nd dive enforcement for computer divers (100 ft, 10 ft for table divers). vis: 80­120 ft. water: 81­83 degrees. Catamaran dive boats (63 X 22 ft.) smooth, fast, lots of room. Lots of divers, but never felt crowded. Accommodations and service are soup to nuts and the food is the best anywhere. 5 star plus resort. I'd return in a heart beat. Less fish than I expected; superlative vacation."

Club Med Columbus Isle, December 1996, Joan Gilick, Ventonor, NJ. "Water 78 Degrees, Vis: 50 to 100 feet. Diving good but the boats were crowded with all levels of divers. Dive masters must have called "roll call" five times before we left. Some divers were inexperienced and ran out of air. Had a wind storm and a dive boat broke off the mooring and sank and broke apart. The dock was also damaged. Diving was canceled for two days. . . . Reefs were in good shape as was the fish life and there was a variety of dives, walls, small caves, tunnels. . . . Overall good dive experience."

Club Med Columbus Isle, July 1997, Tracy Johnson, Manhattan Beach, CA. "Good fast boats, but lots of people (50). Tanks filled on the boats. Hyperbaric chamber at Club med. They do a good job getting a lot of people in and out of the water. Once in, it's possible to get away from the masses. vis: 50-150 ft. water: 84 degrees. Lots of nice swim-throughs. . . . Rooms are terrific with TV, phone, walk in closet (much better than most Club Meds). Went on an independent excursion in which the divemaster and I were the only divers. At 120 ft. saw a 10 ft. hammerhead that swam towards us and threatened by shaking her head (our BC's had laid in an area in which fish were cleaned the day before). We slowly backed over a ledge and she swam away."

Riding Rock Inn, September 1996, Bill Lockhart, Plantation, FL. "Excellent dive operation. Boats are wide and comfortable, crew is excellent. They handle all your gear for you which was great for my wife who has a bad back. All the dive sites are within 15 mins of the dock. Good photo lab, 3 dives a day, no beach diving. Dive restriction enforced was depth of 130 ft. Food ok, considering how far supplies have to be brought. One or two dive sites were barren, a waste of time considering the excellent weather."

Riding Rock Inn, November 1996, Roger Chari, New York, New York. "Island has been hit by hurricane three months earlier. Sand still choking the reef, coral everywhere was dead or badly damaged. Vis: 30­80 ft. water: 78­80 degrees. Second day diving slightly deeper reefs showed reefs unaffected; fish life remained abundant. The groupers had been fed for many years, allowed you to touch them even though they are not fed anymore. The dive operation was friendly and efficiently run. Never had to touch your equipment and equipment was handled well. Dive restrictions were 130 feet maximum, back on boat with 500 psi. Rooms Spartan, but clean. Food basic diver fare, nothing fancy, but well prepared. The hotel is not a resort, but for those who want beaches and reefs that are not crowded in a slow, relaxing beautiful and friendly island, it's worth considering."

Riding Rock Inn, November 1996, Rick & Betsy Agar, Cincinnati, OH. "Hurricane damage to resort, but they worked around it. Pleasant, laid back operation. Great vis: 150­200 ft. water: 76­80 degrees. Depth restrictions 130 ft. Sponges, fans and soft corals beautiful. Hard corals so­so. Lots of big predator fish, friendly grouper, tuna, jacks and barracuda. We were early for the hammerheads, but saw one nice reef shark, good macro subjects. Good night dive. Huge lobster, octopus. Not much to do on shore, but beach is beautiful."

Riding Rock Inn, November 1996, Jane Woodward, Boca Raton, FL. "We were there right after hurricane. Our room and main building in good shape. Some were being rebuilt. Ours clean and comfortable. Ease of diving very important to me (I'm 76). Gear stayed on boat all week. Crew cleaned it, except wet suits, which we carried ashore rinsed and hung in dock area. Dive crew brought BCD to me on dive platform and helped me into it. . . . vis: 100 ft. water: 78 degrees. Great walls, tunnels, crevices, corals, sponges, lots of fish, crabs, lobsters. This is the resort I would go back to. Easy and plenty to see."

Riding Rock Inn, November 1996, Glenn Thomas/Jean Powell, Manson, MA. "Water 77 degrees, vis 50 to 120 feet. Forewarned of what to expect, thanks to your reviews. Overnighting in Ft. Lauderdale is a drag. 2 -hr. flight is at 8,500 ­ 9,000 feet unpressurized. . . . Bottom at 45 to 50 feet is sand and rubble. Spectacular wall divers beyond these depths. Deep diving is the rule, because that's where the sights are. We didn't have to touch our BC's & regulators during the entire stay. Safely left on the boat. Drying racks convenient to the deck. Boats were prompt within scheduled departure times. Two boats 40­ 42 feet were used for 6­20 divers each. One night dive was scheduled but a second one was added. Jean enjoyed underwater photo lessons with Chris McLaughlin ($99 basic course­­ ended up @$140). She came up with some great shots. . . . Small grocery store or two is a five minute ride ­­ if you want cheaper soda and beer. Supplies are scarce if the once a week supply ship is late. . . Landing strip is currently being reconstructed to a 10,000 runway capable of taking the air buses from Europe for Club Med."

Riding Rock Inn, January 1997, Nancy Menzel, Temple Terrace, FL. "Resort not crowded. Excellent service by divemasters. After setting up gear, never touched again. vis: 100­150 ft. water: 75­76 degrees. Rebuilding from hurricane damage. Cable TV on one channel. Tasty food, homemade bread, friendly staff, relaxing island. Swam with a hammerhead and many turtles. Missed seeing whale shark by 10 seconds (last off the boat). Dive restrictions were 130 ft. for first dive and second dive shallower. E­6 processing not available due to photo pro's traveling. Ask before booking trip if processing important to you. Charter flight to and from San Salvador from Ft. Lauderdale convenient and stress free."

Riding Rock Inn, February 1997, Steven Bedell, Elburn, IL. "Only 4 divers/customers all week. Decent buffet meals. Good bar, resort, and room location, just feet from the ocean. Clean, well maintained and large boats. Great dive staff. Divemaster Rodney "Moon" Crossman was the best. Nice, small resort and operation. Best reefs in the Bahamas. Good marine life. No problems, hassles, or rip­offs. Great time. . . . No shore diving. No extra diving was available. No other activities. Club Med only other dive operation on the island. Cattle boat operation that dumps many unskilled divers on the reefs. It is only a matter of time till this new operation has a major impact on the reefs and the dive quality of the island. vis: 75­100 ft. water: 75­78 degrees. Dive restrictions enforced were 130 ft. and 500 psi."

Riding Rock Inn, March 1997, Lulie & Jack Melton, Estes Park, Colorado. "Charter flight out of the Ft. Lauderdale Jet Center to San Sal. Once during the flight I was the only one awake on the eight passenger plane as our Cuban pilot was sound asleep. I jostled the rest of the passengers awake. Some were very alarmed, but we had autopilot, and GPS. No big deal. . . . Opted for the deluxe rooms; clean and cool equipped with satellite TV and refrigerator. low spot was dining room service. Breakfast sometimes took 1.5 hours almost making us late for the morning dive. Food ranged from inspired (the daily lunch conch chowder) to barely adequate. Dining room service abysmal. After complaining en masse to the owner things got better. Kitchen help was revolting against the new food and beverage manager and taking it out on the guests. . . . Quality of diving made up for the food and service. Water 76; no current, viz 120-150 ft. Walls, wall, and more walls. Lots of hammerheads, turtles, and friendly groupers. Wall diving closely rivals Little Cayman. They let us dive our computers. When some divers busted the 130 ft. limit and got close to deco, there were no hassles. Divemaster Moon personable, helpful etc. Dive operation manager surly. Don't miss the land tour which stops at a kerosene fired weight driven lighthouse. Beautiful quiet island; some interesting local restaurants and bars. People friendly, drive crazily and drink lots of beer. Serious marijuana smuggling country; smell of burning ganja is everywhere."

Riding Rock Inn, March 1997, Mac Cauley, Tampa, FL. "As a result of your review, my wife and I decided to give it a try. Your report was right on target and we had one of the best dive vacations ever. Vis was fabulous and the water was cool enough to enable us to see sharks (hammerheads, reef and nurse) daily. Dive restrictions were 130 max, one hour. 500 psi. Food is average. The dive operation (Moon, Sean and Derrick) is top notch. Thanks so much for you objective reporting."

Riding Rock Inn, April 1997, Robert & Kate Emann, Brooklyn, NY. "Check in quick and painless. Food ok, plentiful but unexciting. Deluxe room ok. San fleas attacked Kate more than me and by the end of the week she was badly bitten. We were on the 2nd floor and when we sat on the terrace we could feel them biting us. Recommend heavy bug spray from the get-go. Diving operation well run. Cater to experienced divers. Watched us on 1st dive and then let us do our thing. max. of 130 ft. One with computer, ok. More reasonable approach than other dive operations. Visibility so-so: Max 75 ft. Shallow reefs not in good shape. Sand covered, no color. Walls great-terrific cuts, tunnels, color. Plenty of big fish life. Others saw hammerheads, we did not. Water temp 77-79. Diving restrictions: 130 ft. Boat operation very well run. Briefing fine. . . . Two minutes from airport. Got our boarding passes at the hotel. We waited on the hotel deck until we saw the plane coming in and then left."

Riding Rock Inn, May 1997, Wendy & Mike McCloskey, Orlando, FL. "Excellent trip. Dive staff handled everything from beginning to end, just grab your mask and walk to the back of the boat. Boats left on time, divers used computers and were never rushed back on the boat. Gear stays on boats, dive staff rinses it daily. vis: 80­120 ft. water: 78­80 degrees. Dive restrictions were 130 max depth, 500 psi, back on boat and suggested 3 & 5 min. hangs at 15 ft. after dives. . . . Three meals a day, excellent food. Wonderful slide shows and friendly photo help from photo pro Chris McLaughlin. Dive pro Kevin Collins also friendly and helpful as was his staff. Hotel employees and island folks all friendly and outgoing."

Riding Rock Inn, May 1997, Phil Hampton, Merritt Island, FL. "Great trip. Good accommodations and food. Great dive operations. Great photo pro (Chris McG). Our group of 16 got the new boat for the entire week with Kevin & Chris as our crew. Saw turtles almost every dive! Not spooked by divers, got some great photos. From boat saw schools of dolphin and a school of pilot whales and beaked whales and a marlin jumping. vis: 50­90 ft. water: 78­80 degrees. Restriction for diving was depth limit of 130 ft. Most in group saw sharks while diving."

Riding Rock Inn, July 1997, Ari Reguicha, Manhattan Beach, CA. "Deluxe rooms are excellent: large, clear, A/C, great view. Nice atmosphere, out-island, old-style Caribbean. Large dining tables, easy to know other guests. Nice people in hotel and dive shop. Bugs awful, especially at night. No-see-ums go through window screens. Skin So Soft and other mild repellents mostly ineffective. Deep walls nice. Shallow reefs silted with lots of algae, but with good marine life. Sharks and turtles every day. vis: 60-100 ft. water: 81-85 degrees. Depth limit 130 ft. Two morning dives with short surface interval; one in afternoon. One night dive a week. Ran two uncrowded boats instead of cramming people into one."

Long Island

Stella Maris, July 1996, Patricia Guldenpfennig, Port Jefferson, NY. "Staff exceptional. They offered a wide range of accommodations, four pools, two private beaches, fantastic food, reliable diving schedules and a beautiful location with soft hills fully landscaped with lush greenery. Special recreational activities arranged: excursions over the island, local musicians, cave parties, etc. Any request we made could be answered by the staff. The diving was assorted, safe, gave a wide range of choices. vis: 60­80 ft. water: 78­81 degrees. A great place!"

Walkers Cay

Walker's Cay, May 1997, Gary Cowden, Kansas City, MO. "Three boats; crew was very attentive and helpful. Saw many sharks, several large turtles, two large eagle rays and a good variety of fish, coral and plant life. A very good diving experience. vis: 40­100 ft. water: 72­76 degrees. One hundred ft. restriction enforced. . . . Lodging was adequate, renovations were underway. Food very good and service friendly. Booked all­ inclusive package through Undersea Adventures and they were reasonably priced and efficient."

Walker's Cay, May 1997, Mike Tell, Grapevine, TX. "Good if you want to see BIG fish and plenty of them in an environment that "feels" safe. Shark Rodeo an exhilarating dive with 60+ sharks in water (4­6 ft. reef sharks, 6­10 ft nurse sharks) and groupers, snappers. Great photos, videos. Other dives fair to good. Few eagle rays, turtles, eels. Corals fair. Dives are 35­100 ft., use computer, return to boat with 500 + psi. Divemaster offers tour or you can go on own. Entire staff helpful, friendly and very qualified. Boats comfortable. Water temp. 79­81 degrees; vis: 40­60 ft. Need extra insulation on Shark Rodeo as you are in one place for more than half of the dive. Many divers got cold. Don't forget to wear dark gloves and full wetsuit. Exposed flash can be confused with food!! Rodeo dive is one hour. . . . Good accommodations: new room, clean, comfortable, A/C worked great. No TV, phones. Meal plan a bargain. Dinners exceptional. Menu with fresh fish served any way you want, lobster tail excellent, other specials very good. Breakfast was good. Conch salad at lunch was the best. Service was excellent, friendly and attentive. . . . No shore diving (boats give 3 dives a day.) Need a little more surface time between first and second dive. Weight limit on airplane is 50 lbs. per person."

Walker's Cay, June 1997, Lawrence H. Moser Charleston, SC. "Great dive trip! perfect tropical setting. The resort is well run, food is great. Dive operation run by Gary Adkinson and Barry Albury, is first class. Attention to safety and comfort without making you feel restricted. Able to dive own profile. Good drift dives. Coral caverns and swim-throughs are exciting. vis: 75-100 ft. water: 82-84 degrees. Dive restrictions enforced were to dive own profile. Most dives 30-90 ft. The Shark Rodeo is the best. Never will you be able to swim with so many sharks and feel so safe! Three good dive boats just added a Pro 42."

Walkers Cay, June 1997, Jim Kiernan, Coral Springs, FL. "Great time; 82 degree water, 100 ft vis, no restrictions. Hundreds of sharks on rodeo, but numerous on almost every dive. Rays of all sorts, some turtles, many eels. My dive club treated well by all. Dive guides good and helpful. Food service slow because everyone arrives at once. Excellent food!"

Walkers Cay, July 1997, Graeme Eisenhofer, Bethesda, MD. "Accessed by seaplane from Fort Lauderdale (45 minutes). Popular destination for boaties from Florida (about 100 miles to the west. . . . Booked through Neal Watson's Undersea Adventures; one of our party could not dive due to pregnancy (became apparent few days after making our reservations and Undersea Adventures were unwilling to switch the reservation to the cheaper non diver package despite our request within a week of making our reservations. Single rooms, suites, villas, harbor house with 3 bedrooms, 3 baths, Jacuzzi, pool table. Seemed somewhat run down; water unavailable two days; power failed intermittently. . . . Apart from two pools, bar and small beach (a 10 minute walk) not much to do other than two dives in morning, one in afternoon and twilight dive. . . . All hands helpful, friendly. Novice and experienced divers participated in the same dives and range of experience was catered for extremely well. Better diving less than 40 ft. Dives to 80­100 ft unexceptional (bar the twilight dive) and did not include drop offs. vis: 50­80 ft. Underwater swim throughs, caverns and tunnels. Some seemed to go on for hundreds of yards with occasional glimpse of the surface through small cracks in the reef. . . . Encounters with sharks use a "chumsicle " - a rubbish bin size slab of frozen fish waste hung on hooks. The sharks (mainly black tip, reef, bull and nurse) attach themselves to the frozen blob and suck to their hearts content, while maintaining continuous action, the containment of the attractive morsel means that less problem of stray pieces finding their way into the laps of nearby hapless divers. Video tapes of the shark feed dives are available. (One diver returned home only to find his tape blank; check before you leave). Did three shark dives in five days, one while snorkel diving. Other Reports on Walkers: http://Library-pc5969.ucsd.edu[bahama2.htmI Shark Diving in The Bahamas, http://www.mad-dog.net/PLACES/wkscay.htmI Walkers Cay - the best shark dive in the Caribbean http://www.wa1kerscay,com/ The Walkers Cay Official Web-Site. Make reservations with the resort (phone: 1-800-WALKERS or (954) 359-1400 or fax (954) 359-1414)."

Walkers Cay, August 1997, David R. Lamb, Salt Lake City, UT. "Food very good, particularly lobster, conch, grouper and shrimp. Room clean and comfortable, nothing fancy. Staff pleasant. Island 15 minute walk from end to end. Diving and deep sea fishing only activities. Small grocery and liquor store. Beer $2.50 in the store, $5 at the bar. Two pools, one fresh and one salt water. No beach; sharp rocks along shore. All boat diving. Vis: 50-80 ft. water: 86-87 degrees. Shark Rodeo (chumsickle shark feed) well managed and not unusual to see sharks on any dive. Black tip, reef and nurse. Pam Am Amphibian from Ft. Lauderdale. Combined weight limit for all luggage is 40 lbs, which about covers your dive gear. Excess a dollar a pound each way, but island is informal and you don't need much else."

Copyright 1998 by DSDL, Inc., publisher of Undercurrent. All rights reserved. No portions of this report may be reproduced in any way, including photocopying and electronic data storage, without prior written permission from the publisher. For more information, contact DSDL, Inc., P.O. Box 1658, Sausalito, CA 94966.