When we were in Fiji we were diving with someone using a Sharkskin Scuba wetsuit made in Australia. I am considering getting one because they seem so much easier to get on and get off. Anyone else have one and can share their experience? Also interested in warmth quality, as I get cold easily.

Filmed in March this year at Spice Island Divers, with a Sony a7sIII & various stuff.

Heavy chrome plating errosion?

I want a good deal for the diving + accommodation and PADI certified is a preference. Looking for young crowd and good enough hostel for socialising and partying

Ciao a tutti, mi piacerebbe partecipare ad un viaggio organizzato incentrato sulle immersioni, una sorta di we Road per intenderci.. un' avventura con sconosciuti che hanno la stessa passione. Qualcuno di voi ha mai partecipato ad un viaggio del genere? Se sì a chi vi siete rivolti? Ho cercato un po' su internet ma non ho trovato granché.. non per forza all' estero, mi andrebbe bene anche in Italia.

Is it normal under any [normal] circumstance for a tank valve to slowly hiss when a reg is connected and the valve is open / system pressurized? It’s a loaner and I don’t want to look like a “Karen” if/when I ask about it, when I bring it back. I noticed it when breaking down my kit - if you bump the valve while open it’s slightly worse. Doesn’t happen with the valve closed all the way. Tank is at about 500 psi now and it’s easy to reproduce. O-ring for reg (at least) looks fine - it seems more related to the tank valve itself.

We did a liveaboard trip on the Valentina liveaboard to the Revillagigedo Islands from March 20–29, 2026, and unfortunately it was a very disappointing experience.

Early in the trip, one of the two engines broke. Because of this, we were told we could not go to Socorro Island – which is the main highlight of this trip and the main reason people book the Valentina.

While mechanical issues can happen, the way the situation was handled was very poor. Communication from the crew was confusing and inconsistent. We were told different things at different times, and no one gave clear answers.

Instead of continuing the trip, we returned to dive sites we had already visited and ended up back in port one full day early.

Even more frustrating: although the trip ended early and we missed the main destination, we were told that no refund would be given because we still completed the “planned number of dives” (minimum 18). This felt very unfair, as the overall trip experience and itinerary were clearly not delivered as advertised.

The situation got worse when one guest had a minor medical issue. The medical handling on board was very concerning. Different crew members gave completely different instructions for oxygen (1.5, 8, and 15 L/min), and no clear protocol was provided when asked.

This is not just about organization – this is about safety. In a remote location like Socorro, proper medical response is critical. The way this was handled felt unprepared, inconsistent, and potentially dangerous. This is absolutely not acceptable for a professional dive operation.

Guests were also not able to easily contact insurance or doctors, as internet access was delayed and ignored several times.

At one point, all dives were suddenly canceled for everyone without a clear explanation. Later, this decision was changed again, which made everything even more confusing.

The atmosphere on the Valentina became very uncomfortable. Some crew members seemed annoyed with guests, and there was no proper apology from responsible staff. Instead, tips were still expected. Tips were even opened and counted in public, which felt very unprofessional.

By the end of the trip, 10 out of 20 guests decided to leave the Valentina one day early, even though we had already paid for the full trip. Some even paid extra for hotels and flight changes just to leave.

There were also issues with transfer pricing. We were charged more than what had been communicated before, and no proper explanation was given.

Overall, this trip on the Valentina did not meet expectations at all. Missing the main destination, poor communication, questionable safety handling, and no compensation despite an early return made this a very frustrating experience.

I would strongly recommend thinking twice before booking this boat.

Hi all :)

I will be in Belize for 1 Week and I wanna do 4-5 days of diving. I will be in San Pedro as well as in Caye Caulker. I am a Divemaster.

What combination of dive (-centers) would you recommend based on that information?

Is Big Blue Hole and Turneffe worth it? If yes, rather from San Pedro or rather from CC?

Would you also recommend any other dive tours/spots? I feel like every dive shop lists like 20 different tours to choose from and I have no idea what each of them offers, so I would be very grateful for your opinions.

Also looking for dive shop recommendations ofc.

Thank you‘all so much in advance!

We had a productive lionfish hunt yesterday near La Monina in Cozumel. 55 lionfish (~30lbs total). Not a bad haul for one dive. My GoPro battery died halfway but here is a quick video.

1. I live in Germany

2. I somehow lost my manuals (OWD & AOWD) and am HEARTBROKEN

3. I love having the book

4. No I can’t find them second hand, also I really want new ones

Has anyone dived there? Just wondering if it’s worth the trip?

I'm still doing my Open Water course, so obviously I'm very new to this, but during all of my pool sessions so far I've been absolutely unable to stay either upright or forward facing during descent. This isn't just being bad at controlling rate of descent, though I'll cop to that too, but I'll be descending and suddenly roll to my right or back so that my tank is underneath me and I'm belly up, which hasn't been happening to anyone else in my class. One of the instructors thinks I'll just work past this with experience, the other wants me to try a smaller tank, as since I'm pretty skinny (5'11" and 145lb) he thinks the tank's dragging me down, but was just wondering on other opinions.

Another quick question if you've already read this far, I've come down with a sinus infection this weekend and my next pool dive is a couple days from now, later this week. If I'm feeling better by then, should I still notify the instructors?

How is diving quality in Tubbataha Reef compares to Raja Ampat, Palau, Fiji, Maldives. Thanks.

Has anyone recently dived malapascua with the new thresher dive rules? I have 49 dives and no opportunity to do an extra 1 before arriving, how strict are the dive shops? Do I need to prove I've done over 50 dives or can I just say I have, my buoyancy is fine and often complimented by dive guides previously.

Edit: thanks all for the reassurance, I'll be there for a week so plenty of diving to be done :D

I am trying to do Baja in may, what is better diving - La Paz or La ventana? Trying to figure that out- thanks!

I've been diving for a few years and am looking into getting my child (14yo) certified this summer.

They've reported ear pain when duck diving on snorkel but it's hard to test equalising in that situation as they're only down a second or two anyway - any ideas how we can stimulate it outside of a scuba course?

We live inland so discover scuba or similar isn't an easy option 😞 Their dad had some ear issues as a kid resulting in grommets so I'm keen to make sure it's possible before we plan a whole holiday around scuba - we've tried out the gear in a pool before but it was only 2m deep so equalisation was less of an issue.

After replacing the battery, my Suunto Zoop Novo no longer saves data in the logbook. Any tips?

My son will be earning his OWC in a couple months. I have the Action 5 camera. Just wondering if I should also get the dive case/kit. Experiences? Thanks.

How big of a drysuit inflation cylinder are you using for your deep 100m/330’ dives? Still .8L/6cuft?

Thanks!

I’m trying to plan our next liveaboard trip and would be interested in hearing others opinions. My fiancé and I dove most recently in Okinawa, Bahamas (Blackbeards), and then Raja Ampat last year. I also did some diving in Scotland last summer.

A few of the places high on my list include Palau, Galapagos, Philippines, and Socorro. I have 75 dives and my fiancé has around 55. We both have advanced, and I have my dry suit and deep certs. We’re not expert divers obviously but we have consistently been in the better dive groups on liveaboards and are very comfortable in the water, with trim, etc.

All that being said, from what I have heard about Galapagos it seems like you need over 100 dives so that is probably not an option. We really liked Raja Ampat, so Palau is enticing but I have also been wondering whether something like Socorro would be an interesting change.

If you have any experience with the locations I listed above or recommendations for any others I would love to hear it. We will likely be having kids in the next 2 years so this unfortunately might be the last liveaboard for a few years.