Dive destination help

Hi all -

I have 5 year old twins; first time I have built up enough courage to take them on a dive trip. The Boss will only go along with trip if the hotel/resort has a good program for the boys - so I am held hostage in Dallas until I find someplace she approves. Would prefer destination would a good beach/calm water and kids pool that is kid friendly, and has great diving. My last 4 trips have been to Cozumel, so looking for someplace new (although may end up there, very convenient from Texas!!)

Also, I travel a lot for work, and would like a destination served by American Airlines so I can use FF miles. Was wandering if anyone in the group has recommendations for Caribbean locations/resorts (or maybe Florida or Hawaii) that have good kids programs while Dad tries out his new digital camera/housing after 10 years with an MX-10? TIA

I have 6 and 11-year-old kids and a non-diving spouse, so I've been pondering the same questions that you are. This summer we're going to Curacao for something called "Kid's Sea Camp". The only thing I know about it what I've seen on the web, but my wife and kid's said OK, so we're off. Here's the link:

http://www.kidseacamp.com/

I've been solo to Anthony's Key in Roatan. They are supposed to have an excellent kid's program but there's not much to do for an adult non-diver.

My 2004 contenders are ClubMed in Phuket Thailand, and the Jean-Michel Cousteau Fiji Island Resort.

A friend of mine spent a week at the Fuji Island Resort with her 10-year-old son, who dives, and highly recommends it. She was very impressed with the kid's program. Here's the link: http://www.fijiresort.com/

I've never been to Coz. Is it kid friendly? If I went with wife+kids, where would recommend I stay?

Hi -

I would probably recommend one of the all inclusives at the south end of the island. I have stayed at the Reef Club and the Allegro - both have great beaches, kids pools, volleyball, tennis and playgrounds, and little sailboats and kayaks to play around in. I have also heard the Iberostar is nicer than either reef club or allegro, but have never stayed there. The food is OK at both, the thing I think would be good for kids is you can eat anytime, they always have snacks/munchies/kids drinks all day long, so you don't have a big hassle to get dressed up and go drive to a restaurant with small children. They also have entertainment at night (skits, plays, etc) that the kids like. Kids 12 and under are free (check out funjet.com or worryfreetravel.com) for packages. Also, the best reefs are at the south end of the island, so very short boat rides - great diving. One thing about coz diving, almost all dives are drift dives; so if you like to shoot macro, can be a bit of a challenge - but viz is great, and lots of coral/fish (not a lot of big stuff, however).

The down side of the south end resorts are twofold. One - the snorkeling is mediocre at best right off the beach, no coral close to shore. Also, this is the lee side of the island, so no surf, good or bad depending on how adventuresome your kids are. Second - it is about a 20 minute taxi ride into town (~ 10 dollars); so if your wife would rather shop/eat out at restaurants rather than relax on the beach, I'd look for something close to town. I stayed at the Coral Princess a couple years ago, nice clean affordable hotel (about a mile north of town). The on-site dive shop (Pepe's) is great, small boats and give you freedom on your profiles if you are an experienced diver. There is a great snorkeling at the Coral Princess; the shore is an ironshore miniwall (about 15 feet deep right off the built up beach) with live coral right on the wall, but conversely, no wading (there is sand behind a retaining wall). It is about a 45 minute boat ride to the most popular reefs.

If you would like more info on Cozumel, feel free to email and I can tell you more - it is great diving.

I got back from Curacao were my kids spent a week in the "Kid's Sea Camp".

The good news is there were lots of other kids, and the Kid's programs' were excellent. The kids are hooked into the Sea Aquarium. It’s a large facility with a very professional staff. The Sea Aquarium regularly hosts groups of kids from North and South America so the whole infrastructure for taking care of kids is in place. The younger kids spend the day in animal encounters, snorkeling, trying SASSY and playing both informational and entertaining games. They older kids can become PADI Jr certified. My 11 year old did this and it a blast diving with her.

We stayed in the Royal Resorts condos, next to the Sea Aquarium, which were outstanding. Our 2-bedroom condo was first rate. It was new, spacious, and everything worked. Our group of 3 adults and 2 kids never ran out of room. The large living room has 2 Murphy beds were the kids slept. There are 2 pools, my 6 year old could easily stand in the shallower one.

The food was consistently excellent everywhere we ate. We had breakfast and lunch at any of the small restraunts within walking distance. We had three dinners in town.

We dove with Lions Dive which was a 3 minute walk from our condo . DM's were very good and they pretty much left me alone. The boats were a little crowded, but nobody really cared. We were all there for the same reason, we had kids in the Sea Camp. All but 1 of the divers (a newly certified spouse) were very experienced. On 1 trip there 3 parents who were instructors.

Winds were a constant 15 mph. Chop was 2-3 foot. Skies were mostly overcast. Vis was 40-50 ft. Reefs were in good condition, but fish life was so-so, most of the sites we visited looked over-dived. Many of the dive sites were at the opposite end of the island, which meant a return boat trip of 45 - 90 minutes into the wind. All-in all, I thought the diving was fair.

We all had a great time, but it’s a compromise on the diving.