The reefs beckon, the dolphins and rays and turtles are
calling your name. Your favorite airline has just announced
a fantastic fare to Thailand.Each dive area has a kit bag full of dive operations, but which ones are safe? Referrals are best, but you don't have any.
What do you look for when scouting out a dive operation?
Here is what David Chandler, PADI Instructor in Pattaya, Thailand recommends.
The Dive Shop:
Just because a shop has a 5-star rating doesn't mean it is guaranteed to be good. It just means it has met the requirements of the diving agency it represents. It's not unheard of for a dive shop to falsely claim affiliation to an agency and use all their publicity material.
In the case of PADI, the biggest diving agency in the world, all that is required to become a 5-star outlet is; the shop needs to complete a certain number of certifications, produce a monthly newsletter and have it's air quality checked periodically. It can check the air itself!
No agency, has a policy of checking or policing their affiliated shops to see that they are meeting these standards.
So how can you choose a scuba diving shop? Here are a few general tips.
•Does the shop look clean and efficient?
•Is the equipment room tidy, clean and efficient?
•Do the staff look as though they enjoy their job - bright-eyed, clean clothes, not hung over?
•Is the shop owner around during the day time when you book in - and better still does he go on the trip or at least be there to see it off?
•Do they insist on checking your certification card and maybe your log book?
•Ask if there is a set time limit on dives or is it down to your air consumption or nitrogen load? It can be frustrating to enjoy a 30 minute dive and have to come up with another 30 minutes of air still in your tank.
•Will the trip have a good ratio of professionals to customers on board? Are they experienced instructors who have moved up the ladder from Open Water Scuba instructor to Staff or Master Instructor?
•What brands of equipment are used? Are they well known names like Scuba Pro, Mares, Sherwood, Oceanic? Is the rental stuff individually numbered? This means they can easily identify and deal with any problems that arise.
•Pick up a BCD and check whether the inflator button is sticky and might lead to a runaway ascent.
•Does it hold air or leak?
•Do the fins look as though they have been walking over coral? Are the foot pouches split?
•Does the shop have it's own repair/servicing department on the premises?
•Take a look at the hydro dates on a couple of tanks to see if they are okay. If not then you might be carrying a "bomb" on your back.
•Do they have a wide range of equipment for sale? If not they might be struggling to survive and that can lead to cutting safety standards such as equipment servicing.
The Dive Boat:
•You often can't check the boat before you get on it. But you can ask questions before the trip and it's always worth a walk around before you go out.
•Here are a few points to consider: Does the boat look clean and well cared for? Does it have the usual facilities: tank ranks; dive platform, a boarding ladder that is easy to climb, adequate bad weather protection, ship-to-shore communications, life jackets and buoyancy aids.
•Does the boat carry emergency oxygen - not just a DAN set, but a large tank to ensure sufficient supply for at least two divers for the length of time from the dive site back to land. Is the DAN set clean and well cared for? No mould on the mouth piece and no missing components? Do they have more than one breathing unit? Is the large tank full?
•Do they have a comprehensive medical kit? It should be able to deal with accidents on the boat - cuts, grazes, broken bones, upset stomachs, seasickness - as well as marine stings, coral cuts, urchin spines and diving accidents. A good medical box will have a waterproof description of the medications, how they should be used and any relevant warnings.
•Does the Dive Master carry an Emergency Plan containing phone numbers of specialist hospitals re compression chambers, fast boat or helicopter etc?
•Less serious, but also important.
•Is there a galley to cook fresh food or will it be boxed and stored?
•Are there adequate supplies of drinking water and other drinks?
•Are they included in the price?
•Is there comfortable seating?
•Shelter if it rains?
•Toilet and shower facilities?
•What means do the crew use for ensuring that all divers are logged in and out of the water to ensure nobody is left behind?
The diving location
•Will the boat have a normal payload of divers and students, or will it be full of DSDs, scores of kids from the local international school doing Open Water, technical divers who will need two hours or more decompression stops? Any of these can seriously screw up the day for a diver who just wants a coral of wreck dive.
•Are there any extra charges? Such as a marine park.
•Is there a good dive briefing pointing out potential hazards as well as the fun things to see? Do they mention time/air limits, emergency recall system, buddy separation procedures etc
•Do they organize dive buddies so that inexperienced divers are not paired up on a dive that may be beyond their capabilities?
•Do they check out site safety: Weather, currents, surface traffic, wave size, marine life problems such as jellyfish?
•Are they careful how they anchor if there are no mooring buoys?
•Do the professional staff keep a discreet eye on teams to ensure they do buddy checks?
•Is there a professional on the dive platform when divers enter the water and to assist them when they return to the boat?
•Is there a roll call?