| January 2010 |
To anyone thinking of diving in Rarotonga please read this review: I went to Raro purely for the diving and booked two dives in with Pacific Divers...what a waste of time and money!
Here are my reasons:
(1) The boat is piece of junk and feels like its going to turnover any moment, and makes you feel quite ill from the motion of the ocean.
(2) The equipment was not safe - the plastic mouthpiece on my reg was torn so it was difficult to keep the reg in my mouth. I signalled to ascend because I had to literally hold the reg in my mouth which does not make diving fun at all. They swapped my reg with a spare (clearly they knew their equip was dodgy or else they wouldnt have packed a spare reg with them in the first place). The mouthpiece on the spare reg was also torn and before I could tell the DM (who I later found out wasn't even a DM), he had already descended.
(3) The 'DM' got lost and left me by myself while he ascended to find the boat. He did this three times!
(4) When we surfaced he pulled out his reg started laughing as he showed me his air gauge and said 'look at this!'. I looked at his air and he had ZERO bar left. I asked him why he would do such a dangerous thing and his response was 'because you're good with your air'. Not impressed.
(5) The skipper had no diving or skipper experience. He saved up his cash, moved to Raro from Australia to become a DM. He had been there 3 weeks already and was pretty much working for the shop for free and the poor bugger had not received any training from the shop owner yet....hopefully he has seen the light and has moved on to another dive shop.
(6) I did not feel comfortable doing the second dive with them so I canned it and we went back to the shop. The 'DM' wanted to charge me full price for two dives and I had to justify why I did not have to pay full price. He also tried to sell me photos that he took of the dive....I looked at the photos and they were all of me signalling him to go up because my reg was falling out of my mouth.
(7) finally, the owner turns up at the backpackers that I was staying at unannounced at 1am, heavily drunk, demanding the staff to get me. When the staff told him that I was not in my room he pointed to my scooter and shouted 'yes she is, that's her bike!'. Can you believe this???? What a stalking freakazoid!! I felt scared when the staff told me this in the morning.
I can't comment on all the dive centres in Raro because the only other dive shop I used during my time in Rarotonga was DIVE RAROTONGA. Only good things to say about this shop: professional and friendly staff who put safety first before anything else, excellent equipment that is regularly serviced, very accommodating, well priced and I did an awesome night dive with them, too. Oh, and the owner of Dive Rarotonga DID NOT TURN UP DRUNK AT MINE IN HE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT DEMANDING TO SEE ME. 5 stars for Dive Rarotonga. Pacific Divers does not even make the cut for a rating. I really hope that you take this in to consideration when planning your diving in Rarotonga.
Date posted: 04-Mar-2010 01:00 by: Gangey |
| April 2009 |
Good dives, ruined by poor dive sites and bad gear. I booked a two tank trip with Pacific Divers via the hotel. The shop is in the Muri area which is convenient if you are staying South of Rarotonga. With the added bonus that the dives start later than the other shop I called giving me time for breakfast at the hotel before the dives. The first dive we did was a wreck not far from where the guys launched the boat. The wreck was very ‘wrecked’ but there was plenty of critters and fish life. The second dive was not so good. It appeared that we were taken there to save fuel . Just outside the harbor the site was totally devoid of life and coral. It was pretty obvious that the dive was a filler. With previous dive companies I’ve dived ‘house reefs’ before, you know the site they always dive as a second dive. Well if this is a house reef, it sucks! The dives were led by a friendly Canadian lady who said the diving is not as good as places she has worked before. That aside, the first dive was good, so it appears that the second dive was as I said, just somewhere else to dive to fill up the morning. With that and the fact that the boat was a little tub with no ladder or seats. Engines which they had trouble starting. And a trailer with a wheel missing that was failing apart it is obvious that the guys running the shop are struggling for money for equipment upkeep. They were cheaper than the other shop I called and now I know why. It’s not all the time that you get what you pay for, but in this case it seems to be the go.
Date posted: 10-May-2009 01:52 by: Garmer |
| January 2009 |
We did 10 dives with Dive Rarotonga staying at the backpackers down the road. They took us on some fantastic dives including Sand River, Paradise, Mataora, Sunset reef and Mushroom Forrest. Most were good for fish life. We also went cavern diving in Croc Caverns which was just amazing seeing the eagle rays circling. We'd heard mixed stories about the diving in Rarotonga before we arrived and it's not comparable to dive destinations such as Palau but the clear water and fish make the dives worthwhile. Dive Rarotonga looked after us well. They are well organised, safe and professional. We'll definately return.
Date posted: 28-Feb-2009 19:34 by: NzDave |
| July 2008 |
Not great diving but certainly nice easy clear water diving. No current to speak of, plenty of critters, coral and calm seas! Definately worth diving if you, like us, are passing through the Cook Islands. Saw adverts for 4 Dive stores on the island. As it ended up, we dove with Pacific Divers 100m from where we were staying. Young guys, not a lot of experience, but friendly. If there is ever a next time we'd probably try a different shop.
Date posted: 31-Jul-2008 22:05 by: Steve |
| February 2008 |
Just got back from our trip to Rarotonga. We'd definitely recommend the place, wish we'd been sooner. As for the diving, it was ok. Not a lot to see fish wise and not a lot of coral. We dived South of the island and we couldn't try the other side due to the weather so that could have been better. The dive operation, we dived with The Dive Centre (Big Red Fish). I wouldn't dive with them again. The divemaster that took me diving spent the whole of the time telling us how bad another dive shop was. He drove the small inflatable like a mad man, I've still got the bruises. Then at the end of the dive we had to struggle with no ladder to climb in over the side. The gear was at best well used. And the German guy in the shop not exactly helpfull.
Date posted: 27-Feb-2008 03:50 by: warmwaterfins |
| December 2007 |
Sand River was a good dive. Only had time for two dives and I wish I'd dived with another company. Found these comments too late. Next time I'll check BBP before booking dives!
Date posted: 05-Jan-2008 02:25 by: JJ |
| August 2007 |
I'd never seen a whale before.. 6 cool dives. Tried two dive companys. Pacific divers in Muri :( No breifing, gear not good. Then Dive Raro. Not so cool 7:30am pick up but much better service and gear. Worth geting up early!! :)
Date posted: 19-Dec-2007 01:24 by: Jens |
| November 2007 |
We did 4 dives Mushroom Forest was superb. Huge Napolean wrasse followed us for the dive, fish everywhere. The other site we did that day was Sand River which was a superb drop off where we saw Barracuda and a big eel. We asked to dive the South and were told that because we were experienced they'd take us. So second day we dived Avavaroa passage and Papua passage south of the island. Coral not as good and strong current but we saw some sharks and a couple of eagle rays. We dived with Dive Rarotonga and all I can say is professional, safe and fun!
Date posted: 07-Dec-2007 20:28 by: Simon |
| October 2007 |
Had some excellent dives at Mushroom Forest, Sand River and Paradise. Dived with Dive Rarotonga. Boats manned, good briefings and professional. Overall I'd reccommend the diving from what we saw. Kevin and Jo
Date posted: 10-Nov-2007 01:46 by: Kevin |
| June 2007 |
I went to the Cooks for a work trip, but managed to get two dives in. The sites were Edna's Anchor and the wreck of the Mai Tai -- these are on the north west of the island. I can't say that the diving was great here, but I've heard that the south side of the island is better. The mountains of Rorotonga are beautiful and worth a hike. From what I've seen, you'll be disappointed if you go there expecting 'great' diving, but if you want to combine a bit of diving with general R&R and other island activities, Rorotonga is a good option.
Date posted: 20-Jun-2007 05:45 by: southernseas |
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Location:
Rarotonga
(Cook Islands)
Marine
Sightings:
Reviews:
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