Last Updated: 01/19/19 | January 19th, 2019
Learning to dive is something I’ve always discovered reasons to not discover exactly how to do. Something always comes up. I don’t have the money, I don’t have any individual to go with, I’m as well busy, I’ll discover when I get to Thailand, etc., etc.
The listing goes on as well as on.
Traveling around Fiji with Gary from Everything-Everywhere, I was lastly pushed, prodded, as well as cajoled by him to go diving diving. “If you don’t do it, I’ll make fun of you on Twitter,” he said. With the believed of public embarrassment as well as the pledge he’d come on my very first dive, I relented. I was going to discover to diving dive.
Making our method down the island chain, we discovered a dive shop on the island of Waya Lai Lai. The dive master, John, had been diving for 13 years as well as the surrounding area had a few of the very best diving in the Yasawa Islands. There was no much better time or location to learn.
Dive day came, as well as the trainers took Gary, a French girl, as well as me on a shallow dive across from the island. They taught us exactly how to breathe, equalize our ears, put on our gear, as well as what to perform in an emergency. I took a deep breath, asked not to get the bends, grabbed the instructor’s hand, as well as began to descend.
We began the dive on the surface, as well as I felt I was there for ages. I felt like I was descending. then I stopped as well as looked around. Whoa! I was underwater. I looked at my gauge. I was five meters underwater! We continued diving down, reaching a depth of about nine meters. The area had some great coral, however the fish were small, though their colors were amazing. as well as then, before I understood it, it was over. The air was gone, as well as it was time to find up.
Reaching the surface, I was grinning from ear to ear. “Can we go again?” I asked. as well as there it was. I was hooked. Back on the shore, I went to John as well as stated simply, “You were right. I liked it. I’ll do the PADI course.”
Later that afternoon, we went out on our second dive. My new dive friend was Irina, a wily Portuguese woman who had likewise made a decision to discover on the spur of the moment. John took us out as well as taught us some dive skills. I was a lot of anxious about taking off our regulators underwater. I’m still anxious I’m going to get the bends.
In buy to get a PADI open-water license, you requirement to do four dives. Besides getting over my concern of breathing underwater, it turned out I was going to get over my concern of sharks. when while in Belize, we went to a reef full of nurse sharks. I refused to get in. I don’t do sharks. They frighten me. even if they are harmless. as well as what was dive number three? Shark feeding.
Turned out the sharks weren’t my greatest problem. about 10 meters down, Irina tried to kill me. perhaps it was all jokes her good friend Paco as well as I were making on the boat trip over. perhaps it was a dive lover’s quarrel. however about 10 meters down, a fin flapped in my deal with as well as out came my breathing regulator. I felt myself begin to panic, however remembering my skills, I swiftly discovered my backup system as well as put it in my mouth. John lunged over to my side to assist me out. After a few minutes kicking back as well as calming down, we moved on.
Down at 20 meters, it’s simple to see why everybody likes to dive. Snorkeling has nothing on diving. The amount of fish you see, the lovely coral, the remarkable colors. I got to see Nemo up close as well as personal. as well as those reef sharks? turns out they truly are harmless.
Fiji enabled me to cross off one of my travel goals. I don’t understand what I was terrified of before. Diving’s easy. All you requirement to do is breathe in as well as out. The probability of anything going wrong is slim to none. I was always up before my air ran out, as well as as long as you stay calm, you’ll be alright.
Learning to Dive in Fiji: Costs, Logistics, & suggested locations to Dive
Diving in Fiji is cheap. My preliminary “discover scuba” dive expense 99 FJD ($46 USD). When I got my open-water dive, it was only 650 FJD ($300 USD) as well as included four dives.
These days, if you want to get your open-water accreditation in Fiji you must expect to pay around 800 FJD ($375 USD) — which is still a bargain! a lot of one-tank dives in Fiji will expense around 200 FJD per person, though you’ll get a discount rate for booking more. (A single dive may expense around 200 FJD however a double is only 300 FJD, for example).
While the diving in Fiji is spectacular all year round, you’ll have the very best exposure between April as well as October (their winter).
Some of the very best dive sites in Fiji are:
Yasawa Islands – best diving conditions for newbie divers (like me!)
Mantaray Island – Here’s where you’ll see lots of manta rays between May-October.
Viti Levu – If you want to dive with sharks, this is the location to be!
Taveuni – The world-famous Rainbow Reef is here, as is the excellent White Wall, a vertical reef that’s 25m deep!
Bligh Waters – uses tons of vibrant wildlife as well as coral.
Kadavu – right here you’ll discover one of the world’s largest barrier reefs!
If you want to discover to dive, make sure you do it in a location like Fiji, Thailand, or Bali as they’re economical as well as have a few of the very best diving in the world. You’ll pay half as much as you would in locations like the U.S., Australia, or the Caribbean yet you’ll still get safe, high quality diving instructions.
If you haven’t discovered to diving dive, you should. As much as I wished to learn, I always discovered an reason since I was just scared. It turns out diving isn’t that scary, as well as it’s truly simple to breathe underwater. Go diving dive. If I can get over my fear, you can too.
Book Your trip to Fiji: Logistical ideas as well as Tricks
Book Your Flight
Find a affordable flight by utilizing Skyscanner or Momondo. They are my two preferred browse engines since they browse web sites as well as airlines around the globe so you always understand no stone is left unturned.
Book Your Accommodation
You can book your hostel with Hostelworld. If you want to stay somewhere other than a hostel, utilize Booking.com as they consistently return the least expensive rates for guesthouses as well as affordable hotels. My preferred location to stay is:
Mantaray Island resort – With personal spaces as well as a large dorm, this is a excellent location to base your trip from. The spaces are clean as well as the personnel are helpful!
Don’t fail to remember travel Insurance
Travel insurance coverage will secure you against illness, injury, theft, as well as cancellations. It’s detailed security in situation anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I’ve had to utilize it lots of times in the past. I’ve been utilizing world Nomads for ten years. My preferred business that offer the very best service as well as value are:
Safety Wing (for everybody below 70)
Insure My trip (for those over 70)
Looking for the very best business to save money with?
Check out my resource page for the very best business to utilize when you travel! I listing all the ones I utilize to save money when I travel – as well as I believe will assist you too!
Want a lot more info on Fiji?
Be sure to see our robust destination guide on Fiji for even a lot more planning tips!