www.CostaRicaTicas.com

I'm hoping to go to CR in early April. My plan is to spend a couple of days in the Gulch, then go diving at the coast for a few days and bookend the trip with some more mongering.

I'm a pretty strong swimmer, but I've never been diving before. Does anyone know of any beautiful, safe, and reasonably priced diving outfits/schools in CR?

I thought you were talking about Muff diving. I KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THE OTHER!

This is the most dead forum in all of CR. Come on you guys, get out of the Gulch for a couple of days. There's a reason millions of families, single female travelers, honeymooners, etc., take vacations to the land of Pura Vida and it ain't to munch on tica tacos.

Rey,

Did quick search and found these threads on diving. Search function will answer a lot of your questions.

http://costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=30184&highlight=diving

http://costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=18546&highlight=diving

http://costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=15862&highlight=diving

http://costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=9012&highlight=diving

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Greenfangs,

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When faced with the choice of two evils, I alway go with the one I haven't tried before!

I'm PADI certified and have gone diving in many parts of the world from Thailand to Brazil, but I'll admit I've never dived in CR. OTOH, I have looked into it and what I've read about it has not exactly lit my fires to try it there. The best place for diving in CR is definitely the Isla de Cocos way out in the Pacific, but that is not exactly a place you go for just a night or two. Usually its done as a multi-day package aboard a dive boat as it takes time to get out there and there are no other facilities once you're there. If you like reef diving and don't want to commit to an expensive and extensive multi-day dive trip then the southern caribbean coast will probably be your best bet for diving in CR. The NW Guanacaste area, particularly the Papagayo Bay area around Playas Hermosa, Cocos and Ocotal is also a major dive center for CR. You won't find any real reefs there, rather mostly cliff dives with lots of pelagics (whales, sharks, rays etc.), but you'll find more places offering scuba lessons, equipment rentals, etc. One great link that Greenfangs left out is to my more extensive post on CR diving http://www.costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=34847&highlight=diving#34847

BTW, if you're going to go diving in CR then in general late April may be the best time to do it. Poor visibility is one of the most frequently reported problems with diving in CR. And one of the prime causes of that is silt and muck carrying runoff from the mountains during the rainy season. With late April being at the very tail end of the dry season that factor should be at its most minimal. OTOH, I'm not so sure when would be the best time in terms of the wildlife (whales, turtles and such).

One last comment, if I were going on a scuba vacation and especially if I were going to learn how to dive, then I'd probably go to the Bay Islands in northern Honduras or maybe one of the Cayes in Belize rather than CR. The dive conditions and the quality of the reefs are much better there than in CR and the cost of instruction, boat fees and equipment will be much less expensive (especially in Honduras) yet still very safe and professional. Unfortunately, the P4P there won't be nearly as good as what you will find in SJ or Jaco, but then you can't always have everything. Another possibility with good mongering opportunities right at the coast but with probably much better conditions than around Jaco might be the northern coast of the Dominican Republic (Sosua). It really all comes down to your priorities and preferences.

I guess that's why I'm going to CR, my morally suspect priorities. Thanks for the information.

(And also the links above.)

I was editing my post when you just posted that. If you really want to dive but are "morally suspect", be sure to note the addition I made to my last post. If you go to the Papagayo area (or Flamingo as TimBones has recommended), then your nightly mongering options will be very limited and you'll probably just have to wait until you get back to SJ. If you go diving in the Jaco area, then your nightly mongering options will be greater but the diving probably won't be nearly as good. OTOH, if you go to DR, then you could have the best of all worlds, with both decent mongering and decent diving right at your fingertips and you'll be able to exercise your morally suspect inclinations throughout your whole trip.

One other thing that I left out of my last post. If I were going to learn how to dive I'd probably prefer to do it where they had good reefs rather than cliff/wall or wreck diving. Reefs tend to be shallower, have fewer strong currents than cliff or wall diving, and while sharks and rays can be pretty cool reefs also tend to have more colorful fish and certainly more interesting bottom structure.

Thanks, Prolijo, that's great info.

Try Herradura divers right by Los Suenos near Jaco. Diving in Costa is not world class. It is very good during dry season when you will be there. Vis will usually very betweeen 30-60ft, run-off durring the rainy season makes it worse. Cost for a two tanker is $85 or $99 with gear rental. They also offer a day trip three tanks. Some of the Northern areas of the country and the entire carribean side are more world class. But jaco dive is very visual lots of life fish and manta rays. (506)637-7123 need an 8 or 2 before the 6. or www.herraduradivers.com