Tips for a successful dive trip

It's no secret that divers love their equipment! However, equipment is heavy and baggage weight in the hold is limited, so how should you pick what you need?

For the new divers, you do not have to carry all scuba gear with you as usually you'll find everything you need on site! If you want to bring your own wetsuit, ask your travel agent or your reception structure about diving conditions in your destination and take the most suitable neoprene clothing, often just one thin piece of is enough!In terms of buoyancy compensators and regulators, protect your regulator properly in a suitable bag and tidy away the hoses properly. It is often possible to rent equivalent quality equipment to your own.

Still talking about your baggage, try to avoid packaging and new containers that are 100% full, particularly for soaps, creams, shampoo, etc. Go for biodegradable products and quantities to match what you actually need during your trip, and remember to bring back your empty containers and used batteries. Some dive bag brands have included a pocket for this in their bag range. You should be aware that waste water is usually thrown into the sea on cruises, and that the recycling systems we have in France for our domestic waste or batteries simply don't exist in many destinations. So if we wish to look after the environment where we love to dive, it's up to us tourist divers to be on the look-out and be aware of our freshwater consumption as well !

Let's get back to our tips for preparing your dive trip properly. When you've chosen this kind of trip, often abroad, each person has sacrificed time and money, made a commitment and part of their dreams are depending on it... So expectations are high ! Experience has shown me that any parts of the trip that were poorly anticipated or understood by the traveller could cause bad feelings or slight frustration. 

First of all, in terms of encounters... Each destination promises its share of common or rare species, sharks, rays, turtles, dolphins, tuna, swordfish... However, the sea is a wild environment and it should remain so. Although, to divers' delight, these promises generally come good, sadly they cannot be guaranteed. An encounter is just that... in all its intensity, precisely because it happens in an open, natural environment, with a wild species that might not be where it is expected ! Each travelling diver should be aware and know how to appreciate each fleeting moment of a wild encounter for what it is, that it can never be guaranteed to maintain its beauty and its power.

Certain misunderstandings or surprises that are partly due to the excitement of preparing a project, can be perceived coarsely or generate disappointment that can be avoided... Whilst travellers pay full attention to identifying the elements directly concerned with their sport, level of diving required, documents needed, medical check-ups, they sometimes pay less attention to more "secondary" matters. This is how information that is usually in the documents received or explained on your travel agency's website can be "discovered" a little late and not anticipated by the traveller who might be caught out... Here are a few examples: waiting times for connections in an airport, management of documents and papers at borders, tips for the boat crew... And remember, you cannot dive on 24 hours before your flight because the nitrogen saturation in your tissues will lead to health problems when in high altitude! So there are many little things that are often "normal" but that are much better understood and accepted if they are anticipated than if they are discovered too late!